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MotorMediaWatch December 2

Dec 2, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Government coffers feel drop in auto sales
Purchases are a huge part of sales taxes collected by city, county and state governments.(LAT)+++

Ford says CEO will return to Washington by car
Ford Motor Co. says CEO Alan Mulally will travel by car when he makes his return trip to Washington, D.C., to seek $25 billion in government loans. (LAT)+++

The pony car makes a comeback
For ’60s muscle-car fans and young tuners alike, there’ll be four offerings by spring — a Dodge Challenger (out now), a Ford Mustang, a Chevy Camaro and a Hyundai Genesis.(LAT)+++

Ford F-150 pickup is king of the mountain
The 2009 model is vastly better than anything else in its class (LAT)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 27

Nov 27, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

More Vehicles Make Top Marks on Safety
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported that 72 vehicles for the 2009 model year received its top rating for protecting occupants in a crash.(WSJ)+++

The American car of the future — but at what cost?
Hybrids are popular, but making them profitable is a challenge. U.S. automakers, looking to Congress for a bailout, must show they can change. (TST)+++

The American car of the future — but at what cost?
Many members of Congress believe they know what the car company of the future should look like. (TST)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 26

Nov 26, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Cars with the best resale value for 2009
Kelley Blue Book, the online and tangible guide to new and used-vehicle information and pricing, has released its annual list of Best Resale Value Awards to coincide with the L.A. Auto Show. (LAT)+++

Ford, with help from Volvo subsidiary, leads list of insurance industry’s safest vehicles
WASHINGTON (AP) _ The insurance industry named dozens of new cars and trucks, led by Ford Motor Co. and its Volvo subsidiary, to its annual list of the safest vehicles Tuesday, helped by the increased use of anti-rollover technology.(LAT)+++

A Rough Ride in Collectible Cars
As the economy worsens to the point where even the wealthiest collectors feel pinched, demand for million-dollar sports cars is starting to skid. (WSJ)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 25

Nov 25, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Scenes from the 2008 L.A. Auto Show
The 2008 L.A. Auto Show is open to the public Nov. 21 to Nov. 30 at the L.A .Convention Center. Here’s a taste of what’s in store for visitors. (LAT)+++

Porsche insists VW gambit was not about the money, really
It says buying up VW shares was a bid for technology, never mind the tidy windfall.(LAT)+++

Porsche insists VW gambit was not about the money, really
It says buying up VW shares was a bid for technology, never mind the tidy windfall.(LAT)+++

Automakers must offer restructuring plan, Obama advisors say
The Big Three are warned to present a viable proposal if they want a federal bailout.(LAT)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 22

Nov 22, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Bailout door for automakers still open
Leaders in Congress agree to revisit the matter next month but want detailed plans on how the aid would be used. (LAT)+++

Firm envisions network of electric-vehicle charging sites
One of the many questions surrounding the development of electric cars is surprisingly prosaic: Will there be someplace to plug the darn things in? (LAT)+++

Chinese carmakers also seek government aid
Caught in a slowdown, they urge policy changes rather than bailouts. Some are deferring export plans and cutting their costs.(LAT)+++

2009 Hyundai Genesis: Luxury at a deep discount
The chocolate-brown leather is softer than a Hershey bar in a cop’s back pocket. The topstitched upholstery across the dash and doors seems sewn with a needle borrowed from Miuccia Prada. (TST)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 21

Nov 21, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Carmakers charge ahead with electrics
At the L.A. Auto Show, Nissan-Renault announces plans to start selling a competitively priced electric car in 2010. Other makers, including BMW and Chrysler, show off what’s developing. (LAT)+++

Chinese carmakers also seek government aid
Caught in a slowdown, they urge policy changes rather than bailouts. Some are deferring export plans and cutting their costs.(LAT)+++

Women drive increase in sales of motorcycles, survey shows
Fun is still the main motivation, but more new owners are citing two-wheelers’ usefulness as a reason to buy.(LAT)+++

Big 3 fail to close deal on bailout
Lawmakers scrap a vote for $25 billion in aid. Auto execs take heat over private jets.(LAT)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 20

Nov 20, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Cars with the best resale value for 2009
Kelley Blue Book, the online and tangible guide to new and used-vehicle information and pricing, has released its annual list of Best Resale Value Awards to coincide with the L.A. Auto Show. (LAT)+++

