Automotive News back issues from May 2009:
Survival manual.(Save Your Car Dealership)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... David Swanson, founder of Save Your Car Dealership, says dealers must take these steps to cope with a down market. * Streamline spending * ...
Slow economy hurts service contract sales.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Richard Truett Sales of extended service contracts for new and used cars a source of big profits for dealers have tanked along with auto sales this year. But consumers are keeping their cars longer than ever. The average age of America's cars is a record 9.4 ...
Tight credit squeezes dealers; F&I revenue declines as lenders refuse to roll service contracts, other add-ons into car loans.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Donna Harris Rattled by tight credit and rising default rates, lenders are reducing the amount of money they will loan toward a car purchase. The policy is costing dealers finance and insurance income. In some cases it's also costing them car sales. ...
F&I helps dealer ease pain of a down year.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Bradford Wernle In 2007, John Bommarito had a gut feeling that 2008 wasn't going to be a banner year for new-car sales. Bommarito, president of Bommarito Automotive Group in Ellisville, Mo., realized he was going to have to search for ways to keep his St. ...
Mazda's O'Sullivan: Focused on new products.(Jim O'Sullivan)
May 04, 2009; ... When Ford Motor Co. cut its stake in Mazda Motor Corp. to 13 percent from 33.4 percent in November, several key Ford Motor Co. executives on loan to Mazda had to make a decision: Stick with Mazda or go back to Ford. One of Mazda's coups was hanging on to Ford lifer Jim O'Sullivan, who had ...
California is industry's worst crash site.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... As the surfers might say, the auto business in California is a total wipeout. In the first quarter, new-vehicle sales in the Golden State fell 43 percent to 231,726, according to the California New Car Dealers Association. That compares with a 38.4 percent decline for the ...
Here's the deal.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... The issue: Chrysler has considerable leverage to cut dealerships in bankruptcy court. What's next: The company will choose ...
Buy-American boost may make Ford the winner in Ch. 11 saga.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... And the winner is Ford?With Chrysler in bankruptcy and General Motors possibly following suit some analysts predict an exodus of customers who don't trust a bankrupt automaker to be around tomorrow to service a car bought today. Despite enthusiastic predictions from President ...
Chrysler dealers have GMAC option.(General Motors Acceptance Corporation)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: David Sedgwick Thousands of Chrysler dealers who face the loss of floorplan financing will have an opportunity to sign up with GMAC. A senior GMAC executive said Thursday, April 30, that his company will sign up all Chrysler dealerships that now finance their ...
JM&A's Foster: Sell service plans in your service department.(Bruce Foster)(Interview)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... Toyota and Lexus dealers in the Southeast have seen fairly steady sales of extended service contracts on new and used vehicles, says Bruce Foster, 42, director of the Performance Development Center at JM&A Group, a unit of JM Family Enterprises, the southeast regional Toyota distributor ....
Plant shutdown threatens suppliers.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Robert Sherefkin and Dave Guilford Chrysler LLC's shutting of its plants until it emerges from bankruptcy couldn't come at a worse time for parts suppliers. Already reeling from General Motors' impending nine-week production shutdown this summer, which starts ...
The April tally: 18th straight month of year-to-year decline.
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: John K. Teahen Jr. Auto people studied the April sales figures. Then they shuddered and dug in for another month of hoping and praying. April was not a good month. The 819,817 new cars and light trucks delivered by dealers were 34.3 percent fewer than in April ...
Used-car financing: More work, more profit.(Sandy Springs Toyota)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Arlena Sawyers Barry Jackson, owner of Sandy Springs Toyota in suburban Atlanta, says getting his used-car customers financed requires "more. More prodding of customers for bigger down payments. More verification of income and residency. More effort to match ...
GM's store cutting could face flurry of suits.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Jamie LaReau Even with bankruptcy looming as a possibility at the end of the month, General Motors could face a barrage of lawsuits as it tries to meet the U.S. government's demand to streamline its dealership roster. Starting this month, GM will meet with or ...
Toyota dealers: Inaba to run all of N.A.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Kathy Jackson Toyota's incoming North American boss, Yoshimi Inaba, will assume a powerful new position in charge of both sales and manufacturing operations, some dealers have been told. Inaba, 63, who was CEO of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. from 1999 to 2003, ...
In auction market, Chrysler's doing fine.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Bradford Wernle In the months before Chrysler filed for bankruptcy, dealers bid up auction prices of the struggling automaker's used vehicles. Dealers and experts say prices rose because: * Chrysler is sharing in an industrywide surge in ...
In fact, it was a good week for Chrysler.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Peter Brown The horror of a Chapter 11 filing by a once-powerful member of the Big 3 obscured some good news last Thursday: Chrysler LLC has a future. It will live. Even as he announced that Chrysler was going into bankruptcy, President Barack Obama had ...
Dealers use eBay to sell parts; Total sales now exceed 135 million; "09 pace is up 15%.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Mark Rechtin Sitting on slow-moving inventories of spare parts is an unenviable position for an auto dealer. The online auction eBay says it can help. EBay, once known as a place to market Grandma's tchotchkes, has sold more than 135 million auto parts through ...
In plan B, GM cuts go deeper.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... General Motors last week revealed its second restructuring plan to the Obama administration's auto task force, which rejected the first plan. The automaker now plans to: * By 2010, eliminate 1,000 to 1,200 dealerships judged to be poor performers. (Story on Page 3.) ...
The final say.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... "Every Pontiac dealer should get down on his knees every night and thank God that he is a ...
Packing up the Pontiac memories; 2 veteran dealers grapple with the impending doom of an iconic American brand.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Jamie LaReau John Delehanty, 58, will close his stand-alone Pontiac dealership in 2010 but wants another General Motors brand. For Rob Brown, 49, "the party's over for his 83-year-old Pontiac business. At the end of 2010, he'll close it and rely on his Mazda, ...
Credit unions expand auto lending via aggregators.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Dave Guilford When many lenders abandoned automotive lending last year, Long Island dealer Keith Donnelly was stumped. Then he turned to credit unions, which had financed about 10 to 15 percent of deals at his three stores. With the help of GrooveCar Inc., a ...
Obituaries.(Donald Dougherty Sr.)(Obituary)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... Donald Dougherty Sr. THURMONT, Md. Retired auto dealer Donald Dougherty Sr. died March 29 at age 80. He was a Chevrolet and Oldsmobile salesman here for 18 years. In ...
A quick bankruptcy? Not so fast, experts say; it's up to the judge.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Dave Guilford Chrysler LLC says it will use Chapter 11 reorganization to create a viable new company "in a matter of 30 to 60 days. But bankruptcy experts say that timetable is very optimistic. "One of the dumbest things anybody can do government ...
Bankruptcy strips car dealers of protections.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Bradford Wernle Chrysler LLC has a potent new weapon to thin its dealership roster: Bankruptcy Court. In a move that rocked dealers last week, the company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. ...
dealers.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Milestones Dave Burke and Ray Burke of Burke Motor Group in Cape ...
Saturn's demise will cut GM hybrid total.(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... One little-discussed consequence of taking Saturn out of the General Motors equation: GM loses just over a quarter of its sales of fuel-saving hybrids just the type of vehicles the Obama administration wants automakers to build. Saturn sells hybrid versions of the Vue crossover ...
Foreign suppliers now fill half of top 25 spots; Annual survey: 19 had lower N.A. sales in 2008.(NEWS)(Survey)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Robert Sherefkin Virtually half of the 25 largest suppliers to automakers in North America are foreign-based, and many of the U.S. companies on the list are struggling. Automotive News' annual survey of the top 150 North American suppliers shows that 12 of ...
GM seeks to replace Vibe at Toyota joint venture.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Lindsay Chappell As it shrinks its North American product portfolio, General Motors is negotiating with Toyota Motor Corp. to designate a new GM vehicle that would be built by the automakers' joint venture, New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. If the talks ...
Correction.(NEWS)(Correction notice)
May 04, 2009 ... A story on Page 17 of the April 27 issue incorrectly described the ...
BMW chief sees a sales upturn in September.(Jim O'Donnell )
May 04, 2009 ... Jim O'Donnell became CEO of BMW (U.S.) Holding Corp. last July, just before U.S. auto sales began to plunge. So it has been a tough start in America for the native of Scotland. But there are positive signs. O'Donnell, 59, expects BMW brand sales to pick up slightly in the fourth ...
3 stars kept Pontiac from the gallows in "50s.(General Motors Corp. Pontiac Div)(Company overview)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... This time there appears to be no escape. But Pontiac could count itself lucky, because it narrowly dodged a bullet 50 years ago. Born without fanfare in 1926, Pontiac immediately succeeded Oakland as General Motors' first step-up brand (from Chevrolet), but its early years were ...
