Automakers: Page

Ford Plays Matchmaker

Sometimes it's a foundering supplier that needs rescuing. Or two parts-makers have a good idea to combine their strengths for mutual benefit. Or a deep-pocketed financier makes an offer that a small independent supplier just can't refuse. Whatever the reason, mergers and acquisitions within the automotive supply chain make the financial pages just about every day. But in the background stands the

By Tom Murphy • May 1, 2001

Buick Expects Big Finish to Boost 2001

Mark Hines, brand manager for the Buick Regal and Century, says both cars have a similar sales story so far this year. First quarter retail deliveries are down 24% for both models, as Buick sales overall have plunged 16.4%. There are two reasons for the large drops, Mr. Hines says: Buick has only carryover models for the first half of the year, and 00 sales got a boost from an owner loyalty incentive

May 1, 2001

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

First intended as a perk for certied dealers, Chrysler’s Five Star Market Center now open to all

It was originally intended as an exclusive online for Chrysler Group dealers who certified for the automaker's Five Star customer satisfaction program. But three years into Five Star, now all Chrysler Group dealers can use the service. It features online purchasing at volume discounts from designated suppliers. We decided to make it available at no charge to all our dealers, says Keith Helfrich, director

By Steve Finlay • May 1, 2001

Buyatoyota.com expands to dealers in 4 more cities; may go national this summer

Internet initiative “gives customers reasonable expectations about vehicle availability and pricing.” Toyota dealer groups in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C. are now part of a company Internet retailing pilot program, Buyatoyota.com. Buyatoyota.com enables customers to search an area's pooled inventory; check the availability of new and used vehicles; obtain pricing information,

By War • May 1, 2001

Natural Wonder

In a village in the Brazilian rain forest, a mayor speaks in rapid Portuguese while German officials nod in agreement and a translator provides the English rendition. The big news: German automaker DaimlerChrysler AG's contribution to an Amazonian project to reduce poverty is paying off. Coconut husks are being transformed into parts for Mercedes-Benz vehicles in a multilingual and low-tech example

By Alisa Priddle • May 1, 2001

Dismantling the Keiretsu

Renault SA's purchase of a controlling interest in Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. two years ago managed to blow a considerable hole in much that is held sacred to Japan Inc. The fact that a secondary player from France could buy a Japanese automaker, once a stronghold of efficiency, technology and profit, up to then had been unthinkable. The ensuing acquisition flurry, as Western makers bailed out their weaker

By KATHERINE ZACHARY • May 1, 2001

Back to the Well

For nearly a decade, General Motors Corp. has embraced tubular hydroforming as an alternative to the tried-and-true stamping and welding of structural components such as vehicle frames. With the launch of its new GMT 360 midsize sport/utility vehicles (SUVs), GM claims yet another hydroforming milestone: It's the first time that this liquid magic has been used to shape the full-length side rails for

By Tom Murphy • May 1, 2001

It’s AMG, not OMG!

LISBON, Portugal One solid burst in the Mercedes-Benz SLK32 AMG leads you to believe the initials for Mercedes' in-house tuner should be OMG Oh My God! rather than AMG (the initials of the company's founders). is the oath you're bound to shout as you unleash 349 hp and 332 lb.-ft. (450 Nm) of torque in the 3,200-lb. (1,451-kg) bodyshell of the SLK32 AMG. After all, you have to bawl SOMETHING when

By Bill Visnic • May 1, 2001

Ford goes public with its controversial Blue Oval dealer certification campaign

Ford Motor Co., in a new ad campaign, is going public with its Blue Oval certification program for dealerships – a controversial project that some dealers criticize. Actress Jamie Lee Curtis is the spokeswoman for the Blue Oval print advertisements. TV ads are documentary-like, urging viewers to visit certified dealerships to see how they have improved the dealership experience. The ads also include

By Steve Finlay • April 26, 2001

Consumers who buy green cars to receive

Consumers may soon receive tax credits for buying vehicles that are more environmentally friendly. In an attempt to promote cleaner vehicles and reduced fuel consumption, Ford Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., along with the Union of Concerned Scientists and Natural Resources Defense Council environmental groups are supporting legislation offering credits to people who buy cleaner

By Wire Reports • April 25, 2001

O’Malley leaves Cadillac for Ford ad agency

Cadillac's general marketing manager, Michael O'Malley has left General Motors' luxury division to head the Ford account at the J. Walter Thompson Co. advertising agency. Mr. O'Malley leaves GM after a year as chief of Cadillac's marketing effort. His departure coincides with GM's $4 billion plan to resurrect Cadillac and formulate a new image for the division. The new look is designed to attract

By Wire Reports • April 24, 2001

GM Service Parts Operations wants a bigger chunk of the aftermarket business

General Motors Corp. will continue to diversify its revenue sources beyond its core business of selling cars and trucks by making a strong effort to expand its Service Parts Operations (SPO) business. SPO General Manager John Smith says the effort will focus on doubling the business of all-makes brand AC Delco during the next few years. It also will do more service work on late model GM vehicles through

By Brian Corbett • April 23, 2001

Renault unifies configuration and pricing for European web customers

Renault dealers and customers in France, Germany and the United Kingdom are getting a glimpse into the future of Internet retailing as the automaker is merging configuration and pricing technology on the web in those nations. Trilogy is the technology provider for Renault's three sites -- www.renault.fr, www.renault.co.uk, and www.renault.de. Officials say the sites offer an "enriched, efficient shopping

