Category Archives: results

Offshore Brands Move Ahead in July. Toyota outsells Ford

GM by slightly outperforming an overall market that was up 14% easily held onto its Number One spot in the U.S. at 234,071 vehicles sold. However, Ford Motor slipped to Number Three as Toyota had a stronger month with sales soaring to 193,394 to Ford’s 190,080. March of 2010 was the last time Toyota topped Ford and with new Corolla compact car and Tundra pickup trucks just entering production, the back half of the year will see a battle royal between the two global automakers. Continue reading

Posted in auto news, news analysis, sales | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Chrysler Group July 2013 U.S. Sales up 11%

It was the best July in seven years as Chrysler Group today reported U.S. sales of 140,102 units, an 11% increase compared with sales in July 2012 of 126,089 units. Jeep, Dodge, Ram Truck and Fiat brands each posted year-over-year sales gains in July compared with the same month a year ago. Chrysler Group extended its streak of year-over-year sales gains to 40-consecutive months in July Continue reading

Posted in auto news, sales | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Volkswagen Group Euro-Bit. Q2 Profits Drop 11% to €2.85 Billion

The Volkswagen Group was bit by the Eurozone crisis as Q2 profits sank 11% in Q2 to €2.85 billion or ~$3.78 billion. Europe’s largest automaker by far, headquartered in Germany, Europe’s largest economy by far, has revised full-year estimates down to simply equal the €11.5 billion it reported for 2012. Even that might be a stretch given the European auto market, which is headed for its sixth straight year of declines and running at sales levels last seen two decades ago. Continue reading

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

Fiat SpA Q2 Profit at $188 Million – all from Chrysler

Fiat SpA [F.MI] posted a Q2 profit of €142 million or ~$188 Million largely because of the contribution of Chrysler Group where it owns a 58.5% stake courtesy of a U.S. taxpayer financed bailout of the Detroit Three automaker. The northern Italian company would have lost €247 million without Chrysler Group because its European sales dropped 5% during the period. Q2 revenues increased 4% to €22 billion. Continue reading

Posted in auto news, financial results, news analysis | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

$507 Million Chrysler Q2 Profit. New Cherokee Sales on Hold!

However, the positive trend is threatened in the second half of the year by the admission by Sergio Marchionne – he had to since it’s material to results under SEC regulations – that the new Jeep Cherokee was not shipping as planned starting in June even though it is in production in Ohio due to an unspecified calibration problem on its 9-speed ZF supplied transmission. Continue reading

Posted in financial results, news analysis | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Milestones – Henry Ford at 150 years

Today marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Henry Ford, whose ideas helped revolutionized transportation, brought mobility to the masses and arguably established the U.S. middle class. Continue reading

Posted in auto news, milestones, people | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Cuts to 2014 EPA Budget Threatens Auto Emissions Rules

Not surprisingly since the chairman is Hal Rogers, a Republican from Kentucky, the legislation reflects significant efforts to cripple the EPA – “an agency that has been rife with governmental overreach, overspending on ineffective and unnecessary programs, and costly and questionable regulations.” The bill funds the EPA at $5.5 billion, a reduction of $2.8 billion – or -34% – below the fiscal year 2013 enacted level. Continue reading

Posted in alternative fuels, environment, fuel economy or emissions, news, news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Renault Profits Climb to €583 Million despite Eurozone Crisis

Renault posted a profit of €583 million in the first half of 2013 in the face of the Eurozone crisis. The unexpected positive increase of 15% in earnings compared to last year came as Group revenues of 20,441 million dropped – 0.9% compared to the first-half 2012. Automotive operational free cash flow was negative at -€31 million with an automotive net cash of €732 million at end of June 2013. Continue reading

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

EuroSlump Goes On – June Commercial Vehicle Sales Drop -5%

During June commercial vehicle sales in the EU dropped by -5% in the EU as vehicle registrations continued their downward trend to 149,996 units. In another dismal month, all segments were down, from -4.2% for vans to -14.0% for buses and coaches. Continue reading

Posted in economy, sales | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

GM Earns $1.2 Billion in Q2 or 75 Cents a Share

With the exception of China where most vehicle buyers are new, GM brands continue to face strong competition. Even though GM continues to receive quality awards and strongly positive reviews on new products, and has once again become competitive in the leasing market, it is having a tough time stealing buyers from competitors. Part of this is due to its damaged reputation; part is the strength of facing products with strong customer loyally. Continue reading

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

Ford Motor Q2 Profit at $2.6 Billion or 30 Cents a Share

Ford Motor Company [NYSE: F] reported Q2 2013 pre-tax profits of $2.6 billion today, or 45 cents per share. The good overall result, which had analysts gushing over an automotive operating margin of 6.4%, improved 1.5 percentage points from 2012 at $726 million, or 15 cents per share, higher compared with a year ago. Continue reading

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

July U.S. Sales Projected as Hot – up 12%

Not all this is good news for automakers in general, and specifically the Detroit Three. Drastic capacity cuts during the Great Recession have caught them out with the market recovery volumes approaching 16 million now running at least a year ahead of earlier forecasts. Mandatory overtime and cancelled vacations are the rule of the day, which ultimately will wear down UAW and workers at Japanese companies and inevitably lead to quality declines. Continue reading

Posted in auto news, news analysis, sales | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

GM Sales Up 4% in First Half of 2013. Chevrolet Sets Record

General Motors sold more than 4.85 million vehicles in the first half of 2013, an increase of under 4% compared to the same period in 2012. The question now is will GM remain Number Two in Global Auto sales when current leader Toyota Motor reports sales results for the period. GM in a rising global market increased its share only 0.1% year-over-year, while Toyota has been rebounding at a much higher rate. Continue reading

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

Ford to Pay 10-Cent Dividend to Shareholders

Ford Motor Company declared a Q3 dividend of $0.10 per share on the company’s outstanding family-controlled Class B and common stock. Continue reading

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

GM and Honda Target 2020 for Viable Fuel Cell EVs

The light duty fuel cell vehicle (FCV) has shown promise for decades, but the problem remains that it is space age technology at NASA levels of cost. Not surprisingly, automakers have varying levels of interest fuel cells that always appear to be just a decade or so from commercialization, but interest is rising. Continue reading

Posted in alternative fuels, auto news, energy, engineering, global warming, manufacturing, milestones, shows and events | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment