Automotive News articles from July 2006

Automotive News archives from July 2006

Calendar.(Calendar)
July 3, 2006... AUTO SHOWS - 2006 July 2-8 - Syrian International Motor Show (SYRAUTO), New Damascus International Fairground, Damascus, Syria, 963-11-332-4801, www.syrauto.com July 20-30 - British International Motor Show, (press day: July 18),...

Dealers want small stuff - and no more big SUVs.(Sport utility vehicles)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Dale Jewett Dealers' message to the factories: Let's get small. Small and mid-sized cars, crossovers and small SUVs are what dealers want to see on car haulers pulling up at their stores. Fifty-eight percent of dealers...

Crossovers will bump trucks at GM, Ford.
July 3, 2006... Byline: Jamie LaReau, Amy Wilson General Motors and Ford Motor Co. will drop several light trucks to make room for crossovers. GM will kill the Chevrolet TrailBlazer and GMC Envoy mid-sized SUVs. Ford plans to drop the Mercury Monterey...

CAFE fight is out of gas.(energy efficiency)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Automakers no longer can just say no to demands for higher fuel economy standards. Rising gasoline prices are spawning support in Congress for proposals that would raise corporate average fuel economy requirements as much as 10 mpg. The...

Corrections.(Correction)(Correction notice)
July 3, 2006... * A story on Page 52 of the June 12 issue gave the wrong model year and make for a vehicle. The Acadia will be a 2007 GMC model. * A story on Page 54 of the June 19 issue gave the wrong name for a company established to import vehicles from...

1st Land Rover with car roots coming.(Land Rover Australia on its sport utility vehicles)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Mark Rechtin Land Rover's first SUV from a shared car platform is expected to arrive at U.S. dealerships next April. The LR2 compact SUV, which replaces the slow-selling Freelander, will share a platform and key components with...

Creditors oppose Delphi claims.(Delphi Corp.)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: David Barkholz Delphi Corp. creditors are upset over General Motors' latest effort to get compensation for buying out Delphi's unionized workers. A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge last week expanded a GM early retirement and...

Towable RVs carry sales to 3.1% gain in April.(Financial report)(Financial report)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Erin Robinson U.S. shipments of recreational and conversion vehicles rose 3.1 percent in April, largely because of deliveries of towable RVs. Dealers received 40,100 vehicles in April, up from 38,900 in April 2005. In the first...

Magna: We could give build-it-cheap lesson.(Magna International Inc.)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Jens Meiners Magna International Inc. could produce a low-cost car "to show carmakers how to take costs out of such a car,'' says co-CEO Siegfried Wolf. Wolf drew a parallel to the Logan, a low-cost car produced by Renault...

Kerkorian proposal surprises GM; Alliance with Nissan-Renault - or message for Wagoner?(Renault-Nissan and General Motors Corp. to team up )
July 3, 2006... Byline: Jamie LaReau Last week, Las Vegas billionaire Kirk Kerkorian tossed a live hand grenade into the office of General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner. Kerkorian's ostensible purpose was to propose an alliance between GM and...

Cadillac, new ad shop focus on conquests.(General Motors Corp. Cadillac Motor Car Div. to launch campaign with Modernista!)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Mary Connelly Cadillac and its new advertising agency plan to launch a campaign next month aimed at generating conquest sales. Last week, Cadillac named Modernista its U.S. ad agency for creative work. That ended the luxury...

Supply line.(Superior Industries International Inc.)(Visteon Corp. (Dearborn, Michigan) to supply audio interface modules to Volkswagen AG)(Tower Automotive Inc. signs a contract with ICE Industries )(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Superior to idle 225 in Arkansas LOS ANGELES - Superior Industries International Inc. plans to lay off about 225 employees at its plant in Fayetteville, Ark. The company previously had said that it would restructure its chrome plating...

Kerkorian uses Chrysler playbook for GM deal.(General Motors)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Lindsay Chappell Deja vu? As the largest shareholder of what was then Chrysler Corp., Kirk Kerkorian prodded the company for high dividends, then pressed it to consider a buyout offer from Daimler-Benz AG. Now Kerkorian,...

Coventry: When the wheels came loose; For a long time, the town was England's Detroit.(BMW AG)(Peugeot S.A.)(Triumph Adler AG)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Richard Truett Only a certified car nut would do what I just did on my summer vacation. I went to Coventry, England, in part to see how a city deals with the loss of its auto industry. Until around 1980, Coventry was England's...

BBB study: Warranty gripes fall.(Ford Motor Co.)(General Motors Corp.)(Volkswagen of America Inc.)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Greg Migliore Higher-quality vehicles and automakers' emphasis on customer relations have caused warranty complaints to the Better Business Bureau to plummet, the bureau says. In a new report, the bureau says it handled 37,862...

Obituaries.(Automotive Group)(Obituary)
July 3, 2006... Leger Dowell Parker LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Leger Dowell Parker, founder of Parker Automotive Group here, died here June 19. He was 84. Don Rasmussen PORTLAND, Ore. - Don Rasmussen, founder of Don Rasmussen Co., one of the earliest...

The Smart play: Mimic the Mini; Penske sets modest goals, wants profitable dealerships in 1st year.(contracts)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Bradford Wernle Roger Penske plans to steal a page from Mini's playbook when he starts selling Smart cars in America in 2008. Penske thinks his UnitedAuto Group Inc. can profitably distribute DaimlerChrysler's stylish Smart...

Penske's right guy to handle Smart.(Penske and Schembri running the show makes sense)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Edward Lapham It's still not obvious that the off-again, on-again plan to sell Smart minicars in the United States will yield a bonanza for DaimlerChrysler AG. But having Roger Penske's UnitedAuto Group Inc. as the exclusive...

Production.
July 3, 2006... 3 tables: Scheduled plant overtime * Plant closings * North America car and truck production: see print copy. CAPTION(S): Ford division built its 1 millionth truck on Monday, June 26. That is 17 days later than in 2005. A 2007 Ford...

Late News.(car racing)(sales and earnings)(Pardus Capital Management LP acquisitions)
July 3, 2006... Challenger muscles in DETROIT - The Dodge Challenger is coming back. The Chrysler group was scheduled to announce its return last Saturday at the Pepsi 400 NASCAR race in Daytona Beach, Fla. The Challenger concept car debuted at the...

Dealers.(People)
July 3, 2006... Milestones * Mike Anderson of Mike Anderson Pontiac-GMC in Logansport, Ind., received a 25-year award for Pontiac. * Bill Egan Sr. of Kelly Motor Co. in Scranton, Pa., received a 25-year award for Volkswagen from Volkswagen of America....

Delphi and JCI work out dispute over battery business.(contracts)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Greg Migliore Delphi Corp. and Johnson Controls Inc. last week ironed out a dispute stemming from a 2005 battery manufacturing deal. Johnson Controls bought most of Delphi's global battery assets for $202.5 million in June...

Toyota executives clash with minority coalition.(management of executives)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Arlena Sawyers Minority activists walked out of a meeting last month with executives of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. after the company refused to provide data about its diversity initiatives. The National Minority Automotive...

If Quest moves to Japan, what replaces it in Miss.?(management)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Lindsay Chappell The Nissan Quest minivan is designed, engineered and built in America for U.S. consumers. It is the sort of product that Japanese automakers want to make locally - or maybe not. Nissan North America Inc. will...

Auto News briefly.(Ford' 2007 Lincoln Navigator)(Ford Motor's sales chief Cisco Codina)(California International Auto Show)
July 3, 2006... New Navigator grille thrills The huge, chrome-laden maw of the upcoming 2007 Lincoln Navigator grabs attention on the road, says Ford's North American design chief, Peter Horbury. During a late-June press preview of 2007 models in...

Ford backs off hybrids, bets on diesels, ethanol.(company forecasts)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Richard Truett Here's what is really behind Ford Motor Co.'s decision to back off its promise that it would be able to manufacture 250,000 hybrids by 2010: Ford got sucked into the early hype for hybrids and misread the demand. ...

Dodge diesels will get high-tech emission gear.(product development of diesel engines)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Richard Truett Add Dodge to the list of car companies planning to equip diesel-powered trucks with an expensive emissions system to meet stringent federal regulations that take effect Jan. 1. Frank Klegon, the Chrysler group's...

