Posts Tagged ‘U.S.’
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Cars sold in U.S. could get 54.5 mpg by 2025
Posted on July 29th, 2011 by admin
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President Obama made his fuel economy announcement in front of a line-up of vehicles including a Ford F-150 with a fuel-efficient V6 EcoBoost engine and a plug-in hybrid Ram pick-up made by Chrysler.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Calling it “the most important step we’ve ever taken in reducing our nation’s dependence on foreign oil,” President Obama announced a proposed new round of fuel economy standards for cars and trucks sold in the United States that would double the average mileage by 2025.
Under the proposed plan, the combined fuel economy of all cars and light trucks sold in 2025 would have to increase to an average of 54.5 miles per gallon, or nearly double the current figure. They’d ramp up to that level over seven years, starting in 2017 when current rules end.
Cars are expected to get an average of 62 mpg in 2025, while trucks should average 44 mpg.
The proposal was announced in a Washington ceremony at which the president was flanked by auto industry leaders, including the heads of General Motors (GM, Fortune 500), Chrysler, Toyota (…CNN
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U.S. lost $14B on auto bailout… Excellent!
Posted on July 23rd, 2011 by admin
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Yes, the U.S. government will lose money on the auto industry bailout. But, in return, we saved jobs and got an auto industry that’s finally ready to compete.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Including the $ 1.3 billion loss on its Chrysler investment, announced Thursday, the United States government has lost about $ 14 billion on the auto industry bail-out. All in all, it was a bargain.
That $ 14 billion figure is far less than than the $ 40 billion bath the Congressional Budget Office expected U.S. taxpayers to take in the total auto industry bailout.
Saying the U.S. taxpayer “lost money” is probably the wrong perspective, considering that spending no money at all likely would have meant a financial catastrophe for millions of Americans far in excess of a mere $ 14 billion.
Had GM and Chrysler collapsed, it would have cost the federal government about $ 28.6 billion in lost tax revenues and assistance to the unemployed in just the first two years alone, according to the Michigan-based Center for Automotive Research. In other words, doing nothing could have cost more than twice as much the bailout.
By the way, that $ 28.6 billion figure doesn’t include the business taxes the federal government would have lost but can now expect from two large, profitable automakers and their suppliers. It also doesn’t include any lost state an …CNN
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U.S. loses $1.3 billion in exiting Chrysler
Posted on July 21st, 2011 by admin
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As government wraps up the Chrysler bailout, Treasury says it likely lost $ 1.3 billion on the deal.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. taxpayers likely lost $ 1.3 billion in the government bailout of Chrysler, the Treasury Department announced Thursday.
The government recently sold its remaining 6% stake in the company to Italian automaker Fiat. It wrapped up the 2009 bailout that was part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program six years early.
“The fact that the company has done so well — that they were able to go out and raise private capital to repay us the loan so quickly, is really the big story,” said Tim Massad, Treasury assistant secretary for financial stability.
Fiat paid the Treasury a total of $ 560 million for the remaining shares, as well as rights to shares held by the United Auto Workers retiree trust. Fiat now owns a 53.5% stake in the company.
Originally, the government committed a total of $ 12.5 billion to the struggling automaker, Old Chrysler, and the company’s newly formed Chrysler Group. Of those funds, $ 11.2 billion have been returned through principal repayments, interest and cancelled commitments, the Treasury said. The new Chrysler Group paid back $ 5.1 billion in loans in May.
As part of the loan …CNN
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U.S. auto sales rise in June
Posted on July 1st, 2011 by admin
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U.S. automakers report strong demand for fuel-efficient cars in June.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — America’s top three automakers reported June sales gains that were largely in line with expectations, as retail demand for fuel efficient cars remains strong.
But the two largest Japanese automakers continued to struggle last month with production problems caused by the March earthquake and tsunami.
Overall, auto sales rose in June at a slower-than-expected rate.
The industry-wide seasonally adjusted sales rate was 11.4 million units last month, up from 11.2 million in May, according to sales tracker Autodata.
Analysts had forecast an industry sales rate of about 12 million units.
Jeff Schuster, an executive director at J.D. Power and Associates, said June is typically a slow month for auto sales. He added that lackluster incentives and low inventory levels also pressured sales in the month.
“However, the fundamentals remain in place for a marked return to the recovery pace set in the first four months of the year,” he said.
General Motors said total U.S. sales rose 11% in June versus the same month last year. Ford reported a 14% increase in total sales compared with last year.
Chrysler, the smallest of the big three U.S. automakers, said sales jumped 40% in the month. It was the best June for Chrysler since 2007, before it declared bankruptcy.
The gains were roughly in l …CNN
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Subaru of Indiana: Greenest carmaker in U.S.
Posted on June 8th, 2011 by admin
div id=”mainart” class=”hmedia art grid-4×2″ about=”http://msnbcmedia3.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/110606-biz-subarutrike-336p.grid-4×2.jpg”> Via Businessweek
In a further example of kaizen efficiency, maintenance and troubleshooting workers access and address potential problems on decked-out tricycles.Set amid tawny popcorn and soybean fields, weathered barns, and rusty silos, the Subaru of Indiana Automotive plant cuts a swath. A 3.4-million-square-foot monolith abutted by railroad tracks, SIA has a mountain of compost and the occasional coyote skittering through the surrounding 832 acres of woodland.
