Nardelli, Cerberus Defendeth Too Much?

By Bill Visnic

After issuing a statement just before the holidays saying recent media characterizations of the financial situation at Chrysler LLC “painted an inaccurate picture” of the company’s fiscal health, media and analyst tongues are wagging with suspicion that the company’s hedge-fund owner, Cerberus Capital Management L.P., is scrambling to salvage its car-company investment.

Cerberus, which owns 80.1 percent of Chrysler and typically is closed-mouthed in its dealings with the media, hastened to back up Chairman and CEO Bob Nardelli when The Wall Street Journal reported Nardelli recently told some Chrysler employees the company was “operationally” bankrupt.

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Buick Design Will Grow Bolder,GM’s Top Design Exec Says

By Dale Buss

Expect future Buick vehicles to rip a big page from the success of the aggressively styled Enclave crossover and move quickly away from design-legacy retreads such as the company's Lucerne and LaCrosse midsize sedans.

Ed Welburn, GM’s vice president of global design, told AutoObserver that Buick is shifting decisively toward “bold” and “dramatic” design statements such as Enclave while still trying to retain some “elegant” and “romantic” elements from its design theme over the previous generation. He said to expect more iterations of the sort of overstated approach used with Enclave, which is distinguished by cues such as big curves in the sheet metal, lots of chrome exterior trim and huge, elongated headlights.

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Fiat Revival Celebrations Are Premature

By Richard Feast

It’s being hailed as the turnaround story of the year, but put the champagne back in the cellar. Celebrations about a Fiat revival are premature.

I was a judge on one of those auto industry Man of the Year award panels last year. Sergio Marchionne, the 55-year-old Italian-Canadian who has done so much to stop the rot at the Fiat group, emerged as the clear-cut winner.

My nomination for someone else stood little chance in the face of overwhelming voting for the “saviour” of Fiat. Still, I have reservations about whether Marchionne deserved the award – because we’ve been here before.

Anyone who’s studied Fiat long enough knows it’s a boom-or-bust group. It is Europe’s equivalent of Chrysler, one year a glamorous master of the automotive universe, another a down-and-out bum.

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The Sun Rises on an Indian Auto Empire: Tata to Buy Jag, Rover

By Nick Kurczewski

MUMBAI, India — Just in time for Christmas, it appears Tata Motors will win the right to purchase what might be the ultimate bargain of the automotive world: The Mumbai-based auto manufacturer has completed the purchase of Jaguar and Land Rover from the beleaguered Ford Motor Company. 

Ford originally bought these icons of the British motoring industry for well more than $5 billion, but the reported price Tata paid is estimated to be less than half that, somewhere in the region of $2 billion.

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Automakers Blog to Make Their Point, Connect With Customers

By Dale Buss

When Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli didn’t like the negative stories being written about the automaker in the business press over the past couple of weeks, he didn’t write nasty letters to the editor that may or may not have been published. He didn’t call a press conference to discredit the reports.

He blogged.

He used Chrysler’s The Firehouse blog to set the record straight that the automaker was not in the dire financial straits that had been reported. He insisted Chrysler was making progress in its turnaround and had the full backing of new owner Cerberus Capital Management.

The day after Chrysler posted Nardelli's blog, newspapers covered it as a story, demonstrating one of the many ways automakers are using blogs to get their viewpoints across as well as to communicate with customers and potential buyers.

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GM May Sell Plant Earmarked for Closure

By Bill Visnic

PITTSBURGH – General Motors Corp. is working on a deal that may net a few bucks from a manufacturing facility that was slated to be shuttered by the end of they year.

The company’s Pittsburgh metal-stamping plant in West Mifflin, PA, is not exactly on the inner ring of GM’s manufacturing universe, and GM announced in November 2005 it intended to close the facility by the end of this year. The plant was opened in 1951.

Now, the plant may be pulled back from the brink – and continue to produce for GM.

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Nissan May Use Back Gate to Sneak Into Super Bowl TV Ads

By Dale Buss

Nissan says it has never advertised its vehicles on TV during the Super Bowl, but that may be changing in Super Bowl XLII on February 3 and the introduction of the restyled 2009 Murano.

