Automakers: Page 434

EV1 on sale Dec. 5; leases range from $480 to $640

It's not in the Neiman Marcus catalog, but General Motors Corp.'s EV1 will go on sale before Christmas, at least at 26 Saturn stores in Los Angeles San Diego, Phoenix and Tucson.For those who must be the first on their block, Dec. 5 is the first day anyone can take delivery. The plug-in-and-drive-away car will carry a sticker of $33,995 but don't let that overwhelm you. Saturn expects that nearly

Nov. 1, 1996

Lean Thinking

Have you ever sat in an airport for hours and wondered why it'll take you seven hours to reach your destination when a small charter plane could've gotten you there in two? Or what about shivering for a small eternity in a cold hospital gown wondering, what could happen if doctor's offices and hospitals operated as efficiently as Toyota?James P. Womack and Daniel T. Jones, two-thirds of the trio that

By Drew Winter • Nov. 1, 1996

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

Chrysler claims it’s recession-proof; 20% market share in U.S. ‘not out of the question.’

In a recent day-long presentation more tightly scripted than either Democratic or Republican convention, Chrysler Corp.'s braintrust tries to convince a gaggle of reporters that it will be the first U.S. automaker to endure a recession without losing money."We went into the last recession selling K-cars and with no money in the bank," says Chairman Robert J. Eaton. "Today we've got a whole new product

By Gardner, Greg • Nov. 1, 1996

GM woos NUMMI with discounts

New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. (NUMMI) is a 50/50 joint venture between General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp., but Toyota runs the outfit. Based at a previous GM plant in Fremont, CA, NUMMI builds Toyota's Corolla and Tacoma and GM's Geo Prizm knockoff of Corolla. NUMMI employees have enjoyed Toyota's special discounts for years. Now GM belatedly is wooing NUMMI folks with the same employee

Nov. 1, 1996

Intelligent transportation: Chrysler learns valuable ITS lessons fromautomated test track

ORLANDO, FL - Driverless cars on automated highways are fodder for great science fiction. But as 1996 draws to a close, intelligent vehicles and smart roads inch slightly closer to science.As industrial and governmental leaders from around the globe gather here for the Third Annual World Congress on Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) to proclaim the incredible potential of smart highways and

By Tim Keenan • Nov. 1, 1996

Creativity is back: automakers enter new era of styling experimentation

Some very funny things have been said about car design. I think it was K.T. Keller, head of Chrysler in the early 1950s who said something like: "Americans want a car they can wear their hats in, not piss over." He then brought out a line of cars that were shorter, higher and narrower while everyone else was going longer, lower, wider. That disaster made Chrysler turn to fins.Then there was George

By Flint, Jerry • Nov. 1, 1996

Where LucasVarity is heading: September merger boosts technical and global capabilities

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - You can't buy shares in Delphi, ford Automotive Components or Bosch. "Therefore, you should buy shares in LucasVarity," advises Victor Rice.The new chief executive officer of the company formed in the September merger of Britain's Lucas Industries plc and U.S.-based Varity Corp. says that not only is LucasVarity one of only a few publicly traded companies on the automotive supplier

By Ferris, Deebe • Nov. 1, 1996

Ford revs up for 1 million sales off F-platform in ‘97

In 1994, Ford Motor Co. became more of a truck company than a car company. Next year trucks based on its F-Series platform may well reach 1 million sales for the first time ever, Edward E. Hagenlocker, president of Ford Automotive Operations, tells WAW.Clearly buoyed by the warm reception given the all-new F-Series full-size pickups introduced for 1996, plus early bullish reports from dealers for

Oct. 1, 1996

Ford-UAW pact won’t reverse trend toward outsourcing

Don't look for a massive shift of parts work from independent suppliers back to the Big 3 automakers just because Ford Motor Co. agreed to maintain its UAW employment at no less than 99,750, or 95% of the current 105,000 workers in the U.S.There are incentives meant to encourage Ford to consider making parts it now buys from the outside. For example, if Ford bought a plant that makes instrument panels

Oct. 1, 1996

Bill Ford Jr. emerges in Trotman successor speculation

Meanwhile back at the Glass House, the spin doctors are busy containing the buzz that young William C. (don't-call-me-Billy) Ford Jr. could succeed Chairman Alex Trotman as early as 1999. In an enticing, yet carefully hedged article, Fortune magazine's Alex Taylor III says some Ford directors are ready to anoint the 39-year-old son of Detroit Lions owner William C. Ford as the first family member

Oct. 1, 1996

‘97 marks debut of GM’s grand brand scheme

Robert Baird Jr. never walked into a Cadillac dealership before he accepted the position of brand manager for Seville and Eldorado early this thisThat was exactly the point. Maybe someone weaned on imported cars, but trained in the art of distinguishing one brand of skin cream, suntan lotion or soap from another, could come up with the secret potion that could pull those affluent baby boomers into

By Gardner, Greg • Oct. 1, 1996

How Ford’s new brand strategy works

What is a brand? A brand is trust. A brand is a distinctive name, trademark and trade dress that clearly identifies and enhances the value of a product, service or company" --Gregory Kolligan, partner and managing director, Brand/Equity International.Ford Motor Co. gathered 600 of its people from around the world for a six-day meeting at a downtown Detroit hotel early in June to plot a new global

By David C. Smith • Oct. 1, 1996

New “product a month” strategy in works at GM

General Motors Corp. is creating a new product-development and marketing strategy that calls for introducing an all-new vehicle every month by 2000, says Roy S. Roberts, general manager of GM's Pontiac-GMC Div. He also says GM will increase truck production from 40% of total capacity today to 50% by 2000 to meet the growing demand for trucks in the marketplace. "A product a month, every month. We're