Car Makers Fail to Boost Resale Values
Detroit’s auto makers continue to lag behind Asian and European competitors in car resale value, an important consumer gauge.(WSJ)+++

L.A. Auto Show
Follow the latest news from the floor of the L.A. Auto Show in the Auto Tracker, including new models, redesigns, videos and other tidbits uncovered by reporters from The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires.(WSJ)+++

Big Three Plead for Aid
CEOs of GM, Chrysler and Ford appealed in dire language for taxpayers to help their industry, but couldn’t dispel doubts in Congress.(WSJ)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 19

Nov 19, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Amid auto industry crisis, Ford introduces 2010 Mustang muscle car at LA Auto Show
DEARBORN, Mich. — Ford Motor Co. tries to revive its classic Mustang muscle car with a makeover for the 2010 model year that debuts at this week’s Los Angeles Auto Show. (LAT)+++

Ford cuts stake in Mazda
TOKYO — Ford Motor Co. is slashing its stake in Japan’s Mazda Motor Corp. by nearly two-thirds, joining other struggling U.S. automakers in a fire-sale of prized assets to stay afloat. (LAT)+++

2009 Green Car of the Year finalists
This year’s finalists fall into at least one of three categories: compact, clean diesel or hybrid. Each has soaring MPG estimates.(LAT)+++

Democrats propose $25 billion in loans for carmakers
The package would be in addition to a $100-billion stimulus proposal, but Republicans — and time — are not on their side.(LAT)+++

Paying Too Much for Gasoline
Why are there dramatic differences between what gas stations charge? Plus, answers to questions on big tires on family cars and changing the oil on a new Mercedes.(WSJ)+++

Big Three automakers beg for $25 billion lifeline

Detroit’s Big Three automakers pleaded with Congress today for a $25 billion lifeline to save their once-proud companies from collapse, warning of broader peril for the national economy as well.  (SJM)+++

Ford to slash Mazda stake to raise cash
Ford Motor is slashing its stake in Japan’s Mazda Motor by nearly two-thirds, joining other struggling U.S. automakers in a fire-sale of prized assets to stay afloat.  (SJM)+++

Senators wary of giving automakers aid
For the first time in their century of existence, Detroit’s automakers and their union joined together to plead to Congress for help to survive an economic crisis. Congress made a request in return: Prove you’re worth risking $25 billion in federal money.(DFP)+++

Seize this moment to end oil addiction
Amid all the finger-pointing at executives, labor and Wall Street accompanying the Detroit automakers’ request for a government rescue, let’s not lose sight of an important question: What’s the plan?(DFP)+++

Read our blog from today’s Senate hearings on auto aid
Free Press automotive reporter Sarah A. Webster hosted a blog today covering the critical Senate hearings on aid for the Detroit Three(DFP)+++

Support unravels for auto share of $700 billion bailout
A plan to lend U.S. automakers $25 billion from the $700-billion financial industry bailout appeared all but dead in Congress today.(DFP)+++

Congress considers stricter demands for auto bailout
WASHINGTON — House and Senate Democrats unveiled competing versions Monday of a plan to start funneling $25 billion to U.S. automakers before the end of the year, but lawmakers from both parties and the Bush administration withheld support, demanding tough conditions as part of any rescue.(DFP)+++

Congressional battles leave auto relief in doubt
A $25-billion lifeline to American automakers appeared hopelessly tangled by partisan fighting Tuesday.(DFP)+++

Mulally defends Ford’s actions
The head of Ford Motor Co. said today the company is working hard to “transform our business.”(DFP)+++

White House: Levin’s auto aid bill fails test
WASHINGTON - For the White House, the auto industry bailout is a question of money and viability.(DFP)+++

Ford to cut Mazda stake for cash
TOKYO — Ford Motor Co. is slashing its stake in Japan’s Mazda Motor Corp. by nearly two-thirds, joining other struggling U.S. automakers in a fire-sale of prized assets to stay afloat.(DFP)+++

Hoyer: We could be back if auto aid fails
WASHINGTON - House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer this morning raised the specter of auto industry bailout legislation failing to pass this week and Congress possibly returning in December for another lame duck session.(DFP)+++

L.A. auto show to open under a cloud; Volt interior tweaked
The best of today’s automotive news, reviews and commentary — as well as the cool and weird — from Freep.com and other Web sites. Check back for updates throughout the morning.(DFP)+++

GM shows 3 new models for China
GUANGZHOU, China — General Motors Corp. put three new models for China on show today, maneuvering to keep its edge in a market vital to its future as it struggles for survival back home.(DFP)+++

