|
NEWS ANALYSIS
For Japanese auto parts suppliers, these are deeply disturbing times. A business culture that has long overlooked collusion is under attack. Japan's Denso Corp.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
An early trend: Last year's three big sales winners -- Chrysler Group, Hyundai-Kia and Volkswagen of America -- continued to drive the market in January. An early subplot: American Honda and Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
After its long-awaited study of facility-improvement programs, the National Automobile Dealers Association wants automakers to put their programs on hold for review, citing conclusions in the study that they cost too much, produce uncertain results...
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Automotive News is working with Best Companies Group to identify dealerships that have excelled in creating quality workplaces.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
A growing number of dealers say they are drifting away from the third-party Internet lead providers that have dominated online vehicle marketing for 15 years.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
TrueCar.com, the online vehicle shopping service, has stopped offering vehicle prices from dealers and promises of big discounts. Instead, TrueCar shoppers now request price quotes from local dealers after they visit the TrueCar Web site.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
It's a truism that electric vehicle makers need to target early-adopter buyers. But Coda Automotive CEO Phil Murtaugh also needs to attract early-adopter dealers.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| NEWS ANALYSIS
The U.S. engine-sharing deal announced last month between Nissan Motor Co. and Daimler AG indicates high Nissan hopes for a future Infiniti car.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
President Obama's call to repatriate U.S. factories with manufacturing work put the domestic auto industry in the spotlight last month during his State of the Union address.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| CARS & CONCEPTS
BMW will enter the fast-growing swoopy sedan segment that its luxury competitors have created by adding a four-door model to its 6-series family.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| CARS & CONCEPTS
For the third straight year, Chrysler Group will assemble at the factory a full-sized car highly customized with Mopar accessories. The Mopar '12 300, a version of the flagship Chrysler 300 sedan, will be available this summer.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| CARS & CONCEPTS
Fiat plans to offer a longer, high-roof variant of its 500 minicar. The five-seat 500L -- the L stands for large -- will be built in Serbia and exported to the United States beginning early next year.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| CARS & CONCEPTS
It's small. It's cute. It's functional. And Ford Motor Co. doesn't plan to sell it in the United States. That would be the Ford B-Max subcompact minivan, which Ford CEO Alan Mulally will unveil in production form at the Geneva auto show in March.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| ANALYSIS
General Motors has a perfectly good crossover that's waiting to be produced. Actually it was produced; several hundred were assembled before production was halted. I'm talking about the Saab 9-4X.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
More than half of the Lincoln dealers in the top 130 U.S. markets have agreed to improve their dealerships, according to Ford marketing chief Jim Farley.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Soaring demand for the new Toyota Prius C in Japan may create a U.S. allocation dilemma. The pint-sized hybrid is scheduled to arrive in U.S. showrooms next month. Toyota Motor Corp.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
American Suzuki's marketing boss, who promoted the company's vehicles on a shoestring budget, has left and will not be replaced, said a company spokesman.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I'm a big fan of GM Vice Chairman Tom Stephens, and I, too, will be sorry to see him retire ("From age 10, GM's Stephens loved go-fast gizmos," Final Assembly, Jan. 23). I'm also America's No.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
EDITORIAL
It is wrongheaded and inefficient for California to dictate that by 2025 15.4 percent of new vehicles sold in the state must be electric, fuel cell or plug-in hybrid vehicles.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I do not go to a dealership because a showroom conforms to certain standards. I go because I'm looking for a new vehicle. Forcing dealers to make unnecessary renovations does nothing to help the economy or the dealership.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| KEITH CRAIN
In years past, National Automobile Dealers Association conventions have been a battleground over all sorts of issues.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
EDITORIAL
Price fixing by suppliers, which is being revealed by a growing multicontinent investigation, threatens to undermine the trust between suppliers and their customers.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
U.S. Smart dealers, trying to rebound from their poorest sales year yet, want a four-seat car to add to their product offerings. In 2011 those dealers sold just 5,208 copies of the Smart ForTwo, a two-seat microcar and the brand's only entry.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
In 2012, Ford dealers face the kind of challenge most of them relish: Lots of new vehicles are on their way to showrooms, and dealers' main job will be keeping up with the new technology.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Jaguar dealers remain confident that vehicles are on the horizon that will appeal to a broader customer base and yield higher sales and profits, says Jeffrey Davis, chairman of the Jaguar Business Operations Council.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Mazda's CX-5 crossover should become the brand's second-best seller when it arrives in March, Mazda's dealer council chairman says.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Cadillac dealers are gearing up for a potential doubling in sales over the next several years.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Sales of the Range Rover Evoque SUV are strong but supply is not yet adequate, says the head of Land Rover's dealer council. "If you were to order a new one from us now you'd be talking about a May delivery.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