The company isn’t denying reports that it may seek a significant in-game ad presence by making a large spot buy that would allow it to run many local advertisements on Fox TV stations and affiliates during the game.

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Incentives: They Aren’t What They Used To Be

By Dale Buss

TV advertising is spiced with year-end incentives for auto buyers. Mercedes-Benz shows Santa’s elves tinkering in his workshop on E- and C-class sedans for its Winter Event program. It’s Happy Honda Days! General Motors is revisiting its now-annual Red Tag clearance sale for 2007 models.

Lexus has renewed its iconic incentive program that tries to lure consumers into putting big red Christmas bows on new vehicles and parking them in the driveway for their loved ones. And Lincoln is running a copycat campaign.

But don’t be fooled by airwaves full of incentive advertisements: as enticing as they seem, these offers only amount to a holiday treat. That’s because money-back and cut-rate-interest programs aren’t what they used to be in the auto industry.

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Posted by at 4:49 AM under Analysis, Chrysler, Featured, Ford, GM, Toyota | Comments (2) | digg this | del.icio.us

Report Says Tata Wins Jaguar, Land Rover from Ford

A British newspaper reports that India's Tata Motors will be named Friday as the winning bidder in the auction for Jaguar and Land Rover.

Britain's Birmingham Post newspaper says Tata will pay the equivalent of $2 billion for the two brands.

Ford has not confirmed the report.

Posted by at 1:59 PM under Ford, Rumors | Comments (1) | digg this | del.icio.us

GM Sells Medium-Duty Truck Business to Navistar

General Motors has reached an agreement with Navistar for the purchase of the automaker’s medium-duty truck business.

Under the plan, Navistar would manufacture GMC and Chevrolet brand vehicles in the class 4-8 gross vehicle weight range – the GMC TopKick and Chevrolet Kodiak.  Navistar also would sell a competitive line of Chevrolet and GMC vehicles and service parts through GM’s dealers in the United States and Canada.   

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GM’s Dream of Mid-Engine Corvette Not Off the Table

By Bill Visnic 

With General Motors Corp. unveiling the ultra-high performance ZR-1 and its six-figure price, the possibility of the next-generation Chevrolet Corvette moving to a more exotic mid-engine configuration still is being discussed at the highest levels of GM engineering, planning and marketing, sources close to the situation tell AutoObserver.

The iconic Corvette has used a classic front-engine/rear-drive layout since its inception in 1953. But some factions within the company believe the car should migrate to a mid-engine design for a variety of reasons, not all of them engineering-related.

It is a virtual assurance, however, that a mid-engine design would dictate a price point well in excess of $100,000 – a matter many at GM believe jettisons the Corvette’s heritage for quasi-affordability.

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Mercury Brand Status Dwindles Further as Ford Cuts Television Advertising

By Dale Buss

Ford Motor Co. seems to be nudging its Mercury brand closer to oblivion with its latest decision: to remove it from national television ads and some other spending on traditional media, instead shifting more resources online and into dealership advertising efforts.

The decision to reallocate marketing resources for Mercury comes as the brand continues to struggle in the marketplace (sales are down about 7 percent for the year) and as Ford reportedly plans no new products for Mercury after the introduction of an overhauled Milan midsize sedan in the 2009 model year.

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Nissan Will Attempt To Squelch Gouging on GT-R Supercar

By Bill Visnic

Now that the $70,000-or-so price of Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.’s upcoming  '09 GT-R supercar is public knowledge, Edmunds' CarSpace.com message boards are abuzz with discussion -– and skepticism –- about what the real price will be once dealers and associated speculators stake out their pieces of the action.

The ’09 GT-R, tested last weekend by Edmunds' Inside Line, certainly is next year’s most highly anticipated U.S. vehicle launch. Just as probable is that it will be 2008’s poster child for opportunistic dealer markups when the car goes on sale in June, what with a comparatively affordable starting price of $69,850 –- and Nissan promising a demand-stoking worldwide annual production run of just 1,500 cars.

