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New School Named in Honor of Retired Dealer

A new school is named after a retired dealer, Richard Duncan. The honor stems from Duncan's strong and positive 40-year presence in the community, according to the Utica (MI) Community Schools' Board of Education. Along with partner Larry Jerome, Duncan opened the Jerome-Duncan Ford dealership in 1956. Daughter Gail Duncan now operates the dealership in Sterling Heights. It's still hard to realize

Nov. 1, 2002

Cadillac’s New Northstar

General Motors Corp.'s Cadillac division unveils a wholesale reworking of its signature engine, the Northstar, as engineers prepare the V-8 to power two all-new models. The Northstar V-8 retains its 4.6L displacement, 90-degree layout and DOHC architecture but is heavily revised to fit longitudinally and drive the rear wheels or all wheels in two '04 Cadillacs, the XLR roadster and SRX cross/utility

By Bill Visnic • Oct. 1, 2002

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

Gramps’ 1949 Chevy leads way to new dealership

Jill Hattan drove a 1949 Chevy sedan one of the first my grandfather sold from Don Hattan Chevrolet's current showroom in Wichita, KS, up I-35 to its future home just outside Park City. For Ms. Hattan, manager of the third-generation store, the drive represents where we've come from, and how that heritage continues to carry us forward. Her father, Jim Hattan, made his ceremonial drive to the same

Oct. 1, 2002

680 Down, 2,121 to Go

For Oldsmobile dealers the clock is ticking. Sometime in 2004 General Motors Corp. has yet to set a final execution date the 105-year-old Oldsmobile brand will end. Since nearly two years ago, when GM announced the impending demise of the division, some Oldsmobile dealers have struggled with accepting a monetary settlement that they say doesn't come close to covering the emotional ordeal of closing

By Cliff Banks • Oct. 1, 2002

Do or Die

Every morning when Chet Huber climbs into his Cadillac Escalade at his Grosse Pointe home in suburban Detroit, he issues a command to his OnStar Virtual Advisor. Give me my traffic, he says. Within a minute, a pre-programmed route to his office in Troy or to Metropolitan Airport in Romulus is overlaid with Westwood One's Metro Networks traffic grid for the Detroit area. That same grid generates the

By Tom Murphy • Oct. 1, 2002

Residual Values are on the Minds of Volvo Brass

SANTA BARBARA, CA Before Volvo's first-ever SUV hits the U.S. market, company executives are focusing on what it will be worth in a few years as a used vehicle. The launch of an all-new vehicle may seem premature to discuss future residual values. But it reflects how important those are to manufacturers, especially premium car companies such as Volvo that depend heavily on residual-driven leasing.

By Steve Finlay • Oct. 1, 2002

How to Build Low-Cost Cars

Now, maybe the Big Three can't do it with every single model, but here's a strategy to keep costs low, strengthen brand identity, and build it all with United Auto Workers labor in the good ol' U.S.A. The key is to amortize cars over longer periods of time. Take the Ford Mustang. It's built on the Fox platform that was introduced in 1978, and began development around 1974. The chassis and powertrain,

By John McElroy • Oct. 1, 2002

Leipzig is Porsche’s Crown Jewel

Three years after announcing plans to build a new assembly plant in this small former communist East German town, Porsche AG launches production of its new Cayenne cross/utility vehicle. The auto maker invested E127 million ($123 million) in the facility its first greenfield plant, marking a new chapter in Porsche's product history that tests unchartered waters. Porsche's Zuffenhausen plant, a former

By Kevin Kelly • Oct. 1, 2002

Better with Age

Although it's darn near unpatriotic to admit it, I've never found much to love in the Viper. Once you drove one for 10 or 15 minutes, the point-and-shoot audacity of it all soon wore thin, and you realized DaimlerChrysler AG's V-10 muscle car was just that: a muscle car too ridiculous even for muscle-car devotees. In exchange for wowing the clerks at 7-Eleven, you were subjected to ride quality and

By Bill Visnic • Oct. 1, 2002

WARD’S REAR VIEW MIRROR

58 YEARS AGO Oct. 24, 1944, marks the death of Louis Renault in a French military prison hospital an accused Nazi collaborator. Born to a middle class Parisian family in February 1877, Louis was the youngest of five children. Renault hated school but had strong mechanical ability. In 1896 Renault patented a steam generator, and three years later formed Societe Renault Freres with brothers Marcel and

By Compiled by Al Binder and the Ward's staff. • Oct. 1, 2002

Ford dealer council names new officers

J. Michael Kennedy of John Kennedy Ford in Feasterville, PA is the new elected chairman of the Ford Division's National Dealer Council. New vice-chairman is Frank J. Rodriguez, owner of Greenway Ford in Orlando, FL. New chairwoman of the Select Dealer Council is Jayne L. Mann, co-owner of Wortman Motor Co. in Aurora, NB; vice chairman, Jim M. Hayden, president of Jim Hayden Ford in Osage, IW. The

Oct. 1, 2002

Nissan’s Dynamic Duo

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.'s 350Z may be the most highly anticipated new car of the '03 model run, but its sibling, the Infiniti G35 sport coupe, is no slouch. In some ways, it will prove more desirable to many buyers. The G35 coupe is the smaller sibling to the G35 sport sedan, which arrived in March to universal raves with its segment-dominating power (260 hp), compelling style and world-class ride and

