Automakers: Page 324

Is It Over?

As Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) stood in the U.S. Senate late Friday evening December 12 and declared congressional efforts to secure a bridge-loan for General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC had failed, the thought that the entire automotive industry could collapse igniting a second Great Depression suddenly seemed realistic.The situation, was, and continues to be dire. GM and Chrysler executives somberly argued their case before Congress stating their cash would be below operating levels by the end of the year.

By Cliff Banks • Jan. 1, 2009

Dealership Streamlines Getting Rental Cars for Customers

Surroz Dodge Chrysler Jeep in Visalia, CA, one of the largest dealerships in the state's Central Valley, lowered its rental-car costs for service loaners by as much as 30% while improving service to customers. Service Manager Jim Steelman credits Enterprise Rent-A-Car's software system that integrates with a dealership's own technology system. Called Automated Rental Management System, or ARMS, the

Jan. 1, 2009

Explore the Trendline➔

Artificial Intelligence

Automakers and dealers alike are increasingly seeing the use case for AI within their operations. Explore some use cases in this trendline.

By WardsAuto staff

BMW AG: 3.0L DOHC Twin-Turbo I-6

Adding Another Pair of Turbochargers, as well as six cylinders to this year's rankings, BMW AG's 3.0L twin-turbocharged I-6 achieves its third-consecutive spot on the Ward's 10 Best Engines list. Arguably one of the best volume internal-combustion engines ever produced, the wonderful straight-6 turbo, along with BMW's 10 Best Engines-winning 3.0L clean diesel, support the auto maker's new direction

By Ward's Staff • Jan. 1, 2009

Mercedes-Benz Backing U.S. Dealers With Customer-Lending Cushion

About 48% of Mercedes dealers are covered by the auto maker’s financial services. They account for 62% of the brand’s sales volume.

By Herb Shuldiner • Dec. 31, 2008

Chrysler Pulls Out All Stops in 2008

A survey of headline-grabbing developments shows the auto maker garnered more than its share of ink in 2008.

By Eric Mayne • Dec. 30, 2008

Toyota Names New N.A. Planning Chief

Robert C. Daly will be in charge of the Toyota Customer Services division and the company’s AirFlite subsidiary, in addition to running the North American Planning department.

By Ward's Staff • Dec. 24, 2008

Toyota’s Watanabe to Vacate President Post in 2009

The Japanese auto maker’s top executive will assume the chairmanship next year due to the failing health of the current chairman.

By Ward's Staff From Wires • Dec. 23, 2008

China’s BYD Rolls Out Plug-In Hybrid

The Chinese auto maker says the F3 DM sedan is able to travel 62 miles in electric-only mode, after which it can be recharged via a 220-volt household outlet in seven hours.

By Ward's Staff • Dec. 22, 2008

GM Holden Confirms Small-Car Project; Oz to Provide Financial Aid

“The government that I lead will do everything physically possible to continue to support this great industry and this great company into the future,” says Australia Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

By Alan Harman • Dec. 22, 2008

BMW AG: 3.0L DOHC Turbocharged I-6

Powerful, efficient and stimulating to drive, BMW’s 3.0L turbo-6 proves the only replacement for displacement is a pair of turbochargers and advanced fuel-injection.

By Ward's Staff • Dec. 19, 2008

Honda Motor

Honda’s 3.5L V-6 in the moderately priced Accord coupe speaks to the enthusiast buyer who wants practicality most of the time, but superior performance all of the time.

By Tom Murphy • Dec. 19, 2008

Ford to Extend Holiday Shutdown in North American Plants

Ford will implement a “line-speed reduction” at its AutoAlliance International joint-venture plant with Mazda in Flat Rock, MI, which builds the Mazda6 and Ford Mustang.

By Ward's Staff • Dec. 18, 2008

Ford Weathers Tumultuous 2008

Ford vowed to return to profitability by 2009, but little did it know the perfect economic storm was brewing that would force it to seek billions in federal aid by year’s end.

By Byron Pope • Dec. 18, 2008

VW to Move Brazilian CV Arm to MAN

MAN’s acquisition of VWCO is expected to be completed in first-quarter 2009.

