Friday, October 06, 2006
2006-10-06 14:49 (Mw 5.8) NIAS REGION, INDONESIA 1.4 97.2
Region: NIAS REGION, INDONESIA
Geographic coordinates: 1.353N, 97.213E
Magnitude: 5.8 Mw
Depth: 43 km
Universal Time (UTC): 6 Oct 2006 14:49:05
Time near the Epicenter: 6 Oct 2006 21:49:05
Local time in your area: 6 Oct 2006 14:49:05
Location with respect to nearby cities:
181 km (112 miles) WSW (258 degrees) of Sibolga, Sumatra, Indonesia
295 km (183 miles) SSW (213 degrees) of Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia
433 km (269 miles) NW (306 degrees) of Padang, Sumatra, Indonesia
536 km (333 miles) WSW (248 degrees) of KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia
ADDITIONAL EARTHQUAKE PARAMETERS
________________________________
event ID : US tmal
This event has been reviewed by a seismologist at NEIC For subsequent updates, maps, and technical information, see:
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/ustmal.php
Region: MID-INDIAN RIDGE
Geographic coordinates: 41.160S, 80.673E
Magnitude: 5.7 Mw
Depth: 10 km
Universal Time (UTC): 6 Oct 2006 05:08:53
Time near the Epicenter: 6 Oct 2006 10:08:53
Local time in your area: 6 Oct 2006 05:08:53
Location with respect to nearby cities:
443 km (275 miles) SE (145 degrees) of Amsterdam Island
3198 km (1988 miles) SE (142 degrees) of PORT LOUIS, Mauritius
ADDITIONAL EARTHQUAKE PARAMETERS
________________________________
event ID : US tmam
This event has been reviewed by a seismologist at NEIC For subsequent updates, maps, and technical information, see:
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/ustmam.php
Eicher denies Daimler stake sale report
MUMBAI (Reuters) - Truck maker Eicher Motors Ltd. has no plans to sell a further stake in the company to DaimlerChrysler AG, but has been approached by some global truck makers, a top official said on Friday.
Eicher Chief Executive A. Ramasubramanian's comments came after The Economic Times, an Indian daily, reported that Daimler was likely to buy shares from Eicher's founders to raise its holding to 24 percent from 3.6 percent, quoting market sources.
Eicher's founders own 58.6 percent of the Indian firm.
"To my knowledge there is no such thing at the moment," Ramasubramanian told Reuters. "About tomorrow, I can't say anything."
The newspaper added that Daimler would also make an open offer to public shareholders for an additional 20 percent in a bid to meet Indian market regulations.
Any firm which acquires 15 percent or more in an Indian company is required by the market regulator to make an open offer for a further holding of 20 percent.
Eicher was not "actively seeking" any partner, though some global truck makers had approached it, Ramasubramanian said, without naming them.
A spokeswoman for DaimlerChrysler's truck division said "we are continuing our talks with different partners."
Daimler's truck chief said in August the company was holding talks with India's top truck and bus maker, Tata Motors Ltd., and Eicher to expand current capital links and co-operation.
Daimler sells its flagship Mercedes-Benz range, super luxury Maybach cars, and the Actros range of trucks in India. It already holds 6.7 percent of Tata Motors.
Commentators see a larger role for overseas companies in the Indian market.
"There is no other alternative for Eicher but to align with a global firm. They need the technology," said Arvind Jain, an analyst with Religare.
Larger trucks were now needed in India as road networks have improved, Jain said, adding that Eicher could turn into a sourcing base for Daimler and offer its Indian distribution network to the global truck maker.
In India, other large-vehicle makers have completed tie-ups with overseas firms.
Force Motors Ltd. has a joint venture with Germany's MAN AG, while Swaraj Mazda has a technical pact with Japan's Isuzu Motors Ltd.
Indian papers have reported Volvo is close to buying a large stake in India's second-largest truck and bus maker, Ashok Leyland Ltd.
Eicher shares closed slightly up in a flat Mumbai market.
(Additional reporting by Hendrik Sackmann in Stuttgart)
Caliber, A class will share parts
Harald Hamprecht | | Automobilwoche - - Starting in 2010, the Dodge Caliber and Mercedes-Benz A class and B class will share many components, DaimlerChrysler CEO Dieter Zetsche confirmed in an interview last week.
"We must not talk about a common platform for creation of siblings with Chrysler models," Zetsche said in an interview with Automobilwoche, which, like Automotive News, is published by Crain Communications. "Jointly developed components are enough to achieve economies of scale across Mercedes volumes. We are under way on this but not at the end of the decision-making process."
The Dodge Caliber is built on the same GS platform as the Jeep Compass and Patriot. Chrysler originally started work on the platform with Mitsubishi.
Zetsche did not specify what components the vehicles might share.
Dakota Marketing Problems
American compact pickups:
Dodge Dakota: 61,473 -28.7%
Chevrolet Colorado: 72,341 -32.3%
Ford Ranger: 72,179 -27.8%
GMC Canyon: 18,362 -36.8%
Check out the Japanese compact trucks:
Toyota Tacoma: 133,912 +6.6% (80,031 4X2, up 6.2%, and 53,881 4X4, up 7.1%) Nissan Frontier: 61,900 +11.2%
All figures are year-to-date, manufacturer-reported sales through Sept. 30. It looks to me like the Dakota isn't doing so bad compared to its domestic competition.
Basically what has happened is that sales of American compact pickups have plunged over the past four years. Dakota sales are down 42%, Ranger sales are down 60%. The Colorado and Canyon have only been reporting sales since November 2003, but their sales peaked quickly in 2005 and have dropped sharply so far this year. In contrast, the Japanese pickups have steadily grown. In the past four years, sales of the Tacoma have risen almost 14% and those of the Frontier are up over 26%.
