Scion Coupe Coming toNew
York
Toyota, famous for its press-release
brevity, says a new Scion sport-coupe concept is coming. The new concept will
make its premiere at the New York Auto Show in April. Toyota plans the Scion
press conference for Wednesday, April 12 - stay tuned for more from
TheCarConnection on this and more New York launches, including the Audi TT and
Benz E-Class, as the show nears.
Spy Shots: 2008 Scion xB by TCC Team
(2/20/2006)
Bigger and boxier?
AFA Relaunches Ford Boycott
The
American Family Association, unpleased by Ford's continued outreach to gay,
lesbian, bisexual and transsexual (GLBT) groups, says it will urge its members
to boycott Ford Motor Company and its brands. The AFA, based in Tupelo, Miss., had trumpeted victory earlier this year
when the Rev. Donald Wildmon, AFA leader and Methodist minister, said Ford had
agreed to pull advertising from GLBT publications, ads mostly geared toward its
Jaguar and Land Rover and Volvo brands. The AFA says Ford has gone back on a
promise to stop advertising in GLBT venues and says that "Ford has every right
to give hundreds of thousands of dollars to groups promoting homosexual
marriage. But those who oppose homosexual marriage have every right not to buy
automobiles made by Ford Motor Company." The group is urging members to send
emails through its BoycottFord.com Web site as well. Previous efforts by the AFA
to set corporate policy-such as a boycott of Disney over its support of events
like the Gay Days gatherings held at its theme parks-have failed to make
significant dents in companies' bottom lines.
Daily Edition: Dec. 15, 2005 by TCC Team
(12/14/2005)
Nissan Urge concept, Ford reverses on gay ads, C-Class
spied.
Ditlow's CAS Wants Cheaper Replacement
Keys
The
high cost of replacing vehicle keys has drawn the attention of the Center for
Auto Safety, a consumer-defense group headed by Clarence Ditlow. The CAS charges
that modern keys, often embedded with chips, transistors and multiple functions,
have become too costly to replace, with new keys costing hundreds of dollars-or
thousands, if electronics in the car must be replaced as well. In a petition to
the Federal Trade Commission, Reuters reports, the CAS charged that the auto
industry's resistance to releasing computer codes stored in keys to locksmiths
is an unfair trade practice. Reuters adds that law enforcement officials say
current key technology has been one of the biggest theft deterrents ever made
for automobiles, and that manufacturers are looking for ways to reduce key costs
while keeping security levels high.
Polk:
China
Registrations Up 19 Percent
About
3.8 million vehicles were registered in China in 2005, a 19-percent increase
from the year prior, a new report from R.L. Polk and Co. says. The largest brand
in the Middle Kingdom was General Motors, which overtook VW for 14.2 percent of
the market, with the German automaker checking in at 13.3 percent share. Nissan
was China's third-largest brand after
being ranked 13th the year before; a 58-percent boost in sales helped
it climb to 4.1 percent market share for third place. Hatchbacks were big
gainers in the Chinese market, up 36 percent in 2005, with Chery's QQ the leader
in the segment.
WJR Auto Report: Audi's Diesel Racecar
Nothing tests man and machine like
an endurance race, one reason for the continuing popularity of the classic,
24-hour race at Le Mans, every summer. The 12-hour run in Sebring, this
weekend, will be prelude to Le
Mans. And it's likely to grab a lot of headlines of its
own, if for no other reason than the debut of the Audi R10. The German automaker
dominated the Le Mans series a few years back. But it's anybody's guess
whether that will happen again. That's because the new Audi R10 isn't your
normal race car. It's powered by an ultra-high-performance diesel engine. Those
are not words you'd normally link together. But the latest diesel technology is
transforming the image of the once-maligned oil-burner. In Europe, fuel-efficient diesel's now account for more than
half of all car sales. And unlike hybrids, they're far more likely to deliver
the mileage they claim. Yet U.S. motorists have been reluctant to
embrace diesels, but perhaps, if things go well in Sebring, Americans might take
another look.

