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Category Archives: news analysis
GM Buys Overseas Finance Business from Ally for $4.2 Billion
GM said that with addition of Ally’s international operations, GM Financial will be able to provide credit for customers and dealers in markets that make up about 80% of GM’s global sales. In essence, GM is recreating GMAC. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, economy, news analysis
Tagged ally, auto bailouts, auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, finance, gm financial, Ken Zino, tarp
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Toyota Recalls 150,000 Tacoma Pickups for Rust and Corrosion
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. is recalling 150,000 Tacoma pickup trucks from the 2011 to 2004 model years because corrosion can suddenly jettison the spare tire from under the bed. While U.S. Tacoma sales for those years are much higher, only vehicles originally sold or currently registered in 20 cold climate states and the District of Columbia will be inspected and have the spare tire carrier assembly replaced if need be. Critics of such limited actions maintain they do not fix all the potentially unsafe vehicles. Automakers use them to cut down on the costs of a full recall. Continue reading
EU Car Sales Continue to Evaporate in October – Off -5%
The economic decline of the European Union continued in October as sales of new passenger cars contracted by 5% to 959,412 compared to October of 2011. It was the thirteenth straight month of sales declines across the economically embattled Eurozone as the trade bloc comprised of 27 bickering nations is unable to move out of the economic doldrums. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, economy, news analysis, sales
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, chrysler europe, eu, eu sales, eurozone, fiat europe, ford Europe, gm europe, Ken Zino
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Bailout Benefits Multiply as Chrysler adds 1,250 Detroit Area Jobs
Chrysler Group will invest nearly $240 million to increase engine capacity and add about 1,250 new jobs at several southeastern Michigan plants. In the latest example of the ongoing wealth creation, that was a direct result of the Obama Administration’s forced bankruptcy reorganization of Chrysler and General Motors, CEO Sergio Marchionne said, “All of these investments are the direct result of a lot of people who have battled courageously to bring Chrysler back to a state of growth. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, economy, manufacturing, news analysis
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, chrysler group, Ken Zino, mack engine, warren truck
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Ford China Sales Grow in October as Focus Dominates Results
Ford Motor and its communist government dictated partners set a sales record during October in China as the firms sold 60,518 cars and light trucks. Market leader General Motors sold more than 250,000 vehicles during the same period in the world’s largest car market. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, marketing, news analysis, results, sales
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, ford china, Ken Zino
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Spark Plug-in EV to Debut in La-La Land at Los Angeles Show
Chevrolet will unveil the electric version of the Spark minicar at the Los Angeles Auto Show later this month. No technical details for the EV were released. The South Korean-made Spark EV will be sold in limited quantities in some U.S. and global markets, starting in 2013 in California. Continue reading
Posted in alternative fuels, auto news, electric vehicles, news analysis
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, coda ev, EVs, fiat 500, fit ev, focus ev, Ken Zino, leaf ev, scion iq, sonic, spark
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54.5 in 2025 Subject of Critical CAR CAFE Seminar
The Center for Automotive Research will examine the implications for product development of the 54.5 mpg CAFE fuel mandate that is now a federal regulation. Currently, estimates for the cost of compliance range from zero to $10,000 per vehicle for what is a difficult engineering task that has become – once again and as always – an ideological battleground, with posturing from automakers, regulators and pressure groups. The ability of product development engineers and their auto companies to meet the new standards and/or garner credits to offset some vehicle shortfalls will determine the type of vehicle you can buy, and how much you will pay for it. With safety regulations already on the books potentially adding thousands to the cost of a new vehicle, the social implications for automobility are serious; Moreover, if the implementation of CAFE regulations goes badly it could damage one of the U.S.’s best wealth and job creating industries at a time when growth is desperately needed. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, economy, engineering, environment, news analysis
Tagged 54.5, auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, cafe, cafe seminar, car, Ken Zino
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Mazda to Make a Tiny Toyota in Mexico for Sale in North America
Mazda Motor Corporation today announced that a plant in Mexico, currently under construction, would produce a Toyota-brand vehicle for sale in North America. The sub-compact will be based on the new Mazda2, and will enter production during the summer of 2015. Toyota Motor Corporation is requesting 50,000 units per year for a Yaris-sized car that will be sold through Toyota dealerships. Continue reading
Green Talk from EV Makers Ignores Key Buyer Concern – Cost
While existing buyers of electric vehicles are true EV believers, the vast majority of car shoppers are not. In a new study, nearly half of current EV buyers claim the best benefit of their ac/dc wheels is lower emissions when compared with emissions from gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicles, and it’s not clear if they know how their electricity is generated. However, when you get past this “puddle” of EV buyers – they don’t even form a “pool” since they comprise only about 2.5 % of the U.S. new vehicle market of 14 million – and that’s if you include hybrids as EVs; pure EVs have less than a 1% share – other people need to be brought into the clan. This assumes auto manufacturers are interested in recouping the billions invested so far in electric modes of transportation, prompted almost entirely by government regulations. Continue reading
Qorus, New Chinese Brand Coming to China, Europe, Mid-East
China-based Qoros Auto Company will debut a new compact or C-class sedan at next year’s Geneva Motor Show as part of what it claims will be a series of vehicles aimed at buyers in China, Europe and the Middle East. This business plan, of course is easily done by press release. However, the design, development, manufacturing and wholesaling of actual cars and light trucks sometimes is more difficult, occasionally thwarting even the best of established automakers. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, new vehicle, news analysis
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, chery automobile, china, Israel corporation, Ken Zino, qoros, Qorus
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Ford’s Mulally to Remain as President CEO through at Least 2014
Ford Motor Company Executive Chairman Bill Ford said today that Alan Mulally plans to continue to serve as Ford president and CEO through at least 2014. Mark Fields was named the company’s chief operating officer effective 1 December. The announcement has industry observers debating whether Fields is ultimately talented enough to lead the U.S.’s second largest automaker. Fields will continue to report to Mulally, as will the company’s chief financial officer, general counsel and group vice president of Human Resources and Corporate Services. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, news analysis, people
Tagged auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, ford motor, Ken Zino
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Ally Financial Repays $2.9 Billion of FDIC Debt
Ally Financial today announced it has repaid $2.9 billion in debt issued under the FDIC’s Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program (TLGP). The bank holding company issued this debt on 30 October 2009 with a maturity date of 30 October 2012. The final Ally debt guaranteed under the TLGP will be repaid in December 2012 and totals $4.5 billion. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, economy, milestones, news analysis, results
Tagged ally financial results, auto informed, autoinformed.com, automotive news, fdic, Ken Zino, tarp
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General Motors Posts Q3 Profit of $1.5 Billion, off -$200 Million. Ideologues Out in Full Force for Halloween and the Election
General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) today announced third quarter net income of $1.5 billion, a drop of -$200 million from the same period in the prior year. This works out to $0.89 per share including special items, which reduced net income by $100 million and cut earnings per share by $0.04. In the third quarter a year ago, GM’s net income was $1.7 billion or $1.03 per share. The results represent a turnaround especially in view of Q1 of 2009 when GM lost almost -$10 per share.
In spite of wild claims – critics say deliberately false – from the repudiated Republican right about the auto bailout, GM is not going bankrupt. GM’s debt-to-equity ratio is only 25% of the overall auto industry average, and it now has more than $37 billion in liquidity. GM in the context of the current travails of the global auto industry is performing reasonably well. Continue reading
