Automotive News articles from January 2009

Automotive News archives from January 2009

Auto shows; Glitz and glamour still could be found at the world's major venues.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Parisian star Mazda unveiled its Kiyora small coupe concept at the Paris show in October. What's cool about it? A filtration system collects rof water aqnd makes it drinkable for car occupants. Electric show Nissan unveiled the...

Faces of the bailout; George W. Bush threw GM and Chrysler a $17.4 billion lifeline in December, but not before an electrifying few weeks in which the two companies appeared to face oblivion.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Talking heads In November, key players in the Washington drama met to formulate what they hoped would be a quick bailout of the Detroit 3. From left, Ford's Alan Mulally, GM's Rick Wagoner, Chrysler's Bob Nardelli and the UAW's Ron...

The dealers; 2008 was a tough year to be selling cars - or trying to.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... The Saccucci way Saccucci Honda, a small Rhode Island dealership owned by Cora Saccucci and daughters, Barbara, left, and Carol, built one of the nation's top-selling retail Web sites for Honda parts and accessories. It may also have...

Chrysler turns green with ENVI.(Detroit auto show )(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Bradford Wernle A year ago, Chrysler LLC brought a herd of steers to the Detroit auto show to herald the global launch of the 2009 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup. Now Chrysler is fighting for survival. It must show that it has a plan...

Chevy: Time is right for 30-mpg Equinox.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Rick Kranz Chevrolet will tout 30-mpg fuel economy when the restyled, re-engineered 2010 Equinox goes on sale next summer. "It is a refined yet responsible crossover, said Ed Peper, General Motors' North American vice president...

Ford to unveil new Taurus, Shelby GT500.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Amy Wilson Ford marketers say the company will protect the budget for its auto show presence in 2009 in hopes of making a big splash among the Detroit 3. Starting at the Detroit show, Ford will unveil one of its most important...

World debuts.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... PRODUCTION VEHICLES 2010 Bentley Continental GTC Speed convertible 2009 BMW Z4 roadster 2010 Buick LaCrosse sedan 2010 Cadillac SRX crossover 2010 Chevrolet Equinox crossover 2010 Fisker Karma sedan 2010...

Cadillac downsizes SRX in bid to grab more sales.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Rick Kranz If size matters, the redesigned 2010 Cadillac SRX should hit the sweet spot occupied by the highly successful Lexus RX series. The new Cadillac crossover seats five, like the RX, and is a mere four inches longer than...

China's BYD touts battery technology.(Detroit auto show)(Lithium batteries)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Kevin Huang BYD Co. is a small automaker here but a major producer of lithium ion batteries for cell phones. The company wants to use its expertise in batteries to make practical plug-in hybrids. At the Detroit auto show,...

Detroit show: Glitz on a shoestring.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Welcome to the first Detroit auto show in the bailout era. Automakers will roll out new cars, and top executives will take questions from the press as they do every year at the North American International Auto Show. But in the...

Can the Detroit 3 make their case? They must.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... This month, the Detroit 3 will resume their plea in Washington for emergency federal aid to help avert bankruptcy. They can expect to deal with a less hostile Congress and a less ideologically narrow White House than they confronted last year....

The buzz: Technology; Powertrain prowess grabs the spotlight.(Detroit auto show )
January 5, 2009... Byline: Rick Kranz These are tough times, but the show must go on. The 2009 Detroit auto show kicks off at Cobo Center with press days Jan. 11-13. The pre-show news has centered on automakers that opted out of the show to conserve...

GM's stake in revived GMAC will shrink.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Jim Henry The government bailout of GMAC Financial Services gives General Motors a lender that's back in business with dealers and consumers. But GMAC is even less of a captive finance company for GM than ever before. ...

Better get used to the fishbowl.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Keith Crain Everyone in this business will be in a fishbowl in 2009, and the world will be watching. We had better get used to it. All the challenges of the past year are still with us. New issues this year will make the auto...

Cars and stars; Celebrities made us laugh, sing and get up and dance - all while helping auto companies move the metal.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Jay's jabs Nothing was sacred as one-time dealership lot boy Jay Leno gave the NADA convention opening session in San Francisco a solid hour of stand-up. Among his targets: radio ads for "Jag-you-are." Vette set Detroit rap-rocker...

Cars and trucks; It was a year of newcomers and nostalgia as carmakers from India and China gained notice while GM and Ford celebrated their heritages.(General Motors global design boss Ed Welburn resgined)(Tata Motors product Nano car have received more attention)
January 5, 2009... Shock of surprise In September, someone put photos of the still-secret Chevrolet Volt on a Web site accessible only to journalists. The Volt and vehicle line director Tony Posawatz appeared in the photos. Chevy later said it was a case of...

