Not only does India house the customer service representatives for your recently failed bank, the country may soon be home to the manufacture of an American icon: Jeep. Carscoop reports that India's Argentum Motors has confirmed an "outsourced manufacturing deal" with Chrysler LLC, and that...Read More»
Ouch, this brutal economy. Even relatively stable companies like Honda are adjusting to the fuel-saving, penny-pinching times by trimming capacity and shifting production in favor of four-cylinders. The Detroit News reports Honda will change its game plan for Accord, Odyssey, Pilot, and Ridgeline...Read More»
Startup Mascoma Corp. of Lansing, Michigan, secured $26 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and received another $23.5 million from the state of Michigan yesterday, reported the Detroit News. Mascoma will begin constructing its cellulosic ethanol plant in Michigan's Upper...Read More»
The Automotive Hall of Fame, located in Dearborn, Michigan, yesterday inducted eight new individuals (five posthumously) into its ranks. These individuals are being honored for their contributions to racing, design, manufacturing, the aftermarket, or management. The list of inductees is as follows...Read More»
On Tuesday, President George W. Bush lent his John Hancock to a $634 billion spending bill that includes the $25 billion low-interest government-backed loan guarantees that the domestics have all but been begging for. The loan is intended to provide the capital necessary for automakers to retool...Read More»
General Motors' ubiquitous 3.8-liter V-6 is soon to become extinct. For '09, it is replaced by GM's (more) modern 3.9-liter V-6 in the Buick Lucerne, leaving it barely hanging on in the Buick LaCrosse and Pontiac Grand Prix, which share a platform. Some will cheer the eventual passing of this...Read More»
GM plans to sell a parts plant in Strasbourg, France as well as offloading its HUMMER division, in new announcements that it plans to speed the pace of its $10 billion in cost cuts to stem losses totaling $69.8 billion since the end of 2004. These initiatives were announced by GM treasurer Walter...Read More»
General Motors will be spending $500 million in the U.S. alone to launch its new 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, the company said today. Most of the dollars involved will go to retooling the Lordstown, Ohio, plant where the Cruze will be built, once the current Cobalt lineup is evicted. That's not expected...Read More»
Say good-bye to the Jeep Grand Cherokee--at least in its current, stand-alone architecture form. Both the Detroit News and the Wall Street Journal report today that Chrysler president Tom LaSorda confirms his company will spend almost $2 billion to retool its Jefferson North plant to build a new...Read More»
Volkswagen has chosen Chattanooga, Tenn., as the location for its new U.S. assembly plant, according to TheCarConnection.com sources. We'll be back with more details as they come in. The official release follows here: HERNDON, Va. (July 15, 2008) — Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. announced...Read More»
Despite rumor to the contrary, Toyota says, the Tundra pickup will still be built in Indiana and in Texas. The Wall Street Journal reported online that the Japanese automaker was considering a consolidation of Tundra production at the new Tundra plant in San Antonio, Texas. Right now the company...Read More»
As I read the morning RSS feeds for this blog, I rarely have to clean up after a spit take. But here I am, swabbing down after the latest Automotive News story about Alfa Romeo's return to the U.S. I refuse to believe Alfa's coming to the U.S., because I was around when they left in 1995, and...Read More»
Korean automaker Kia is working on its new assembly plant at the Georgia-Alabama state line, but until now speculation has said that the factory would be building mid-size cars and possibly a crossover vehicle for the U.S. market. Now, Automotive News is reporting that the factory will be building...Read More»
The safest car we have ever built – that’s the claim Volvo is making about the new XC60. From a firm that has built its entire reputation on making strong cars, it’s a bold statement. Designed as a baby brother to the XC90, an SUV which has been a massive success for the Swedish firm, the...Read More»
Will the UAW finally get its chance to organize the imports? That’s what union boss Ron Gettelfinger is counting on as Toyota takes a rare misstep that has apparently angered workers at its expanding network of plants across the U.S. Perhaps you’ve seen the latest Toyota commercial, the...Read More»
Winding Road, Ann Arbor’s newest auto publication and already its leading consumer of draft beer, reports today that GM is developing a new rear-drive architecture that could spawn a new Pontiac G6 and other mid-size to compact vehicles. WR says that the new architecture is a combination of...Read More»
Nothing says GM’s turnaround is working more than a well-timed press release regarding carbon dioxide. Following on the heels of Al Gore’s return to Washington (“emotional,” in his words—cue strings) GM says it’s committed to cutting its carbon dioxide output by 40...Read More»
Be careful what you ask for. Just ask former Ford Chairman Harold “Red” Poling. Twenty years ago, as the Japanese began making their first big inroads into the U.S. market, Poling – and his fellow Big Three CEOs – decided to fight back. But instead of a competitive product...Read More»
It seems like we’ve been talking about a BMW X6 crossover for years. In fact it’s two years since we illustrated the wacky idea that has now been confirmed by BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer. The X6, Reithofer said at the company’s annual meeting, will go into production next year in...Read More»
