Automotive News back issues from February 2008:
Dealers must monitor disgruntled bloggers.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Bradford Wernle Late last year, Danny Chronister, general manager of Apple Nissan in York, Pa., got a call from his marketing manager. Someone had posted an unfavorable comment about the dealership on the automotive Web site Edmunds.com. The anonymous ...
E-commerce alters how dealers do business.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Donna Harris More clicks, fewer bricks. The auto industry continues to move elements of vehicle sales and service online. Some experts predict the electronic sale - from an initial customer inquiry to home delivery of a car or truck - will become dealers' ...
Dealers discover social networking sites; MySpace, YouTube, others help reach sales prospects.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Ralph Kisiel The Web sites MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn weren't created with auto dealers in mind. But dealers are finding that the popular social networking sites offer an appealing new way to reach sales prospects. J.D. Power and Associates calls ...
Buy a car online? Not me.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: John K. Teahen Jr. You can buy a car or truck on the Internet. You can choose its model and its color. You can order the optional equipment you desire. You can arrange financing and even sign the papers that make the transaction legal and binding. Note that I ...
Dealers: Web is one of many marketing tools; Online ads don't replace those in traditional media.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Jim Henry Auto dealers agree that they need to advertise online and that the need continues to grow. But they also say online advertising is proving to be another tool in their marketing kit, rather than a replacement for ads in traditional media such as ...
GM wants dealers to spruce up service bays.(Service & Parts)(General Motors Corp.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Laura Clark Geist General Motors wants dealership service departments to present the clean, modern look of popular retail stores. The idea is that a shop that reminds customers of Starbucks or Target rather than a dirty, dingy garage is more likely to attract and keep ...
Web widens market, but can shave margins; Online price data make shoppers more savvy.(Insight)(Industry overview)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Leslie J. Allen When it's time to make the sale, the Internet can be both a boon and an obstacle to auto dealers. The Net gives dealers access to a broad range of customers without the limits of geography. But it also gives consumers pricing information that ...
CarMax sticks to growth plan despite slowing sales; Company is slated to open 12 stores starting in March.(Insight)(Company overview)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Arlena Sawyers At CarMax Inc., sales are sluggish and its captive finance company's costs are up. Still, the giant used-vehicle dealership group is moving ahead with its aggressive expansion plans. The Richmond, Va., retailer is set to open its sixth store in ...
Mercedes takes local money for national TV; Media strategy is opposite of rival BMW.(News)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Diana T. Kurylko Mercedes-Benz USA LLC will stage an unprecedented $100 million TV blitz this year with at least six new commercials, primarily for the C-class sedan and M-class SUV. Steven Cannon, vice president of marketing, says Mercedes will shift the ...
What's AMG? M-B plans awareness drive.(News)(Mercedes-Benz USA Inc.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Diana T. Kurylko Mercedes-Benz this year will shine the spotlight on its AMG brand with special performance centers, a road show and an ad campaign. The effort aims to create awareness of AMG and to differentiate the high-performance brand's vehicles from ...
Web site joins dealer reviews, social network.(Insight)(CarFolks.com)(Website overview)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Laura Clark Geist One of the newest Web sites to offer consumer reviews of auto dealerships does things a little differently. Instead of waiting for posts, CarFolks.com also solicits reviews. The site uses customer e-mail addresses that dealerships supply, ...
Plastech: Hard choices for Detroit 3.(Suppliers)(Plastech Engineered Products Inc.)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Byline: Robert Sherefkin, David Barkholz Automotive trim supplier Plastech Engineered Products Inc. is seeking a $200 million bailout from its major customers: General Motors, Ford Motor Co., Chrysler LLC and Johnson Controls Inc. Those customers are running out of ...
High-stepping into retirement.(News )(resignation of Tony Merpi from Crain Communications Inc.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... About 180 colleagues, clients, friends and family members gathered at Detroit's Roostertail nightclub last week to say goodbye to Tony Merpi, longtime sales and marketing director of the Automotive News Group. Merpi, 64, retired last week from Crain Communications Inc., ending a career ...
Ford sees market for small van.(News)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Amy Wilson Ford Motor Co. is expected to reveal a small delivery van for the United States at the Chicago Auto Show. The Transit Connect is expected to go on sale in 2009. The Transit Connect is built in Turkey on a more robust version of the ...