As I noted in my sales report, the Chrysler numbers are worrisome. But there seems to be a problem with DaimlerChrysler being able to have both sides of the house do well at the same time. If you will recall, after the original merger/takeover/whatever, Mercedes was the star and Chrysler was the basket case everyone was screaming about. Then Mercedes started to have quality problems and Chrysler, with the new HEMI and spiffy new cars, was the hero of the earnings report. Now the pendulum seems to be swinging back: Mercedes is having record months and Chrysler is having troubles again. However, if, as was mentioned earlier, if you look at the results for the lines that have reported sales for at least a year and aren't discontinued, Chrysler volume was actually up 1.54% in September, though the extra selling day would still have left Chrysler with a 2.37% deficit. (September 2005 had only 25 selling days, there were 26 this year.)
Yes, Chrysler is going to post a pretty significant loss and we should hope they learn from the lesson the market teaches - don't let any of your bread-and-butter lines waste away. $3.00 gas came along and Chrysler didn't have a story to tell that was in touch with the times. Bad idea, especially when it would have been possible to avoid the problem by prudent product planning.
By the way, 8,000 sales per month isn't bad. Out of 290 vehicle models with sales reported in September, only the top 52 reported sales of 8,000 units or more. Out of 160 car models reporting sales, the Chrysler 300 was No. 15, the Dodge Charger was No. 17 and Caliber was No. 23. The Chrysler 300 was the best-selling premium-badged car in the U.S. in September.
New plant will help D/C reduce costs in China
Alysha Webb | Harald Hamprecht | Automotive News Europe / October 2, 2006 - 1:00 am BEIJING -- DaimlerChrysler wants to strengthen its relations with suppliers in China to help lower production costs at its new plant here.
"Localization is the right thing to do. It is in our best interest," DaimlerChrysler Chairman Dieter Zetsche said during the plant's opening ceremonies on September 15.
Until 40 percent of the parts for its China-made models are sourced
locally, DaimlerChrysler will face a higher tax on each car it builds.
The Beijing factory includes two assembly lines -- one for the Mercedes-Benz brand and one for the Chrysler and Mitsubishi brands.
The plant began assembling the Mercedes E280 last December, and will begin assembly of the Chrysler 300C in November.
Beijing Benz-DaimlerChrysler Automotive, DaimlerChrysler's joint venture with Beijing Automotive Industry Holding, is paying a high import tax on the Mercedes and Chrysler models.
Both are still being produced from imported kits, and the Chinese government a few months ago began taxing kits at the same 25 percent rate charged on entire car imports instead of the 10 percent rate for components.
Chrysler models should achieve 40 percent local content by 2008, Zetsche says. Reaching the 40 percent point with Mercedes will take longer, he admitted without being more specific.
Finding local suppliers that can meet international standards for luxury car models has proven challenging to all automakers in China. General Motors recently stopped local assembly of the Royaum sedan partly because of the high tax rate.
Still, DaimlerChrysler is sticking to its production plan, Zetsche says.
Late last month, DaimlerChrysler certified 60 new suppliers to provide parts to its Beijing plant.
Half of the partsmakers are from China and the rest are from surrounding region, a company spokesman said. The plant's initial production volume will be 105,000 -- 25,000 for the E class and the rest for the 300C and Mitsubishi's Outlander medium SUV.
Assembly of Mercedes C-class sedans will begin in 2007, says DaimlerChrysler. Suppliers say assembly of the Chrysler Sebring sedan will also begin in 2007 in Beijing, though DaimlerChrysler China spokesman Trevor Hale would not confirm the plan. The automaker is investigating whether it can add production of the Jeep Compass and Patriot as well as the Dodge Caliber.
Mercedes Car Group unit sales fall 1.5 percent in September
While demand at its core Mercedes-Benz brand remained flat at 106,600 vehicles last month, DaimlerChrysler said Smart suffered a 16.4 percent decline in sales to just 9,500 units.
But DaimlerChrysler said the response to the new Mercedes-Benz E class had been "very positive" and said demand rose 2 percent worldwide to 21,000 sedans and wagons in September.
DaimlerChrysler hopes that the facelift of its key model will help it perform clearly better in the market than its predecessor.
In the nine months through September, sales at Mercedes Car Group rose 5.8 percent to 934,200 units as a 9.4 percent rise in Mercedes-Benz sales to a record 846,300 vehicles offset an almost 20 percent drop in Smart sales to 87,900 cars.
Mercedes Car Group has said it was on track to deliver its 7 percent profit margin target next year following product renewal at Mercedes-Benz led by its S-class sedan and a radical clampdown on costs at its struggling Smart unit.
Due to problems at both the Chrysler group and European aerospace firm EADS, in which DaimlerChrysler has an industrial holding, Mercedes-Benz sales will resume their traditional role of supporting group earnings.
DaimlerChrysler's main competitor, BMW, expects to report September vehicle sales for its BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brands on Monday, Oct. 9.
On Thursday, Oct. 5, Volkswagen's premium brand Audi said unit sales rose 7.3 percent last month to 83,200 units helped by the all-new Q7 SUV.
Concepts, Crossovers Turn Toward Future At Auto Show
LOS ANGELES -- Futuristic concept cars and crossover vehicles will be on display this weekend when the Orange County Auto Show opens at the Anaheim Convention Center.Images: OC Auto Show | Images: January 2006 LA Auto Show | OC Auto ShowThe show is an opportunity for automakers to showcase their 2007 models.Organizer Michael Caudill said crossovers, a term used to describe sport utilities that use car chassis, might sell well in Southern California. The vehicles combine the features of cars and SUVs.
