world congress
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If turnaround needs it, Mulally will cut againIf the United States sinks into a recession, Ford Motor Co. is prepared to make new cost cuts to keep its turnaround on track, CEO Alan Mulally says. "If demand goes down substantially more than what we are predicting, then we'll continue to restructure our business to that new demand," Mulally said. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Infiniti to extend global reachInfiniti will expand globally to meet rising worldwide demand for luxury products. "We expect that Infiniti will continue to experience double-digit sales increases well into the future on a worldwide basis," Mark McNabb, Nissan North America's marketing chief, told the Automotive News World Congress. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Retail panel pushes dealer-factory teamwork
Ford Motor Co. has eliminated about 400 dealerships in the past two years, a top U.S. sales executive said. "The progress has been better than I anticipated," said Randy Ortiz, general manager for Ford, Lincoln and Mercury sales. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28
Kuzak: Fast changes to freshen Ford vehiclesFord Motor Co.'s product development mantra will be fresher, faster, simpler, Derrick Kuzak, Ford's group vice president of global product development, said last week at the Automotive News World Congress. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Lexus exec: We'll add stores, but not dealersIn the coming years, Lexus will add stores but not dealers, said Mark Templin, Lexus general manager. Lexus has enough dealers -- 178 -- he said. Those dealers own and operate 224 outlets across the country, Templin told the Automotive News World Congress here last week. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
EPA's Oge urges industry to face emission challengeBy developing green technologies, automakers can be the spark that ignites the next industrial revolution, says EPA official Margo Oge. Oge, director of the EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality, told the Automotive News World Congress last week that the political, economic and regulatory landscape facing the industry has changed dramatically over the past year, and "the pace of change will not be letting up any time soon." [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Auto marketers get personal in their appeals
Reaching consumers with personalized appeals where they live and play -- without wearing out the welcome -- is one of today's biggest challenges, a panel of marketing executives told the Automotive News World Congress here last week. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28
Bosch: Standardized parts can cut costsBernd Bohr, head of the automotive division of Robert Bosch GmbH, wants a joint effort to get automakers to standardize parts. Bohr said Bosch is pushing for standardization because suppliers and automakers face unprecedented investment demands. Spending on technologies to boost fuel economy and cut emissions will force r&d budgets skyward. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Lutz: U.S. won't easily embrace small carsGeneral Motors sees E85 and biofuels as the best near-term solution to lowering U.S. use of petroleum. But new federal fuel regulations will only mean higher vehicle prices, slower new-vehicle sales and continued consumer resistance to smaller cars. "We refuse to let the price of fuel rise gradually in the United States, and therefore we fail to induce change in consumer behavior," Bob Lutz, GM's vice chairman of global product development, said. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Meyer: Chrysler listens to dealersBeginning next month, Chrysler LLC will offer enhanced packages on 12 key vehicles as part of a new marketing initiative, said Deborah Meyer, the automaker's chief marketing officer. The New Day Celebration, as the program is called, is part of Chrysler's effort to offer more value instead of resorting to heavy incentives. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Panel: Adapt to ways in Russia, India, China
Growing markets in India, Russia and China offer huge opportunities to automotive companies that can adapt to new ways of doing business and that choose their partners carefully. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28
VW plans engine, transmission production in North AmericaVolkswagen will have engine and transmission plants in North America to support a new vehicle assembly plant the automaker is expected to build in North Carolina. The assembly plant could be operational in 2010. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Conti exec: Siemens VDO purchase pays off fastContinental AG is ahead of schedule when it comes to identifying potential cost savings from last year's purchase of Siemens VDO Automotive. By combining the two German suppliers, Continental had expected to find $250 million in savings by 2010. Now, it expects to exceed that figure by 2010, said William Kozyra, CEO of Continental's North American operations. [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 28 |
Lutz: U.S. won't embrace small cars at today's gas pricesGeneral Motors sees E-85 and biofuels as the best near-term solution to lowering U.S. usage of petroleum. But new federal fuel regulations will only mean higher vehicle prices and slower new vehicle sales, Bob Lutz, GM's vice chairman of global product development, said at the Automotive News World Congress on Wednesday evening. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Smart favors word-of-mouth marketingSmart USA remains committed to its word-of-mouth marketing approach, Smart President Dave Schembri told a panel at the Automotive News World Congress on Wednesday. Schembri suggested that owner advocacy is also a part of marketing. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Toyota bets on digital media advertisingHaving an intimate knowledge of your customers and their media preferences is key to matching the right marketing plan with the right individual vehicle, says a top advertising manager at Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Audi to tout West Coast luxury senseAudi sees a new style of luxury evolving and will invoke that sensibility to stand apart from its competitors. The brand will tap a new West Coast contemporary luxury that is distinct from traditional European-based luxury, Scott Keogh, Audi of America Inc. chief marketing officer, told the Automotive News World Congress on Wednesday. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Bosch seeks joint effort to standardize partsBernd Bohr, head of the automotive division of German industrial giant Robert Bosch GmbH, wants a joint effort to get automakers to standardize parts to limit growing research and development costs. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Emerging carmakers seek quick-moving suppliersAuto suppliers that want to compete in the rapidly growing markets in Asia must be willing to adapt quickly to new ways of doing business, said Jim Hudak, Metaldyne's vice president, sales and engineering, Asia Pacific [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Cadillac Web campaign taps customer advocacyIt might be a bit surprising to see rocker Joan Jett recount how she launched her career from the trunk of a Cadillac in the late 1970s. But it's just one Cadillac-related story to grab the attention of young and hip buyers on YouTube. Cadillac partnered with Google and YouTube to develop the site mycadillacstory.com. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Russian dealerships offer new challenges, GM executive saysFinding the right dealer partners in Eastern Europe and Russia is one of the biggest challenges faced by General Motors' operations in the region. Chris Lacey, GM's executive director for Central and Eastern Europe, said it's tough because selling cars was illegal 20 years ago in many of the markets he now oversees. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
Port bottlenecks could hamper Indian exportsIndia's rapidly growing automotive industry is hoping for a significant percentage of exports. But the country's limited number of harbors capable of handling exports and selective labor shortages pose roadblocks to its expansion plans, says Sanjay Rishi, global automotive industry leader for IBM Global Business Services. [REG] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24 |
