Automakers: Page

Nanotech Embraced

Ford Motor Co., The Boeing Co. and Northwestern University are linking up to research and develop commercial applications for nanotechnology, which the auto maker says could lead to advancements in hybrid-electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles. Nanotechnology is the branch of molecular-level engineering that deals with things smaller than 100 nanometers. Applications exist in automobiles today, including

By David E. Zoia • Nov. 1, 2005

5 Dealer Guys’ on Forbes Rich List Again

Five billionaires with auto dealer interests continue to occupy spots on the latest Forbes 400 roster of the richest people in America. The five with dealer ties include James Moran, 87, inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame last month. The owner of the Southeast Toyota distributorship and the JM&A finance and insurance organization, he has a net worth of $1.4 billion, according to Forbes. The

Nov. 1, 2005

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from WardsAuto

Automakers are evaluating their long-term strategies, revisiting their product mix, and approach to both retail and manufacturing approach along the way.

By WardsAuto staff

Appearances Really Do Count

AUBURN HILLS, MI Claiming an industry first, General Motors Corp. has established a design studio that focuses exclusively on developing vehicle accessories. Set up with supplier Plastech Engineered Products Inc. in February, the GM Accessory Design Studio in Auburn Hills, MI, employs about 15 people who work with suppliers and the nearby GM Design Center to develop aftermarket parts during the vehicle-development

By Brian Corbett • Nov. 1, 2005

Inner Strength

It was P. Diddy. Now it's just Diddy. It was Jetta GLI. Now it's just GLI. When you're struggling with an identity crisis, less often is more. Hip Hop impresario Sean Combs, aka Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is struggling to remain fresh and relevant with a young, fickle audience constantly looking for something new. The GLI is fighting much the same battle. Plus, Volkswagen AG is hoping to build the same

By Drew Winter • Nov. 1, 2005

Jeep, Hummer, Suzuki?

In Europe, the Suzuki Grand Vitara is a segment leader among compact SUVs, distinguished by its off-road capability. Suzuki Motor Corp. took great pains, in switching to a cross/utility vehicle architecture for the all-new '06 model that replaces both the Grand Vitara and Vitara SUVs, to preserve that rugged image. The new vehicle is a bit wider and 11.5 ins. (29.2 cm) longer, but the overhangs are

By Alisa Priddle • Nov. 1, 2005

Lexus Concept Car Hints at Next-Generation LS

TOKYO Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus Div. uses the Tokyo Motor Show to feed the public's insatiable hunger for hybrids, while hinting strongly at the appearance of its next-generation LS sedan. Augmenting a procession of Toyota-brand hybrids, the auto maker recently took the wraps off the LF-Sh, a muscular gasoline-electric sedan concept that closely resembles the next-generation Lexus flagship, a company

By Eric Mayne • Oct. 27, 2005

Hyundai Accent, Azera Impress

LA JOLLA, CA In the late 1980s and for most of the 1990s, Hyundai Motor America was known for building small and not-always-reliable cars. But those cars, such as the subcompact Accent, helped the South Korean auto maker get a foothold in the U.S. at a time when the Big Three were focused on maximizing profits from their popular fullsize pickups and SUVs. Now, with gasoline prices still pinching U.S.

By Christie Schweinsberg • Oct. 24, 2005

Mazda Designer Takes Knife to Concept Car

TOKYO There is something fishy about Mazda Motor Corp.'s Senku 4-seat rotary-engine concept car. Its exterior is reminiscent of the dramatic stainless steel finish that makes the DeLorean sports car memorable even today, nearly 30 years after the last one was built. But unlike the Delorean, the Senku is painted. Its designer was inspired by a sushi chef's knife. Franz von Holzhausen, director of Mazda's

By Eric Mayne • Oct. 21, 2005

Mazda Advances Hydrogen Rotary Rollout; Promises Start-Stop Technology

TOKYO Mazda Motor Corp. pulls ahead by six months its testing of a hydrogen-powered rotary engine, as the auto maker announces advanced powertrains will drive development of its next-generation product lineup. “We are making good progress towards developing a hydrogen rotary engine for a mass production vehicle,” Mazda President and CEO Hisakazu Imaki says. “We will start leasing RX-8 RE hydrogen

By Eric Mayne • Oct. 21, 2005

Renault Gaining But Still Small-Volume Brand in Japan

TOKYO Renault SA is counting on its 2005 Formula 1 championship to add to its notoriety in Japan, but the auto maker says it plans no special promotion on the subject. Despite its alliance with Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., Renault is tiny in Japan. It will sell about 3,500 cars here this year, about 10% more than in 2004 and 50% better than in 2003. The F1 championship will help show Renault makes capable,

By William Diem • Oct. 19, 2005

Mazda to Debut Senku Concept, New MPV at Tokyo

Mazda Motor Corp. will be showing a new concept vehicle, the Senku, and the new Mazda MPV minivan, as well as other concept and production models at the upcoming Tokyo Motor Show this month. On Oct.19, Mazda will unveil the Senku at its press conference. The Senku, which it calls a “4-seat rotary sports car for adults,” is Japanese for “pioneer.” The auto maker wants to now shift its focus from younger

By Christie Schweinsberg • Oct. 5, 2005

Mini Concept Is a Stretch

It appears every production vehicle from the Lincoln Town Car and Navigator to the Hummer is fair game for the limousine conversion business. So why not a Mini? A Mini concept car displayed at September's Frankfurt, Germany auto show is evidence that BMW designers may have been asking that very question. Mini is doing well, selling 700,000 units since its re-launch under Bavarian tutelage three years

By Tom Murphy • Oct. 1, 2005

Where Is He Now?