"They don't hit you as bad at the pump," Caudill said. "You get the versatility of a big sport utility vehicle. They're coming out with ones that are more sporty.
"Ford's Lew Echlin said trucks and SUVs remain popular in Southern California, but he has high hopes for his company's new crossover.
"They are fuel sipping," said Echlin. "They're great at commute. But they also give Californians exactly what they want, which is balance and quality of life.
Chrysler Akino"Concept vehicles scheduled for display include the Chrysler Akino, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Hornet, Mitsubishi Street Raider, Hyundai HCD9 and Mitsubishi Eclipse Ralliart.The show also features a collection of Lamborghinis. The Lamborghini Murcielago LP640, which provides 60 more hp than last year's model, will make its debut at the show.Maserati and Ferrari also will have a collection on display.
Hybrid vehicles at the show include Nissan's first gasoline-electric vehicle, the Altima Hybrid.
Nissan's offering comes as Toyota Motor Corp. continues to reap benefits from its fuel-efficient lineup. Toyota sold 25 percent more vehicles last month than it did in September 2005.
General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG each saw their sales slip by a few percentage points, while Ford Motor Co.'s sales gained 4.7 percent, the automakers said Tuesday.
Overall, automakers sold 1.35 million cars and trucks in the U.S. last month, up 1.9 percent from September 2005, when sales were off for some automakers following Hurricane Katrina and a discount-intensive summer.
DaimlerChrysler to keep 15 percent EADS stake
Reuters | STUTTGART, Germany -- DaimlerChrysler reaffirmed it will keep a strategic stake in European aerospace and defence group EADS of at least 15 percent, a spokesman for the automaker said today.
DaimlerChrysler declined to comment on whether the German government or state development bank KfW might buy shares in EADS to preserve German strategic interests in the European group.
The automaker reduced its EADS stake in April by 7.5 percent to 22.5 percent.
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Airbus at the Crossroads - DaimlerChrysler
AP | PARIS FRANCE - - Yesterday’s announcement of a third round of delay, this time for roughly a year, in the delivery of Airbus A 380 superjumbo airliners drove down shares of parent company EADS so far that trading in them had to be suspended on the Paris arm of the Euronext market after they breached their 10 per cent loss limit. Trading resumed, but the shares drifted even lower.
The A 380 has now become the largest scale business fiasco in the history of manufacturing. That is very bad news indeed for European ambitions to displace the United States as the epicenter of the world civil aviation industry. Staggering financial losses from the delay – over six billion dollars at latest count – loom, and the reputation of Airbus is so tattered that its largest customer, Emirates, accounting for almost 30% of orders for the plane has issued a coded threat to cancel some or all of its massive order, and is reported to be talking with Boeing about ordering a smaller rival in the superjumbo game, the latest stretch derivative of the 747 lineage, a model; clearly aimed the jugular of the A 380.
The A 380 was launched to kill off the 747, a design that is over four decades old. Instead, with low cost tweaking of an airplane that has already delivered 1000 copies, Boeing’s fangs are within millimeters of ripping into the underbelly flesh of the A 380 order book. It is an open question how many more wounds can be sustained by this product, which is already staggering from self-inflicted damage.
 | 1st class stretched seat (flat bed seat style). Offering about a third more seating and far more available floor space than its closest competitor, the A380 will have wider seats and aisles, open spaces for passengers to stretch their legs and access to lower-deck amenities. |
 | A380 will be the most spacious passenger plane. There will be room on the lower deck for shops, bars, restaurants and casinos. |
 | Business travelers and first calss passengers will be able to enjoy levels of luxury more typical of cruise liners than airliners. |
 | First class seats. Virgin Atlantic chairman Richard Branson has talked about having private double beds and gyms on his airline's planes. |
 | A stairway between two levels of the Airbus A 380's first class. With twin decks running the length of the plane, there will be staircases at the front and rear. |
 | Luxury sleeping compartments. The A380 will typically seat 555 passengers in three classes, although only a fortunate few will enjoy the sort of luxury shown in this mock-up. |
 | Some airlines plan to use the extra space for casinos and bedrooms. According to Philip Butterworth-Hayes, an aviation analyst for Jane's, this would drive up the cost for business and first-class travellers. |
 | For long-distance passengers used to cramped economy class cabins, the A380 will offer new levels of comfort with wider seats and aisles, individual armrests and extra legroom. Economy class seats will be about 1 inch wider. |
 | The business class interior. The seat can be fully extended into a bed and internet access available at every seat in the aircraft. |
 | Passenger Bar area in business class. Onboard gyms and showers will all become a reality . |
Airbus A380 'Interior Cabin'
Yet there is a ray of hope. A savvy and experienced new boss has taken over Airbus management, and he is taking smart steps to fix the problems. Christian Streiff, an Alsace-born Frenchman with a Germanic name, who earned high marks for smart management at glassmaking giant St. Gobain, may yet pull off a turnaround at Airbus.
If Streiff succeeds, he will enter the history books alongside business legends Lee Iacocca and Carlos Gohsn, as the savior of a massive global manufacturing empire.
Will Streiff save the company? The answer will take years to become apparent. At stake are tens of billions of dollars and euros, tens of thousands of jobs, the survival of the company, and the momentum of further unification of Europe.
What went wrong
The company identified the installation of wiring and wiring harnesses as the source of the previous delays. Yesterday, it began to provide more detail, and own up to the classic business blunder of the age: a failure to use compatible computer systems in different parts of the company whose efforts must be tightly integrated. Its official press release reads:
the root cause of the problem is the fact that the 3D Digital Mock up, which facilitates the design of the electrical harnesses installation, was implemented late and that the people working on it were in their learning curve.
