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Category Archives: news analysis
Second Alabama Cop to Serve Time for I-65 Motorist Thefts
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
Driving the New “Cute-Ute” 2013 Buick Encore SUV
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
Posted in auto news, new vehicle, news analysis, road test
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, cute utes, encore, Ken Zino, mini SUVs
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More Than 17.8 Million Safety Recalls During 2012 in U.S.
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
Posted in auto news, news analysis, recalls, safety
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, dot, Ken Zino, nhtsa
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Treasury Now Selling More General Motors Stock at a Loss
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 Under the unpublished plan, Treasury will proceed with its December 2012 announcement that it will sell its GM shares “in an orderly fashion” and fully exit its remaining GM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
Posted in auto news, economy, financial results, news analysis
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, gm bankruptcy, gm common stock, Ken Zino, tarp
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Mazda and Fiat Sign Agreement for New Alfa Romeo Roadster
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
Posted in auto news, manufacturing, marketing, news analysis
Tagged alfa romeo, auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, fiat mazda, Ken Zino, miata, mx-5
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Nissan Cuts Leaf EV Price by $6400 on U.S.-Assembled Model
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
General Motors Declares Dividend on Preferred Stock
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
2014 Corvette Sting Ray Builds on C6 with a new 7-Speed Manual, Cylinder Deactivation for a Front Engine, Rear-Drive V8 Sports Car
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
Posted in auto news, new vehicle, news analysis, performance
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, c7 corvette, Ken Zino, naias
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Maserati, Lamborghini End Business Activities in Iran
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
Posted in auto news, news, news analysis
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, iran, Ken Zino, nuclear weapons, persia, shah of iran, uani
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Ford Motor Doubles Quarterly Dividend for Q1 2013 to $0.10
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
Posted in auto news, financial results, news analysis
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, dividends, Ken Zino, q1
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2012 Record Year for U.S. Hybrid Sales, But EVs Remain Insignificant
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
Posted in auto news, electric vehicles, news analysis, sales
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, EVs, hybrids, Ken Zino
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EPA Hydraulic Fracking Study Now Due in Late 2014
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
Highway Deaths at Lowest Level in 60 years
“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
Offshore Brands Led by the Japanese Capture 55.5% of the U.S. Auto Market in 2012 as the Detroit Three Lose Market Share Gained in 2011
In what turned out to be the best auto sales year since pre-Great Depression 2007, offshore brands captured 55.5% of the U.S. auto market, while the Detroit Three brand lost ground and held only 44.5% of the market. Continue reading
General Motors U.S. Sales Slow in December. Market Up
General Motors posted the company’s highest December sales in five years, as well as its best retail month during all 2012, with deliveries up 5% to 245,733 vehicles year-over-year. Nevertheless, it wasn’t enough to keep up with the rate of growth in the overall market of 9% as big months from Toyota (+9%) and Honda (+26%) skewed the data a bit. Some of the Japanese gains were explained by the recovery from the tsunami and earthquake disasters and ensuing production disruptions more than a year ago, but not all. “Not all” is the question that should be much on the minds of GM executive this year, which will see an ongoing jobless recovery and a battle royal in the marketplace. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, news analysis, sales
Tagged 2012 sales, auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, general motors, GM, Ken Zino
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