UAW targets PPG plants to add members.(management of PPG Industries Inc)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Greg Migliore The UAW is taking aim at smaller auto suppliers to stem erosion of its membership. Its latest target: coatings and glass maker PPG Industries Inc. The union organized two PPG plants in a week late last month...

For some brands, racing is their soul.(automobile racing)(Column)
July 3, 2006... Byline: KEITH CRAIN I was lucky enough to go to the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year and root for the Corvettes to win the GT1 class again. I've attended a lot of races over the years, but Le Mans always seemed to escape my schedule. It's...

Two cheers for Rick.(finance for general motors)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Wall Street analysts typically react in lockstep to news from Detroit. Not this time. General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner got a mixed response when he opined last week that shedding 30,000 UAW workers by Jan. 1 - 35,000 buyouts, minus a...

A5 establishes product path for Audi.(product development)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Jason Stein Audi's upcoming A5 coupe will be the first example of the automaker's new way of developing cars. Audi's modular-platform strategy will be the basis for the A5. The strategy uses a set of modular building kits - an...

Personnel.(new appointments and resignations)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... MAZDA NORTH AMERICAN OPERATIONS - David Klan to the new position of director of marketing, effective Aug. 1. Klan had been general manager of global brand marketing for Mazda Motor Corp. TOYOTA MOTOR CORP. - Kazuhiro Sekiya to senior...

Chrysler fires first shot in price war.(marketing)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Bradford Wernle In dealer meetings last month, the Chrysler group told dealers it would deliberately start a summer price war in an effort to provoke General Motors and Ford to follow suit. On Friday, June 30, DaimlerChrysler...

Group 1 aims to keep techs happy.(interview)(Interview)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Donna Harris Wade Hubbard, the new vice president of fixed operations at Group 1 Automotive Inc., began his automotive career as a service technician. One of his priorities, he says, is redesigning service departments at Group 1's...

Rich Gilligan: It's easier to make than to sell.(Final assembly)(Interview)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Everybody knows that manufacturing is tough. Certainly, Rich Gilligan knows it, since he spent more than 40 years making cars for Ford and Mitsubishi, from the factory floor to plant manager to president of Mitsubishi's North American...

Clarification.(Correction)(Correction notice)
July 3, 2006... * A story on Page 1 of the June 19 issue, "GM tries to stay cool, keep value-price gains,'' used the terms "sticker price'' and "transaction price.'' In the story, "sticker price'' referred to the manufacturer's suggested retail price of the...

Nissan: On the road again.(business relocation)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... As Nissan's U.S. employees stream into Nashville from Southern California, the automaker also is planning to load the moving vans in Japan earlier than first expected. At its annual meeting last week, Nissan said it will move its...

Strike threat vanishes with Delphi retirements.(sales and earnings, and down sizing of the company)
July 3, 2006... Byline: David Barkholz The threat of a strike at Delphi Corp. evaporated last week with the success of early retirement and employee-buyout programs at the supplier and General Motors. The 12,600 announced retirements and buyouts at...

Lexus ES generates most luxury loyalty.(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... The job of an entry luxury vehicle is to bring buyers to a brand - and keep them. The Lexus ES, left, is tops at fulfilling this mission in the United States. Of Lexus ES owners who traded in their cars from March 1 through June 18, 52.6% got...

Land Rover is on a mission to be more than a cool brand.(Interview)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Mark Rechtin Every management handbook says never become boss of a company that has just set a sales record. Phil Popham decided to break the rule. A long-time Land Rover sales and marketing executive, Popham, 40, took over as...

Letters to the Editor.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
July 3, 2006... Give workers stock instead of buyouts To the Editor It's agonizing watching General Motors struggle. It makes me think that two of the most important assets required for a solid and sustained recovery, adequate cash supply and an...

Big 3 dealers: This summer's a bummer; As inventories and costs soar, the imports pour it on.(DaimlerChrysler AG. Chrysler Group)(Honda Motor Company Ltd.)(Toyota Motor Corp.)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Dale Jewett Big 3 dealers see trouble ahead. * Their lots are full of new cars and trucks, yet automakers continue to pressure them to order more vehicles. * Floorplan costs are rising as interest rates climb. * More...

FordDirect chooses Reynolds software.(News)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Ralph Kisiel Ford, Lincoln and Mercury dealers seem to understand the value of software that helps them build an ongoing relationship with customers long after the sale. But wading through a myriad of customer relationship...