By Alan Harman • Dec. 16, 2008

Fiat Begins Extended Holiday Shutdown

CEO Sergio Marchionne already has said Fiat won’t survive long term without a partner, and reports surfaced in Italy over the weekend a tie-up with PSA Peugeot Citroen is under discussion.

By Giancarlo Perini • Dec. 16, 2008

SEAT Cuts CO2 With New Ibiza Ecomotive

Ecomotive achieves 64 mpg and best-in-class CO2 emissions with 1.4L diesel, SEAT says.

By Jorge Palacios • Dec. 9, 2008

Chrysler Could Lose 500 Dealers Due to Floor Plan Issues

Editor's note: This story is part of the WardsAuto digital archive, which may include content that was first published in print, or in different web layouts.Chrysler has lost 240 dealers this year to bankruptcy because Chrysler Financial has not been able to access TARP funds to use for providing...

Dec. 5, 2008

Nissan Explores New Electronics Strategy

The strategy shift would mark a reversal of sorts from the one Nissan launched in 2001, when it began to consolidate multiple functions in a standard body control module (BCM) used throughout its lineup.

By Roger Schreffler • Dec. 3, 2008

BMW Seals Up Plastics Award

Times May Be Tough, but it was Obvious at the annual Society of Plastics Engineers Automotive Innovation Awards banquet Nov. 20 in suburban Detroit that there still is no shortage of innovation in the auto industry. Organizers say this year saw one of the most competitive fields of parts nominations in the nearly four decades of the program's history. The Grand Award, the SPE's highest honor, went

Dec. 1, 2008

Chrysler Starts Online Dealership Job Program for Veterans

A federally-approved online military training program for dealership and corporate jobs has been launched by Chrysler LLC with better than expected results. The program, open to all veterans of the armed forces and their spouses, has already placed 387 Iraq veterans at dealerships and 67 in Chrysler corporate departments, says Kurt Crisman, marketing director of the program's creator, Latitude Consulting

By Mac Gordon • Dec. 1, 2008

Owner Feedback at 12,000 Ft.

Telluride, CO Kevin Metz talks of not goofing up, as he drives a Jeep up a narrow and jagged 4X4 mountain trail, one side ending in a sheer drop. He's not referring to erring and plunging the $40,000 Commander into the white aspens far below. Rather, Metz is talking about his job, about doing right as the brand manager for Chrysler LCC's Jeep Div. I see myself as the protector of the brand, he says.

By Steve Finlay • Dec. 1, 2008

Camaro Concepts Stoke Creativity

Christmas Came a Month Early to Las Vegas as slack-jawed lovers of American muscle cars crowded by the hundreds into the General Motors Corp. pavilion to behold the Chevrolet Camaro of their dreams. Not just one Camaro, but a workshop full of custom-painted, Hurst-shifting, chrome-wheeled, attitude-drenched macho coupes powerful enough to pull Santa's sleigh clear around the world in the time it takes

By Tom Murphy • Dec. 1, 2008

When Customers Walk Out

When a customer leaves his dealership without buying a vehicle, Darin Wade wants to know why. To find out systematically and then do something about it, Wade, vice president of Rich Ford, has set up a sophisticated customer-relationship center at his Albuquerque, NM, dealership. The center, using software that took more than two years to develop, tracks and follows up Internet and phone leads and

By Steve Finlay • Dec. 1, 2008

GM/Chrysler Merger a Bad Idea

GM Announced in Early November it has suspended its effort to merge with Chrysler. Let's hope that's the end of it. I don't think I've ever heard a worse idea. Unless GM and Cerberus Capital Management, which controls Chrysler, come up with a better rationale, I could see angry mobs taking to the streets before they ever let this kind of deal go through. First off, if we're to believe what Chrysler's

By John McElroy • Dec. 1, 2008

GM Delays Saturn Vue 2-Mode Hybrid

General Motors Corp. Delays Launch of the '09 Saturn Vue 2-Mode hybrid until next year, further illustrating how the auto maker intends to pinch its pennies for the remainder of 2008. Saturn's new hybrid was slated to begin output Dec. 1 in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, but GM now is postponing Job One until first-quarter 2009. The delay, which a spokesman characterizes as four to six weeks, also could affect

By James M. Amend • Dec. 1, 2008