NADA's chairwoman: Born to the business; At 19, she decided she wanted a stake in the family store.(Insight)(National Automobile Dealers Association)(Annette Sykora )
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: David Sedgwick Slaton, Texas, is a town dominated by its geography. On its outskirts are the green circles of irrigated cotton farms that define Slaton's economy. You can do business with the farmers and ranchers, or you can travel 20 miles up the highway to Lubbock. ...
GM forms hybrid, electric vehicle unit; 400 engineers to be part of global team.(News)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Leslie J. Allen General Motors is putting all global engineering for hybrids and extended-range electric vehicles under one umbrella. GM is setting up an engineering organization dedicated to those vehicles and to advanced battery technology. Fuel cell ...
Modern turbos leave early versions in the dust.(News)(turbochargers)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Richard Truett Automakers are flirting with turbochargers again, just as they have every decade since the 1960s. Both General Motors and Ford Motor Co. recently have revealed plans to install turbochargers in mass-market cars. But the new generation of turbos ...
GM dealers worry about losing their A-Team; Detroit 3 slump makes retaining top salespeople a challenge.(Insight)(General Motors Corp.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Jamie LaReau As General Motors dealers face the prospect of a brutal sales year, many say they fear losing their best salespeople - the so-called A-Team. Declining sales and profits at GM dealerships are limiting compensation for sales employees. That is ...
Online scheduling, parts sales build service work.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Ryan Beene Using the Internet to sell parts and schedule repair appointments boosts auto dealerships' service business and employee productivity, dealers and analysts say. "It's a nice way to supplement the business of phone-ins and walk-ins,'' says Dick ...
Tough sledding ahead for Canadian labor talks.(News)(Canadian Auto Workers)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: David Barkholz, Amy Wilson The Detroit 3 are preparing for Canadian labor talks this summer that could prove to be more difficult than the landmark UAW negotiations completed last November. Canadian Auto Workers President Buzz Hargrove said the union won't ...
Economy and hiring top Hudson's concerns.(Insight)(American International Automobile Dealers Associations chairman Jim Hudson)(Interview)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... More from Jim Hudson, this year's chairman of the American International Automobile Dealers Association. As a businessman, what keeps you up at night? The economy as a whole. When you look at the cost of gasoline, when you look at the housing industry and the effect ...
51 dealers are nominated for Time magazine award.(News)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Time magazine and Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. have received 51 nominations from automotive trade associations for the 39th annual Time Magazine Dealer of the Year Award. The award is given in cooperation with the National Automobile Dealers Association to honor a franchised ...
Auto News digest.(Briefs )(DealerTrack Inc. managing credit applications and electronic contracts)(Ford Motor Co. notifies Ford and Lincoln-Mercury dealers last week of a safety recall)(profits and growth of DENSO Corp.)(Financial report)
Feb 04, 2008 ... DealerTrack back on track LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y. - DealerTrack Inc. says it diagnosed and fixed the problem that prevented dealers from sending customer credit applications and electronic contracts to financial institutions on Jan. 26 and Jan. 28. DealerTrack CEO Mark O'Neil said ...
Ford dealerships close, but the bills just keep coming.(News)(Ford Motor Co.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Amy Wilson When Randy Fuller saw a $39 towing charge on his Ford dealership's parts statement in January, he knew it was time to pick up the phone again. The charge stemmed from a program Fuller had signed up for to have Ford Motor Co.'s roadside assistance ...
Don't worry, Alan - it'll be our little secret.(Final assembly)
Feb 04, 2008 ... If Ford CEO Alan Mulally takes a Ford Expedition or a beefy E-series van home for the night, it's no big deal. But when reminiscing about his old job, he probably shouldn't talk about test driving the big stuff. Mulally, formerly head of Boeing's commercial airplane unit, let ...
Deux Chevaux could be reborn as Nano fighter.(Final assembly)(introduction of Citroen 2CV in small car segment)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Edward Lapham Now that the Tata Nano is grabbing headlines as a $2,500 car for the masses in less-developed countries, automakers are assessing their own product plans to see whether it's worth developing a direct competitor. Some automakers have a leg up ...
Isuzu's collapse; The once-nimble Japanese brand prospered in the 1980s and '90s with its hot-selling SUVs - then plummeted this decade. Who is to blame?(News)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Kathy Jackson For the past four years, Terry Maloney has had to drag himself to the podium at Isuzu's annual NADA make meeting, face a grim, even surly dealer body and relay the worst possible news: No new product is coming. Maloney won't have to do that this ...