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UAW Ad Campaign Picks Appropriate Time, Intriguing Target Markets

By Dale Buss 

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union has hatched a pre-Christmas advertising campaign in selected regional markets that combines a new series of television spots with a strong interactive element.

The ads debuted this week in five metro media markets in the Midwest and South, featuring UAW members discussing various aspects and causes of the Detroit-based union. The ads invite viewers to proceed to a Web site, IAmtheUAW.org, which invites union members and supporters to submit their own stories, photos, podcasts and videos.

The timing of the campaign is interesting because it comes within weeks after the union -– whose long-dwindling rolls now are down to about 640,000 active members -– ratified new labor contracts with each of the Detroit Three automakers. If there’s any time over the last several years when the UAW could expect outsiders to admire the institution’s principles and leadership, it is now.

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Edmunds.com Readers Compare Chevy Malibu, Honda Accord and Toyota Camry in Professional Road Tests

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Edmunds.com recently selected six applicants from the “Editor for a Day” submissions to experience and write about a professional comparison test of three midsize family sedans: 2008 Chevrolet Malibu, 2008 Honda Accord and 2007 Toyota Camry.   

The winners were flown to Los Angeles, given appropriate accommodations and training, then encouraged to put the comparison test vehicles through a series of driving exercises at Willow Springs International Raceway on November 29. The winners carefully evaluated the vehicles and their commentary  was published on Edmunds.com.

“This is the first time we invited real consumers from around the country to work with us on an actual road test,” said Kevin Smith, editorial director for Edmunds.com.

In the end, three of the demographically and geographically diverse group were split: three (including the two women in the group) chose the Malibu as their favorite; three chose the Accord.

Here is a summary of the “Editor for a Day” winner profiles and their comparison test experiences:

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Chrysler-Nissan Discuss Small Car, Big Truck Sharing

Chrysler and Renault-Nissan reportedly are in talks to do some sharing –- sharing of technology, engines and vehicles, specifically small cars and large trucks.

Nissan sources in Japan confirmed to AutoObserver that the talks of a global deal are ongoing and that some sort of announcement could come “fairly soon,” though there’s no guarantee a deal will ultimately be finalized.

The discussions center around Nissan’s desire for a large U.S.-made truck and Chrysler’s desperate need for small cars –- Nissan Sentra size and smaller, sources told AutoObserver.

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Ford Picks India's Tata for Jaguar, Report Says

Ford reportedly will name India's Tata Motors as preferred bidder for its Jaguar and Land Rover brands, according to Britain's Sunday Times.

The paper, in a story picked up by Reuters news service, said Tata will pay about $2 billion for the brands. The deal could be wrapped up in early 2008.

Tata's Indiana competitor, Mahindra & Mahindra, with private equity firm One Equity Partners, led by former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser, also bid on the British brands.

Posted by at 7:27 AM under Ford, Rumors | Comments (0) | digg this | del.icio.us

Automakers Beginning to Blink at Television Writers' Strike

By Dale Buss

Hyundai Motor America has begun shifting 2008 advertising dollars onto the Internet and away from television, as a result of the continued uncertainty over first-quarter programming stemming from the TV writers’ strike.

Other automakers also are on the verge of deciding whether to cut their dependence on a TV calendar that could become bereft of new episodes of popular dramas and comedies for some time, even if the strike is settled soon.

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Nissan GT-R Goes Underground

By Peter Nunn

TOKYO -- Deep underground, the guests and media throng were waiting. Then, suddenly with lights ablaze and engines roaring, two Nissan GT-Rs sped past in the semi-darkness, sending a flurry of excitement through the crowd lined up against the wall.

A film? Some kind of fantasy? Nope, this was the “Tokyo Underground Night Nissan GT-R X Shutoko Yamate Tunnel,” a full-on media whiz-bang staged on the eve of the new Nissan GT-R super coupe that went on sale in Japan this month.

It’s not every day a new car gets to be launched at night in deep mid-winter in a yet-to-be-opened roadway tunnel in Tokyo, but then the new GT-R is no ordinary car.

