Autoblog

Porsche didn't win... this round. The German cabinet approved amendments to the Volkswagen Law yesterday, but lawmakers left Porsche's key clause untouched. For those of you who haven't been following this saga, "Volkswagen Law" is the legislation that includes a provision to allow the federal state of Lower Saxony to keep a blocking minority vote in Volkswagen. That minority position is just 20 percent, exactly the amount currently held by Lower Saxony. With Porsche gobbling up shares in VW, intent on capturing a majority position so they can control plant closures, and Lower Saxony determined to protect thousands of jobs in their state... rest assured we haven't heard the last of this.

[Source: Automotive News]

So you want to work for Prodrive/Aston Martin, but you don't quite have the qualifications to be a bodyshell fabricator or a chief engineer? Then perhaps you have what it takes to fill the position of estate manager for the chairman of the company. You won't need to know your way around a sheet of carbon fiber, but you will need to be able to manage the garden and domestic staff, have a good sense of humor, and "carry out occasional driving duties," among other things. For your dutiful service, your rewards will include a fully paid-for cottage on the property, a mobile phone, and a company car. But remember, Ford still owns part of Aston, so that car could be a Mondeo... but that wouldn't be too bad, would it, guv'nor? Thanks for the tip, sndkick!

[Source: Prodrive]

Blame the plunging greenback. Less than a week after BMW announced the expansion of their U.S. Spartanburg plant, we are getting news from Germany that the weak dollar is making it increasingly difficult for the German automaker to keep production on their soil and that layoffs are imminent. Ernst Baumann, BMW's head of personnel, said 5,600 jobs in Germany will be cut by the end of the year. When you add that to the 2,500 positions already eliminated, the total represents about 7.6-percent of BMW's workforce.

While the layoffs are bad news for German factory workers, the flip side of the coin may benefit their American counterparts. With the value of the Euro sitting at more than $1.50 at current exchange rates, European automakers are finding manufacturing on U.S. soil more attractive (read that "cost effective") than ever. BMW manufactured about 155,000 vehicle on U.S. soil last year. By 2012, that number is planned to approach 240,000 cars. BMW sales worldwide reached 198,628 in January and February, up from 191,357 the same period last year. With the new BMW 1 Series and BMW X6 models hitting showrooms in 2008, BMW is forecasting yet another year of increased sales.

[Source: Detroit News]

Rather than spend your day looking up "gonnectigizoink" at Wikipedia, a better use of the internet might be to find a job. The problem is that it's just so hard to find anything that matches our niche skillset. Bentley is looking for more global candidates to fill their open positions, and has launched a website in hopes of snagging applicants. Currently, there's only opportunities if you want to locate yourself in Crewe, but there's 40-plus openings for everything from Logistics and IS to student programs. Bentley's hoping that opening up positions to the world at large, rather than relying solely on the old guard of newspaper adverts and recruitment firms will bring in more potential candidates. We'll be watching it like a hawk for the high performance test driver position to open up. In the meantime, we'll be compiling a fanciful delusion of a curriculum vitae.

[Source: Inside Line]

Mark "the Mullet" Fields dropped some small ordinance during an interview with the Wall Street Journal today, saying that if the slow U.S. economy puts the automaker at risk of not meeting its financial goals for the next two years, it may increase the rate at which it will cut costs.

To quote Ford's executive veep of North and South American operations, "There's more risk than there is opportunity going forward." Fields maintains that the combination of the turmoil-ridden home mortgage market, weak job numbers and increased debt among U.S. borrowers might cause Ford to slow production down in the fourth quarter to avoid excess inventory, a problem that plagued Chrysler last year around this time.

The adjustments are a last resort, and according to Ford, it's currently on track to meet its goals as long as things stay stable. Nevertheless, you can bet Fields has his fingers crossed.

[Source: Wall Street Journal]

Chrysler is ahead of its own targets for its turnaround plan with the announcement that up to 1,100 salaried and 6,000 hourly workers have been cut from its workforce. This is only the first phase of job cuts in the three-year turnaround plan, which by 2009 will see Chrysler's workforce shrunk by 13,000 positions.

The announcement was made in an internal email that was sent to Chrysler staffers on Monday. In it, CEO Tom LaSorda assured staff that the reduction in employee numbers won't disrupt operations and we could see even more lay-offs very soon. An additional 400 blue-collar workers are still awaiting approval for applied buyouts or early retirement packages, but Chrysler spokesman Dave Elshoff said "there's no guarantee that they will be accepted this year."

These latest reductions leaves Chrysler with roughly 73,356 hourly and salaried employees all up, 100 less than what the turnaround plan stipulated for 2007. We hope the changes will make more than just a dent in rectifying the $680 million loss Chrysler suffered last year.

[Source: Detroit News]

Canadian auto outposts Windsor and Essex counties in Ontario have lost thousands of jobs in the recent past. Out of concern for the future of not only their jobs, but their communities and standard of living, nearly 40,000 people took part in a rally organized by the Canadian Auto Workers Union on Sunday, May 27th. The CAW claims that every single manufacturing job supports 12 non-autobuilding jobs, and with the big goings on down south with the sale of Chrysler and Ford's Way Forward, the union is understandably concerned. The rally, part of the CAW's wider "Manufacturing Matters" initiative, was held at Ford's Windsor, Ontario test track, and was intended to demonstrate the gravity of Canada's loss of manufacturing jobs. There will be pain associated with the domestic automakers scramble to stay alive, and part of that has taken the form of shipping jobs elsewhere. It's not just the car assembly plants, it's the multitudes of smaller suppliers that build the subassemblies and components the autoworkers actually assemble. It's happening in the US, as well, and it's tough to realize that in the jaws of the vice are families that have little recourse. Click the pic above for a slideshow of the Windsor rally with audio.

Thanks for the tip, Peter!

[Source: Autonorth]

With all the attention that General Motors has gotten since the introduction of the Chevy Volt concept in January at the Detroit Auto Show, they have decided that they need to actually do more work in the area. So now they're looking for up to 400 engineers and technicians to help them develop advanced powertrain technologies like hybrids, diesels and fuel cells. They're also looking for information technology staff and people to work on the OnStar telematics systems. If you're interested in helping to make the Volt a reality, head over to www.gmcareerfair.com and submit a resume. Details are after the jump.

[Source: General Motors]

In late February, Honda announced it would be accepting applications for positions at a new plant it's constructing near Greensburg, Indiana. The Japanese automaker ran ads in newspapers around Indiana looking for workers with experience in Automotive Engineering, Purchasing, Information Technology and Administration. Eighteen slots were available, but Honda was inundated with over 5,000 applications. They've stopped accepting applications for fourteen of the positions in the areas of production and maintenance, just so that the mountain of applications can be sorted and sifted through. Those interested in applying for the remaining four positions can click here.

What does that mean? Some might say it illustrates how a languishing workforce is eager to throw its hat in the ring with a Japanese automaker, perhaps expecting greater job security in these uncertain times. From our perspective, it illustrates how saturated the job market is for anyone in an auto-related field. With layoffs and voluntary separations occuring around every corner, there are clearly many more qualified people than there are available jobs right now. And it's not often we see a "Now Hiring" sign put out by an automaker, so when it happens, regardless of the automaker looking for fresh blood, a glut of applications is almost guaranteed.

[Source: The Detroit News]

As Toyota continues its quest for world domination, they've chosen a location in northeastern Mississippi to build a new $800 million plant. The location, known as the Wellspring Project Megasite, is situated well for heavy manufacturing and was surely shopped hard to big industry like automotive manufacturing. The plant is likely to build SUVs, and we'll know for sure when all the politicians, local officials and Toyota representatives formally announce the plant today. Tupelo High School will be left reeling from the hullabaloo that will ensue, we're sure.

At a time of uncertainty and job cuts, It bodes well that Toyota is adding more jobs for US workers. Target production is 150,000 vehicles yearly when the plant is up and running in 2009. Say what you will about Toyota "invading" the US and dethroning our auto industry, we're happy to see US workers getting offered some relief. So many other industries have moved to other countries, taking good blue-collar opportunities with them. Mississippi also just recently attracted Nissan to build a plant in Canton, MS, so at least it looks like some of those laid off GM, Ford, and DCX workers will have someplace to go. We hear there's less snow than in Detroit, too.

Thanks for the tip, Guy!

[Source:djournal.com]