Automakers: Page

Mann+Hummel Has North American Ambitions

DETROIT – Mann+Hummel GmbH may be Europe’s top producer of automotive air cleaners (with 35% of the passenger-car market), but for years the supplier has been a bit player in the U.S. market. Mann+Hummel supplies engine cover for Chrysler Crossfire. Now, Mann+Hummel is emerging as a formidable competitor in North America in a range of automotive filtration products. The German company boosted its

By Tom Murphy • April 5, 2004

Ultra-Luxury Brands Expand

Germany's Big Three are pushing to expand volume of their ultra-luxury brands this year, potentially taking the highest-end segment to new heights. About 5,800 Volkswagen AG's Bentley, BMW AG's Rolls-Royce and DaimlerChrysler AG's Maybach vehicles will be produced this year, according to individual company forecasts. Bentley and Rolls-Royce unveiled new models at March's Geneva Auto Show. Those may

By Herb Shuldiner • April 1, 2004

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

9-2X Launched

Production of the Saab 9-2X is under way at Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd.'s Gunma Yajima Plant in Japan. The Subaru maker jointly developed the 9-2X with Saab Automobile for the North American market. The tie-up is part of an overarching alliance strategy for General Motors Corp., which fully owns Saab and holds a 20% share in Fuji. The 9-2X, which bowed last December at the Los Angeles auto show, is

April 1, 2004

Toyota Supplier Park

Several automotive suppliers will set up operations on the site of Toyota Motor Corp.'s new plant in Texas, the auto maker confirms in a joint announcement with Texas Gov. Rick Perry. Some 10 parts suppliers, as well as several service companies, will locate on Toyota Motor Mfg. Texas Inc.'s 2,000-acre (809-ha) San Antonio site. Many will be joint ventures with minority partners, some of which are

April 1, 2004

GLBT Market Can’t Be Ignored

Can auto makers afford to ignore a $485 billion market with 15 million consumers who buy new products earlier than most, have more discretionary income than average folks and are very brand loyal? Can anyone? No, of course not. That's why major companies, United Airlines, American Express and Proctor and Gamble in fact, most of the Fortune 500 aggressively are marketing to the GLBT (gay, lesbian,

By Drew Winter • April 1, 2004

Montana Move

Mega-dealer Lithia Motors Inc. acquires its third Montana dealership in a year, Power Chevrolet, with annual sales of about $40 million in the state capital of Helena, pop. 28,000. The store's new name will be Lithia Chevrolet of Helena. The purchase is part of Lithia's self-described aggressive acquisition strategy. Lithia first entered the Montana market last April with the purchase of what's now

By Steve Finlay • April 1, 2004

Toyota Kick-Started Ford Hybrid

Ford Motor Co. acknowledges it has licensed the rights to about 20 Toyota Motor Corp. hybrid system patents in order to help the American auto maker develop its first-ever gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle. A hybrid version of the Ford Escape which is the first hybrid SUV for the North American market and the first carrying a U.S. nameplate bows this fall, employing variations of the technology Ford

April 1, 2004

Hemi V-8 Take Rates Soaring

Chrysler Group's vaunted Hemi engine is seeing greater take rates across the board than the OEM anticipated. Chrysler says penetration of the Hemi Magnum 5.7L OHV V-8 is north of 50% of total deliveries for the Dodge Durango SUV and light-duty Ram pickup. And advance orders of the LX platform large rear-wheel-drive cars the Chrysler 300C and Dodge Magnum are leaning heavily in favor of the Hemi, which

April 1, 2004

Falcon Gets Extra Wings

To raise $100 million in an initial public stock offering, Falcon Financial first had to calm investors' fears that dealerships are danger zones. It meant creating a comfort zone for prospective backers who didn't know the dynamics of the dealership business, says Vernon Schwartz, CEO of Falcon, a Stamford, CT-based firm specializing in loans to dealers for acquiring, building and renovating dealerships.

By Steve Finlay • April 1, 2004

Northern Exposures

From the high-volume Matthews-Hargreaves Chevrolet dealership in a Detroit suburb to a run-down Ford Mercury store in a remote northern Michigan village, pop. 1,133, was a leap in 1992 for Scott McNamara, a 23-year-old at the time. He recalls how he became a dealer principal at that young age: I had made it to sales manager, but I always wanted to be a dealer ever since starting out as a salesman

By Mac Gordon • April 1, 2004

SAE World Congress Attendance Falls to 35,392

The Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress drew 35,392 visitors for the 4-day event this year in Detroit, down from 38,649 last year and 37,233 in 2002. SAE puts a positive spin on the results, as Congress Chairman Phil Martens, Ford Motor Co. group vice president-North America product creation, says the event garnered great feedback and featured an “all-time high number of presentations.”