A group of 80 Saab U.S. dealers last week asked a U.S. Bankruptcy Court to place Saab Cars North America into involuntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Leonard Bellavia, the lawyer representing Saab's U.S. dealers, submitted the Chapter 11 petition in U.S.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Mike Shaw is the 2012 Time Dealer of the Year. Shaw, 65, was scheduled to receive the honor Saturday, Feb. 4, at the National Automobile Dealers Association convention here. He is dealer principal of Mike Shaw Chevrolet-Saab in Denver.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| BEST PRACTICES
For dealers worried about finding qualified employees, here's one possible solution.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Mitsubishi dealers are hoping for even more new product as they await electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles that are still a few years away from launch. Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., the carmakers worst hit by Japan's March earthquake, forecast big rebounds to record global sales this year because of new models and restored supply.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Dealerships in this report: Alton Blakley Ford-Lincoln in Somerset, Ky.; Bergstrom Ford in Neenah, Wis.; Gus Machado Ford in Hialeah, Fla.; Shanxi Dachang Automobile Ltd. Co.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Hyundai, Subaru and Lexus dealers are the most satisfied, a National Automobile Dealers Association survey shows. For the third straight survey period, Hyundai finished first overall while Kia was fourth.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| Q&A: STEPHEN WADE,OUTGOING NADA CHAIRMAN
Stephen Wade had some notable accomplishments during his year as chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association, but he admits there is more work to do.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
When a customer told Vandalia, Ohio, Ford dealer Larry Taylor last week that he was interested in buying a Fusion Hybrid, Taylor walked him over to look at a 2012 Fusion Hybrid. The customer looked at the car and shook his head.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
In 2011, 20 percent of the 10.6 million new vehicles counted as sold in the United States at retail, excluding sales to fleets, were leased, one percentage point higher than in 2010, says the Manheim 2012 Used Car Market Report.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
General Motors' decision to extend a program that helps dealers pay to renovate their stores is persuading more Chevrolet dealers to break ground.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
The new chairman of the Chrysler National Dealer Council says he wants to spend the year increasing the profitability and value of Chrysler Group franchises and says the factory wants to help.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
In 2012, Lincoln dealers will be divided into two classes: those who are in the top 130 luxury markets and those who are outside. Ford Motor Co.'
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Some Buick dealers worry that the recently launched Verano compact sedan will cannibalize sales of the Regal, a mid-sized car that has helped fuel Buick's comeback since its 2010 launch.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Honda needs more aggressive marketing, or it faces losing additional customers to surging brands such as Hyundai, Honda's top dealer representative said.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Infiniti dealers will launch a regional advertising network this year that will give retailers more advertising dollars to spend on local media.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Nissan Division will increase the flow of money to regional dealer ad associations this year as it readies a multiproduct launch campaign. The company won't reveal its advertising budgets.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Audi dealers would like to see the brand move some production to North America to speed up delivery and shield against fluctuating exchange rates.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Porsche AG is targeting the United States for double-digit sales growth this year.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Volkswagen's U.S. dealers are starting to reap the benefits of selling a U.S.-built Passat.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Suzuki's Kizashi could sell better if the factory advertised it more and if dealers stocked the car in higher numbers, the brand's dealer council chairman says. James Morrell, owner of Advantage Suzuki in Albany, N.Y.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Since vehicle supplies dwindled late last year, Volvo dealers are looking for increased deliveries of popular models during the first quarter of 2012.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Acura dealers, hit hard by last year's inventory crunch, can expect a normal flow of new vehicles in 2012, said George D'Angelo, chairman of the Acura National Dealer Advisory Board.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Kia's dealer council chief hopes that output of vehicles bound for the United States will grow to help maintain the brand's momentum in 2012. Kia's U.S. sales rose 36 percent in 2011 compared with 2010.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
In a year when Lexus inventories were limited by the earthquake in Japan, losing some customers to rival luxury brands was to be expected.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Toyota was too optimistic in predicting when dealers would get their earthquake-ravaged inventories back to appropriate levels, says Carl Swope, chairman of Toyota's National Dealer Advisory Council.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Subaru of America could set a sales record this year as inventory levels return to normal, said Kirk Schneider, chairman of the Subaru National Dealer Advisory Board and owner of Nate Wade Subaru in Salt Lake City.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| CHICAGO AUTO SHOW PREVIEW
Acura will make a splash at the Chicago Auto Show this week with the introduction of its ILX small sedan and the redesigned 2013 RDX crossover. GMC will unveil the next-generation Acadia, and Hyundai will show a coupe version of the popular Elantra.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| FIXED OPERATIONS
