Tag Archives: auto informed

Renault Revives Alpine with First Le Mans Entry in 35 Years

Posted on 16 March 2013 by Ken Zino

Last November, Renault said it will revive the long defunct Alpine brand with the creation of the Société des Automobiles Alpine Caterham. While the first new Alpine is expected go on sale in 2016, the publicity machine is already in full operation. Continue reading →

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Volkswagen Group Posts Record Profit of €11.5 Billion in 2012

Posted on 16 March 2013 by Ken Zino

Volkswagen Group’s sales revenue increased by 20.9% to €192.7 billion ($252 billion) in fiscal year 2012 a sizable gain from €159.3 billion in 2011. Operating profit rose to a record €11.5 billion, but this was only a slight increase from €11.3 billion the year before. Continue reading →

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Dissident Shareholders Challenge Ford Family Control Again on Annual Meeting Ballot. One Share, One Vote Sought

Posted on 15 March 2013 by Ken Zino

The Ray T. and Veronica G. Chevedden Family Trust of Los Angeles, California will present a proposal at the Ford Motor Company Annual Meeting that seeks to end the Ford family control of the automaker via their special voting rights of Class B stock. “It is time that the 57-year practice (1956-2013) of disenfranchising Ford public shareholders be changed for the common benefit of all shareholders,” the proposal says. Continue reading →

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Toyota Recalls FJ Cruiser Models for Defective Safety Belts

Posted on 15 March 2013 by Ken Zino

In its latest safety problem, Toyota Motor Sales is recalling 209,000 FJ Cruiser trucks because the safety belt retractors can pry loose. These safety belt retractors for the driver and front passenger safety belts are mounted in the rear access doors of the vehicle. Continue reading →

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Ford Motor Misses Targets Cuts CEO Pay to ‘Only’ $21 Million

Posted on 15 March 2013 by Ken Zino

In the bizarre world of 0.1-percenters, Ford Motor Company cut CEO Alan Mulally’s compensation by almost 30% because the quality-challenged company missed its 2012 goals. Even so Mulally earned $2,000,000 in salary and $3,950,000 in cash bonus in 2012. His total listed compensation in 2012 – including the grant date value of long-term stock options and other performance-based equity awards – was $20,995,806. This is a drop from his $2 million in salary, $5.46 million in bonus and $22 million in other compensation for 2011. Continue reading →

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EPA Reports Significant Gains in Fuel Economy During 2012

Posted on 15 March 2013 by Ken Zino

In its annual report that tracks the fuel economy of vehicles sold in the United States, EPA today said that between 2007 and 2012 fuel economy increased by 16% while carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have decreased by 13%. In 2012, EPA said the one-year increase of 1.4 miles per gallon for cars and trucks was “significant.” Continue reading →

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Milestones – 100 Years of Bosch Generators

Posted on 14 March 2013 by Ken Zino

One hundred years ago, Bosch introduced the world’s first voltage-regulating generator for motor vehicles. Back then, it was only a power source for what were newly invented electric headlights by Cadillac founder Henry M. Leland. Leland also pioneered electric ignition on his cars, while Bosch – a magneto company – trailed that development. These were the early days of the electrification of the automobile, which continues to this day. Continue reading →

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EPA Announces Membership of Great Lakes Advisory Board

Posted on 13 March 2013 by Ken Zino

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced on behalf of 16 federal agencies the membership of the first advisory board to support implementation of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative covering the largest surface freshwater system on Earth. Continue reading →

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Henrik Fisker Out at Fisker Automotive, the Firm He Co-Founded

Posted on 13 March 2013 by Ken Zino

Fisker Automotive announced today the resignation of its Executive Chairman, Henrik Fisker who in turn said there were disagreements with the oft-changing management team, which had three different CEOs during 2012. Fisker, a car designer by trade, had been executive chairman of the hybrid electric car company that he helped found in 2007. Continue reading →

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Customer Satisfaction Up at U.S. Dealer Service Departments

Posted on 13 March 2013 by Ken Zino

The CSI rankings are based on dealer service performance during the first three years of new-vehicle ownership, which typically represents the majority of the vehicle warranty period. After the warranty expires, dealerships traditionally have little chance of getting maintenance work as more than two thirds of customers then resort to independent repair shops and mass merchandiser tire, transmission, brake and muffler chains. Continue reading →

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FAA Approves Boeing Certification Plan. 787 Still Grounded

Posted on 12 March 2013 by Ken Zino

The battery system changes include a redesign of the internal components to minimize a short circuit within the battery pack, better insulation of the cells and the addition of a new containment and venting system to prevent smoke caused by fires from entering the cabin. Continue reading →

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Dallas Resident is OnStar’s 2012 Good Samaritan of the Year

Posted on 12 March 2013 by Ken Zino

In advance of National Good Samaritan Day on Wednesday, OnStar named Tyler Andrews its 2012 Good Samaritan of the Year. The Dallas resident while driving onto the southbound entrance ramp of the Dallas North Toll Way in his GMC Sierra last year saw a Ford Expedition stopped in the middle of the ramp. Andrews pulled alongside the vehicle and found an unresponsive man, along with his wife and three daughters. Continue reading →

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Volkswagen to use CO2 as Air Conditioning Refrigerant

Posted on 12 March 2013 by Ken Zino

The Volkswagen Group is developing air conditioning systems that use CO2 as the refrigerant. Currently automotive air conditioners, depending on age, use R12, which is banned because of global warming effects, R134a, a replacement for R12, which is also now being phased out for its role in global warming, and its replacement R1234yf, which apparently poses safety threats. Continue reading →

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Taxpayer Held Ally Bank to Sell Mortgage Servicing Rights

Posted on 12 March 2013 by Ken Zino

Ally Financial, the owner of Ally bank and formerly known as GMAC, became insolvent because of its reckless home mortgage lending practices, resulting in a controversial taxpayer subsidized bailout after the housing bubble peaked in 2006 and subsequently burst. Ally is in the process of shedding all liability from what’s left of its mortgage business as it reorganizes as a bank holding company providing consumer banking and auto financing. Continue reading →

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Volkswagen Group to Cut CO2 emissions to 95 g/km by 2020

Posted on 12 March 2013 by Ken Zino

In the ongoing battle of the green press releases, Volkswagen Group has restated its strategic goal of becoming the world’s most “environmentally sustainable” automaker by 2018. The announcement was originally made a year ago when VW Group undertook an ecologically oriented restructuring designed to coordinate responses to increasingly tough global regulations covering vehicles and how they are made and recycled. Continue reading →

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