Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[GM's Plan: Small cars making a big profit]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/21/gms-plan-small-cars-making-a-big-profit/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/21/gms-plan-small-cars-making-a-big-profit/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/21/gms-plan-small-cars-making-a-big-profit/#commentsFiled under: , ,



GM currently owns about 13% of the small car market. With demand for small vehicles increasing with the price of black gold, GM is out to increase that market share. Nevertheless, even if it doesn't increase its share, it plans to make more money off of each small car sold. How? By raising the price, naturally.

The plan is simple: make better small cars, charge more for them. The upcoming Cruze could run you a few thousand more than the outgoing Cobalt, for instance. The test is to see whether cars like the Cruze will be worth the premium. GM Global Design Chief Ed Welburn said, "In North America, we never did a good small car." The General plans to bury that piece of its history... but it's going to charge you, the consumer, for the funeral.

The idea that GM can lasso the small car market while charging a premium, at the same time as slashes its marketing budget by $1.5 billion, takes some effort to swallow. One analyst said that demand for small cars will outstrip supply, so GM could get away with it. However, until we see proof of small GM cars that take bats to the established competition, we'll have to give this plan a "Hmmm."

[Source: Automotive News, subs. req'd]

GM's Plan: Small cars making a big profit originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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General Motors has reintroduced the position of President and Chief Operating Officer with the naming of Fritz Henderson to the post by Rick Wagoner. Henderson's move up from Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer sees Ray Young moving from group VP of finance to Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, filling the vacuum left by Henderson's departure. Group Vice President of Global Powertrain and Global Quality, Thomas G. Stephens, also makes the move to Executive Vice President. The new appointees will work closely with Rick Wagoner and product guy Bob Lutz to keep the GM ship on course.

Henderson will be drawing on his past experience in a variety of roles at GM. Regional presidents will report to Henderson, who will confer with Rick Wagoner. For now, it's about as exciting as watching a chess match, but GM's moving these people into their new roles with an eye on the company's trajectory out of the doldrums. The newly reinstated President and COO will be looked to as an integral part of the machinery that keeps pushing GM back from the brink.

[Source: Auto News - sub req]

Fritz gets promoted to GM president and COO originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Mar 2008 15:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Volvo has been trying its darnedest to reinvent itself, but the Swedish automaker is finding it can't escape its own image. Rather than trying to fight it, then, emerging reports suggest that the company will go with the flow while refocusing its model line-up to include more wagons, which already account for some two thirds of its languishing sales.

Among the new models Volvo is reportedly preparing is the V30, a sport-wagon aimed at the Audi A3. Expected to be a little taller and longer than the A3 Sportback, the V30 could incorporate the kind of flexible seating layouts we've seen in minivans, but in a smaller, more upscale package. Based on the European Focus platform, the V30 would slot in above the C30 sport-hatch to where the S40 and V50 fit currently. Those models, meanwhile, would grow slightly larger to take on the likes of the BMW 3-Series, but smaller than Volvo's own next-gen S60 and V70. An XC30 off-road version would likely also fall into the mix, with all-wheel-drive, higher road clearance and more rugged body-cladding.

Gothenburg (home to Volvo's headquarters, not Batman's Swedish cousin) is also tipped to be considering replacing the flagship S80 sedan with a new range-topping V100 wagon, as well as a Smart-style city-car and electric powertrain packages. One way or another, Volvo needs to find its niche and run with it, or it could find itself up for sale like its erstwhile Ford Europe/PAG sister companies Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover.

[Source: Autocar]

Rumormill: Volvo rethinking, shifting focus to wagons originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 09 Jan 2008 13:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford is looking for ways to pack their automobiles with innovative technology that achieves the seemingly impossible goal of using smaller, more efficient engines while still delivering the performance wallop customers are demanding. Not only is the Blue Oval seeking more involvement from their suppliers to push new technology and techniques forward, but the automaker's also looking outside the typical realm of automotive OEMs.

One promising new technology is a system developed by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology startup company. Putting a modern-day spin on the concept of water or alcohol injection to either boost octane or cool the cylinder charge (or both), the MIT developed fuel injection system uses direct injection to deliver a shot of ethanol when the engine is under heavy load. The intravenous drip allows turbocharger boost pressure to be cranked way up, adding a significant amount of power gain. Normally, with your wastegate actuators cranked all the way down, you'd discover new and exciting ways to ventilate the crankcase, but this system keeps detonation at bay, which keeps the pistons in the block.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]

Continue reading MIT helps Ford apply pressure

MIT helps Ford apply pressure originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 11 Aug 2007 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We reported in March that Toyota was offering incentives on its 2006 Toyota Tundra to prevent potential customers from  holding out for the much bigger 2007 model due next January. Apparently that was half the story.

According to the Detroit News, Toyota is not content being a distant fourth in truck sales after the Detroit Big Three. The world's second largest automaker is especially interested in Ford buyers: the Blue Oval sold more pickups in Texas alone than Toyota sold in the entire nation. Toyota's current incentives are a strategy to lure once-brand loyal consumers from the competition.

And it may be working. While sales of the current Tundra are lower than last year, the reason may be due more to lower inventory than lack of interest.

The average American consumer in the market for a truck, however, is likely not so easily swayed by price. We expect many truck buyers have brand loyalty that runs deeper than their wallets.

[Source: Detroit News]

Toyota hopes Tundra incentives will nab new customers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 04 May 2006 14:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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