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Chinese Auto Parts Enter the Global Market

China’s auto parts exports have increased more than sixfold in the last five years, nearly topping $1 billion in April and emerging as one of the fastest-growing categories of Chinese industrial products sold overseas, according to the New York Times.

More than half of these auto parts go to the United States; most of the rest to Europe and Japan.

The rise of Chinese auto parts exports is part of a much broader shift. China is moving up from basic goods like textiles, toys and shoes and toward higher-value industrial goods that pay better wages — but also compete more directly with products from countries like Mexico and even from advanced industrialized countries like the United States.

Posted by   at 1:04 PM to Auto industry | Permalink | Comments 0

G.M. Chief Tells Shareholders to Take Long View

The chairman and chief executive of General Motors, Rick Wagoner, faced more than two hours of criticism from shareholders at the annual meeting Tuesday, but he countered that the company had made major progress in turning around its fortunes last year, and he urged patience for the long term, the New York Times reports.

Posted by   at 12:57 PM to Companies | Permalink | Comments 0

Lawmakers and regulators should mandate higher mileage without worrying that they are compromising safety by encouraging small vehicles, according to the report by the International Council on Clean Transportation, the USA Today.

The report says its recommendations could boost the average fuel economy of new vehicles 50% in 10 years. That would make it roughly 33 mpg in 2017.

Even in cases where bigger vehicles are safer for their occupants, they ought to be discouraged by regulators as threats to people in smaller vehicles, ICCT says.

Posted by   at 12:55 PM to Fuel economy | Permalink | Comments 0

A decade after first Prius, Toyota's hybrid sales pass 1M

A decade after the first Prius went on sale, Toyota's global sales of hybrid vehicles have hit 1 million, underlining the Japanese automaker's lead in "green" technology, according to USA Today.

Toyota says it has sold 577,311 gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles in the USA from mid-2000, when it launched the Prius here, through May.

Toyota's worldwide sales of gas-and-electric-powered vehicles totaled 1.047 million as of the end of May. Nearly 345,000 of those were sold in Japan.

Posted by   at 12:53 PM to Alternative fuels , Companies , Environment , Fuel economy , Sales | Permalink | Comments 0

Gas Prices Gnaw at Consumer Confidence

Consumer confidence tumbled to a 10-month low as gyrating gasoline prices and persisting problems in the housing market gnawed at people's sense of economic well-being, the Associated Press reports.

The magnitude of the drop shown in the latest RBC Cash Index was surprising given the healthy state of the nation's job market, which is usually an important factor coloring consumers' perceptions of how the economy and their own financial fortunes are faring.

But nagging worries about gasoline prices, if the yearlong housing slump will worsen and drag down home prices further and whether the economy will, in fact, snap out of its sluggish spell, are taking a toll on confidence, economists explained.

"There is too much uncertainty. That is the mindset of consumers right now," said Brian Bethune, economist at Global Insight

Posted by   at 12:37 PM to Gas prices | Permalink | Comments 0

Backstreet Driver: Navigating the I-95 Speedway

If you ever wanted to know what it's like to be in the middle of a pack of high-speed cars on a NASCAR oval, a very cheap way of finding out is to get onto I-95 in Connecticut, down toward the New York area, and wait.

You may be cruising along at a respectable 70 mph - 5 mph over the speed limit - along with everyone else, but it is only a matter of time before a car, usually driven by a young driver, sweeps past you at 90, 100, sometimes over 100 mph.

Listen, I know my time will come but if I am taken out by some little jerk playing NASCAR on the public highways, I am going to be extremely cross.

Give me an effing break.

These NASCARettes overtake you on either side, sometimes even at an angle as they weave their way through the traffic. You see them coming up behind and the only thing to do is to maintain course and speed. Trying to get out of their way could easily result in an accident because they are travelling too fast to adapt to 'moving' objects; at their speed, the rest of us are stationary objects to navigate around.

On my return from the Greenwich Concours d'Elegance on Sunday, a number of these young heroes flashed passed me but one whipped by on the inside lane so fast that my car - and it's a heavy Volvo station wagon - literally shook.

What can the police do? I presume most of the young speedsters are armed with radar detectors and so are practically immune from being stopped. Plus a police chase with one of these drivers in heavy traffic could easily lead to increased danger for all concerned.

Maybe the only alternative is having the public call in the license plates of drivers they consider to be particularly dangerous. But what can the police do then? I don't know, but its sounds like it may be worthwhile to find out.

Hoping that they will drive themselves off the road and into the oval in the sky may nurse a sense of outrage but is not a practical solution to a public menace.

Posted by   at 10:29 AM to Safety , commentary | Permalink | Comments 0

Renault-Nissan to seek deal with Chrysler, Ford?