Would Groucho be amused? You Bet Your Life.(Association des Constructeurs Europeens d'Automobiles )
July 3, 2006... Byline: Edward Lapham There's an old Groucho Marx line that goes: "I don't care to belong to any club that will accept me as a member.'' It's amazing that even in this global day and age, automakers can be just as silly about who joins...

Ford irons out glitches to grow in China; Mazda3 assembly line snagged in paperwork.(Ford Motor Co. on its new sedan sales)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Alysha Webb Production of the Mazda3 mid-sized sedan started amid much fanfare in February at the Ford plant in this steamy city in southwest China. A few months later, it stopped abruptly. Ford had not obtained all the...

Nissan faces costly recall; 96,800 Altima, Sentra engines will be inspected.(Nissan North America Inc.)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Kathy Jackson Nissan North America could face a hefty price tag to remedy a recall of 96,800 2006 Nissan Altimas and Sentras, which may consume an inordinate amount of oil and cause engine fires. In a June 16 letter from Brad...

Gilligan brought stability to Mitsubishi.(Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. appoints Hiroshi Harunari as chief executive officer)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Peter Brown CEO Hiroshi Harunari will pick up more day-to-day responsibilities at Mitsubishi's North American sales organization after Rich Gilligan's retirement last week. Gilligan, 62, brought some stability to Mitsubishi...

Another plum for Porsche.(BMW AG)(Daimler-Benz AG)(Porsche AG)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Porsche is on a roll. The German sports car brand was ranked No. 1 last week in a J.D. Power consumer survey, called APEAL, that gauged how gratifying a new vehicle is to own and drive. Porsche also ranked No. 1 in J.D. Power's Initial...

GM will beef up engines in pickups, Hummer H3.(General Motors Corp. introduces pick up trucks and Sport utility vehicles)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Richard Truett General Motors plans to give its 2007 mid-sized pickups and the Hummer H3 SUV more powerful engines. The current 3.5-liter, five-cylinder in-line engine in the 4,700-pound H3 is rated at 220 hp. GM says the 2007...

Honda pours big bucks into four-bangers; Automaker picks Indiana for its 6th U.S. car plant.(American Honda Motor Company Inc.)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Ralph Kisiel Honda is returning to its roots as it builds a $550 million plant designed to crank out vehicles equipped with four-cylinder engines. The plant, in southeast Indiana, will be flexible enough to add models later....

UAW steps up to challenges facing industry.(Delphi Corp.)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... The UAW's leaders and members deserve praise for allowing General Motors and Delphi Corp. to do what needs to be done as they try to build sustainable, long-term business models. The 47,600 workers who accepted buyout offers from GM and...

Senior Editor Teahen gets another honor.(John K. Teahen Jr. recieves awards)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Automotive News Senior Editor John K. Teahen Jr. has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Detroit Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Teahen, 80, was hailed for his professional achievements during more than 50...

Most Ford, PAG models to share powertrains.(AB Volvo)(Ford Motor Co.)(Premier Automotive Group Australia Proprietary Ltd.)
July 3, 2006... Byline: Wim Oude Weernink Ford Motor Co. and most Premier Automotive Group brands will have nearly interchangeable powertrains by the start of the next decade. "It will take five or six more years before integration becomes visible,''...

Auto News digest.(United States. Bankruptcy Court FILES CASE AGAINST Meridian Automotive Systems Inc. for bankruptcy)(EaglePicher Inc. plans to reorganize its business)(Johnson Controls Inc. Automotive Systems Group plans to restructure its business)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Meridian, creditors agree DETROIT - Meridian Automotive Systems Inc. says it is on schedule to emerge from Chapter 11 protection by fall. The auto parts supplier said last week that it has reached agreements with its major creditor...

From grease gun to top gun.(UnitedAuto Group Inc. appoints Dave Schembri as chief executive officer)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... Some high-powered business relationships start at the Harvard Business School. Others begin in the grease pit at Sears. That's where Dave Schembri first hooked up with Roger Penske - and now Schembri will organize the just-announced network...

'100 Leading Women' wins Tabbie award.(News)(Brief article)
July 3, 2006... A special section published last year by Automotive News has earned a bronze medal in the Tabbie award competition. The Tabbies are an international annual competition that recognizes business publications for editorial excellence. The...