Oct. 1, 1996

GM may mothball dual-cam 3.4L DOHC V-6

Various sources both inside and outside of General Motors Corp. have suggested GM is ready to scrap its 3.4L DOHC V-6 engine, not to be confused with the above mentioned overhead valve 3.4L in the new GM front-drive minivans. One source in GM manufacturing says the company already has decided the engine--currently GM's only overhead cam V-6-must go. Penetration for the engine is no greater than 10%

Oct. 1, 1996

Managing import brands

The term "brand management" may be a buzz word contrived by Americans, but U.S. automakers are not the only ones practicing the art. In fact, it's entirely possible that import and transplant automakers have managed their brands so well that they triggered the Big Three's new marketing maneuvers.With few exceptions, import and transplant automakers have not resorted to as much brand jockeying and

By Tim Keenan • Oct. 1, 1996

Steve Miller takes reins as Federal-Mogul ousts Gormley

First Chrysler, then the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, then Idaho-based mega-contractor Morrison-Knudsen, now Federal-Mogul. Former Chrysler number cruncher Robert S. (Steve) Miller Jr. is stepping into the breach at Federal-Mogul Corp. after the board of directors gave the heave-ho to Chairman and CEO Dennis Gormley citing insufficient progress on the repositioning of the engine bearing and seal maker

Oct. 1, 1996

At Saturn, everyone’s a brand manager

Ironically the one organization within General Motors Corp. that perhaps most effectively manages its brand --Saturn Corp.--has no one called a brand manager.From the 1994 Homecoming, when thousands of owners drove their cars to Spring Hill, TN, where they were built, to the ads featuring the Saturn cycling team that ran during the Atlanta Olympics, the company has used its own start-up story to project

By Gardner, Greg • Oct. 1, 1996

Can cars be sold like Crest? Ask former P&G and GM chairman John Smale

John Smale did a lot more than shake up the hierarchy at General Motors Corp. in 1992 when he grabbed the reins as chairman and put John F. (Jake) Smith Jr. in as president (since elevated to chairman, replacing Mr. Smale).A long-time GM board member, who retired as chairman of Procter & Gamble Co. in 1990, Mr. Smale also is credited as the architect behind GM's now blossoming brand-imaging strategy

By Rothenberg, Al • Oct. 1, 1996

Branding irons hot at Chrysler

How seriously does Chrysler take brand management? Even design interns working at the automaker last summer were involved with it.Assigned to create 1/4-scale concept cars for the year 2005, they had to research and interpret what each brand meant before designing their individual Jeep, Dodge, Plymouth or Chryslerbadged vehicles. They even had to visit dealerships and pose as buyers interested in

By Drew Winter, Washington, Frank • Oct. 1, 1996

Canada: view from the roof; production’s growing, but the market is sluggish.

CAMBRIDGE, Ont. -- From a vantage point on the roof of the Toyota Motor Mfg. Canada Inc. plant, you can see the future of Canadian auto production taking shape.By the end of 1997, the construction going on below is expected to add capacity for 120,000 vehicles a year to the sprawling complex near Kitchener -- one of several assembly plant expansions under way this summer in Canada.On the other side

By Green, Jeff • Oct. 1, 1996

Ford/Amcast aluminum differential carrier for new F-150 pickup

A leader in the conversion to aluminum of high-integrity, performance-critical automotive components, Amcast Automotive has developed a new aluminum vehicle component that was formerly made of iron. This critical part is the front differential gear carrier on Ford's hot new F-150 pickup truck.Named "Truck of the Year" at the 1996 North American International Auto Show, the new F-150 features a new,

Sept. 1, 1996

One SLicK new roadster

FLORENCE, ITALY -- As far as I'm concerned, whoever it was at Mercedes-Benz AG to have finally "signed off" on producing the 1998 SLK roadster deserves a few extra "company matches" to supplement his or her pension. The SLK is a titanic achievement.Titanic because this stubby 2-seater entertains like few other Mercedes road cars in recent memory.The SLK responds to the driver's wishes with puppy-dog

By Bill Visnic • Sept. 1, 1996

Steering a course to reduced mass

Nearly anyone in the auto game who's clued in enough about suspensions to know a good one from a bad one will agree that BMW AG makes some good ones. Maybe the best. And don't think for a minute that BMW isn't aware of its iron-clad reputation in this area.Suspension is important to BMW. Brilliant suspension design is a prime component in the sometimes enigmatic package of qualities that define a

By Bill Visnic • Sept. 1, 1996

‘97 Ford Expedition: North, to Alaska...

FORT RICHARDSON, AK -- It was a great idea: Invite the press troops to Alaska and let 'em have a go at the all-new 4-door Ford full-size SUV in the world's most rugged terrain.What Ford didn't count on is the dearth of rugged roads, on or off, in the Anchorage and Seward areas where Expedition was supposed to show its prowess. Nothing but decent as far as the eye could see.SUV purists need mud and

By David C. Smith • Sept. 1, 1996

Strong buck aids Camry cause

As the first high-volume Japanese car introduced since the U.S. dollar emerged from its coma, Camry provides Toyota with an enviable dilemma: lower the price and grab some market share or hold the line and pocket a little extra profit.Jay N. Woodworth, a Summit, N.J.-based consultant, says the 35% increase in the yen (from a trough of [yen]80/$1 in May 1995 to [yen]108/$1 now) gives a huge competitive

By Gardner, Greg • Sept. 1, 1996