GM BRINGS CONCEPTS TO
PRODUCTION
TIRE PLANT WAS RIDDLED WITH PROBLEMS, SAYS
POST
GROUPS URGE EXPANDED RECALL
STATE FARM SAYS IT TIPPED ON TIRE PROBLEM
TIREMAKERS BOOST PRODUCTION
FIRESTONE RECALL UNDER SCRUTINY
FORD
EXECS ON THE DEFENSIVE
NHTSA PLANS NEW TIRE
TESTS
DC TO OFFER TELEMATICS SYSTEM
GM TO EXPAND CORVETTE PLANT
MINI GETS
BMW BADGING
GM MAY NOT SHARE GASOLINE FUEL CELLS WITH
TOYOTA
COMMERCIAL TRUCK MAKERS SCALE DOWN
MITSUBISHI’S HEADACHE GROWS
GM STRAIGHT
ON SIX
GM BRINGS
CONCEPTS TO PRODUCTION General Motors has approved three recent concept
vehicles for production. All of them promise to inject some much-needed
youthfulness and excitement into the company stable.
TIRE PLANT WAS RIDDLED WITH PROBLEMS, SAYS POST The Washington Post has revealed findings that Firestone's Decatur, Illinois, plant had severe quality control problems in the mid-1990s. For the recall, Firestone picked out tires manufactured at the facility as over-represented for the number of complaints linked to the failure of Firestone ATX, ATX II, and Wilderness tires. The Washington Post report said that workers at the Decatur, Illinois, plant were encouraged to cover up defects on tires, and that some of the tires made at the facility passed through uninspected. According to the report, witnesses about the practices at the Illinois plant are prepared to testify at future hearings on the safety of the tires.
For an update on the Firestone recall efforts, click here
.
GROUPS URGE EXPANDED RECALL
Several vehicle safety advocacy groups, including Public Citizen and the
research firm Strategic Safety, are calling for an expanded recall of all
Firestone Wilderness tires. Firestone last week recalled only select 15-inch
tires produced at its Decatur, Illinois, facility. Strategic Safety claims that
all of the tires should be recalled because the manufacturing process does not
differ significantly between facilities or sizes. Ford has taken a measure of
responsibility in the recall, as the majority of fatality and injury claims have
been in Ford vehicles, so the groups are holding the automaker jointly
accountable.
STATE FARM SAYS IT TIPPED ON
TIRE PROBLEM Insurer State Farm said that it had tipped the federal
government as early as July 1998 regarding the high number of crashes related to
Firestone tires. State Farm Insurance Company originally notified the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) then, when it had attributed 21
crashes to the tires. The NHTSA suspects that State Farm is now attempting to be
reimbursed by Bridgestone Firestone for tire-related claims, and says that the
State Farm claims were too small to warrant an investigation when they were
originally reported.
TIREMAKERS BOOST
PRODUCTION Goodyear, Michelin, and Continental have reportedly boosted their
production capacity of 15-inch model tires similar to Firestone's ATX, ATX II,
and Wilderness tires recalled. Goodyear announced intentions of boosting
production by as much as 500 percent within months. Since Firestone announced
the recall, that covers 6.5 million tires, many consumers have been demanding
non-Firestone replacement tires. Firestone and Ford have been paying for the
non-Firestone tires if customers request them. Firestone says that it replaced
200,000 of the affected tires during the first week of the
recall.
FIRESTONE RECALL UNDER
SCRUTINY A United States House of Representatives subcommittee on consumer
protection is likely to soon hold hearings on the recent Firestone recall. The
issue at question is whether Firestone waited too long to inform the public and
recall 6.5 million potentially defective tires. The National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration is currently investigating the tires, which so far have
been connected to 62 deaths and 100 injuries.
FORD EXECS ON THE DEFENSIVE
Ford chairman William Ford Jr. and chief executive Jac Nasser have found
themselves on the defensive in the past few days. Nasser said in a USA
Today interview that he is frustrated with the pace of the Firestone recall
efforts, and that the automaker has been considering alternatives to hasten the
recall process. Alternatives would be for Ford to offer worried Ford Explorer
drivers free rental cars, or to offer those tires allocated for new Explorers to
customers for replacement. William Ford Jr. in a separate interview critically
pointed out that the Firestone tire recall has nothing to do with the design of
the Explorer. Of the 6.5 million Firestone tires recalled last week, the
majority were installed as original equipment on Ford Explorers.