People; Faces of the industry in 2008.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Man in motion Nissan-Renault boss Carlos Ghosn was the star of the Nissan 360 event in Cascais, Portugal, a two-day Nissan and Infiniti product extravaganza for journalists in May. Chamco chief Bill Pollack, chairman of would-be...

Postscript; The lighter side of a difficult year.(dealer Paul Fotopoulos ran TV commercials featuring impersonator)(marketing of redesigned Toyota Corolla)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Supersmarts This turned up on the Web in September: something called "The Newest Smart Cars!!!" - doctored photos of alleged Smart-based performance-car kits. The ubiquitous unsigned e-mail included pictures of a "Smamborghini," far left;...

Web program lets repair shops bid for work.(SceneExchange)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb An online program called SceneExchange aims to help dealership service departments compete for collision repair work more efficiently. About 140 franchised dealerships take part in the program, which enables them to...

Technology; In a year of turmoil and turbulence, engineering know-how was still king.(Toyota Partner Robot)(Brief article)
January 5, 2009... Box of goodies Dodge unveiled the RamBox, a lockable box on its redesigned 2009 Ram pickup that can store anything from shovels to 240 12-ounce beverage cans - with enough ice to keep them ready for a party. Toyota's trumpetplaying...

Service techs want out of union.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Donna Harris Service technicians at a Florida auto dealership who joined a union in 2007 want to quit it now but they're finding that it isn't easy. Last year, 17 of the 21 technicians at Ed Morse Sawgrass Auto Mall in...

Rental fleets slash new-vehicle orders; Tight credit, recession shrink inventories.(NEWS)
January 5, 2009... Byline: Arlena Sawyers The credit freeze that is helping to kill new-vehicle retail sales also is forcing car rental companies to slash their fleet orders. In 2008, rental companies bought 1.5 million new cars and trucks, down from 1.9...

Acura eases demands for store upgrades.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb Acura won't push dealers to do the store upgrades that had been a key part of a plan to boost the brand's luxury image. "Due to the economic climate, we have not pressed dealers to implement the interior upgrade...

Audi may do A7 hatch.(Detroit auto show)(2010 A7 sedan )(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: April Wortham With the Sportback concept, Audi offers a glimpse of the 2010 A7 sedan while signaling its intent to take hatchbacks beyond the compact category. The five-door concept, which was scheduled to debut Sunday, Jan....

Ford's cash dips below $15 billion.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Amy Wilson Ford Motor Co. apparently slowed its cash burn during the fourth quarter of 2008, but the company is using cash fast enough that it likely will need to tap more funding this year. Ford, the only U.S. automaker...

Former AIADA official is at center of tax fraud trial in Virgin Islands.(American International Automobile Dealers Association)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Harry Stoffer In January 2003, federal prosecutors say, auto dealer Jamie Auffenberg told an undercover Internal Revenue Service agent that when Auffenberg went to the U.S. Virgin Islands, he made a point of recruiting people to...

Detroit's hope: No more Beg 3; Federal loans help, and more aid looks likely as the new president takes office.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Harry Stoffer Detroit 3 CEOs won't be back in the nation's capital to grovel for more taxpayer money any time soon, industry officials say with cautious optimism. One reason: More federal aid is likely for the industry even...

Downturn slams Calif. dealerships; U.S. slump cuts deeper in import stronghold.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb It's a grim business being a car dealer in California these days whether you sell Detroit 3 vehicles or one of the import brands that account for nearly 70 percent of sales in the Golden State. In California, where...

Chinese suppliers see U.S. as a land of opportunity.(NEWS)(automotive parts industry)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Steven Ribet For Chinese suppliers, dark clouds over the North American auto industry have a silver lining. Cost cutting in Detroit, they think, could push more business their way. "Our products are high-quality, said Jane...

Study: Dealers waste Web leads.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb Dealerships are losing business because they don't handle Internet leads correctly, according to a study by Cobalt Group. "There is good progress on timeliness, but dealers need to put more attention to quality of...

CORRECTIONS.(NEWS)(Correction notice)
January 12, 2009... A story on Page 14 of the Dec. 22 issue contained incorrect information about a salvage auction company that is affiliated with ADESA Inc. The salvage company, Insurance Auto Auctions, and ADESA Inc. are sister companies. Both are owned by KAR...

AUTO NEWS DIGEST.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Suzuki sedan to debut in N.Y. LOS ANGELES American Suzuki Motor Corp., refuting media reports from Japan last week, said it still plans to release a mid-sized sedan based on the Kizashi 3 concept in the United States this year. The...