Word had already gotten around the industry that this was the case. Because Hamburg, where the interior fittings of the A 380 were installed, used one type of Computer Aided Design (CAD) platform, and Toulouse, the center of Airbus manufacturing, used a different and incompatible CAD system, changes by one were not reflected in the design work of the other. Reportedly the company spent much effort trying to devise a tool that would link the two systems, but it never worked, leaving changes to be accomplished and documented almost by hand. As one observer pointed out to me, even if only one in a million of those human changes is wrong, that amounts to multiple defects per airplane, so complex are the hundreds of miles of wiring per airplane.
How could such a monumental obvious blunder have occurred? We don’t know, but Airbus says that its investigation is continuing. Quite ominously for previous management, the New York Times reports this morning,
The EADS board said that it would investigate the conduct of individual managers at the company, a European alliance of the governments of France, Germany and Spain that controls Airbus.
EADS said it would examine the actions of managers at Airbus and EADS during the period preceding the announcement in June of the A380 delays. It said it was reserving the right to pursue legal action against managers.
“Shareholders have lost billions of dollars,” the EADS co-chief executive, Thomas Enders, said. “This is very serious. We are not excluding anything.”
This likely refers to sale of stock by the family of former executive Noel Forgeard. But forensic examination of the factors weighing on the decision to proceed with an incompatible CAD system ought to be part of the inquiry. Particularly the matter of governmental pressure on the company to downplay problems and look good to the electorate for awhile.
The CAD divide echoes the nationalistic passions which the European Project, as it is known, was supposed to relegate to the ash heap of history. To unify, either the Germans were going to have to put aside current tasks and spend a year or so learning to do their jobs on a radically different system, or the French would. Computer language in the same role as national language, this round.
Nobody wanted all that down time, all those teething pains, all that expense, and all those unfortunate deadlines looming ever closer. The French must have insisted the Germans change, and vice versa. So, it would appear, they decide to muddle through.
There is probably much more more than this one mistake, though. Rumors still abound that the A 380 unexpectedly gained weight when structural reinforcement was deemed necessary. This rumored redesign may not only affect range, fuel efficiency and other guarantees to airline customers, it also may have caused last minute changes to the wiring designs. Last minute changes that would bedevil a flawed, un-integrated computer design regime.
Every single change to one part of the hundreds of miles of wiring has ramifications for other parts of the wiring, which must in turn be changed, causing a cascade of necessary changes. Just the sort of thing at which an integrated CAD system excels.
The problem was magnified because the Airbus marketing effort promised each airline customer as separate custom cabin layout. The wiring for each airline version is different, multiplying the magnitude of the redesign effort. Solve a problem for Singapore Airlines, and it helps not at all with Emirates or Lufthansa.
Survival Surgery: Hardball with Germany
Not all details of Airbus’ changes are hammered out, and a critical internal report is still four weeks away. But the outlines of the bet new Chairman Streiff is making are emerging. He is following the playbook for turnaround artists inheriting troubled companies: get the problems exposed early, take all the bad news upfront and write down earnings, so that future improvements are not obscured by lingering bad news. Then identify and correct the underlying sources of the problems.
Streiff has declared a bold move of parts of of Airbus A 380 assembly from depressed Hamburg to booming Toulouse. This is an enormous undertaking, as in all probability a new building will need to be constructed to house the extra steps in France. But everyone finally will be together, and they will at last use the same CAD systems. But workers will need to be trained and a vast amount of material and machinery moved. This, too, will absorb considerable time and resources.
Certainly part of the reason the work was divided in the first place was to throw a bone to Germany, which has footed a good part of the subsidy bill European taxpayers have paid for the gloire of Airbus and the France-based airliner business.
The Hamburg works will receive in turn an assembly line housed in Toulouse that is currently building the hot-selling A 320 single-aisle jetliner, the bread and butter airplane that still fills Airbus order books. Hamburg is already assembling variants of the A 320, the smaller versions like the A 318 and stretch versions like the A 321. As a newer facility, Hamburg may even be more efficient than Toulouse at putting them together.
But Germans are hardly happy with the news. UPI reports,
Hamburg area officials are reportedly enraged at prospects of layoffs. The German state has spent $955 million securing the future of the plant, which was supposed to make A380 cabins.
The German finance secretary is calling for Berlin to take a direct stake in Airbus to prevent the plant from being switched to cheaper sites in Russia, India and China. Specifically, Thomas Mirow wants the state-bank Kfw to buy a stake in Airbus from DaimlerChrysler AG, which owns 22.5 percent of the company.
The finance secretary correctly perceives that Streiff is blackmailing Germany.
The company had previously announced that it was exploring assembly of the A 320 in China. Additionally, the company is exploring further steps to move manufacturing and supply operations to locations where dollars are used to denominate value. A Russian state-controlled bank has already announced it wants to acquire shares in the company, and Russia has unused facilities and skilled workers able to assemble aircraft, and they don’t receive German (or French) levels of compensation.
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard of the UK Telegraph reports,
The French government has raised its effective stake from 15pc to 17.3pc, using the state-owned Caisse des Depots to buy stock from the media group Lagardere. Berlin risks losing control altogether if Daimler floats its shares on the open market. Proposals for direct intervention by Berlin have been shot down so far by the Christian-Democrat wing of the Left-Right government of Angela Merkel.
However, the Suddeutsche Zeitung said the dispute had become a major bone of contention. The newspaper said Chancellor Merkel held a crisis meeting with her top ministers over the weekend.
A government spokesman said there were no plans to buy EADS stock “in the near future”.