Step inside, though, and you’ll discover why this might be the most exemplary car factory in America.
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Fiat back in U.S. with tiny, fun-to-drive 500
Posted on May 4th, 2011 by admin
div id=”mainart” class=”hmedia art grid-6×2″ about=”http://msnbcmedia3.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/110504-fiat-500-915a.grid-6×2.jpg”> Reuters
The 2012 Fiat 500 base Pop model is $ 16,000 with five-speed manual. The lowest-priced 500 with automatic transmission is $ 17,000. All 500s come with a 101-horsepower, four-cylinder engine.The 2012 Fiat 500 hatchback is the newest and arguably the cutest small car in the United States, with federal government fuel mileage ratings that are at the top of the subcompact class.
The four-passenger, two-door 500, which is the first Fiat to be sold by the automaker in this country since 1983, is rated at 30 miles per gallon in city driving and 38 mpg on the highway with standard manual transmission.
This is a higher rating than Toyota’s littlest car here, the Yaris, as well as any Mini Cooper model, which also are subcompacts. The 500 ties the subcompact 2011 Ford …MSNBC
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Fiat back in U.S. with tiny, fun-to-drive 500
Posted on May 4th, 2011 by admin
div id=”mainart” class=”hmedia art grid-6×2″ about=”http://msnbcmedia3.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/110504-fiat-500-915a.grid-6×2.jpg”> Reuters
The 2012 Fiat 500 base Pop model is $ 16,000 with five-speed manual. The lowest-priced 500 with automatic transmission is $ 17,000. All 500s come with a 101-horsepower, four-cylinder engine.The 2012 Fiat 500 hatchback is the newest and arguably the cutest small car in the United States, with federal government fuel mileage ratings that are at the top of the subcompact class.
The four-passenger, two-door 500, which is the first Fiat to be sold by the automaker in this country since 1983, is rated at 30 miles per gallon in city driving and 38 mpg on the highway with standard manual transmission.
This is a higher rating than Toyota’s littlest car here, the Yaris, as well as any Mini Cooper model, which also are subcompacts. The 500 ties the subcompact 2011 Ford …MSNBC
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U.S. is still the king of making the worst cars
Posted on April 25th, 2011 by admin
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Luxury vehicles like the Cadillac Escalade are arguably at a disadvantage on lists like this — their luxurious interior upgrades, high-quality trim and powerful engines work against them.By all accounts, Detroit’s Big Three automakers have begun producing better-made, longer lasting, more efficient vehicles. It’s a distinct change from the 1990s and early 2000s, when they fell behind their European and Asian counterparts in each category.
“This change is not even a gradual thing,” says Christine Overstreet, an automotive consultant and director of Heels and Wheels. “It’s like they’ve said, ‘OK, we really want to step it up, we really want to compete, we’re ready.’ After past years of being so bad, they’ve really stepped up their game.”
But with three exceptions — the Mercedes-Benz S550, Smart Fortwo and Nissan Titan — all of the cars on this year’s list of the Wor …MSNBC
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Why can’t U.S. automakers build a good small car?
Posted on April 1st, 2011 by admin
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FORTUNE — Small cars are the opening bet in becoming a truly global automaker — and the Detroit Three have been bluffing for 40 years. They have promised to deliver a superior product again and again, but have never succeeded.
This year, they are trying a new way. General Motors (GM) is launching the Chevy Cruze and Sonic, Ford (F, Fortune 500) has come out with the Focus and Fiesta, and Chrysler will debut the Fiat 500. With gas prices going up and up, success is becoming more urgent.
Already there are some disquieting signs. In its May issue, Car & Driver ranks the Cruze fourth out of five small cars tested and awarded the backhanded compliment that Chevrolet had made a competitive small car “just as the segment turns into a master class.” The Focus was judged the best of five cars tested, but it was developed at Ford of Europe, not in Dearborn.
The Detroit Three’s frustration goes all …CNN
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U.S. sales of Smart cars hit a wall
Posted on February 19th, 2011 by admin
FORTUNE — Don’t feel too sorry for automotive mogul Roger Penske, who this week threw in the towel on the exclusive U.S. distribution rights for the Smart line of small cars. Investors were cheering his decision Wednesday, along with the financial results of Penske Automotive Group (PAG, Fortune 500), bidding shares nearly to a three-year high.
The Smart ForTwo, a diminutive two-seater built by Daimler AG, simply never met sales expectations, reaching about 45,000 cars sold over a three-year period, but at a declining rate. “It had a rip-roaring start,” said Tony Pordon, senior vice president for the Bloomfield Hills, Michigan company. “The last two years have been difficult.”
Penske, chairman and chief executive officer, bought the U.S. rights to sell Smart cars on behalf of his company in 2008 on the belief that gasoline prices would rise sharply higher and the economy would remain buoyant. N ……… Read more from CNN