Calendar.(trade show)(Calendar)
July 10, 2006... AUTO SHOWS - 2006 July 20-30 - British International Motor Show, (press day: July 18), ExCel Centre, London, 44-20-7235-7000, www.britishmotorshow.co.uk Aug. 30-Sept. 3 - Moscow International Auto Show, Krasnaya Presnya Expocenter,...

Ford's foolish promise.(Investments of Ford)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... When Ford Motor Co. backed away from its commitment to produce as many as 250,000 hybrid-powered vehicles a year, it took considerable abuse from environmentalists. Who can blame those critics? A few years ago, Ford Motor promised to...

Can Ghosn do it? It's no slam dunk for GM's board.(alliances)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... Ever since Las Vegas billionaire Kirk Kerkorian advocated an alliance involving General Motors, Nissan and Renault, Wall Street has been the proposal's biggest booster. After Kerkorian's June 30 disclosure to the U.S. Securities and Exchange...

Letters to the Editor.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
July 10, 2006... Editor's note This week's letters are in response to Mark Rechtin's June 26 column, "Conspiracy theories abound in EV1 flick,'' a review of the film Who Killed the Electric Car? For Rechtin's response to these letters, see Page 14. ...

My July 4: Burnin' rubber with Dr. Z; Reporter gives up part of weekend to cruise races with DCX execs.(competitions)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Bradford Wernle The nerve of those folks at DaimlerChrysler! My phone rings Friday, June 30, and it's a representative from the carmaker's PR department asking me whether I would like to spend the first two days of my July 4...

Supply line.(emergence from chapter 11 reorganization)(Company overview)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... J.L. French emerges from Chapter 11 SHEBOYGAN, Wis. - J.L. French Automotive Castings Inc., a maker of die-cast aluminum automotive components and assemblies, said June 30 that it has emerged from Chapter 11 reorganization. The company...

Martens exits Plastech after 9 months.(resignations)(Phil Martens)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Philip Nussel, Robert Sherefkin Phil Martens, the former Ford Motor Co. North American product development chief who joined Plastech Engineered Products Inc. last October, has left the supplier. After just nine months as COO of...

GM, Ford resist Chrysler's spiffs.(employee pricing)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Bradford Wernle So far, General Motors and Ford Motor Co. are declining to follow in the footsteps of the Chrysler group with its Employee Pricing Plus blowout sale. GM has dropped its 0 percent holiday weekend financing...

New Nissan HQ owes its look to a napkin sketch.(Nissan North America Inc.)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Lindsay Chappell When architects presented their plan for Nissan North America Inc.'s new U.S. headquarters to the automaker's chief of design, he did what designers do best: He whipped out his pen and started making changes. ...

Alliance would further squeeze GM's suppliers.(alliances and partnerships)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Lindsay Chappell It can't possibly be good news for North American suppliers that Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn is waiting in the wings to talk to General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner about a new global alliance. Such a partnership can...

XM, Sirius could pair to fend off other digital technologies.(mergers and acquisitions)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Abbey Klaassen Rumors are swirling again about a merger of satellite radio providers XM and Sirius. At an industry conference late last month, Sirius Satellite Radio CEO Mel Karmazin told investors and venture capitalists that...

Dr Z: I'm no Iacocca.(corporate pitchman)(Lee Iacocca)(Dieter Zetsche)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... DaimlerChrysler CEO Dieter Zetsche says he had some qualms about following Lee Iacocca's footsteps and becoming a corporate pitchman. "It took the folks in Auburn Hills to persuade me that this would help sell vehicles,'' says Zetsche of...

Plant seizures carry financial and political risks.(supplier takeovers are risky)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Robert Sherefkin It was the kind of train wreck that keeps purchasing managers awake at night. In 2002 General Motors was struggling to get the wiring harnesses it needed from Exemplar Manufacturing Co. to launch the Saturn...

Metaldyne mess alerts FBI to trafficking in secrets.(theft of trade secrets in automotive industry)(Federal Bureau of Investigation)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Philip Nussel U.S. authorities say they are increasingly on the lookout for the theft of trade secrets as the auto industry becomes more global. "Theft of trade secrets and cyber-crime is one of the top priorities of the FBI,''...