After a failed attempt at forming an alliance with GM last year, French-Japanese automaker Renault-Nissan will look at new partnership possibilities in 2009, possibly with including newly independent Chrysler or even Ford, CEO Carlos Ghosn told the French newspaper Le Parisien, according to leftlanenews.com.

Posted by   at 10:24 AM to Companies | Permalink | Comments 0

CEO says GM turnaround is on track

General Motors is making progress in its turnaround effort, CEO Rick Wagoner said Tuesday at its annual meeting, where 10 shareholder proposals were rejected, according to USA Today.

GM cut structural costs by $6.8 billion in 2006, and Wagoner told shareholders the automaker is on track to reach its target of an additional $2.2 billion in cuts this year.

He said this year's priorities include finishing a deal to let former parts subsidiary Delphi exit bankruptcy and cutting its own health care costs, which he said were "a staggering $4.8 billion" in 2006.

GM's shares, which lost 50% of their value in 2005, rose 58% last year, the biggest rise of the 30 stocks in the Dow Jones industrial average. Investors gained confidence in GM's turnaround as its annual net loss narrowed to $2 billion from $10.4 billion in 2005.

Posted by   at 10:09 AM to Companies | Permalink | Comments 0

GM puts Volt, hybrids on fast track

General Motors has awarded two contracts to companies that will help speed up development of its plug-in hybrid car called the Chevrolet Volt, GM Chairman Rick Wagoner said Tuesday, according to USA Today.
Wagoner, speaking at the company's annual shareholders meeting, also said GM would introduce four new hybrid models this year.

Posted by   at 9:48 AM to Alternative fuels , Companies , Environment , Fuel economy , Technology | Permalink | Comments 0

Auto Execs Go to Hill to Discuss Mileage

The heads of the domestic auto industry are pressing congressional leaders to revisit a plan to increase fuel efficiency standards that automakers say could hurt their industry, according to the Associated Press.

Leaders of General Motors, Ford and the Chrysler Group on Wednesday were to discuss the impact of health care, trade and energy policies on their companies, and urge congressional leaders in private meetings to consider an alternative to a proposed overhaul of Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards for vehicles.

Posted by   at 9:40 AM to Auto industry , Companies | Permalink | Comments 0

After Build-A-Bear, Build-A-Toy-Car

The founder of the stuff-and-outfit your own plush animal phenomenon known as Build-A-Bear Workshop has teamed up with Larry Andreini, 44, an entrepreneur from Fairfax, Va., to back a concept called Ridemakerz, a make-and-outfit your own toy car business, according to the New York Times.

The first Ridemakerz store is scheduled to open Friday at an entertainment and retail complex in Myrtle Beach, S.C., followed in July by an outpost at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn.

Customers select a chassis type (street or monster); body styles (stock or custom, a Ridemakerz brand hot rod, a Ford Mustang GT or Dodge Ram pickup, to name a few options); paint schemes; sound effects (for example, sirens or race sounds) and style of locomotion (free wheel or radio control).

After the 10- to 12-inch cars are assembled, there are ample customizing and accessorizing options: tire treads, grille guards, side pipes, snowboard racks and decals. Andreini estimates that a fully tricked-out vehicle will run about $75, including $25 for radio control. For the budget-minded, there’s a stock tuner car for $12.

Posted by   at 9:38 AM to Toys | Permalink | Comments 0

Carmakers are poised to make deal on fuel rules

After more than 30 years of staunch opposition to federal oversight, the U.S. auto industry appears ready to argue for higher fuel economy standards to block tougher proposals that several automakers worry could cripple their finances, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The latest sign came in a quiet posting of a draft bill from the House Energy and Commerce Committee, chaired by U.S. Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., the industry's top champion on Capitol Hill.

The draft proposes the industry meet mileage standards of at least 36 miles per gallon for cars after 2021 and 30 m.p.g. for trucks after 2024, or roughly 32.5 m.p.g. overall.

Posted by   at 9:36 AM to Fuel economy | Permalink | Comments 0

Honda will quit making hybrid Accords

Honda says it will discontinue the hybrid version of its Accord sedans, according to USA Today.

Honda will continue to make gas-and-electric models of its Civic sedan, but stop offering the hybrid Accord with the new model expected to go on sale later this year, company spokesman Yoshiyuki Kuroda said in Tokyo.

The Accord hybrid, sold only in North America, was a dud, selling just 25,000 since going on sale in 2004. It sold just 6,100 last year.

Posted by   at 9:20 AM to Alternative fuels , Companies , Environment , Fuel economy , Technology | Permalink | Comments 0

Oil Prices Drop As Storm Worries Ease

Oil prices retreated amid easing concerns about a cyclone approaching the Persian Gulf and on expectations that a supply report from the United States would show that its gasoline stockpiles rose last week, the Associated Press reports.