By Christie Schweinsberg • March 23, 2004

Aisin Readies Tundra Gearbox

DETROIT – When Toyota Motor Corp. begins producing its fullsize Tundra pickups deep in the heart of Texas in 2006, its 5-speed automatic transmission will come from Aisin AW Co. Ltd.’s new plant in Durham, NC. The new plant represents the first time the Japanese-based Aisin, a major transmission player in its home market, has produced automatic transmissions outside Japan, says Junichi Nishimura,

By Tom Murphy • March 15, 2004

Martens: Shelby Cobra ‘Has My Vote’

DETROIT Ford Motor Co.’s celebrated Shelby Cobra concept soon may muscle its way to market, if Phil Martens has anything to do with it. Ford Motor Co.’s group vice president-North America product creation, tells Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress show-goers the open-air 2-seater, unveiled at the 2004 Detroit auto show, is under serious consideration as part of future product plans. The

By John D. Stoll • March 15, 2004

Ford to Match Employee 401(k) Again

DETROIT – Ford Motor Co. will revive partial matching on 401(k) accounts starting July 1 to 45,000 of its U.S. salaried employees and will pay bonuses to 6,200 middle and upper managers worldwide. Ford President Nick Scheele says the matching program is being reinstated permanently, now that the auto maker is in a better financial position and looking positively at the long term. “We said we would

By John D. Stoll • March 12, 2004

Toyota Technology ‘Kick-Started’ Ford’s Hybrid Escape

DETROIT Ford Motor Co. acknowledges it has licensed the rights to about 20 Toyota Motor Corp. hybrid system patents in order to help the American auto maker develop its first-ever gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle. A hybrid version of the Ford Escape which is the first hybrid SUV for the North American market and the first carrying a U.S. nameplate bows this fall, employing variations of the technology

By John D. Stoll and Katherine Zachary • March 12, 2004

Dodge Changes Performance Unit Name

DETROIT – Two years after the formation of its in-house performance unit, Performance Vehicle Operations (PVO), DaimlerChrysler Corp. is changing the name to Street and Racing Technology (SRT), which is already familiar to PVO customers thanks to vehicle branding.(See related story: Chrysler’s Performance Group Has Triplets) The move comes as an attempt to “eliminate a lot of the confusion” created

By John D. Stoll • March 11, 2004

Henkel Group Integrates Industrial Business

DETROIT – Henkel KGaA bows to wishes of employees and customers, consolidating its three industrial businesses – Henkel Surface Technologies, Henkel Loctite Corp. and Henkel Adhesives – into a single business unit called Henkel Technologies. Ford F-150. The move, announced at the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress, is an attempt to better serve the Düsseldorf, Germany, company’s worldwide

By John D. Stoll • March 10, 2004

Toyota to Continue North American Part Sourcing

DETROIT Sourcing more parts from China and other emerging markets may be the trend, but Toyota Motor Corp. chooses to buck it. Those markets will remain small for the North American arm of the Japanese auto maker, which plans to continue to source an increasing amount of its components in North America, says Dennis Cuneo, senior vice president-external affairs and public policy for Toyota Motor North

By Alisa Priddle • March 10, 2004

New Study Confirms ESC Effectiveness

DETROIT Until now, statistical data with regard to the effectiveness of anti-skid electronic stability control (ESC) in preventing accidents was incomplete. Both Mercedes-Benz and Toyota Motor Corp. concluded from their own separate research that ESC could reduce the number of single-vehicle impacts by about 30%, and Volkswagen AG found ESC could cut fatal crashes in Germany by 20%. That research,

By Tom Murphy • March 10, 2004

Dura Opens Tech Center in France

DETROIT Dura Automotive Systems Inc. makes the transition from shuttering non-core global operations to opening new facilities with the announcement of a new technical center in Velizy, France. Dura, which has been knee-deep in a financial restructuring aimed at eliminating a $1 billion debt load, says the new facility is designed to attract local customers. Until now, Renault SA, PSA Peugeot-Citroen

By KATHERINE ZACHARY • March 9, 2004

Toyota Develops 6-Speed Gearbox

Transmission development at Toyota Motor Corp. is shifting into a higher gear the sixth gear. The auto maker has developed a 6-speed automatic transmission for rear-wheel-drive application that first will be seen in the Lexus LS 430 flagship sedan and likely will be offered in other higher-end Lexus models as well. The A761E transmission, which Toyota unveiled here at the Society of Automotive Engineers

By KATHERINE ZACHARY • March 9, 2004

VW Expands Convertible Lineup

GENEVA Volkswagen AG will expand its convertible lineup beyond the Beetle to include a new model based off the Concept C, which bowed at the auto show here. The concept is said to provide a clear interpretation of new styling cues that will appear on future Volkswagen-brand vehicles. “This is the latest VW baby,” says Murat Gunak, head of Volkswagen Group design. “This vehicle provides a look at the

By Kevin Kelly • March 8, 2004

Next PT Could Use C/D Platform

GENEVA Chrysler Group says it is looking closely at whether to build the next-generation PT Cruiser on the upcoming C/D segment platform under joint development with Mitsubishi Motors Corp. Chrysler Group CEO Dieter Zetsche says the auto maker is in the process of determining whether the C/D platform would work for the next PT. He firmly dismisses any possibility the PT would use a unique platform.

By Kevin Kelly • March 3, 2004

Citroen C4 Concept Hints at Shape of Xsara Replacement

GENEVA Automobiles Citroen introduces the shape of the Citroen C4 that will replace the Xsara at the end of 2004 under the guise of its rally version at the annual auto show here. The C4 Citroen Sport concept, with its rear wheels at the end of the body and short front overhang, accurately forecasts the coming C4 production cars, even if the racing seats, brakes, wheels, engine and roll bars do not.

By William Diem • March 2, 2004

Kia to Fill New Hyundai Group Plant in Slovakia

GENEVA Kia Motors Corp. will fill the new Hyundai Group factory in Zilina, Slovakia, with 200,000 units beginning in 2006. The 700 million ($855 million) factory was expected to be shared by Kia and Hyundai Motor Co. Ltd., but Kia alone has enough growth potential to fill it, says Kia Chief Operating Officer Yong-Hwan Kim. Kia expects to have 2% of the European market by the end of 2005, or about

By William Diem • March 2, 2004