WORLD REPORT: BRAZIL
Mexican Investments Worry
Brazil
The Brazilian automakers'
association, Anfavea, is watching and worrying over announcements of new
investments in Mexico. DaimlerChrysler is putting $1
billion more in the Toluca,
Mexico, plant and
will aggregate suppliers on the same site. DC says that the decision to invest
would not have been possible without the commitment of the Mexican government to
the automotive sector. Anfavea forecasts the Brazilian market will continue to
recover this year, but the valuation of the real vs. the dollar will curtail the
exuberant growth of exports in the last two years. Brazil exported
almost 900,000 vehicles in 2005, for a total of $11 billion in goods. The auto
industry accounted for 20 percent of all the country's record trade surplus last
year.-Fernando
Calmon
Brazil Will Import More Chinese
Parts
GM of Brazil's president, Ray
Young, said that the company intends to import parts to make good use of the
Brazilian currency exchange rates. Components may come from China, South Korea, Mexico and Europe and will trim production costs
within Brazil, he says. The four big
automakers in Brazil currently work with nearly 90
percent local content, which assures them competitiveness against the newcomers
and profitability on exports. Thanks to the currency exchange rates, producers
such as Honda and Toyota have been able to source
more from Brazil: Honda, for
instance, will increase Fit exports to Mexico by 40 percent this year.-Fernando Calmon

FROM THE SOURCE headlines from the
latest press releases
PRNewswire
Just in time for spring break, Budget
is joining forces with National Geographic Kids to offer parents a fun way
to educate kids and keep them entertained on road trips. Budget Rent A Car System, Inc. today
announced that from now through May 19, 2006, customers who rent any vehicle for
at least five consecutive days can receive a National Geographic Kids Family
Road Trip Adventure Pack. The pack
includes a backpack filled with magazines (two issues of National Geographic
Kids and one issue of National Geographic Traveler), maps, games, stickers,
postcards and geography flashcards.
To receive the family pack, customers must register for the promotion
online at //affiliate.budget.com/BudgetPromoApps/FamilyFunPackIndex.jsp, print out the coupon and
present it at the counter when picking up the vehicle.


Name |
Symbol |
Last |
Change |
 |
Autobytel, Inc. |
ABTL |
4.07 |
+0.03 (+0.74%) |
 |
Autoliv Inc. |
ALV |
53.79 |
+0.05 (+0.09%) |
 |
AutoNation Inc. |
AN |
21.79 |
+0.05 (+0.23%) |
 |
ArvinMeritor Inc. |
ARM |
15.15 |
+0.62 (+4.27%) |
 |
American Axle & Mfr. Holdings Inc. |
AXL |
15.58 |
+0.25 (+1.63%) |
 |
Ballard Power Systems Inc. |
BLDP |
6.05 |
-0.06 (-0.98%) |
 |
BorgWarner Inc. |
BWA |
56.32 |
+0.47 (+0.84%) |
 |
Cummins Inc. |
CMI |
106.00 |
+1.40 (+1.34%) |
 |
Dana Corporation |
DCN |
0.66 |
0.00 (0.00%) |
 |
DaimlerChrysler AG (ADR) |
DCX |
57.45 |
+1.07 (+1.90%) |
 |
Dura Automotive Systems |
DRRA |
2.03 |
+0.08 (+4.10%) |
 |
Eaton Corporation |
ETN |
70.67 |
+1.92 (+2.79%) |
 |
Ford Motor Company |
F |
7.73 |
-0.13 (-1.65%) |
 |
General Motors Corporation |
GM |
21.14 |
-0.23 (-1.08%) |
 |
Gentex Corporation |
GNTX |
16.96 |
+0.06 (+0.36%) |
 |
Goodyear Tire & Rubber |
GT |
13.00 |
+0.01 (+0.08%) |
 |
Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (ADR) |
HMC |
30.47 |
+0.29 (+0.96%) |
 |
Johnson Controls Inc. |
JCI |
74.05 |
+0.50 (+0.68%) |
 |
Lear Corporation |
LEA |
16.12 |
+0.11 (+0.69%) |
 |
Magna International Inc. |
MGA |
73.76 |
+0.15 (+0.20%) |
 |
Motorola Inc. |
MOT |
21.33 |
+0.42 (+2.01%) |
 |
Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. (ADR) |
NSANY |
23.35 |
+0.21 (+0.91%) |
 |
Sonic Automotive Inc. |
SAH |
27.36 |
-0.02 (-0.07%) |
 |
Siemens AG |
SI |
92.08 |
+0.89 (+0.98%) |
 |
Sirius Satellite Radio |
SIRI |
4.45 |
-0.15 (-3.26%) |
 |
Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR) |
TM |
108.04 |
+1.14 (+1.07%) |
 |
TRW Automotive Holdings |
TRW |
24.76 |
-0.16 (-0.64%) |
 |
Tower Automotive Inc. |
TWRAQ.PK |
0.055 |
+0.003 (+5.77%) |
 |
United Auto Group Inc. |
UAG |
43.97 |
+0.54 (+1.24%) |
 |
Visteon Corporation |
VC |
4.49 |
-0.01 (-0.22%) |
 |
XM Satellite Radio Hold. |
XMSR |
20.50 |
-0.51 (-2.43%)
|
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