Also sending crude futures lower was news that a Nigerian opposition group had declared a one-month cease-fire. That could offer newly inaugurated President Umaru Yar'Adua an opening to solve the crisis that has roiled Africa's oil giant, a leading exporter of crude to the United States.

Light, sweet crude for July delivery fell 33 cents to $65.88 a barrel by midday in Europe in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for July fell 13 cents to $70.27 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

Posted by   at 9:18 AM to Oil | Permalink | Comments 0

Hyundai Grabs Lead in Auto Quality Study

Hyundai eads in five categories in the annual vehicle quality study released Monday by Strategic Vision Inc., a San Diego-based market research company and consultant to automakers, according to a report in the Associated Press.

Hyundai's rise in the rankings is only the latest sign of the improved overall quality and declining number of defects in today's cars and trucks, said David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor.

"They're coming together to a point where the differences are almost meaningless," Cole said.

He said that means buyers will pay increasing attention to dealer service, new technology, fashion features, price and fuel economy, AP reports.

Posted by   at 9:15 AM to Companies , Marques , Technology | Permalink | Comments 0

Bill France Jr., longtime NASCAR chief, dies

Bill France Jr., who steered NASCAR for 31 years through its strongest growth era, died Monday, according to the Chicago Tribune. He was 74.
France, the second czar in NASCAR's owning dynasty, took over as president from his father, founder "Big Bill" France, in 1972. He was diagnosed with cancer in 1999, but the cancer was in remission when he handed control of NASCAR to his son, Brian Z. France, in 2003.

Posted by   at 4:04 PM to Racing | Permalink | Comments 0

Backseat Driver: Greenwich Concours d'Elegance offers stunning cars in gorgeous setting

Some 250 cars were entered for the Greenwich Concours d'Elegance in Greenwich, Conn., with the European half on display Sunday along with a Christie's auction of about 35 historic cars, including the 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante coupé that sold for $775,000, well above Christie's estimate.

The grounds of Roger Sherman Park on the water south of downtown Greenwich, was covered in rare beauties with entire circles of such high-end marques as Jaguar, Roll-Royce/Bentley, Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz. The Lamborghinis were nestled in with the Ferraris, but unfortunately I did not spy my favorite Lambo, the Muira of the mid-1960s.

The author, looking rather stolid, standing beside a 1,001 horsepower Bugatti Veyron 16.1 at the Greenwich Concours d'Elegance on Sunday. Photo by Darren Beurer.

However, I did get to finally see a Bugatti Veyron 16.1 which looks every bit as powerful, like a coiled fist, as its 1,001 horsepower engine. The car is mechanically totally over the top and the price reflects its limited, high-end market - about $1.5 million give or take $100,000 or so.

My old friend Darren Beurer, who I met for the first time at the Concours and who knows more about cars than I'll ever know, snapped my picture standing beside the Veyron and I snapped his just after we had been smirking about other plebs like ourselves snapping pictures of each other sitting in the driving seat of Bentleys.

Yes, it was that kind of venue where brand-new Bentleys were open and available and the Veyron sat placidly, albeit growling, at the mob that surrounded it. It has to be said that the doors of the Veyron and the gynormous 2007 Rolls-Royce Phantom nearby(suggested retail price: $351,250) were firmly locked.

But these were new cars. What the punters had come to see were the old classics and exotics. George Dragone's 1905 Renault Town Car was a thing of mega beauty, like everything out of Dragone Classic Motorcars in Bridgeport, Conn. One of the oldest entries, the car was indeed a horseless carriage in red with black trim, white tires and brass fixtures including two brass lamps sticking out in front, communication horns from the exposed driver's seat to the enclosed passenger compartment and horns connected to black rubber bulbs.

One of the most astonishing entries - and about the only American vehicle on the field - was a 1955 Lincoln Indianapolis Design Study in brilliant orange. The car was a massive sweep of space-age design with chrome flashes and a bulbous glassy cabin.

In the charm department - Ferraris and Lamborghinis are definitely not charming - was a 1961 slate blue Saab 96 all decaled out for the Rallye Monte-Carlo. Its front lights were protected by grills, a strap crossed over the hood and a somewhat comical spotlight set in the center of its roof.

Also in the charm department, a couple of BMW Isetta bubble cars from 1956 and 1957 respectively. The cars seat two who get in by opening the entire front of the car. Indeed, the front of the car looks somewhat like a fridge door which is not surprising as BMW made the cars under license from Iso, an Italian appliance manufacturer, according to Gregory Homs who owns the green 1956 BMW Isetta 250.

I also loved the bright orange 1976 BMW 2002A which brought back memories of running around the Canary Islands for a few weeks in the early 1970s with a German aquaintence and his French girlfriend while I waited in vain to ship out for the Caribbean on a yacht. (In the end, I took a Spanish tramp steamer back to England for Christmas.)