So already Airbus is experiencing creeping nationalization (albeit on a multinational scale) with the French government and the Russian government in effect taking more of the equity. If Germany is successfully blackmailed into taking the Daimler shares, on penalty of losing Hamburg jobs, the private sector role in future Airbus decisions will be even more muted, as politics takes command.
Power 8
Streiff has announced what appears to be a fundamental re-jiggering of the Airbus business process, and has adopted the rather opaque title “Program 8”, possibly indicating that its contents are not yet well-defined. After all, the company still has not yet completed its management audit. The company’s opfficial statement reveals only goals, not plans.
Power8 programme. The objective of the programme is to reduce costs, save cash and develop new products faster. The development cycle times are to be reduced by two years while the overall productivity is to be increased by 20 per cent. The programme aims at annual cost savings of at least € 2 billion from 2010 onwards and delivering some € 5.0 billion in cumulative cash savings by 2010.
Streiff was a bit more forthcoming in a conference call yesterday.
Chief Executive Christian Streiff said on Tuesday further delays in A380 deliveries would force Airbus to seek more engineering input from parent company EADS and suppliers.
This sounds a lot like the approach Toyota and other Japanese manufacturers have taken for decades, now widely emulated elsewhere, to entrust certain suppliers with work formerly performed by the final manufacturer. Some of these suppliers could switch from euro-denominated operations employing expensive (and tax-paying) Germans, French, Spaniards, and others, to non-euro-bloc operations employing, say, Russians, Chinese, or even Americans.
It is a tough business, and Streiff can rightly claim that this is necessary to save the company. But will the European public get sick of subsidizing the move of jobs overseas? If they do become alienated, will Airbus receive the life support it might need for years?
The dollar overhang
Previous Airbus management realized that because it was going to sell its airplanes to airlines for dollars, while paying most of its bills in euros, it was exposed to massive foreign exchange risks. Appropriately, they hedged that risk with futures contracts. All very competently done.
Except that those futures contracts, which protected the company from the subsequent decline in value of the dollar, were timed to expire about the time the company was expecting to get paid. Which was directly tied to the delivery schedule. The first A 380 to Singapore Airlines was supposed to have been delivered and paid for by now.
Now that delivery is delayed, so is payment. And the hedging is expiring. A very bad decision begat problem upon problem upon problem. And the end is not yet in sight.
The saga continues
There will be more news breaking on this story, both in the short term and the long term. Business media outlets might well consider opening a bureau in Toulouse, or at least establishing a Airbus Desk in their newsrooms.
Like the old serial drama The Perils of Pauline, the story is a cliffhanger. Right now Airbus dangles from the order book cliff, its fingernails barely holding on to orders from Emirates, financially troubled Malaysian, Virgin Atlantic, and others whose dissatisfactions are not yet on the public record.
But even more worrisome, if such is possible, is the fate of the new A 350, a medium-sized jumbo intended to compete with Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. All the money, energy, and especially the engineering resources that will be directed to overhauling the company, while overhauling the A 380, while training people on new CAD systems, while training assembly workers for new tasks, will not be available to catch up with Boeing in the category where demand is highest.
Boeing has booked up its production capacity for the 787 well into the future. That left a window of opportunity for Airbus if it could get the A 350 to market.
An industry hot line reports,
Artist's impression of an Airbus A350-800 Kingfisher - Image: Airbus Industrie
A350 XWB entry-into-service date appears to be sliding 6-12 months owing to the ongoing A380 wiring difficulties. At the Farnborough Airshow, Airbus said the 314-seat A350-900 would be the first variant to enter service, in mid-2012. However, sources at Airbus told ATWOnline that “the program is likely to slip into 2013 because all the engineering talent is focused on the A380,” echoing a previous statement by ILFC [International Lease Finance Corporation – a huge customer for passenger jets] Chairman and CEO Steven Udvar-Hazy
Boeing, which has had its past difficulties, but has played the product planning game remarkably presciently, could decide to add a second production line for the 787, and expand production capacity. That would enable the company to offer potential customers of the A 350 who might well doubt the worth of an Airbus promise to deliver a new model on time, the option of buying a 787 instead without a delivery slot in the remote future.
Beoing 787 'DreamLiner'
The A 350 is far more important to the future of Airbus than the A 380. Right now the decision has been made to forge ahead and deliver the superjumbo no matter what the cost. But if the cost is a crippled A 350, late to market, the future of the company will look very dim.
NADA identifies increased interest in crossovers
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2007 DODGE CALIBER 2.0 CRD
The automotive information site NADAguides.com has seen a significant up tick in consumer interest towards crossovers or, if you prefer, CUVs. Beginning in January and ending at the end of August of this year, NADA claims to have seen a 37 percent increase in research traffic for CUVs and other smaller utility vehicles.
The NADA list of the most researched vehicles is:
1. Toyota RAV4
2. Ford Escape
3. Toyota Highlander
4. Saturn VUE
5. Nissan Murano
6. Dodge Caliber
However, when we think of CUVs, we envision vehicles like the Enclave (pictured), the Ford Freestyle and other middle ground, five-doors of that ilk. Those vehicles are new designs, specifically geared towards consumers stepping out of their SUVs and into a smaller, yet still practical, means of transportation. The RAV4, Escape, VUE and Murano, don't strike us as the revolutionary hope that crossovers are perceived to be. We've always considered them cute 'utes or soft-roaders.
Maybe the definition of crossover is too broadly defined, with anything falling in between an Accord and an Expedition adopting the moniker.
The Dodge Caliber, which NADA identifies as the most researched model in August, is supposedly a replacement for the compact Neon. But as anyone who's seen or driven a Caliber can attest, it is hardly compact. The amount of research obviously shows that Dodge has a hit on their hands, but is it really a crossover, or just another wagon?