By Tom Murphy • Oct. 1, 2002

GM Wants to Double Goodwrench Dealers

General Motors Corp. wants to expand its Goodwrench parts and service brand virtually to all of its dealers. Currently only half of them participate now. But not all of them want to. Potentially doubling the number of Goodwrench dealerships would offer GM's Service and Parts Operation (SPO) an opportunity to sell more parts. It's also intended to clear confusion as to where GM customers can go to

By Steve Smith • Sept. 1, 2002

Chrysler Plays Matchmaker

While Internet dating may be en vogue, the Chrysler Group believes better matches are made in person. That's the thinking behind the company's minority supplier Matchmaker program, which provides an opportunity for minority businesses to show their wares to Tier 1 and Chrysler purchasing staffs face to face. For the third year, Chrysler invited select minority-owned parts companies to attend a daylong

Sept. 1, 2002

If History Only Repeats

In 1975, Peter Butterfield, a 22-year-old dealership field representative on his rounds for Ford Motor Co., spotted a small boxy blue car in a service stall at a rural Indiana Ford store. What's that? he asked a service technician. That's a Honda, said the technician. They mostly sell motorcycles. I don't know why they're now trying to sell cars in this country. Looking back, Butterfield understands

By Steve Finlay • Sept. 1, 2002

Building a Family Legacy

Two years ago, newly widowed Lillie Biagas struggled with whether to sell a dealership that her late husband, a black man with a vision, had owned. Today, the retired telecommunications executive runs the Cadillac store. Moreover, she just became the first African-American woman dealer in General Motors Corp. history to obtain five GM franchises in one location. It took guts, a crash course on dealership

By Cliff Banks • Sept. 1, 2002

GM courts Ste. Therese buyers

General Motors Corp. has received inquiries regarding the availability of its Ste. Therese, Que., Canada, assembly plant, which is scheduled to close Aug. 30, Michael Grimaldi, president-GM Canada tells Ward's. We have various interests who have been in contact, Grimaldi says, declining further details. The Canadian Auto Workers is hoping the plant eventually will be used in some fashion to help save

Sept. 1, 2002

GM Cuts Midsize Car Lineup to 10

General Motors Corp. plans to reduce its number of midsize market entries from 15 to 10 nameplates in the next four years, but improve its performance and profits with several all-new products, says Gene Stefanyshyn, vehicle line executive for GM's midsize vehicles. Over a 3-year period, GM's global front-wheel-drive/all-wheel-drive Epsilon platform team will churn out six products and four body styles

By Brian Corbett • Sept. 1, 2002

Bigger digs for top-seller Gwinnett Place Honda

Gwinnett Place Honda becomes one of the largest Honda retailers in the world in its new home in Duluth, GA, near Atlanta. The new store features 135,000 square feet of showroom, automotive repair and office space on a 19-acre lot. There's also a new car delivery area, children's play room, 66 service bays and Internet access for customers. The Hendrick Automotive Group dealership, ranked 97th on this

Sept. 1, 2002

Class action against captive lenders denied

Federal judges have handed setbacks to Hispanic and black consumers suing Ford Credit and GMAC on charges of inflating loan interest rates. U.S. District Judge Suzanne Conlon in Chicago for the second time denied a request for class-action status in a suit against Ford Credit by Rudi Rodriguez. A Nashville, TN suit against GMAC on behalf of Addie Coleman, a black, was initially approved for class-action

By Mac Gordon • Sept. 1, 2002

Hy-wire Act

With a promise to have compelling and affordable fuel cell vehicles on the road by the end of the decade, General Motors Corp. rolls out the first photos of its Hy-wire, the world's first drivable vehicle that combines a hydrogen fuel cell with by-wire controls. The roll-out will culminate in a live demonstration of the Hy-wire, a working version of the AUTOnomy concept that bowed at the Detroit auto

By Mike Arnholt • Sept. 1, 2002

Factory Ready

For decades, loyal Jeep buyers have been modifying the world's most famous off-road vehicles, making them even more capable of gobbling up the toughest of terrain. Bigger tires, locking axles, heavy-duty driveshafts and diamond-plate sill protectors are among the aftermarket goodies that 4-wheeling enthusiasts have purchased for their Jeeps. With the arrival of the '03 Wrangler Rubicon, Jeep buyers

By Tom Murphy • Sept. 1, 2002

FORD WANTS DEALERS TO LEVERAGE INTERNET ENHANCEMENTS

Ford Motor Co. is improving the way it sends new and improved Web-based tools to its dealers. In the past, the automaker would deliver them in a scattered, shotgun approach, creating frustration and unnecessary expenses for the dealers. Now Ford is packaging related Internet tools for delivery. The new strategy has saved dealers $17 million so far this year, says Chuck Sullivan, Ford's e-marketing

By Cliff Banks • Aug. 1, 2002

MERCEDES FACES NY PRICE-FIXING PROBE

Mercedes-Benz is under investigation for alleged vehicle price fixing in the New York area. The U.S. Justice Department served parent company DaimlerChrysler AG with a subpoena regarding collusion among Mercedes-Benz dealers in the New York region. In a statement, Mercedes-Benz USA says: The only allegations that we are aware of relate to civil litigation stemming from unsubstantiated public comments

Aug. 1, 2002

Ford Credit refocuses to recover from losses

If Ford Credit were the same company now as a year ago, it would be focusing maybe even fixating on heavy growth, largely by aggressively lending out more money. That has its pitfalls, especially if too many of those borrowers are credit risks. Ford Credit learned that as its earning fell from $1.5 billion to $839 million last year. That's when the recession took hold and marginal borrowers started

By Steve Finlay • Aug. 1, 2002