Different diagnoses.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Here are 2 views on federal intervention in the auto industry and dealers' roles. NADA: Much has been done to loosen credit, but more moves are needed. AIADA leaders: "Dramatic, immediate action must be taken to spur sales and leases....

Incoming AIADA leader: Feds must do more to get inventories moving.(American International Automobile Dealers Association)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Harry Stoffer Since the federal government is handing out money, why not give, for a limited time, $2,000 to every consumer willing to spend it on a new car or truck? That's a serious idea, says Russ Darrow, a top auto dealer...

The crash of 2008: Can it get any worse?(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Jesse Snyder Remember that second-half sales upturn that automakers and analysts were forecasting a year ago? Instead, we got a train wreck of a second half and the biggest one-year plunge in U.S. sales since 1974. Who knew? Who...

Opinion.(NEWS)(Viewpoint essay)
January 12, 2009... GM must have a rock-solid finance source The government bailout of GMAC Financial Services can be an important part of helping General Motors and its dealers sell more cars and trucks. But GM should be prepared to establish its own captive...

Bush punts again, this time on CAFE.(NEWS)(fuel economy rules)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... One worry about departing presidents is that they try to jam through controversial rules in the final hours before handing over the keys to the White House. But on key automotive issues, President Bush is taking the opposite approach,...

Consumer Reports shows some love to Ford and GM - but spanks Chrysler.(NEWS)(Report)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... The embattled U.S. auto industry part of it, anyway got a welcome attaboy last week from Consumer Reports, a frequent critic whose harsh reviews in past years have bumped many U.S. models from many shopping lists. In its February issue,...

More proof: Toyota's hurting, too.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Desperate times are spurring desperate measures at Toyota. For the first time in its history, the world's largest automaker is idling all 12 of its Japanese factories simultaneously as it struggles to slash production amid tumbling sales...

Report: Honda scraps sporty models.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Two sounds dominate the early 2009 auto market: Deafening silence from new-car showrooms and the sounds of axes being swung by automakers worldwide. At Honda, horsepower and pizzazz are on the chopping block, according to the British...

Hyundai's disaster-proof deal.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... From discounted gasoline to free maintenance, automakers have dreamed up a slew of incentives to goose an ailing market. But a new one from Hyundai may be a first: If you buy a new Hyundai and then lose your job, Hyundai will take back the...

GMAC will close subprime unit.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... GMAC made it official last week: General Motors dealers must look elsewhere to find loans for subprime customers. GMAC confirmed that in March, it will close its Nuvell Financial Services subsidiary, which mostly wrote retail car loans to...

2008's winners? It's a Mini-list.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... You can bet that few champagne glasses were raised after the sales numbers for 2008 were tallied. You don't even need all the fingers of one hand to count the brands that posted higher sales. Fueled by high gasoline prices, sales of BMW's...

Detroit 3's dismal sales decade: More than 5 million units disappear.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Jesse Snyder What a disastrous decade it has been for the Detroit 3 a nine-year downward spiral that has seen more than 5 million units of sales disappear for General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC. At the end of...

Gettelfinger: Flying blind on eve of talks.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: David Barkholz UAW President Ron Gettelfinger has a tough job ahead of him and he says the government's silence is making it tougher. "It's confusion, Gettelfinger told Automotive News last week, days before his bargaining...

Merkin is out as GMAC chairman.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Donna Harris GMAC Financial Services' controversial chairman, J. Ezra Merkin, resigned Friday, Jan. 9. Merkin's hedge fund, Ascot Partners, made headlines for losing $1.8 billion in Bernard Madoff's investment scam. Merkin...

GM adds Auto/Mate to dealership system list.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Ralph Kisiel General Motors has added Auto/Mate Dealership Systems Inc. to its short list of endorsed dealership management system suppliers. Auto/Mate, of Clifton Park, N.Y., already has its system in more than 500 dealerships...

GM shows 6 new vehicles, including a Cadillac plug-in.(Detroit auto show)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Jamie LaReau Intending to show that it will be around a long time, General Motors scheduled three surprise vehicle launches Sunday, Jan. 11, at the Detroit auto show. GM added three fuel-efficient vehicles to its three...

LOS ANGELES.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb American Honda Motor Co. plans no new advertising campaigns for the next three months and says its ad budget for the fiscal year starting April 1 probably will shrink. "We are looking closely now at everything we...

Honda Insight sets sights on hybrid king Prius.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb The production version of Honda's new Insight hybrid has a cool interior, a Prius-like shape and, Honda says, a competitive price. "We think we offer a value package that will make the Insight appealing, says Dan...