We'd like your thoughts on the crossover market and what you believe a crossover is defined as. The 'comments' sections is open and your two pence are desired.
[Source: The Auto Channel]
Emirates Ready To Jettison Airbus?
The Boeing 747-8 is penciled in for 2009; Airbus has promised Emirates it will take delivery of its first superjumbo in August 2008.
Why would Emirates cancel half of their order for a larger plane that is supposed to arrive earlier? The answer could lie in the duality of Emirates' make-up. It is a carrier funded entirely by oil money and owned by the royal family. However, its senior management, such as Chief Executive Tim Clark, is almost entirely British. It is likely that the royal family lost patience with Airbus and feels insulted by not being properly kept up-to-date with the delivery problems. Clark is no doubt hopping mad as well, since he surely gave the royal family a lot of guarantees that are now worthless.
Emirates may need the extra capacity right away or even by 2008, but to be the first to operate both the largest Airbus and the largest Boeing (nyse: BA - news - people ) is something which would mean little to Clark and everything to the airline's owners, whose avowed aim is to make Emirates the airline of choice in the Middle East.
"It's more of a cultural than capacity issue. The royal family feels insulted. Never a good strategic move if you want to do business with them," says Doug McVitie, a former Airbus employee and managing director of the France-based Arran Aerospace consultancy.
At any rate Franco-German aerospace giant EADS, Airbus' parent, will now be flying with a CreditWatch negative ticket. On Wednesday, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services placed its 'A' long-term corporate credit and 'A-1' short-term ratings on the company on CreditWatch with negative implications.
The CreditWatch placement followed the company's profit warning and disclosure of further significant delays to the A380 aircraft delivery schedule earlier this week.
"This delay will result in a substantial downward revision to the group's forecasted earnings and free cash flow, which is likely to weaken EADS' key credit metrics," said S&P credit analyst Leigh Bailey.
In other news, a spokesman for the German government has said that EADS' future was currently under discussion. "With regards to EADS' capital structure, the government also wants for the future a leading role of private investors," he said at a press conference Wednesday.
The spokesman's comments came as Germany's Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Mirow was reported to be pushing for state-owned KfW Banking Group to buy a stake in EADS when German automaker DaimlerChrysler (nyse: DCX - news - people ) sells some of its 22.5% shareholding. This would maintain German influence over management of the company.
Media reports have also suggested that EADS is considering moving Airbus A380 production from Hamburg in Germany to Toulouse in France. Airbus' Chief Executive Christian Streiff is apparently meeting on Thursday with Germany's Economics Minister Michael Glos.
"I imagine this is because the German government is up in arms at his plans to move the A380 out of Hamburg and to Toulouse after the German taxpayer has forked out an enormous amount to extend and equip the Hamburg site," said McVitie.
Nevertheless, McVitie thinks it could be a blessing in disguise. "In exchange for 'losing' the A380, Hamburg would of course 'gain' the A320, which is a little like losing a betting-slip for an also-ran and finding instead one for a 100/1 winner," he wrote in an e-mail to Forbes.com.
2007 Mercedes-Benz CL-Class Makes U.S. Debut
New CL Coupe Makes Bold Design Statement for Mercedes
MIAMI, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- The All-New 2007 CL-Class is making its
U.S. debut at the South Florida International Auto Show, open to the public
October 6 - 15 at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach. The CL
makes a bold design statement for the Mercedes-Benz brand -- futuristic
with cues from legendary Mercedes coupes of the past. A unique two-door
premium coupe design based on a modified S-Class sedan platform, the CL
features astonishingly good looks, with a delicate yet dynamic roofline,
unusual reverse-tapered rear roof pillars and a wrap-around rear window.
The Next-Generation CL Coupe Lineup
The next-generation 2007 CL-Class coupe debuts at the end of 2006 with
a CL550 model, powered by an all-new 5.5-liter V8 engine delivering 382
horsepower and 391 lb.-ft. of torque, part of a new V8 engine family
featuring four-valve-per-cylinder technology and variable valve timing. The
new CL550 also comes with the Mercedes-Benz seven-speed automatic
transmission and Direct Select electronic shift control.
Soon after launch, the CL550 is joined by a V12-powered model -- the
exclusive CL600. Powered by a twin-turbo V12 engine that generates 510
horsepower and an overwhelming 612 lbs.-ft. of torque, the new CL600 model
blends whisper-smooth performance with the astonishing power of a
twin-turbo V12 engine. The 60-degree V12 engine provides effortless thrust
with turbine- like smoothness, featuring a vast torque band with peak
torque beginning as low as 1,800 rpm.
With its high-tech engine, Direct Select five-speed transmission and
state-of-the art aerodynamics, the new CL600 can reach 60 miles per hour in
less than 4.5 seconds, quicker than many out-and-out sports cars. To handle
the torque of the V12 engine, the transmission planetary gear sets have
been beefed up accordingly.
Chrysler Group Names New Plant Managers
* Brian E. Garrison to Kokomo Transmission Plant
* Michael E. Orlowski to Twinsburg Stamping
* Joe M. Per to Indiana Transmission Plant I
* Kevin G. Sell to Kenosha Engine Plant
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DaimlerChrysler's
Chrysler Group today announced several manufacturing appointments, naming
four new plant managers. The positions became effective October 1, 2006.
Michael E. Orlowski has been appointed Plant Manager - Twinsburg
Stamping Plant in Ohio. Orlowski most recently served as Senior Manager -
Business Planning Center. Twinsburg Stamping produces stampings, assemblies
and miscellaneous sub-assemblies for the Chrysler Pacifica, Chrysler Town &
Country, Dodge Caravan, Dodge Durango, Dodge Caliber, Dodge Ram, Dodge
Dakota, Jeep(R) Grand Cherokee and Jeep(R) Liberty.