2 future collectibles from Pontiac?(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... Pontiac has created more than its share of collectible muscle cars. And now that the brand is headed for the last lap of Wide Track Boulevard, two limited-run models could join the ranks of well, if not classics, at least historical oddities. They are the Solstice Coupe, a ...
Jim O'Donnell.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... What will drive your expected sales increase in the fourth quarter? I am a bit of an optimist that the Obama factor will come into play. We ...
Fairness, wisdom must guide GM in cutting stores.(General Motors)
May 04, 2009 ... Although General Motors has widened and accelerated the campaign to cut its dealer network, the automaker must treat dealers fairly while terminating them. For some time, GM has said it wants fewer dealerships. But last week's announcement that it wants just 3,605 stores by the ...
Automotive News honored for bond with you, readers.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... Automotive News was honored as one of the country's "Most Engaged Media Brands last month in New York by the Media Industry Newsletter. The judges praised the close ties Automotive News has with its 70,000 paid subscribers in print, online and in person. "New ...
Jim O'Sullivan.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... The oldest cars in your lineup are the MX-5 Miata and RX-8. Is there any call for a sports car in these times? The RX-8 and Miata are our soul. Without sports cars, this company is like Ford ...
briefs.(General Motors)(Mercedes-Benz )
May 04, 2009; ... GM could halt Saturn, Hummer output in Aug. DETROIT If General Motors can't secure a buyer for Hummer or Saturn by midsummer, it will begin halting production in August. "We'd stop building in the back half of this year August through December, Mark LaNeve, GM's ...
What emerges from Ch. 11 won't be the old Chrysler.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... A picture of the reconstituted Chrysler emerged last week after the automaker filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. * A new Chrysler: Under supervision of the court, the Obama administration auto task force plans to sell the viable parts of the ...
A little equity could grease the wheels for GM dealer cuts.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Edward Lapham This is no dream! This is really happening! You can forgive any dealer with one of the 2,600 stores that General Motors wants to close by the end of next year for being startled and incredulous, like waking up in the middle of a nightmare that's ...
Fed-run GM: A formula for disaster.(General Motors)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Keith Crain I am still surprised and disappointed that corporate America has been painfully silent as the government usurps more and more authority at General Motors. The White House and the Treasury Department fired the CEO and appointed an "interim CEO and ...
On the Web.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... This week at autonews.com * Monday: See automakers' latest U.S. incentive programs at autonews.com/spiffs * Friday: ...
GM to dealers: OnStar can be tool to boost service revenue.(General Motors )
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Jamie LaReau General Motors is encouraging dealers to use OnStar to drum up service business. OnStar, GM's satellite communications system, sends an e-mail notice to a dealership when a customer needs scheduled service. With the customer's permission, the ...
New board: Can a camel bust hump?(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: David Sedgwick You've heard the old saw that a camel is a horse designed by a committee. Well, New Chrysler's proposed nine-member board of directors is starting to look like a camel. The Treasury Department will name four directors, while Fiat ...
Captive puts freeze on dealer funds.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Donna Harris Chrysler Financial has frozen the cash management accounts of Chrysler dealers. The move denies some dealers access to six figures or more of their own cash, which they deposited against their loans for flooplanning. While many dealers closed ...
Job 1 for Fiat boss: Visit, learn; From exec suite to men's room, CEO does his research.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Luca Ciferri If you're looking for Sergio Marchionne in the next few weeks, you might try the men's room at any one of Chrysler's plants, offices or technical centers in the United States. The Fiat S.p.A. CEO regards the state of the bathrooms as an ...
Store need cuts? This guy's got the ax.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Arlena Sawyers Last November, Bob Cockerham closed his Suzuki dealership in Rio Rancho, N.M. Its new-vehicle sales had plunged 60 percent from the previous year. In January, Wells Fargo Auto Finance, the floorplan lender for Cockerham's Car World Kia ...
Rising used prices.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... Values of used 2005-08 Jeep, Dodge and Chrysler vehicles rose before Chrysler LLC filed for bankruptcy. AUCTION PRICE INCREASE FEB. 1-APR. 22 Jeep - 9.9% ...
How Honda created life of luxury.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... On June 8, Automotive News will chronicle Honda's U.S. history in a special section, "Honda's American Journey: 25 Pivotal Moments in 50 Eventful Years. For information about the section, go to autonews.com/honda50. In the early 1980s, Tom Elliott was convinced that ...