NHTSA PLANS NEW TIRE TESTS
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in a reaction to the
Firestone tire-safety scare, plans to establish new tire safety regulations,
says the New York Times. The NHTSA is considering testing tires at higher
speeds than it presently does, and the group is currently reviewing 750 reported
cases of tire failure.
DC TO OFFER TELEMATICS
SYSTEM DaimlerChrysler will offer a competitive wireless, in-car
communications system by 2003, reports Bloomberg News. DC's new, widely used
system, which may share componentry with the Mercedes-Benz division's existing
Tele-Aid system, would be quickly offered along all of its model lines, likely
at first as an option. The system would require subscription fees for varied
services, in a similar manner to GM's existing OnStar and Ford's upcoming
Wingcast services.
GM TO EXPAND CORVETTE
PLANT General Motors will likely enact a $39 million expansion of its
Bowling Green, Kentucky, Corvette assembly plant. Although the company has not
yet revealed the exact purpose of the expansion, which could be to make room for
the eventual assembly of Cadillac’s upcoming Evoq roadster alongside the
Corvette, it could add more than 100 new workers to the 1000-worker plant.
MINI GETS BMW BADGING BMW has
clarified that the new Mini will be called "Mini by BMW Group." The new Mini, to
first be shown to the public at the upcoming Paris auto show next month, will go
on sale in Europe next year and in the United States in 2002. BMW hopes to sell
100,000 of the cars worldwide per year, with about 20,000 going to the
U.S.
GM MAY NOT SHARE GASOLINE
FUEL CELLS WITH TOYOTA Although a technology alliance exists between General
Motors and Toyota Motor Corporation, a new gasoline fuel-cell technology
unveiled recently by GM and Exxon may not be covered by the alliance, reports
Bloomberg News. In an April 1999 agreement, GM and Toyota agreed to share
technology for fuel-cell, hybrid-power, and low-emissions cars, although
gasoline-processor fuel-cell technology between GM and Exxon began in 1998. The
system, unveiled by the two companies last week, extracts hydrogen, used to
power fuel-cells, from ordinary gasoline. No combustion takes place in the new
system, and emissions are greatly reduced.
COMMERCIAL TRUCK MAKERS SCALE DOWN Truck makers Freightliner and engine maker Navistar both plan to greatly reduce their workforces, in response to an anticipated downturn in new commercial long-haul truck purchases. Chicago-based Navistar International will eliminate about 1100 workers, about 15 percent of its workforce, while DaimlerChrysler's Freightliner will cut 3745 jobs, nearly a quarter of its workforce, at various North American plants.
MITSUBISHI'S HEADACHE
GROWS Bloomberg News reports that sources have revealed that Mitsubishi
Motors has received product complaints regularly for the past 30 years. After a
1969 Japanese law required informing the government of complaints and recalls,
the sources accuse the company of intentionally withholding the information. The
withheld information could potentially have been used for recalls on common
North American models. In recent weeks, Mitsubishi has admitted to accidentally
withholding records dating back to 1992, and the automaker followed up with a
600,000-vehicle recall. DaimlerChrysler recently expanded its relationship with
Mitsubishi, now at a 34-percent stake.
EU APPROVES GM-FIAT ALLIANCE
The European commission has officially approved of the alliance between General
Motors and Fiat SpA. The EU said in a statement that it considers the alliance a
means of improving both companies' ability to compete with other manufacturers.
General Motors and Fiat are already in the process of consolidating some
redundant powertrain operations in Europe, and GM's Opel division and Fiat plan
to produce future joint-venture models.
GM STRAIGHT ON SIX General
Motors has revealed information about its upcoming inline six-cylinder engine.
According to AutoWeek, the new engine, with variable valve timing, will
make 270 hp and 275 lb-ft of torque, and it will be dubbed the Vortec 4200. The
new engine family, set to be offered in GM's 2002 midsize SUVs, such as the
Oldsmobile Bravada, Chevrolet Trailblazer, and GMC Envoy, will include inline
four- and five-cylinder engines later on.
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