Category Archives: news analysis

GMAC-SAIC Finance More than One Million Car buyers in China

Posted on 25 January 2013 by Ken Zino

GMAC-SAIC Automotive Finance Company says its customer base has now surpassed one- million car buyers in China. The first and largest auto finance company in China since its founding in 2004 also has a continuous record of profits. In August 2012, GMAC-SAIC reached 880,000 customers when it celebrated the company’s eighth anniversary. Continue reading →

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Record 2012 Sales in China for GM, Volkswagen Group, Ford Motor

Posted on 24 January 2013 by Ken Zino

General Motors and its joint ventures sold a record 2.84 million vehicles in China during 2012, an increase of 11% from 2011 in the world’s largest auto market, which is now tracking at 19.1 million or more units annually. GM has led sales in China for eight consecutive years. GM just barely stayed Number One , though, because the VW Group, China’s Number Two automaker, sold 2.81 million vehicles, a +24.5% increase compared to 2011. Continue reading →

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Second Alabama Cop to Serve Time for I-65 Motorist Thefts

Posted on 23 January 2013 by Ken Zino

A second Alabama police officer has been sentenced to serve time because of his thefts from motorists on I-65. Former Fort Deposit police officer Carlos Tyson Bennett, 37, was sentenced to 37 months in prison, two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $500 in restitution. Bennett stole money from motorists during traffic stops with another ex Fort Deposit cop, Jessie Alan Fuller, on Interstate 65 in 2009. Continue reading →

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Driving the New “Cute-Ute” 2013 Buick Encore SUV

Posted on 22 January 2013 by Ken Zino

It’s hard to think of Buick on the cutting edge of anything, but its new Encore SUV seems poised to catch the wave of the growing cute-ute market in the U.S. Test drives of the mini SUV reveal a decent handling, refined version of GM’s Gamma II platform that is sold elsewhere in the world as Opel Mokka and Chevrolet Trax models. Continue reading →

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More Than 17.8 Million Safety Recalls During 2012 in U.S.

Posted on 20 January 2013 by Ken Zino

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that manufacturers conducted 650 safety recalls, affecting more than 17.8 million vehicles, child seats and equipment during calendar year 2012. Toyota at 5.3 million vehicles recalled, Honda at 3.4 million, General Motors at 1.5 million, Ford at 1.4 million and Chrysler at 1.3 million have the dubious distinction of leading the recall list. The record year for recalls remains 2004 when almost 31 million safety actions were taken. Continue reading →

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Treasury Now Selling More General Motors Stock at a Loss

Posted on 18 January 2013 by Ken Zino

The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced today that it is starting to sell its 300.1 million remaining shares of General Motors common stock with the initiation of a pre-arranged written trading plan. Under the unpublished plan, Treasury will proceed with its December 2012 announcement that it will sell its GM shares “in an orderly fashion” and fully exit its remaining GM investment within the next 12-15 months, subject to market conditions. Continue reading →

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Mazda and Fiat Sign Agreement for New Alfa Romeo Roadster

Posted on 18 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Mazda Motor Corporation and Fiat Group Automobiles S.p.A. announced today the formal signing an agreement that will have Mazda produce a convertible two-seater sports car for Fiat’s Alfa Romeo brand at its Hiroshima, Japan plant starting in 2015. Continue reading →

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Nissan Cuts Leaf EV Price by $6400 on U.S.-Assembled Model

Posted on 15 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Nissan announced that pricing for the 2013 Leaf electric vehicle starts at $28,800 for the newly-added S grade – think SALE – making it the lowest priced five-passenger electric vehicle sold in the United States. The least expensive 2012 Leaf had a starting price of $35,200 without taxpayer subsidies. Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn’s 20,000-unit sales target for the Leaf in 2012 was missed by 50%, and fewer than 10,000 were also sold in 2011. He previously said electric vehicles would account for 10% or more of global auto sales by 2020, a prediction that is viewed as fantasy by other automaker CEOs. Continue reading →

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General Motors Declares Dividend on Preferred Stock

Posted on 15 January 2013 by Ken Zino

General Motors (NYSE: GM) today announced that its Board of Directors has approved a quarterly dividend of $0.59375 per share on its Series B mandatory convertible junior preferred stock. The dividend (4.75% annually) is payable 1 March 2013 to Series B holders of record as of 15 February 2013. The dividend on the hybrid stock – a mixture of stock and debt – is cumulative. GM has not paid a dividend on its common stock since 2008 before it entered bankruptcy. Continue reading →

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2014 Corvette Sting Ray Builds on C6 with a new 7-Speed Manual, Cylinder Deactivation for a Front Engine, Rear-Drive V8 Sports Car

Posted on 13 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Seven better be a lucky number for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette. The so-called C7 – for the seventh generation of the fabled – and now fading – All-American sports car is an attempt to revive interest in what might be a dissolving market, the 2-seat, front engine, rear drive American sports car. Continue reading →

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Maserati, Lamborghini End Business Activities in Iran

Posted on 12 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Both Maserati and Lamborghini have ended business activities in Iran after the pressure group UANI protested their presence in the outlaw nation. This means that Fiat, Maserati’s owner, now joins the growing list of auto companies that have pulled out of Iran. Hyundai, Porsche, and Kia have also withdrawn from Iran during the past year. Continue reading →

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Ford Motor Doubles Quarterly Dividend for Q1 2013 to $0.10

Posted on 10 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Ford Motor Company declared a first-quarter dividend of $0.10 per share on the company’s outstanding Class B that the family controls as well as common stock. This doubles the $0.05 dividend paid in each quarter of 2012. Continue reading →

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2012 Record Year for U.S. Hybrid Sales, But EVs Remain Insignificant

Posted on 7 January 2013 by Ken Zino

The U.S. auto industry posted a record year for hybrid sales during 2012 as almost 500,000 hybrids were sold, or 3.4% of the overall new vehicle market. Continue reading →

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EPA Hydraulic Fracking Study Now Due in Late 2014

Posted on 6 January 2013 by Ken Zino

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or EPA said in a “progress report” that the outlines for a study on hydraulic fracking, aka fracturing, are now complete. EPA emphasized though that it has not drawn conclusions about the potential impacts of controversial hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources, which will be made in the final study. Continue reading →

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Highway Deaths at Lowest Level in 60 years

Posted on 6 January 2013 by Ken Zino

“Even as we celebrate the progress we’ve made in recent years, we must remain focused on addressing the safety issues that are continuing to claim more than 30,000 lives each year,” said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland, whose agency apparently did not eliminate any regulations during 2012 is spite of plunging highway deaths. Continue reading →

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