Ford wants more dealers (but not here).(Final assembly)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Ford may be cutting U.S. dealers as fast as it can, but in the United Kingdom it's beating the bushes for more. Ford is holding special events and advertising in trade publications to recruit entrepreneurs and encourage non-Ford dealers to add the brand. In the next two years, ...
Personnel.(People)(Carsten Regent appointed by BMW Manufacturing Corp.)(Ralph Fisher appointed by Mercedes-Benz USA Inc.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... BMW MANUFACTURING CORP. - Carsten Regent to vice president for total vehicle quality management and engineering in Spartanburg, S.C. He replaces Peter Gilliam, who has moved to the Dingolfing plant in Germany. Regent had managed special projects for the Spartanburg plant. BMW's ...
Suppliers race for fuel savings.(Suppliers)(diesel engines in high demand)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Robert Sherefkin It's a new world for automotive suppliers. Parts that boost fuel economy are in. Those that gulp gasoline - even if they improve performance - are out. So turbochargers are in, but superchargers are out. When it comes to ...
Auto News digest.(Briefs)(Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Toyota honors Texas dealership LOS ANGELES - Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. has named Fred Haas Toyota World its top Toyota Certified Collision Center for 2007. The suburban Houston dealership has won the award three straight years. More than 150 centers were ...
Dealers.(People)(Jon Murdock of General Motors Corp. recieves award)(Buddy Jones of Ford Motor Co. recieves award)(Randall Kalin of Ford Motor Co. recieves award)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Milestones * Jon Murdock of Jon Murdock Chevrolet-Cadillac-Mitsubishi in Manhattan, Kan., received a 25-year award for Chevrolet and Cadillac from General Motors. * Buddy Jones of Buddy Jones Ford-Lincoln-Mercury in Greenwood, Miss., received a 25-year award for Ford ...
Dodge Avenger comes to China.(News)(Chrysler L.L.C.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Lan Lan Chrysler LLC has started selling the imported Dodge Avenger sedan in China. Chrysler expects the sporty sedan to attract China's business elites who want an expressive car. Two versions of the Avenger are available, both with 2.4-liter ...
Hyundai: Genesis won't repeat iDrive controversy.(News)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Gary Anglebrandt For years, auto writers and drivers have criticized BMW's complex iDrive, in which drivers use a knob on the console and other buttons to control the radio, fan, heater and many other functions. Despite the criticism, Hyundai is using a ...
GM's Henderson: We're not largest.(News)(General Motors Corp.)(Toyota Motor Corp.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Leslie J. Allen Debate continues in some quarters over whether General Motors or Toyota Motor Corp. is the world's top-selling automaker. But GM's CFO acknowledges that, from a financial perspective, GM is not No. 1. "I don't spend too much of my time trying ...
What would Homer drive? Maybe a Taurus, Ford exec hints.(Final assembly)(Ford Motor Co.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... It's the corporate equivalent of looking at your daughter and declaring her an eyesore. So auto analysts in Detroit were surprised recently when Ford product chief Derrick Kuzak put up a slide of cartoon doofus Homer Simpson next to a picture of the brand's slow-selling Taurus sedan. ...
1 more flight for the Firebird.(Final assembly)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... A piece of General Motors history will be rolling down the track Feb. 17 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Daytona 500: GM's 1954 Firebird One turbine-powered concept. The event also will call attention to GM's 100th anniversary, which will be celebrated Sept. 16. The ...
PARTY TIME; Here are some social events during this year's NADA convention in San Francisco.(Insight)(Calendar)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Friday, Feb. 8 ATAE reception San Francisco Marriott, Golden Gate Ballroom 5-7 p.m. By invitation only Automotive Youth Educational Systems reception Fairmont, Gold Room 5:30-7:30 p.m. By invitation ...
'We expected a volatile year'.(Insight)(John Hawkins chairman at International Automobile Dealers Association)(Interview)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... More from John Hawkins, outgoing chairman of the American International Automobile Dealers Association: Has the new Democrat-controlled Congress been as anti-trade as AIADA feared? We have seen challenges to pro-trade. They are still there. We certainly saw ...