Jacques (Jac) Nasser was forced out as CEO of Ford Motor Co. four years ago this month. Since then, he has shunned the limelight he once so immensely enjoyed. Nasser still holds his cards close to his chest, but during a phone interview with Ward's he provides some details of his new life as a private equity banker. When I say private equity, I like the in particular, he laughs, referring to his past

By David C. Smith • Oct. 1, 2005

Toyota Importing Camry Hybrid Parts

When Toyota Motor Mfg. North America Inc. begins producing Camry hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs) in late 2006, the auto maker will import most drivetrain components from Japan, rather than sourcing them domestically. In May, Toyota said it would assemble Camry hybrids in Georgetown, KY, and President Gary Convis said the company hoped to localize sourcing. But the timetable for that migration remains

Oct. 1, 2005

Correction

A caption on p.27 of the September issue should have said ZF Lemforder produces front and rear axle systems for vehicles such as the BMW X3.

Oct. 1, 2005

African-American Dealer Aids Infiniti Ethnic Diversity Effort

The new Infiniti of Chantilly (VA) dealership becomes one of two African-American-owned Infiniti stores in the Nissan North America Inc. luxury brand's Eastern region. Reginald Brown and partner Jay H. Nussbaum own the store. Brown's appointment as dealer-principal brings the number of African-American Nissan and Infiniti dealers to 25. The appointment of an African-American dealer supports Infiniti's

Oct. 1, 2005

A Safer Airbag

Studies have shown at least a third of all airbag-related injuries are facial in nature. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Admin. says airbags typically deploy at speeds of about 100 mph (160 km/h) and can cause scratches and scrapes, and, in rare cases, eye injuries. With these statistics in mind, Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus luxury division designed what it calls the world's first twin-chamber

By Christie Schweinsberg • Oct. 1, 2005

Hustling Civic Output

It is too soon to say high gasoline prices are causing a stampede toward fuel-efficient compact cars, but Honda of America Mfg. Inc. (HAM) officials nonetheless say some new tweaks to its already highly efficient New Manufacturing System allowed the company to crank out the all-new Civic sedan well in advance of the original start of production date. The official start of '06 Civic sales long was

By Bill Visnic • Oct. 1, 2005

General Motors Chief: Value Pricing’s Early Signs Positive

Early indications are that buyers are responding to General Motors Corp.'s Total Value Promise pricing plan that emphasizes lower sticker prices and fewer incentives, CEO Rick Wagoner says. People are interested in more value pricing, he says, speaking with reporters on the sidelines of the Frankfurt, Germany auto show. We know it's going to work. But he cautions that it doesn't mean incentives will

Oct. 1, 2005

BMW Tech Training Starts Early

Seventeen year-old Jonathan Alejo expertly removes the lug nuts from each tire on a 3 Series BMW as he goes over the details of the car's service ticket. After performing an oil change, he rotates the tires and sends the car off for a test drive. Alejo works in the service center on the fourth floor of the huge BMW of Manhattan dealership on West 57th Street. He's sharp, moves quickly and knows a

Oct. 1, 2005

Volvo Confident in Smooth JV With Pininfarina

FRANKFURT – It was pure serendipity when Volvo Cars President Hans-Olov Olsson was placed next to Andrea Pininfarina, president and CEO of Italian specialty car company Pininfarina SpA, at a dinner in Detroit several years ago. Olsson says Volvo was in the middle of its analysis on developing a new C70 at that time. “We needed a partner that had experience with coupes,” he says. After a preliminary

By Herb Shuldiner • Sept. 28, 2005

VW Phaeton Not Going Away

FRANKFURT There will be a second-generation Phaeton luxury sedan, and the Dresden, Germany, plant where it is assembled has an equally long-term future, says Bernd Pischetsrieder, CEO of Volkswagen AG. The sedan, VW's foray into the luxury segment, was first introduced in Europe with a short wheelbase and V-6 in 2002, and a larger version, with a V-8 engine, was engineered for its North American debut

By Alisa Priddle • Sept. 22, 2005

Renault May Boost Romanian Investment

FRANKFURT Renault SA plans to make a decision about possible new investment in Romania by the end of October, a top Automobile Dacia SA executive says at the auto show here. Demand for the Romanian-built Dacia Logan is better than expected, and Dacia is facing a shortage of the entry-level cars. "At the beginning of September, we had to reduce production of the Dacia Pickup truck in order to make

By Peter Homola • Sept. 14, 2005

Second-Generation Volvo Convertible Takes Public Bow

FRANKFURT Volvo Cars has big plans for its all-new '06 C70 4-seat convertible, making a worldwide debut at the auto show here. “We expect to double sales compared with the first generation's best year,” says Volvo President Hans-Olov Olsson. That would put the new model at 16,000 units annually, compared with the first-generation C70's peak of 8,000 units worldwide in 2004. In total, Volvo sold about

By Herb Shuldiner • Sept. 13, 2005

Former Aston Martin Designer Returns to Center Stage

FRANKFURT – Fisker Coachbuild LLC, led by former Aston Martin design chief Henrik Fisker, makes its world debut here with a pair of luxury sports cars based on two icons of German engineering. The ’06 Fisker Tramonto is a 610-hp 2-seater built on the Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG’s architecture, and the ’06 Fisker Latigo CS is a 550-hp coupe with the underpinnings of the BMW 650 CSi. Scheduled for worldwide

By Eric Mayne • Sept. 13, 2005