Manufacturing
Talk from the Top
Design
| Some Chinese still follow the leaders >> |
Green Cars
| Bosch: Watch out Japanese! >> |
Technology
| HP strikes deal to buy EDS for $12.6 billion >> |
| Bosch: Watch out Japanese! >> |
| Testing carbon fiber's mettle >> |
Cutaways
Ford recalls 650,000 F-150s and Lincoln Mark LTs
Ford Motor Co. is recalling more than 650,000 Ford F-150 and Lincoln Mark LT pickup trucks to fix a brake hose that could weaken brake power. Ford is recalling the 2005-06 versions of the trucks with 5.4-liter three-valve engines, according to a posting today by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. [REG] 2:09 pm U.S. ET | May 14
10-millionth Opel Astra produced todayThe ten-millionth Opel/Vauxhall Astra lower-medium car rolled off an assembly line in Germany today. The landmark model was a Silver Lightning Astra station wagon 1.7 CDTI. [REG] May 14 15:43 CET |
Mexican parts suppliers expect record 2008 sales
Mexico-based suppliers will increase their sales 4 percent this year despite a slowdown in the U.S. new-vehicle market, the country's national auto parts association, INA, predicts. Last year's sales total was an industry record. Suppliers in Mexico have seen 35 successive months of growth. [REG] 9:15 am U.S. ET | May 14
China's FAW scouting suppliers for Mexican plantChina FAW Group Corp. has paid several visits to the offices of INA, Mexico's national auto parts association, Agustin Rios, INA's interim president, told reporters Tuesday, May 13. The visits here come ahead of planned small-car production in Mexico by the Chinese automaker. INA stands for Industria Nacional de Autopartes AC. [REG] 10:22 am U.S. ET | May 14 |
Toyota mulling building new low-cost car plant
Japan's Toyota said today it is considering setting up a new plant to build small, low-cost cars. Toyota spokesman Hideaki Homma said the company had not decided on details such as the location or timing of the move. [REG] May 14 15:00 CET
ArvinMeritor to add surcharge for commodity prices
Auto and truck part supplier ArvinMeritor Inc. on Tuesday said it would begin charging a monthly surcharge in a bid to offset surging prices for steel and other commodities. The announcement of the surcharge followed through on a pledge the suburban Detroit company made last month when it announced quarterly earnings and underscored the pressure on auto suppliers and automakers to raise prices even as demand weakens because of the slumping U.S. economy. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 14
Alcoa to close Mexico plant, Texas warehouse
Aluminum products giant Alcoa Inc. plans to close its electrical and electronic systems plant in Puebla, Mexico, and warehouse in Del Rio, Texas, during the third quarter of 2008, citing dwindling demand. Alcoa Electrical and Electronics Solutions employs about 14,000 workers in Mexico and 1,350 in the United States. [REG] 10:16 am U.S. ET | May 14
Continental to invest in first Thai plantContinental said today it planned to invest 100 million euros ($154.2 million) or 5 billion baht in its first plant in Thailand as it seeks to expand into Southeast Asian markets. The construction of the manufacturing plant will be completed early next year and is expected to be operational by mid 2009, the firm said in a statement. [REG] May 14 12:00 CET |
VW could build Porsches in U.S.Volkswagen could build Porsche's Cayenne SUV at its new U.S. plant. The German business newspaper Handelsblatt today reported that VW could build Porsche's premium SUV in a new factory it plans to open in the U.S. in 2010. [REG] May 13 16:07 CET |
HP strikes deal to buy EDS for $12.6 billion
Hewlett-Packard Co. plans to buy former General Motors unit Electronic Data Systems Corp. for $25 per share, the two companies said on Tuesday, or about $12.6 billion to better compete against IBM. The companies said the deal had an enterprise value, which includes debt, of $13.9 billion. [REG] 9:06 am U.S. ET | May 13 | UPDATED: 5/13/08 1:51 p.m. EDT
Toyota plans expansion at China plant
Toyota plans to invest 1.5 billion yuan ($214.6 million) to boost production capacity at a facility in north China by 50 percent to 150,000 vehicles a year, the company said today. The expansion at the plant in Tianjin Municipality is due to be completed by the end of 2009, the company said in a statement. [REG] May 13 13:53 CET
Hyundai drops plan for China financial unit
South Korea's Hyundai said today it had canceled a plan to set up a financial services business in China after it was unable to reach an agreement on the operation with Chinese authorities. Hyundai had been working since early 2006 to set up a loan-service company in China. [REG] May 13 15:00 CET
Toyota slows the rush into Miss. crossover plant
Days after posting a steep dip in earnings, Toyota Motor Corp. said it will slow down the launch of its new Highlander crossover assembly plant in Tupelo, Miss., by five months. A company spokesman in the United States said that in response to sluggish market conditions here, the plant will launch in May 2010 at a lower volume than originally planned. Instead of operating at 150,000 vehicles a year, Tupelo will produce at 120,000 a year. [REG] 9:24 am U.S. ET | May 12 | UPDATED: 5/12/08 1:51 p.m. EDT
VW to decide on U.S. plant in July
German car maker Volkswagen AG will decide in mid-July on whether to set up a U.S. assembly plant to fend off the impact of the weak dollar, the company's CEO told German newspaper Handelsblatt. "We will put the issue of the U.S. plant to the supervisory board before the summer break in July," CEO Martin Winterkorn told the business daily in an article to be published on Tuesday. [REG] 8:00 am U.S. ET | May 12
Fiat builds a second TychySlightly more than half a century ago Fiat signed an historic licensing agreement that permitted Zavodi Crvena Zastava -- or Red Flag Plant in English -- to begin automobile production in Serbia. Today, the Italian automaker is getting ready to return to Serbia, but with radically different ambitions. [SUB] May 12 06:01 CET |
Sources: Fiat considers building cars in MexicoFiat is considering car production in Mexico, company sources say. The sources say Fiat is looking at an existing plant in Mexico that can build 150,000 cars a year. Starting in 2011, the plant would build Alfa Romeos for North America and Fiats for South America. [SUB] May 12 06:01 CET |
Hayes Lemmerz to close wheel plant in Ga.
Hayes Lemmerz International Inc. said it plans to close a plant in Gainesville, Ga., as global overcapacity for aluminum wheels has led to cheaper imports coming into North America. Some production at the plant will move to Hayes' aluminum wheel plant in Mexico. Gainesville, which employs about 290, will close by year end. [REG] 12:49 pm U.S. ET | May 12
Audi, BMW seek to match Lexus with 8-speed transmissionsAudi and BMW want to catch up with Lexus by offering eight-speed automatic transmissions on their top-of-the-range cars, company sources say. Audi is testing vehicles equipped with an eight-speed transmission, a company source told Automotive News Europe. [SUB] May 12 06:01 CET |
Chrysler: Jeep seats from India make senseChrysler LLC will fly in the face of conventional wisdom and import rear seats for the Jeep Wrangler from a seat supplier in India, according to Tom LaSorda, co-president. The India seat project is part of Chrysler's effort to source more parts from China, India and other low-cost countries. The automaker also is building up engineering capacity in those countries. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 12 |