Orlowski will report to Warren D. Miller, Vice President - Stamping and
ASME.
Brian E. Garrison was named Plant Manager - Kokomo Transmission Plant
in Indiana. Previously, Garrison served as Plant Manager - Indiana
Transmission Plant I. Kokomo Transmission Plant produces transmissions for
front- and rear-wheel-drive Chrysler Group vehicles, including the Chrysler
PT Cruiser, Chrysler Town & Country, Chrysler Sebring, Chrysler Pacifica,
Chrysler 300, Chrysler Aspen, Dodge Caravan, Dodge Dakota, Dodge Durango,
Dodge Charger, Dodge Magnum, Dodge Nitro, Dodge Ram, Jeep Liberty and
Jeep(R) Wrangler.
Joe M. Per will become Plant Manager - Indiana Transmission Plant I.
Per was previously Plant Manager - Kenosha Engine Plant. Indiana
Transmission Plant I produces 45 RFE RWD transmissions for Jeep Grand
Cherokee, Dodge Durango, Dodge Dakota, Dodge Ram and Jeep Liberty (diesel
applications).
Garrison and Per will report to Brian D. Harlow, General Manager -
Transmission / Casting / Machining / Axle Division.
Kevin G. Sell was appointed Plant Manager, Kenosha Engine Plant in
Wisconsin. He was formerly Manufacturing Manager, Mack Avenue Engine Plant
II. Kenosha Engine Plant builds the Chrysler Group's 3.5-liter V-6 engine
used in the Chrysler 300, Dodge Magnum and Dodge Charger; and the 2.7-liter
V- 6 engine used in the Chrysler 300, Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Magnum.
Sell will report to Fred Antenucci, General Manager - Engine / Casting
Division.
Chrysler Group has a total of 31 North American Plants, including 14
assembly plants, six engine plants, seven transmission / casting /
machining plants, three stamping plants and one tool and die facility.
| Chrysler Group Names New Plant Managers |
* Brian E. Garrison to Kokomo Transmission Plant
* Michael E. Orlowski to Twinsburg Stamping
* Joe M. Per to Indiana Transmission Plant I
* Kevin G. Sell to Kenosha Engine Plant
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DaimlerChrysler's
Chrysler Group today announced several manufacturing appointments, naming
four new plant managers. The positions became effective October 1, 2006.
Michael E. Orlowski has been appointed Plant Manager - Twinsburg
Stamping Plant in Ohio. Orlowski most recently served as Senior Manager -
Business Planning Center. Twinsburg Stamping produces stampings, assemblies
and miscellaneous sub-assemblies for the Chrysler Pacifica, Chrysler Town &
Country, Dodge Caravan, Dodge Durango, Dodge Caliber, Dodge Ram, Dodge
Dakota, Jeep(R) Grand Cherokee and Jeep(R) Liberty.
Orlowski will report to Warren D. Miller, Vice President - Stamping and
ASME.
Brian E. Garrison was named Plant Manager - Kokomo Transmission Plant
in Indiana. Previously, Garrison served as Plant Manager - Indiana
Transmission Plant I. Kokomo Transmission Plant produces transmissions for
front- and rear-wheel-drive Chrysler Group vehicles, including the Chrysler
PT Cruiser, Chrysler Town & Country, Chrysler Sebring, Chrysler Pacifica,
Chrysler 300, Chrysler Aspen, Dodge Caravan, Dodge Dakota, Dodge Durango,
Dodge Charger, Dodge Magnum, Dodge Nitro, Dodge Ram, Jeep Liberty and
Jeep(R) Wrangler.
Joe M. Per will become Plant Manager - Indiana Transmission Plant I.
Per was previously Plant Manager - Kenosha Engine Plant. Indiana
Transmission Plant I produces 45 RFE RWD transmissions for Jeep Grand
Cherokee, Dodge Durango, Dodge Dakota, Dodge Ram and Jeep Liberty (diesel
applications).
Garrison and Per will report to Brian D. Harlow, General Manager -
Transmission / Casting / Machining / Axle Division.
Kevin G. Sell was appointed Plant Manager, Kenosha Engine Plant in
Wisconsin. He was formerly Manufacturing Manager, Mack Avenue Engine Plant
II. Kenosha Engine Plant builds the Chrysler Group's 3.5-liter V-6 engine
used in the Chrysler 300, Dodge Magnum and Dodge Charger; and the 2.7-liter
V- 6 engine used in the Chrysler 300, Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Magnum.
Sell will report to Fred Antenucci, General Manager - Engine / Casting
Division.
Chrysler Group has a total of 31 North American Plants, including 14
assembly plants, six engine plants, seven transmission / casting /
machining plants, three stamping plants and one tool and die facility.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
2007 Dodge Nitro - review
DaimlerChrysler
SAN DIEGO -- In an era when many automakers are reverting to timid alpha-numeric designations for their vehicles, you have to give Dodge credit for unashamedly turning to weaponry and explosives when it comes time to christen its new vehicles.
There's the Dodge Magnum, the Dodge M80 concept and now the 2007 Dodge Nitro, the brand's first mid-size SUV that's designed to blow the competition out of the water.
At the start of the media drive of the Nitro, on a dock overlooking part of the U.S. Naval Fleet including the USS Ronald Reagan, Dodge officials blasted away at "the sea of sameness" among rivals such as the Ford Escape, Chevrolet Equinox and Nissan Xterra.
"They look somewhat feminine -- and not in a good way," explained Dennis Myles, Chrysler Group's senior manager of product design. "They look like they belong in an insurance ad."