By Ward's reports • April 20, 2001

Ford touts certified vehicle program as used and improved

Ford is launching an ad campaign this week touting its new certified pre-owned vehicle program as one of the best in the industry. The automakers says its “Ford Quality Checked” program focuses on improving quality, enhancing the pre-owned delivery experience, boosting customer satisfaction and giving “peace of mind” to used-vehicle customers. The program was developed in conjunction with dealers

By Ward's reports • April 18, 2001

Honda produces 10 millionth automobile in North America; prepares to add new plant

Honda reached produced its 10 millionth vehicle in North American last week. The company began local production in 1982 in Marysville, OH, and will open its 11th North American plant, in Lincoln, AL, this fall. Each year, Honda assembles more than 1 million vehicles in North America, including the Honda Accord, Civic and Odyssey, and the Acura TL, CL, MDX and EL (Canada only model). It also produces

By Wire Reports • April 16, 2001

First-ever Ward’s e-Dealer 100

Ward's Dealer Business has identified the top 100 automotive dealers initiating sales via the Internet. Anderson Honda in California, Dave Smith Motors in Idaho and Classic Auto in New Jersey top the list of e-dealers, which sold 61,356 vehicles to customers shopping on-line. The complete list is as follows: 1. Anderson Honda, CA, 2,346 units 2. Dave Smith Motors, ID, 2,252 3. Classic Auto, NJ, 1,598

By Cliff Banks • April 11, 2001

Asbury acquires dealerships in Jackson, MS

Asbury Autogroup, today, acquired two dealerships and five franchises in the Jackson, MS market and will add a ninth regional platform to its national organization, which is based in Stamford, CT. The dealerships are Gray-Daniels Ford and Metro Mazda-Hyndai-Suzuki-Isuzu. Dealers Bobby Gray, Noel Daniels and Steven Inzinna will join Asbury’s senior management group. The move allows Asbury to link these

By Tim Keenan • April 5, 2001

Anderson Honda is No.1 e-Dealer

The top dog in the inaugural Ward's Dealer Business e-Dealer 100 is John “Big Dog” Anderson's Honda store in Palo Alto, CA. Anderson Honda initiated the sale of 2,346 units on line last year. Almost half of its sales revenue came from Internet sales in 2000. With an owner like John Anderson, the store's success is no surprise. He's a “take-no-prisoners” kind of guy and his energy level is well known

By Cliff Banks • April 1, 2001

Shotgun Wedding

More than two years after its landmark international merger, DaimlerChrysler AG is starting to think like a global automaker. Its long-awaited restructuring plan, laid out in Stuttgart Feb. 26 by Chief Executive Juergen Schrempp and crew, calls for a new level of cooperation and cross-breeding from DC's various camps in the U.S., Europe and Japan. At the core is a platform-sharing strategy that will

By ALISA PRIDDLE and KATHERINE ZACHARY • April 1, 2001

Bad Drivers, Good Credibility

A few months ago Car and Driver magazine tried to roll a '94 Ford Explorer by deliberately blowing out the left rear tire. It couldn't be done, not at 30 mph (48 km/h), and not at 70 mph (112 km/h). During the last blowout run, test driver Larry Webster didn't even have his hands on the steering wheel when the tire was deflated by a remote control device at 70 mph. The Explorer didn't veer or pull.

By Drew Winter • April 1, 2001

The 02 Lexus SC 430 is for the rich, tanned and patient

Lexus now has a convertible. Finally. But it will require hard cash to procure the new hard top SC 430. It takes 25 seconds for the retractable aluminum-alloy top to perform a contortion act and stuff itself into the trunk. It takes $61,295 to buy the fully loaded 2002 model. It will take patience, too. The first year's production is all but sold out. Lexus dealers already wrote nearly 10,000 paid

By Steve Finlay • April 1, 2001

LEVI JACKSON WAS A DEALER PIONEER

Not only was Mr. Jackson the first African-American executive at Ford, but one of the few at any major company in North America at the time. THERE'S AN AGE-OLD EXPRESSION THAT YOU DON'T realize how good someone or something is until they're gone. Well that's definitely true for myself in the case of Levi Jackson. When I read last December that Mr. Jackson had died, I felt bad for two reasons. One,

By Tim Keenan • April 1, 2001

Crevier BMW: 25% of sales are on line

In 1998, the Ziff Davis media and marketing firm named Crevier BMW's web site as the best new-car site in the country. Three years later, a quarter of the Santa Ana, CA dealership's sales start with a point and a click. Owner Donald Crevier says, “25% of our business is coming to us from the Internet.” He believes the high percentage can be partly attributed to the fact the store sells a luxury brand

By Christie Schweinsberg • April 1, 2001

HOW TO SAVE A LOT OF MONEY AND SLEEP AT NIGHT

Soon these guys were back to telling foul jokes, and one had the poor judgment to wrap up a mixed-audience sales meeting by popping a porn movie in the training room VCR. By this time, you are undoubtedly weary of all the warnings and informational overload regarding discrimination claims in the U.S. The dangers still exist, however, for dealers to sustain monumental jury awards and some could, potentially,

By Joseph Coulter • April 1, 2001

YOUTH MOVEMENT HITS FORD MOTOR CO. EXECUTIVE LEVEL

The upper echelon of Ford Motor Co.'s global marketing department takes on a decidedly young, noticeably female and intentionally Internet-savvy look. In the span of 24 hours, 38-year Ford marketing veteran Robert Rewey retired as group vice president, Global Consumer Services and North America, and was replaced by 40-year-old Brian Kelley who had been responsible for the company's e-business strategies.

By Tim Keenan • April 1, 2001