Detroit 3's sales swoon in June, first half; For Toyota Motor Sales, everything is coming up roses.(sales of cars - analysis)
July 10, 2006... Byline: John K. Teahen Jr. General Motors and the Chrysler group saw both sides of the employee-pricing coin in June. GM felt the effects of being without it. And the Chrysler group proved how badly it needs those heavy discounts,...

Industry turns to 'nuclear option'; Right-of-access pacts underscore troubles.(legal tool to seize faltering supplier)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Robert Sherefkin At a time of extraordinary industry distress, North American automakers are using an obscure legal weapon - dubbed the "nuclear option'' by suppliers - to keep assembly lines running. This weapon is called a...

Auto News briefly.(Trade Shows)
July 10, 2006... China's carmakers have big plans for Motown The Chinese are coming, and their springboard will be the showcase of the domestic auto industry: the Detroit auto show. Five companies - Hunan Changfeng Motor Co., Great Wall Motor Co., Hebei...

Suppliers: Pick up the PACE.(achievements and awards of automotive industry)
July 10, 2006... Auto suppliers have until Sept. 8 to apply for the 2007 Automotive News PACE Awards. The awards, co-sponsored by Microsoft, SAP and the Transpor-tation Research Center Inc., recognize automotive suppliers for innovation. This is the 13th year...

China plans restrictions for auto exports; Move aims to control quality, protect image.(automotive exports)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Alysha Webb Starting next year, the Chinese government will restrict the number of vehicle makers allowed to export. The move aims to protect the image of Chinese automakers. "The government does not want the undisciplined...

Ford ally in China plans small car; eyes U.S.(launch of new car)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Alysha Webb Changan Automobile Group, Ford Motor Co.'s Chinese production partner, will launch a small economy car in September that it wants eventually to export to the United States. "I can't say exactly when we will begin...

Playing the field.(Final assembly)
July 10, 2006... About 47 percent of buyers who traded in a minivan from March 1 to June 18 bought another minivan. But how often did they stick with the same nameplate? Here's a look at the loyalty of drivers who traded in minivans. Model: % who traded...

Big 3 lobbyist takes up cause of imports.(appointment of Mike Stanton as head of association of international automobile manufacturers)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Harry Stoffer For years, Mike Stanton was the face of the Big 3 on Capitol Hill. Starting next month, though, Stanton will head the Association of International Automobile Manufacturers, which lobbies for most automakers other...

So long, mid-sized SUVs - and hello, crossovers; Some automakers adjust as customers make the switch.(sales of sport Utility vehicle)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Jamie LaReau Demand for mid-sized SUVs has collapsed like a pricked balloon. For a variety of reasons - chiefly the SUVs' high prices, poor fuel economy and relatively harsh ride and handling - consumers are switching to...

It's a new day for old diesels.(diesel prices)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... Guess what's become the hottest tuner car for eco-geeks and for used-car buyers who care about fuel economy? Used - we're talking well-used - Volkswagen diesels from the mid-1980s. With gasoline at $3 a gallon nationally, prices for old VW...

Dealers.(dealerships)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... Beginnings * Gregory Jackson of Prestige Automotive Group in St. Clair Shores, Mich., has opened Mercedes-Benz of St. Clair Shores. Prestige ranks No. 42 on the Automotive News list of the top 100 dealership groups in the United States,...

M-B wants to cut U.S. workers.(employee reduction)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Diana T. Kurylko Mercedes-Benz USA LLC has offered employees with 10 or more years of service packages to leave the company. The Montvale, N.J., sales unit would not say how many employees are eligible or what targets it has...

MGs may be built in the U.S.(reintroducing Morris Garages car brand)(Brief article)
July 10, 2006... The rebirth of the MG car brand is under way, and it may include North America. China's Nanjing Automobile Group said it will produce cars at MG Rover's historic Longbridge plant in England, closed since the collapse of MG Rover Group in...

GM will slash Tier 1 supplier count.(dialogue with Bo Andersson)(General Motors Corp.)(Interview)
July 10, 2006... Byline: Jason Stein, Harald Hamprecht General Motors plans to use fewer Tier 1 suppliers in the future and continue trimming its $86 billion global purchasing budget. "Both our purchasing spending and our supplier base will shrink,''...