Category Archives: results

Toyota Ousts GM from Global Auto Sales Leadership. VW Third

Posted on 31 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Toyota Motor regained global sales leadership in 2012 ousting GM by selling 9.75 million vehicles. GM’s sales were 9.29 million vehicles with Volkswagen Group closing on GM in third place at 9.07 million vehicles for the year. Toyota had led global sales from 2008 until 2010 when natural disaster induced production disruptions, the result of a tragic earthquake in Japan and flooding in Thailand, halted its growth. Continue reading →

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GM Cuts Powertrain Locations in Efficiency Move

Posted on 31 January 2013 by Ken Zino

General Motors will close three leased facilities in Wixom, Michigan; Castleton, Indiana, and Torrance, California and consolidate their powertrain engineering activities into a Global Powertrain Engineering center in Pontiac, Michigan. GM R&D’s Propulsion Systems Research lab in Warren, Michigan will also relocate to the Pontiac campus, including its electric motor engineering . Continue reading →

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Chrysler Group Posts 2012 Net Income of $1.7 Billion

Posted on 30 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Marchionne says he will merge the two groups by 2015. However, he surprised analysts by changing his business plan forecast for Chrysler, slashing free cash flow from $3 billion to only $1 billion for 2014, with 2013 at about half of the $2.2 billion 2012 generated. He needs the cash to develop new products for both Groups while shoring up Fiat’s foundation. Continue reading →

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Toyota Recalls More than 1 Million Corolla and Lexus IS Cars

Posted on 30 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Bad airbags and windshield wipers are forcing the recalls of 752,000 Corolla and Corolla Matrix models and 270,000 Lexus IS cars by Toyota Motor Sales, U.S. The two separate safety recalls are the result of a defective airbag control module … Continue reading →

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Ford Makes $8 Billion in 2012 – Almost all in North America

Posted on 29 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Ford remains heavily dependent on the slowly recovering North American auto market, where it earned $8.3 billion, with an operating margin of 10% on sales of 2.8 million vehicles during 2012. Because of Ford’s 2012 financial performance, the company will make profit sharing payments to 45,800 U.S. hourly employees of $8,300 each. Ford expects similar North American results in 2013, with perhaps a profit increase if the pickup truck – where it is the sales leader – market continues to recover. Continue reading →

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Shoppers Don’t Worry about Reliability as Cross Consideration Grows

Posted on 25 January 2013 by Ken Zino

As perceptions of both reliability and actual vehicle dependability improve, new-vehicle shoppers are considering more models before making their purchase decision, according to a new study. As vehicle quality improves across the industry, new-vehicle shoppers now consider an average of 3.3 vehicles in 2013, compared with 3.1 in 2012 and 2.9 in 2010. Continue reading →

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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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January 2013 U.S. Vehicle Sales Forecast as Highest in Five Years

Posted on 25 January 2013 by Ken Zino

January 2013 new vehicle sales are predicted to come in at 812,600 vehicles for a seasonally adjusted annualized rate or SAAR of 12.9 million units. This is 14% higher than January 2012. Total light-vehicle sales in January 2013 in the United States are projected to reach 1,027,700 units, an 8% increase from January 2012. The encouraging January sales prediction, if true, is well ahead of the forecast of 12.4-million-unit annual level for 2013. 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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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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EPA Report Shows Air Pollution Continues to Decline in the U.S.

Posted on 18 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Toxic air pollution in the U.S. dropped 8% in 2011 from a year earlier because of decreases in hazardous air pollutant emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency,. However EPA said that total releases of toxic chemicals increased for the second year in a row. The Agency, which is under constant attacks from Republican party members some of whom want to abolish it, publishes an annual Toxics Release Inventory or TRI report. 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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Chinese GAC Group to Build Jeep Models in China

Posted on 15 January 2013 by Ken Zino

Chinese automaker Guangzhou Automobile Group Company will build Jeep models in China, according to a revised joint venture signed in Michigan today with Fiat S.p.A. GAC already manufactures the Fiat Viaggio – aka Dodge Dart – and distributes the imported Fiat 500, Freemont and Bravo in China. Continue reading →

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Mercedes-Benz E-Class and CLA-Class Unveiled in Detroit

Posted on 14 January 2013 by Ken Zino

“In 2012, we sold more than 274,000 cars in the U.S. and thus achieved a new sales record for Mercedes-Benz. Because we are bringing so many new models to market in 2013 – the new E-Class line, the new CLA-Class and the new S-Class – we anticipate that sales will again increase in 2013,” said Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars. Continue reading →

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