NADA CONVENTION SCHEDULE.(Insight)(National Automobile Dealers Association)(Calendar)
Feb 04, 2008 ... All events are at the Moscone Center unless otherwise noted. Friday, Feb. 8 * 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Lifestyle Center, Moscone South, Gateway Ballroom * 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Early convention registration, Moscone West, 1st and 2nd floor lobbies ...
Visionary dealer launched online shopping.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Donna Harris Back in 1994, Seattle auto dealer Marty Rood uploaded a photo of a 1993 Volvo 850 GLT to his dealership's fledgling Web site. Adding the image of the Volvo was an initial step toward the virtual showrooms that Web users have come to take for ...
Online tools help dealers manage used-car fleets.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Byline: Arlena Sawyers Paragon Honda in New York City sold 1,542 certified used Honda cars and trucks last year, more than any other U.S. dealership. Brian Benstock, the dealership's general manager, attributes much of that success to Live Market View. The software ...
Consumer reviews of dealerships gain clout.(Insight)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Laura Clark Geist Consumer-written reviews of auto dealerships are becoming an Internet staple. And some dealers aren't thrilled. "People who are unhappy and looking for a venue to vent'' are the most likely authors of so-called consumer-generated media, says ...
Ford plans lower spiffs in 2nd half.(News)(Ford Motor Co.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Amy Wilson Ford Motor Co. is planning lower incentive spending on U.S. nameplates in the second half of 2008. The average per-vehicle spending is likely to drop in part because of new-model launches this summer and fall, top executives say. Ford also expects ...
NADA reaches out to dealers in many lands.(News)(National Automobile Dealers Association)(Industry overview)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: David Sedgwick If you look closely, the annual auto dealers' convention that starts Saturday, Feb. 9, is going to look a bit like the United Nations. According to the National Automobile Dealers Association, delegates from 32 countries have signed up for its ...
Tata's Nano: We've heard that song before.(Opinion)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Guido Reinking The Lloyd was the object of my father's first longing for a vehicle of his own. "How wonderful it must be to drive to work in such a car,'' he thought to himself as he stood freezing at the bus stop. At the time, the early 1950s, he was a bank ...
Hummer will sell a pickup.(News)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Rick Kranz The Hummer line finally gets the model it has been lacking: a true pickup. The 2009 Hummer H3T crew cab seats five and has a 5-foot-long cargo box capable of carrying two dirt bikes or full sheets of plywood. Sales begin this fall. The ...
Dealers use Net to snag specialty car buyers.(Insight)(Chrysler L.L.C.)(Ford Motor Co.)(eBay Inc.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Richard Truett Minutes after Chrysler LLC opened its order books for the new-era Dodge Challenger in early December, at least a dozen of the red-hot cars rumbled onto the eBay Motors Web site. Bidders went nuts. They drove the price of the tire-shredding ...
Cadence for sale, 3 years after it began.(Suppliers)(Cadence Innovation LLC.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Robert Sherefkin Less than three years after a group of private equity firms formed Cadence Innovation LLC, they are shopping the auto parts maker. Falling Detroit 3 production has undercut Cadence's plans to gain the new business needed to assure long-term ...
This generation's man on the moon: Green technology.(Opinion)
Feb 04, 2008 ... In his final State of the Union address, President Bush called for more federal research into advanced batteries and renewable fuels to power vehicles of the future. But what's really needed is the equivalent of the Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb in the 1940s or the ...
Korea fines carmakers for illegal price cuts.(News)(South Korea Fair Trade Commission)(GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co., Hyundai Motor Company Ltd. and Kia Motors Corp.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Gary Anglebrandt, Shin Jee Young South Korea's Fair Trade Commission wants to do more to shield suppliers in the country from illegal price cuts by automakers. But many suppliers refuse to talk about their customers' actions, making the FTC's efforts more ...
Wake-up call for drowsy drivers.(News)(Toyota Motor Corp.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Hans Greimel Drivers who doze behind the wheel of a Toyota could soon get a rude awakening. Toyota's latest safety innovation constantly monitors for signs of sleep in the driver's eyes and issues a prompt warning if the eyelids get too droopy. A ...
Dealership execs will hit the books; Babson College, NADA team up for intensive program.(Insight)(National Automobile Dealers Association)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Jenny King The National Automobile Dealers Association is raising the skills bar with the launch next month of its Dealer Executive Education program at Babson College, near Boston. The intensive six-week program has been designed to offer dealers and ...