With gas at $2, Ford delays diesel for F-150.(Brief article)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Amy Wilson A diesel engine for the Ford F-150 light-duty pickup is looking dicey. Ford had said it would sell a diesel F-150 beginning in 2010. Last spring, dealers were shown a 4.4-liter V-8 diesel said to deliver more power and torque than the F-150's ...
Dealers see hitch in Ford's $1 buyout; Takers might not find an alternate financing option.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Arlena Sawyers A proposal by Ford Motor Co. to let some dealers buy out the company's interest in their stores for a dollar could deprive them of adequate operating capital, dealers warn. Ford made the buyout offer last month to every member of its dealer ...
Supply Line.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... TRW will shut Wisconsin plant ETTRICK, Wis. TRW Automotive Inc. says it will close its plant here by the end of June, putting 60 employees out of work. The plant makes ignition switches, dome lamps and heating and air-conditioning controls. TRW's plant in Winona, ...
Rising defaults deter longer loans.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Donna Harris The 72-month loan is falling out of favor. With loan defaults rising, risk-averse lenders are backing away from the ultralong-term loans that once enticed consumers. From Jan. 1 through March 15, 2009, 40.5 percent of car loans made through ...
Ford Credit seeks bank charter to tap consumer funds.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Amy Wilson As it searches for cheaper sources of funding, Ford Motor Credit Co. wants to turn to American consumers. Savers who invest in certificates of deposit could buy CDs from a bank owned by Ford Credit, allowing the captive to lend those deposits to ...
Branching out.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... An industrial bank charter would give Ford Credit these advantages. * Deposits through CDs would provide a cheap source of funds. * ...
Credit unions look to meet dealers' floorplan needs.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Donna Harris Credit unions have helped jump-start car sales by funding consumer loans when the domestic automakers' finance companies were short of cash. Now initiatives are afoot that could allow credit unions to provide inventory financing to new-car ...
F&I bright spots: Dent removal, tire repair; Growth of cheaper products gives dealers profit boost.(Ferman BMW )
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Leslie J. Allen At Ferman BMW in Palm Harbor, Fla., customers have little need for service contracts. A new Bimmer has a factory warranty of up to four years or 50,000 miles. But drivers will open their wallets to insure against dings from runaway shopping ...
Wachovia is poised to grow dealer business.(Wachovia Dealer Services)(Interview)
May 04, 2009 ... Despite the auto industry's deep recession, Tom Wolfe of Wachovia Dealer Services is overseeing a growing operation. After Wells Fargo completed its acquisition of Wachovia, the company named Wolfe president of its combined automotive loan business. Wachovia Dealer ...
At a glance.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Wachovia Dealer Services Dealers: 9,000 Commercial loans: $6.7 billion in outstanding ...
Independent certifiers prosper.(Motor Trend Certified Advantage warranty program)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Chrissie Thompson The recession has cast some sunshine on one sector of automotive business: independent certified used-car programs. Independent companies that certify used cars say business is booming. Dealers are turning to them as a way to bolster their ...
How dealers benefit.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009 ... Dealers say an independent certified used-car program is a worthy investment. * They can charge more for inspected cars with a warranty. * They sell their formerly ...
Mitsubishi sees profit despite falling sales.(NEWS)(Financial report)
May 04, 2009 ... Byline: Hans Greimel Mitsubishi Motors Corp. sees its U.S. and global sales falling again this year but says aggressive cost cutting will return it to a profit in the fiscal year that just started. U.S. sales are seen tumbling 29.8 percent to 59,000 vehicles during ...
Honda: First quarterly loss in 15 years; profit for year Hans Greimel.(NEWS)(Financial report)
May 04, 2009 ... Honda Motor Co. posted its first quarterly loss in 15 years in the three months that ended March 31 but still squeaked out a full-year profit. It forecasts continuing black ink despite falling sales in the fiscal year that began April 1. In the quarter that ended March 31, Honda ...
Noble's Ch. 11 story.(NEWS)(Brief article)
May 04, 2009 ... November 2008: Noble International hires Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin Capital Inc. to find the auto supplier capital. Feb. 23, 2009: GM, Ford and Chrysler agree to fund Noble's operations, but only for a while. March: Noble's stock, which had been trading at more ...
Bad cash flow, credit market cripple Noble.(NEWS)
May 04, 2009; ... Byline: Ryan Beene A few years ago, Noble International Ltd. had big plans. Today it's in Chapter 11 reorganization. The suburban Detroit supplier of laser-welded steel blanks used in car and truck bodies began a string of acquisitions in 2006 and 2007 to grow and ...