Lots of questions, so little time.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Keith Crain General Motors and Chrysler LLC have received part of the bridge loans to forestall running out of cash, but they have a great deal of work to do. Each must quickly come up with a plan that will answer a lot of...

LaCrosse moves upmarket; Buick redesign goal: Understated luxury.(2010 LaCrosse )
January 12, 2009... Byline: Rick Kranz Buick is moving the next-generation LaCrosse a few notches upmarket in looks, materials, optional equipment and price. "We are going after what I am calling unpretentious luxury-seekers. They like near-luxury, they...

Leasing stages a comeback, sort of.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Arlena Sawyers After taking a nose dive late last summer, new-vehicle leasing is creeping upward. Data compiled by Edmunds.com and J.D. Power and Associates show that leasing represented roughly 13 to 14 percent of new-vehicle...

Maserati holds its own in a rough market.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Diana T. Kurylko Maserati cars evoke a strong emotional reaction from customers, says Marti Eulberg, CEO of Maserati North America, who has some quasi-scientific evidence to support her contention. With previous management...

Global troubles plague Mercedes' Ala. plant.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: April Wortham Mercedes-Benz's U.S. purchasing chief stood before a packed room of nervous suppliers in Alabama in November and reminded them of a painful fact: The automaker's factory there is the sole Mercedes plant worldwide that...

In 2008, brands losing less than 18% gained market share.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Jesse Snyder In a year when everyone looked like a loser, there were a few small, but notable, victories and the eclipsing of several milestones. Indeed, the year of torment was also one of transformation. A one-year sales...

Multitasker.(Detroit auto show)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Dealer Doug Fox is handling these duties for the Detroit auto show. Co-builder and co-operator of the Mitsubishi display President of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association Co-chairman of the North American International Auto Show...

Dealer won't let Mitsubishi sit out.(Detroit auto show)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Lindsay Chappell Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. pulled out of the Detroit auto show late last year. But southeast Michigan dealer Doug Fox wouldn't let the automaker go dark in Detroit. Fox and his fellow local dealers...

Nissan's new 370Z: More muscle for $30,000.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Lindsay Chappell To create the 2009 370Z coupe, Nissan could have cherry-picked high-end features from its recently introduced sports car, the $70,000 GT-R. But the sixth-generation Z remains true to its mission: a small and brawny...

Auto bailout, Main St. style; Calif. city grants lines of credit to 2 struggling stores.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Kathy Jackson Norco, Calif., proudly calls itself Horsetown U.S.A. In some parts of the city, there are more horse trails than sidewalks. But while Norco loves its horses, the city of 27,000 residents about 60 miles southeast...

Motown's big show kicks off.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... A bit of glitter cut through the industry's gloom with global debuts of new products on Sunday, the first press day at the Detroit auto show. Pages 8, 20, 21 General Motors rolls out a plug-in Cadillac, one of three fuel-efficient vehicles...

Personnel.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... APTERA MOTORS Tom Reichenbach, 57, to chief engineer. He had been assistant chief engineer for gasoline turbocharged direct injection with Ford Motor Co. David Oakley, 48, to vice president of manufacturing. He had owned his own...

Study: Lender marketing builds buyer satisfaction.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb Good advance marketing pays off for auto lenders, a study of new-vehicle financing concludes. J.D. Power and Associates' annual Consumer Financing Satisfaction Study suggests that buyers who shop with a preferred...

Output falls 2.5 million units.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Debi Domby North America car and truck production declined 2.5 million units, or 16.2 percent, in 2008 to 12,967,961. It is the third highest year-over-year unit decline and the first time the year-end total has been below 15...

Mitsubishi kills Raider pickup.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Hans Greimel Mitsubishi Motors Corp., which saw its U.S. sales plunge 24.6 percent last year, will kill the Raider pickup as the company overhauls its North American lineup. The Raider is a rebadged Dodge Dakota. Mitsubishi...

Govt. drops Stockman fraud case.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: David Barkholz Almost two years after controversial financier and supplier executive David Stockman went on TV to defend himself against federal accounting-fraud charges, he's off the hook. On Friday, Jan. 9, federal...

Good riddance to a bad year.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: John K. Teahen Jr. Only one good thing can be said about 2008: It's over. Unfortunately, 2009 doesn't look like much of a winner either, despite the whistling-past-the-graveyard predictions of a second-half U.S. auto-sales...

Survey: Suppliers pull back from Chrysler.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Ralph Kisiel Two-thirds of the suppliers that responded to a recent survey are "less likely or "much less likely to offer their new product technologies to Chrysler LLC than in 2007. About one-third said the same of Ford Motor Co.,...