Dealer Bob Rountree says that about 70 percent of his new- and used-vehicle buyers at his two Ford Motor Co. stores are repeat customers.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
| FIXED OPERATIONS
Buyers of Hyundai's youth-oriented Veloster coupe soon will have more accessories to buy at dealerships to personalize their ride.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
South Bay Ford in Los Angeles hasn't won any Oscars, but its Hollywood performances are putting big bucks in the bank. Since 2003, the dealership has been featured in at least 100 films, TV shows, commercials and print ads.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
BMW dealers hope their troubled relations with the factory will improve now that BMW of North America has a new boss.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Hyundai dealers are gearing up for tougher competition from resurgent Japanese brands seeking to regain lost market share, Hyundai's dealer council chairman says.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Mercedes-Benz finished second last year behind BMW in the U.S. luxury sales race.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Companies in this report: National Auto Auction Association, Urban Science and Akebono Brake Corp.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
A federal judge in Detroit has ordered a trial to determine whether American Suzuki Motor Corp. acted in good faith when it terminated a Michigan dealership's franchise in December 2010. The decision by U.S.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Shaun Del Grande isn't half-hearted about selling electric vehicles. As one of Coda's initial retailers, Del Grande Dealer Group plans to open five showrooms for the EV brand.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
When Sam Swope acquired his first dealership in Elizabethtown, Ky., on Jan. 1, 1952, the store's prior owner had sold 41 new Dodge and Plymouth vehicles the previous year.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
David Grundstrom figures that the Coda Sedan will round out the electric-drive lineup he is putting together for environmentally minded Southern California customers. Grundstrom, CEO of Marvin K.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Suppliers to the 2012 Mercedes-Benz M class includes ElringKlinger, Federal-Mogul, Inteva Products, Novem, Benecke-Kaliko, Cooper-Standard, Takata, Kiekert, Fraenkische, Nidec Motors & Actuators, Nidec Motors & Actuators, Vibracoustic, Eurofit,...
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
General Motors and Honda Motor Co.'s North American operations have unveiled plans to expand U.S. manufacturing, joining a steady stream of automakers with similar plans. In the past four months or so, GM, Honda, BMW AG, Nissan Motor Co.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Honda Motor Co. predicts it will have a blockbuster January-March quarter in North America as it seeks to make up for weak sales in previous months. Honda's latest sales forecast shows it now expects to sell 1.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Suppliers to the 2012 Dodge Charger include Metal Powder Products, Yazaki, Argent, IAC, ContiTech, Shawmut, Jyco Sealing, Magna Closures, Sigma, SRG Global, Ideal Clamp, Hitachi Cable, Multimatic, Inteva Products, FAIST ChemTec, Jiffy-tite, Novo...
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Chrysler Group will produce more units of the Jeep Compass and Patriot and start production of the new Dodge Dart with 1,800 new hires at its assembly plant in Belvidere, Ill.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Chrysler Group posted its first annual profit last week after the painful trudge through bankruptcy in 2009.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| Q&A:CHRYSLER GROUP'S PETER GRADY
Peter Grady, Chrysler Group's vice president for network development and fleet, says he is making progress rebuilding dealerships and sales in California. The automaker dropped many dealerships in the state in the 2009 bankruptcy.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
Mercedes-Benz USA has shifted Bernhard Glaser, the U.S. company's top product planner for nearly a decade, to its top marketing job. Glaser, 47, fills the post previously held by Steve Cannon, who took over as CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA in January.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
General Motors is expanding its popular Denali line of upscale GMC trucks to the brand's hottest vehicle, the Terrain crossover.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
To satisfy regulators in various states, TrueCar for the past month has been working on changes to its Web site and methods.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
Now that three suppliers have accepted guilty pleas to bid-rigging charges in U.S. courts, the Department of Justice's strategy has emerged.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
|
FINAL ASSEMBLY
After climbing for five months, Chevrolet Volt sales fell off sharply in January, and a government safety investigation seemed to have something to do with it.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| FINAL ASSEMBLY
Think your winter commute is cold? Consider the fate of several Jeep Wrangler owners in Reno, Nev., who walked out of their homes on January mornings to discover that the doors of their SUVs were missing.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
FINAL ASSEMBLY
President Barack Obama's trip to the Washington Auto Show last week put smiles on the faces of domestic-brand execs and had the import brands fuming.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| FINAL ASSEMBLY
On a recent Saturday in Boston, more than 100 Saab owners held an emotional wake for the bankrupt brand. "The Last Roundup" was part of a larger worldwide celebration of the Swedish brand.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
|
FINAL ASSEMBLY
Before the heyday of big SUVs in the 1990s, Lamborghini departed from its script and introduced the LM002 -- a muscular off-roader that was built in small numbers from 1986 to 1993.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012
|
| COMMENTARY: LINDSAY CHAPPELL
Mexico's star is ascending these days. Nissan just revealed plans to spend $2 billion on a new factory in Aguascalientes. Honda is also investing in Mexico, and so is Mazda. The Detroit 3 have been there forever. Parts suppliers are investing there.
12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012 |
|
Empowering Consumers to Make Smart Buying Choices 
