Category Archives: manufacturing

Toyota to Boost 4-Cylinder Engine Capacity in Kentucky

Posted on 8 May 2012 by Ken Zino

The additional capacity will result in only 80 new jobs since engine plants are highly automated, and require few skilled workers to monitor the computerized processes that do much of the work. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, fuel economy or emissions, manufacturing | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Milestones: Ten Years of Porsche Leipzig SUV and Sedan Plant

Posted on 7 May 2012 by Ken Zino

Porsche has marked the tenth anniversary of what was at the time a controversial expansion into the truck market. However, the Porsche factory opened in Leipzig during 2002 to build the Cayenne SUV has proved to be a successful investment that has since grown to produce another controversial – but just as profitable vehicle, the Panamera sedan. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing, marketing, milestones | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Renault-Nissan Take Control of Russian Automaker Avtovaz

Posted on 4 May 2012 by Ken Zino

Total auto industry volume in Russia last year was 2.65 million vehicles, including light commercial vehicles. Volume in 2012 is expected to be 2.9 million units. The economy went through a bubble and subsequent collapse a few years back, and Lada has been steadily losing share all through the recession. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, milestones | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Ford Thailand Opens New $450 Million Plant

Posted on 3 May 2012 by Ken Zino

FTM is Ford’s second plant in Thailand, and one of eight new Ford manufacturing facilities across the Asia Pacific and Africa region the company will open by 2015 as part of its global expansion. FTM has an initial production capacity of 150,000 vehicles – increasing the company’s annual capacity in Thailand to 445,000. Mazda, which runs the other plant in Thailand in a joint venture with Ford, is not part of the new entity, the latest example of the ongoing divergence of the two companies. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ford Sells Former Visteon Trim Plant to Faurecia

Posted on 3 May 2012 by Ken Zino

ACH was formed in 2005 to sell or close 23 former Visteon plants. The sale of the Saline, Michigan plant is expected to close in June. Nearly all of the 2,100 mostly UAW employees at the business have been offered employment, Ford said in a statement. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing, results | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hyundai Sales Flat in April as Capacity Constraints Hurt

Posted on 2 May 2012 by Ken Zino

“Never has a relatively flat sales month felt quite so good,” said Dave Zuchowski, Hyundai Motor America’s executive vice president of national sales. The question facing Hyundai remains how to increase production to find out what is the true demand for its hot selling, highly styled vehicle lines? It has been clear for more than a year now that Hyundai needs another plant, a risk that management has so far been reluctant to take. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing, results, sales | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Chrysler Execs to Move into Detroit for the First Time

Posted on 30 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Chrysler is leasing nearly 33,000 square feet of space and, after the space is refurbished, about 70 people will move in. It’s largely a symbolic gesture now, but it’s important for the city of Detroit and the comeback car company that many had left for dead. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, marketing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mazda BT 50, Ford Ranger Pickup Capacity Upped in Thailand

Posted on 26 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Ford Motor, of course, once dominated the compact pickup truck market in the U.S. until years of product neglect combined with an assault by Toyota and Nissan pushed it to a footnote in the segment. This first forced the closing of Ford’s Edison, New Jersey plant. The remaining plant in Minnesota did not survive the Ford UAW contract last year. It was and remains a stunning amount of business to cede to the competition. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing, news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Honda Global Production Declines for 2012 Fiscal Year

Posted on 25 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Honda Motor Company today announced that global automobile production declined to 12% to 3.1 million vehicles for the Japanese fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. The setback induced by natural disasters in Japan and Thailand stopped the recovery Honda experienced in 2011, after a decline in 2010. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing, results | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Volvo signs MoU with China Development Bank. Plant Next?

Posted on 24 April 2012 by Ken Zino

In 2011, Volvo sold 449,000 vehicles globally, not enough to finance internally new platforms and or plants, both of which it needs to survive in the global auto business. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, people | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cadillac to Build New XTS in China at Shanghai GM

Posted on 24 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Cadillac will build the new XTS luxury sedan in China in conjunction with its mandated joint-venture partner Shanghai General Motors (SGM) starting this fall. Cadillac sold a record 30,000 vehicles in China in 2011, compared with 17,000 in 2010 even … Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, marketing, new vehicle, news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

SAE 2012 World Congress Opens in Detroit Tomorrow

Posted on 23 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Engineers who are developing the next generation of vehicle technologies, will make sober assessments of where they actually are in increasing fuel economy, decreasing emissions and combating global warming, as opposed to the sometimes farcical claims in gushing press releases from politicians and automaker p.r. departments. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, engineering, fuel economy or emissions, manufacturing, transportation | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Guangqi Honda to Build a Third Automobile Production Line

Posted on 23 April 2012 by Ken Zino

During 2011 Honda sold 618,000 cars in China last year, dwarfed by market leader General Motor’s 2.55 million and Volkswagen Group’s 2.26 million. Among the Japanese Big Three, Nissan in China is twice as big as Honda and Toyota is 40% larger in terms of vehicle sales. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, milestones | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Volkswagen Group To Build New Plant in Urumqi China

Posted on 23 April 2012 by Ken Zino

The Volkswagen Group and China First Automobile Group Corp (FAW) also agreed on plans to extend the FAW-Volkswagen joint venture originally set up in 1991 by another 25 years. In 2011, market leader General Motor’s China sales were at 2.55 million and Volkswagen Group was second at 2.26 million. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, milestones | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Toyota Russia to Add Second Shift at St. Petersburg Plant

Posted on 20 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Production of the new Toyota Camry began at TMMR in November 2011. Camry sales increased 66% year-on-year in Q1 of 2012, while sales of Toyota vehicles in the Russian market increased by 22% to 32,859 units during the same period. Continue reading →

Posted in auto news, manufacturing, milestones | Leave a comment