What else caught my eye? The circle of Jags includes some lovely XK120s whose sensous lines I have talked about in previous blogs. And an area up front devoted to pre-WWII beauties includes a maroon 1937 Bugatti Type 57, a green 1936 Bentley 4-1/4 Derby Special and a black 1912 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost side by side.

Meanwhile, the low-slung Ferraris and Lambos were an aggressive symphony of reds, yellows and blacks, all angles and short curves. By comparison, the circle of Rolls-Royces adn Bentleys looked very staid and the British sports cars - Austin Healeys, Morgans, Triumphs - even an Alpine Sunbeam - looked sweet and sporty. More human scaled, I suppose.

None of this does justice to the scale and quality of the Concours which is also brilliantly organized. The setting is fabulous and even more fabulous is the free parking just across the street - with its own show of parked exotics. By the time I posted this, chairman Burce Wenerstrom had not gotten back to me with the results which he and his wife Genia will publish on their Web site tomorrow (Tuesday).

But a confession of not being able to do justice to the show should whet your appetite to go to next year's show. And remember, the Vanderbilt Concours slated for July 27-29 in Newport. If you love cars, want to see the best and get a dose of automobile history, these shows cannot be beat.

PS I'm going to try to upload some photos later, but being a moron ...

Posted by   at 11:18 AM to Concours d'Elegance | Permalink | Comments 0

Backseat Driver: 1938 Bugatti sells for $852,500

A 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante coupé that had been sitting untrouched in a garage outside New York City for 45 years sold yesterday for $852,500 (including Christie's 10 percent buyer's premium) at a Christie's auction at the Greenwich Concours d'Elegance in Greenwich, Conn.

The price was way over the auction house's estimate of $300,000 to $400,000 but as auctioneer Hugh Edmeades told me afterwards, there is no way to really value a car this rare and in such orginal condition. "They find their own level," he said.

The bidding for the car ended in a bullfight between noted restorer Wayne Carini of F40 Motor Sports in Portland, Conn., who was bidding on behalf of Connecticut contractor Joe Capasso and an unidentified telephone bidder.

As the levels went higher, the two bidders did everything they could to knock the other out. Sometimes they came back immediately with a price, sometimes they mulled and then delivered a steep increase in an attempt to deliver a killing blow. At times the crowd gasped and applauded following long gaps and sudden hits; at other times you could have heard a pin drop. Certainly Edmeades did not need to work the kind of auctioneer's magic he had used earlier to push the bidding higher.

But what am I doing - giving away a fabulous story that will appear in Wednesday's projoCARS section? Be sure to read it as one of the issues I will be addressing is the restoring vs conserving and preserving argument that this sale highlighted. Plus details of some of the other beauties that were sold and some of the flavor of this tony and amusing event.

Posted by   at 10:36 AM to Collecting , Marques , Sales , commentary | Permalink | Comments 0

533,000 Miles and It Runs Like a Top

There is no one secret to getting your car to live to a ripe old odometer reading. Luck could get you there, but it is no surprise that many vehicles that have reached 200,000, 400,000 and even 500,000 miles have received extraordinary care and maintenance, often with the owners doing the routine work themselves, according to the New York Times.

Posted by   at 10:33 AM to On the road | Permalink | Comments 0

TVR’s Long and Winding Road Leads (for Now) to Florida

Like the mythical Monty Python castle built on a swamp, which sank three times only to be rebuilt three times, TVR, one of Britain’s last sports car makers has risen again after several near-death experiences and ownership changes, according to a report in the New York Times.
TVR would fit neatly in the comedic Python world, where cheese shops have no cheese to sell and hyper-litigious businessmen accidentally sue themselves. Consider its recent history: its third owner since 1981 was a 20-something Russian who actually owned the company twice in three years.
The latest owners are two Florida men, Adam Burdette and Jean-Michel Santacreu, who took control in February.

Posted by   at 10:30 AM to Companies | Permalink | Comments 0

Books Worth a Spot on a Car Buff’s Shelf

In any field, there are certain books that are essential. Some are handy references, others provide the perspective of history and still others are simply good reads, according to the New York Times.
Here is the NYT's selection of books that will make a fine foundation for an automotive library. All are widely available either new or used.

Posted by   at 10:27 AM to Collecting | Permalink | Comments 0

Toyota, GM post strong sales months

Toyota's U.S. vehicle sales jumped 14.1% in May to its best monthly level ever and General Motors' sales rose 9.7% as both automakers credited in part the appeal of their more fuel-efficient offerings as gas prices remained high, according to USA Today.For the month, Toyota outsold Ford, which saw sales fall 6.9% as it continued to cut low-profit sales to rental companies. Nissan's sales gained 7.4% and DaimlerChrysler's sales rose 3.9% with help from a 20% jump in its Jeep brand.

Posted by   at 10:24 AM to Companies | Permalink | Comments 0