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Nissan’s Infiniti Takes on Europe

By Peter Nunn

TOKYO -- Infiniti was born in North America back in 1989. Next fall, a mere 19 years after its introduction, Infiniti will make another giant leap and launch in Europe.

What lies in store for Nissan's premier brand in the heartland of BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar and Audi? Speaking to media recently, Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn gave a fascinating vision of how he sees Infiniti being positioned.

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No Retirement, GM’s Lutz Insists

General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz insisted reports by the Associated Press, picked up by AutoObserver Wednesday, of him considering retirement are not true.

"Read my lips: I am not thinking retirement," wrote Lutz in an e-mail to trade journal Automotive News, which also picked up the story. "The job is better than ever, and so is GM!!!!"

The Associated Press, of course, is standing by its story.

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GM Has Four of Six NACTOY Finalists; Mazda, Honda Round Out the Roster

General Motors captured four of the six spots for finalists for the North American Car and Truck of the Year awards; a Honda and a Mazda rounded out the roster.

Finalists for the 2008 North American Car of the year are: Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Malibu and Honda Accord.

Finalists for the 2008 North American Truck of the Year are: Buick Enclave, Mazda CX-9 and Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid.

The finalists for the prestigious awards were announced Wednesday at a luncheon sponsored by the Detroit Economic Club to promote the Detroit auto show. Winners will be announced at the first press conference of the show on January 13, 2008.

GM swept the 2007 awards, with the Saturn Aura winning car of the year and the Chevrolet Silverado winning truck of the year in January. An encore sweep could be in the offing. If that happens, it would mark the first time a manufacturer won both awards two years in a row since the awards were created in 1994.

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Ford's Farley Demonstrates Qualities He Wants the Automaker to Exude

By Michelle Krebs

DEARBORN, Mich. – In his first appearance before the automotive press corps since joining Ford Motor Co., Jim Farley, the former Toyota exec now in charge of Ford’s global sales, marketing and communications, exuded warmth, humility, sincerity and authenticity.

Farley spun an emotional yarn about his grandfather, lunch bucket in hand, walking through the same doors of the historic Rouge complex, which served as the stage for Farley’s premier.

Describing himself often as Ford’s “communicator,” Farley demonstrated exactly the qualities he wants the Ford brand to exude when he unveils his new marketing plan in the next 90 days.

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Chevrolet Volt May Be Swan Song for GM’s Lutz

DETROIT -- Robert Lutz, General Motors vice chairman for global product development, says he may make the Chevrolet Volt his swan song.

The 75-year-old Lutz, who is credited with GM’s product renaissance, told reporters this week that he wants to retire GM after the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid is introduced, around 2010.

Often heard ranting about the ridiculous of global warming and a pooh-pooher earlier on of hybrids like the Toyota Prius, Lutz has done somewhat of an about-face. He sees plug-in electric vehicles like the Volt as a paradigm shift in the auto industry.

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New CAFE: Higher Number, Same Problems

By Bill Visnic

The U.S. House of Representatives finally approved a massive energy bill whose cornerstone is the long-debated increase of fuel economy standards to a 35 miles per gallon average for both passenger cars and light trucks by 2020.

Trouble is, just when auto companies, politicians and environmental interests seem able to agree the public insists on something resembling “action” regarding auto fuel economy, the bill faces an almost certain roadblock in the Senate –- not to mention a threatened veto from President Bush –- because it retains a provision to reduce tax breaks for Big Oil and mandates large utilities produce at least 15 percent of their energy from renewable sources.

Both are measures eco-evasive Bush and Republican stalwarts say derail any prospects of the bill’s passage in the Senate.

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Posted by at 3:23 PM under Analysis, Companies, Featured | Comments (1) | digg this | del.icio.us

2007 Biggest Losers, Winners, Movers and Shakers Predicted by Edmunds.com

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- With 11 months of vehicle sales reported, the biggest losers and winners –- and those brands that are on the move to new sales rankings –- are being predicted by Edmunds.com’s analysts.

The biggest losers for 2007 look to be: Ford division; Isuzu; Buick; Hummer; Toyota’s Scion; and Jaguar.