Muscular 2010 Mustang packs punch
Here’s good news for employees at Ford Motor Co.’s factory in Flat Rock: The 2010 Mustang, which Ford is to reveal today, is expected to be a hit when it arrives in dealerships next spring. What’s more, the new Mustang will continue to be built in Flat Rock.(DFP)+++

Honda plant brings hope to Indiana town
GREENSBURG, Ind. — With the domestic automotive industry teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, Monday’s grand opening of Honda Motor Co.’(DFP)+++

Ficano to make a plea with D.C., Ala. ads
Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano is going on the air today — in Washington, D.C., and Alabama — to make his best case for why the domestic automakers should get federal help.(DFP)+++

Nardelli: We could run out of cash soon
Chrysler is in a “very fragile position” and will come “dangerously close” by the end of the year to reaching minimum levels of cash needed to stay in business, the automaker’s top executive told a U.S. Senate committee Tuesday.(DFP)+++

Reaction: Workers hold out hope
U.S. autoworkers said Tuesday they found the Senate hearing on a federal automotive bailout encouraging, even though some senators were critical of such aid for the car companies.(DFP)+++

Rampant auto job losses seen
Half of America’s 50 states will individually lose 3,000 jobs or more if Detroit’s automakers collapse, according to a confidential state-by-state analysis of employment by Ford Motor Co. that was obtained by the Free Press.(DFP)+++

GM unveils more ways to hold cash
Cash-strapped General Motors Corp. on Monday announced a number of measures aimed at conserving and raising cash to stay afloat as it lobbies the U.S. government for loans to help it survive a global credit crunch that has led to the worst auto sales in a quarter century.(DFP)+++

Ficano buys radio ad time in Alabama, Washington to defend automakers
The letters and testimony to Congress were always going to happen, but Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano wanted to take his defense of the domestic auto industry a step further, especially after hearing some politicians proclaim that the Big 3 should be allowed to die.(DFP)+++

Auto news in brief: Getrag cancels plant in Indiana
Sterling Heights supplier Getrag Transmission Manufacturing LLC put an unfinished plant in Tipton, Ind., into bankruptcy Monday, saying it was forced to do so after Chrysler LLC terminated a contract with the supplier.(DFP)+++

Provisions of the Senate, House versions of auto bailout
Key conditions of the $25-billion bailout plan for U.S. automakers unveiled Monday: The Treasury would start lending money as soon as 25 days after the bill is approved. Money would come from the $700 billion set aside for the financial industry bailout.(DFP)+++

Suppliers want share of rescue
Auto suppliers are seeking part of the $700 billion from the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program, or any federal loan dollars the industry can secure, and are headed to Capital Hill this week to testify that U.S. jobs could be at risk without the money. (DFP)+++

ZF may operate new Chrysler plant
Chrysler LLC looks poised to announce a deal today with ZF Friedrichshafen AG for the German company to operate the Auburn Hills automaker’s new Marysville axle plant. (DFP)+++

MotorMediaWatch November 18

Nov 18, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Automakers’ pain felt far beyond Detroit
The Big Three’s fortunes steer thousands of suppliers nationally. One report puts 2.5 million jobs at risk if a carmaker fails.(LAT)+++

Democrats Press for Aid to Detroit
Reid pledged to press ahead with legislation to aid Detroit’s auto makers, but prospects for passage before a new Congress arrives next year remained dim.(WSJ)+++

GM, Chrysler Pass on L.A. Auto Show
Detroit’s foreign competitors are busy launching new vehicles and hitting the Los Angeles Auto Show with a slate of green vehicles. Meanwhile, GM and Chrysler are virtual no-shows at the annual event.(WSJ)+++

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MotorMediaWatch November 17

Nov 17, 2008 MotorMediaWatch

Hyundai Genesis 4.6: Cut-rate luxury
The South Korean automaker’s first full-size, rear-drive luxury car is a near-peer to Euro sport sedans — but at a 20% discount. (LAT)+++

Strict conditions almost certain for automaker bailout
Sending Detroit’s Big Three billions with no strings attached would be folly, some say. Others contend too many requirements would strangle a weak industry.(LAT)+++

EBay cars under $10,000 that beat the pants off a Nissan Versa
So before you submit to lowered automotive expectations of a stripped Nissan Versa, consider these choices, all on EBay for $10,000 or less.(LAT)+++

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