New Taurus' goal: Revive the old allure.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Amy Wilson Ford Motor Co. is taking the next-generation Taurus sedan upscale. The re-engineered and restyled 2010 Taurus, which was to be revealed Sunday, Jan. 11, at the Detroit auto show, is Ford's attempt to recapture...

VW Credit slaps fee on non-VW service plans.(Volkswagen Credit )(Brief article)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Donna Harris Volkswagen Credit is imposing a $150 fee on independent service contracts it finances for new vehicles whose loan terms exceed 60 months. The captive finance company of Volkswagen Group of America Inc. introduced...

On the Web.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... This week at autonews.com Monday: Two "Automotive News Today video newscasts from the Detroit auto show one available in the morning and the other around 4 p.m. ET. Tuesday: How low will 2009 U.S. sales go? Forecasts from the...

Video, e-mail, Web or print: Choose your news, we'll deliver.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Dave Versical The Chevrolet dealer in Connecticut rifled off an e-mail and we then talked. I want to read my Automotive News online every day, she said. I don't have time to watch it. What ticked her off ? Our "Automotive News...

Toyota will ramp up cash rebates; Company struggles for ways to revive sagging sales.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Kathy Jackson Six months ago, Florida dealer Earl Stewart had 135 customers on a waiting list to buy a Toyota Prius. Now he is running ads offering discounts of up to $2,000 on the not-so-hot hybrid. One of the largest sellers...

Key facts.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... When: Jan. 19-22 Where: Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center Cost: $1,495; daily fee $750 Information: 313-446-0485 or autonews.com/worldcongress Exclusive lead sponsors: PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM

What's online?(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... You can get Automotive News 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in several ways, and none requires a subscription. Some offerings Newsletters: Sign up for daily and weekly e-mail newsletters and breaking news alerts at autonews.com/emailsignup....

Supply, product execs to be featured at congress.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... A global supply veteran and three top product development executives will be featured speakers at the Automotive News World Congress next week in Detroit. Supply expert Marcus Chao, founder and CEO of Shanghai-based Lean Enterprise China,...

Ford seeks to recast its image with "09 launches.(NEWS)
January 12, 2009... Byline: Amy Wilson Ford Motor Co. looks to a handful of vehicle launches this year to provide a fresh start with American consumers. New models of the Ford Mustang, Fusion and Taurus, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ cars are all slated...

GM: We'll cautiously succeed in paring dealers.(NEWS)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
January 19, 2009... Byline: Jamie LaReau Next month General Motors dealers will have a better idea of the sacrifices they must make to help GM become a viable company, GM marketing chief Mark LaNeve said. Whatever is is needed from dealers, the company...

Delay of GM spiff money pinches dealers.(NEWS)(General Motors Corp.)
January 19, 2009... Byline: Jamie LaReau General Motors dealers say the automaker's two-week delay on dealer incentive payouts is taking a toll on their cash flow and operations. Still, GM cannot afford to return to the old schedule any time soon, GM's...

Toyota will begin selling electric vehicle in U.S. in 2012.(NEWS)(Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.)(Brief article)
January 19, 2009... Byline: Rick Kranz U.S. sales of Toyota's new electric vehicle will begin in 2012. Toyota is determining what platform and what model will be battery powered. Bill Reinert, national alternative-fuel vehicle manager for Toyota...

Questions cloud Chinese timetable for U.S. sales.(NEWS)(BYD Co.)
January 19, 2009... Byline: Alysha Webb Few doubt that Chinese-made cars will be sold in the United States some day. But even though BYD Auto Co. and Shenyang Brilliance Jinbei Automotive Co. had cars at the auto show here last week, their presence did...

O'Sullivan: Mazda3 will drive share growth.(NEWS)
January 19, 2009... Byline: Kathy Jackson Mazda's U.S. sales fell 10.7 percent last year, but the Japanese automaker still gained market share and expects to gain even more in 2009. Last year, Mazda's share rose to 2.0 percent of the U.S. market from 1.8...

Mercedes-Benz Blue Zero.(NEWS)
January 19, 2009... Vehicle type: 5-door hatchback Powertrain: Electric motor, front-wheel drive. Three sources of power available: battery pack, small gasoline engine to recharge the battery pack or fuel cell to generate electricity. Who designed it:...

No show in Tokyo? Debate continues.(NEWS)(Brief article)
January 19, 2009... To save money, the Detroit 3 aren't going to the Tokyo auto show in October. And maybe nobody is, depending on the results of a debate simmering inside the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. A spokeswoman for the trade group, which...