The biggest winners for 2007 likely will be Mazda, Lincoln and Mitsubishi, all of which have surpassed total 2006 sales in just the first 11 months of the year.

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Posted by at 4:55 AM under Analysis, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Toyota | Comments (4) | digg this | del.icio.us

Chevy Volt Designers: Shape, Not Weight, Is More Important

By Bill Visnic

WARREN, Michigan –- General Motors Corp. designers and engineers say they will have to figure out ways to seriously cheat physics if a production version of the company’s Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid-electric concept car is to deliver on the promised driving range of 40 miles propelled solely on battery power.

GM designers revealed at a media event here they have embarked on an all-out battle to minimize efficiency-reducing aerodynamic drag. And the company recently commissioned a new studio and a 45-strong staff dedicated to developing hybrid and full electric vehicles using its E-Flex “modular” propulsion system. Right now, that means the full staff is working on just one vehicle: the Volt.

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GM’s Top Salesman LaNeve Sees the Glass Half Full

By Dale Buss

DETROIT -- Oil prices were surging to near $100 a barrel. The housing downdraft was whacking economic optimism with each new report. General Motors’ sales were in the process of dropping by a double-digit percentage. And GM bean counters were putting the finishing touches on a quarterly statement that would yield an industry-record quarterly loss.

But still, it was a good November for Mark LaNeve, GM’s vice president of vehicle sales, service and marketing. That’s because he was seeing a bunch of other numbers, too -– the ones that showed significant and sustained upticks in the company’s market share, consumer purchase consideration of GM vehicles, product-quality scores and even the equity of GM’s brands.

And ever the salesman, LaNeve was touring the country, hitting 14 cities for meetings with 40 GM dealers and ladling out the Kool-Aid with the help of a 10-slide PowerPoint presentation that told the story of GM’s comeback and sounded a rallying cry as 2007 was nearing a close.

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Ford Wins Fix for Labor, Manufacturing Excesses – But Products are Yesterday’s News

By Bill Visnic

Okay, so Ford Motor Co. has a brand-new four-year agreement with the United Auto Workers union that markedly cuts the company’s labor liabilities.

November’s handshake with the UAW also brings the union’s blessing to pare Ford’s U.S. manufacturing footprint to just nine assembly plants; the company already has shuttered four major U.S. plants and will close another in 2009 as it right-sizes itself to a near-term market share projected to be around 15 percent. As recently as 2002, Ford share exceeded 20 percent.

But with Ford shedding costly and unproductive manufacturing capacity (and the associated workers, unfortunately), the next problem emerges: much of what’s being built in Ford’s remaining UAW-represented plants is yesterday’s news.

CEO Alan Mulally stresses that savings from the new labor agreement – along with vital new investment to install flexible-manufacturing tooling in all its plants – will enable Ford to accelerate new-product development. That acceleration needs to get started: the Mustang and the F-150 pickup line are the company’s only absolute winners, and even those perennial segment-dominating models are coming under pressure from a flagging U.S. market and ongoing concern about fuel prices.

An assessment of the plants that will take Ford through the pivotal next four years of its restructuring and the vehicles they produce, or are likely to be producing:

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Posted by at 5:52 PM under Analysis, Featured, Ford | Comments (2) | digg this | del.icio.us

Ford Explorer, Escape: Tale of Two SUVs

Ford doesn't have to look very far to see the dramatic shift in the marketplace -- away from gas-hungry, larger SUVs to more fuel-efficient, car-based ones.

The automaker just has to long in its record books at the Explorer and the Escape to see the tale of two SUVs.

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Posted by at 10:11 AM under Analysis, Ford | Comments (2) | digg this | del.icio.us

November Vehicle Sales: Could Have Been Worse

November car and truck sales weren't great, but, in light of current circumstances, they could have been worse, concluded Edmunds.com's analysis of November sales figures reported by automakers Monday.

Jesse Toprak, executive director of Industry Analysis for Edmunds.com, noted the retail market, despite the weakening economy, the fallout from the housing market and higher energy prices, remained relatively stable this November compared with the last one.