On the Web.
Feb 04, 2008 ... This week at www.autonews.com: * Wednesday: Live coverage of the Chicago Auto Show. Go to www.autonews.com/Chicago. ...
A leaner Dana leaves Chapter 11, saying it's ready to compete.(Suppliers)(Dana Holdings Ltd.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: James B. Treece Dana Holding Corp. exited Chapter 11 protection on Friday, Feb. 1, just as light-vehicle sales are deflating in North America. So be it, says John Devine, Dana's chairman and new acting CEO. "There's no great time to re-enter the ...
Personnel.(People)(Jeremy Holt appointed at NxtGen Emission Controls Inc.)(Barbara Novak appointed at ArvinMeritor Inc.)(Charles Donlin appointed at Petoskey Plastics Inc.)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... ARVINMERITOR INC. - Barbara Novak to vice president and corporate secretary. She had been senior counsel for securities at TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. Sherry Welsh to vice president of sales and marketing for the company's light-vehicle systems business group. She had been ...
Online assembly line allows built-to-order Scions, delivered fast; Ports are used to create just what customers want.(Insight)(Toyota Motor Corp.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Mark Rechtin In a perfect world, vehicle shoppers get exactly the cars and trucks they desire. But most consumers, confronted with a parking lot full of dealership inventory and pressure to buy today, usually pick something that comes closest to what they want. ...
Texas-sized benefit.(News)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Nearly 1,000 people strutted their stuff at Texas Tux/Texas Chic, the Houston Auto Show gala preview Jan. 25 in Houston's Reliant Center. The annual bash benefits the Houston Automobile Dealers Association's scholarship program. Each year the event raises funds for 125 $2,000 scholarships ...
Ford unit sells driveshaft business to Chinese firm.(News)(Ford Motor Co.)(Johnson Controls Inc.)(Neapco Inc.)(United Automobile Workers)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Brent Snavely More than two years after it was formed by Ford Motor Co., Automotive Components Holdings LLC has completed its first U.S. sale - to a Chinese-owned parts maker. Five other preliminary agreements to sell eight plants, announced over the past 14 ...
Ford's Behrendt helped mend supplier relations; Europe purchasing chief lauded for fairness, openness.(News)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Arjen Bongard, Bettina Mayer With an annual budget of $20 billion, you would think Birgit Behrendt, Ford of Europe's vice president of purchasing, has enough money to keep suppliers happy. Think again. Behrendt, who heads Ford of Europe's ...
Southeast Toyota adds space for training.(Insight)(Southeast Toyota Distributors Inc.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Lindsay Chappell A funny thing happened when the redesigned Toyota Tundra showed up last year in the technical classrooms at Southeast Toyota Distributors Inc.: The full-sized pickup didn't fit any more. "It fit,'' clarifies Dave Majcher, director of the ...
Autobytel sheds data, CRM software unit.(News)(customer relationship management)(Brief article)
Feb 04, 2008 ... Autobytel Inc. has sold certain assets and liabilities of its Applied Virtual Vision Inc. unit to Dominion Enterprises for $22.75 million. Dominion also will pay Autobytel working capital of about $1.1 million, subject to adjustment. Autobytel is divesting noncore ...
Factories encourage dealers to go green.(Insight)(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)(American Honda Motor Company Inc.)(Chrysler L.L.C.)(Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Mary Connelly Green auto dealerships aren't new. Until now, though, building or renovating dealerships that reflect environmental values has mostly been a product of dealers' initiative. That's changing. This year, automakers such as General Motors, Chrysler ...
In an icy economy, early signs of frostbite; January sales soften; dealers and suppliers scramble to cope.
Feb 04, 2008 ... Byline: David Sedgwick The Fed's January interest-rate cuts kept a mediocre sales month from being even worse, but the shaky economy clearly is sending ripples of distress through a jittery auto industry. Toyota, Nissan and Honda - typically A-list performers - had ...
Faulty gearshift blocker prompts Dodge recall.(News)(Chrysler L.L.C.)
Feb 04, 2008; ... Byline: Harry Stoffer Chrysler LLC is recalling about 386,000 light trucks built for the 2001-02 model years because of the danger they can roll away when parked. Dealers are to replace a component called a gearshift blocker in 2001-02 Dodge Durangos, Dakotas and Ram ...