“We’re seeing modest gains though not robust ones,” he said. “We’re still doing fairly well considering the market and macroeconomic issues.

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Posted by at 7:43 AM under Analysis, Chrysler, Featured, Ford, GM, Toyota | Comments (1) | digg this | del.icio.us

Ford Explorer: No Longer King of SUV Mountain

Remember when the Ford Explorer was king of the SUV mountain – the best-selling SUV in America?

The Explorer's reign is long over.

Without fanfare, the Honda CR-V quietly took over the No. 1 spot among SUVs and crossovers this past year. A number of other SUVs have also passed the Explorer by. In fact, the Explorer has been surpassed by the Ford Escape and Ford Edge.

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Posted by at 5:18 AM under Analysis, Ford | Comments (6) | digg this | del.icio.us

Toyota Prius: Outselling Entire Brands

The Toyota Prius has become a brand unto itself; the single hybrid car is outselling entire brands with their full lines of models.

The Prius more than doubled sales in November compared with November 2006. Prius outsold the entire Acura, Saturn, Buick, Subaru and Mercury brands. It came close to outselling the Cadillac and Volkswagen brands.

That's to name only a few. (See chart below)

And November wasn't even Prius' best month. In November, Toyota sold 16,737 Prius hybrids; in May, Toyota sold more than 24,000.

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Posted by at 4:51 AM under Analysis, Technology, Toyota | Comments (16) | digg this | del.icio.us

Japan Car of the Year: Honda Fit Wins – As Expected

By Peter Nunn

TOKYO -- Like many Car of the Year contests, Japan’s COTY can throw up the occasional unexpected result.

But not this year.

Going into this year’s showdown, many wise souls predicted that the new Honda Fit would win at a canter. And that in the end is exactly what happened.

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Posted by at 8:38 AM under Analysis, Companies, News, Toyota | Comments (2) | digg this | del.icio.us

North American Car/Truck of the Year Vote Deadline Is Today

At 5 p.m. EST today (Monday, Dec. 3), journalist-jurors must have their votes cast for the 2008 North American Car and Truck of the Year award.

It’ll be a couple weeks before the six finalists – three cars and three trucks -- are announced; that will be done at on at the Detroit Economic Club luncheon on Wednesday, Dec. 12. At that time, jurors will vote again, ranking the three picks in each category.

Winners will be announced on the first press day of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Sunday, Jan. 13.

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Posted by at 8:16 AM under Chrysler, News, Personalities | Comments (1) | digg this | del.icio.us

Incentive Spending Roughly Flat, Says Edmunds.com Report

SANTA MONICA, Calif. – Incentive spending by automakers remain roughly flat in November, as manufactured tried to stick their plans for less incentive spending to boost profit margins. Yet, the plan may prove to contribute to softer vehicle sales, being reported by manufacturers throughout Monday.

"Even with the year-end sell-down upon us, the domestic automakers have stayed committed to the value pricing strategy that limits their investment in incentives,” said Jesse Toprak, executive director of Industry Analysis for Edmunds.com.

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Posted by at 7:53 AM under Analysis, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Toyota | Comments (0) | digg this | del.icio.us

Forget BMW. Forget Honda. Europe Car of the Year Says Fiat Makes the Finest Cars

By Richard Feast

LONDON -- Orders for the Fiat 500, the cute little city car that was recently named 2008 Car of the Year in Europe, suggest it will be popular with buyers.

That would make a change. All too frequently in the past, the model COTY judges pronounced ‘the best’ in a given year proved anything but when a more important group of judges had their say: the people who buy new cars each year.

There is clearly a significant divide between what critics acclaim and what consumers will part with their money for. It is evident in many spheres. Theatre critics applaud challenging new dramas, but what the public wants are frothy, tried-and-trusted musicals. Their literary peers recommend Don DeLillo and Thomas Pynchon but buyers in their millions prefer Dan Brown and Robert Ludlum.

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Posted by at 7:14 AM under Commentary, Companies, Featured | Comments (4) | digg this | del.icio.us