But not the five-passenger Nitro, which teeters perilously close to being cartoonish with its bulging wheel flares and crosshair grille, as if it were drawn by some first-grader stoked up on Mountain Dew and M&Ms.
Still, it all seems to work in a kind of overblown, American way. I like the Nitro because it is unmistakable on the road, turns heads and has a safe, practical side, as well.
After spending the better part of the day driving around in a top-of-the-line Nitro R/T with 20-inch chrome-clad wheels and a bottom line of $29,115, my one piece of advice to buyers is this: Might as well go whole hog and order it in "inferno red crystal pearl coat," which is Dodge's signature color and seems to suit the Nitro's character particularly well.
The new Nitro, which is based on the Jeep Liberty, is on sale now, starting at $19,885, including a $660 destination charge, for the base SXT model.
The range-topping Nitro R/T won't reach Dodge dealers until later in the model year.
Unlike its crosstown competitor, the 2007 Ford Escape, which has a range of configurations, including a hybrid model and a 153-horsepower 2.3-liter four-cylinder model, the Nitro hews strictly to performance with a choice of two V-6 engines. A Nitro hybrid is not offered and would probably be too prissy, anyway.
My test car was outfitted with the uplevel 4.0-liter single-overhead-cam V-6 engine that churns out 260 horsepower and 265 pounds-feet of torque, putting it almost precisely on par with the popular Nissan Xterra in terms of performance.
The Nitro R/T is a gutsy performer, especially on the highway in passing and merging situations, but the additional power lowers overall fuel economy. The EPA rates it at 17 miles per gallon in city driving and 21 miles per gallon on the highway.
The base engine in the Nitro is a 3.7-liter single-overhead-cam that produces a respectable 210 horsepower and 235 pounds-feet of torque. In the 4x2 model, this engine gets 18 miles per gallon in city driving and 24 miles per gallon on the highway.
One disappointment: You can't get a Nitro with a Hemi engine.
However, Dodge will show off a Nitro concept with a modified 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 at the upcoming Specialty Equipment Market Association show. This one-off Nitro will get a black/purple metallic paint job, 22-inch wheels and tires and ground effects. But Dodge has no plans to put a production Nitro with a Hemi on the market.
Three transmissions are offered on the Nitro: a six-speed manual, a four-speed automatic and a five-speed automatic. My Nitro R/T came standard with the five-speed automatic.
Don't count on the Nitro to take on the Rubicon Trail. It features car-type unitized construction and is not offered with a two-speed transfer case, which is critical for serious off-roading.
A part-time four-wheel-drive system is standard on 4x4 models with the manual transmission; a full-time four-wheel-drive system will be offered later in the model year on 4x4 models equipped with automatic transmissions.
The compact exterior dimensions of the Nitro -- it's shorter than a Chevrolet Cobalt sedan -- makes this SUV relatively easy to park. In addition to the standard "sport" suspension on the SXT and SLT models, the Nitro R/T, when it arrives, will come with a "performance" suspension and a firm ride that feels a bit bouncy on rough pavement.
Dodge has emblazoned the words "masculine" on the Nitro's press materials, but there's a side to the SUV that should really speak to soccer moms, too.
I was impressed at the long list of standard safety equipment, including antilock brakes, traction control and stability control. Side curtain air bags, which protect all outboard passengers, are standard, but Dodge does not offer front or rear side air bags which protect torsos on Nitro.
Later in the model year, Nitro will offer optional remote start, a nice feature because it can get your car warmed up on winter mornings before you leave the house.
And families will appreciate the Nitro's optional rear-seat entertainment system and standard Yes Essentials cloth seat fabric, which is smell- and stain-resistant.
There's even a household-style plug in the second row and an elastic strap in the front row to stow a Blackberry.
Another great practical feature on Nitro is the sliding "Load 'n Go" cargo floor, which is standard on the SLT and R/T. The floor can roll 18 inches, extends over the rear bumper and holds up to 400 pounds. This makes it easier to haul heavy items, such as air conditioners. Beneath the panel is a storage area that is big enough to hold a laptop computer or smaller items.
I was surprised, though, that with all of Dodge's dedication to people with back problems, as evidenced by the sliding cargo floor, it didn't remember to put lumbar support in the driver's seat. Another gripe is the impeded leg room for the front passenger because of the location of the transmission tunnel, not to mention a steering wheel that tilts but doesn't telescope, an option on competitors. The second-row seat is a little uncomfortable on long hauls, too, and feels too much like a picnic bench.
Those warts aside, I left San Diego with positive memories of the Nitro, including one of a group of sailors on leave who were busy snapping pictures of each other -- and the newest Dodge -- dockside on a sunny morning. As I peeled out of the parking lot, I watched one of them in my rearview mirror. He waved at the parade of Nitros passing by and gave a smart salute.
Related Articles
2007 Jeep(R) Compass Points to Goodyear Tires
 | The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Akron, Ohio, USA. (PRNewsFoto) AKRON, OH USA 01/18/2006 | ||
AKRON, Ohio, Oct. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Jeep(R) has selected Goodyear
Wrangler SR-A tires in size P215/65R17 as an original equipment fitment for
the Jeep(R) 2007 Compass, a new compact SUV, which is now arriving at
Jeep(R) dealerships.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050204/GTLOGO)
The Jeep(R) Compass combines the packaging and functionality of an SUV
with the performance, handling, fuel economy and price of a compact car or
small pickup. Compass is the Jeep(R) brand's first front-wheel-drive-based
product with a fully independent suspension for comfortable on-road ride
and handling and fun-to-drive characteristics. Jeep(R) Compass is available
in both front- and four-wheel drive, in Sport and Limited models.
The Wrangler SR-A is a tire that features all-terrain traction and on-
highway quiet. Its aggressive tread pattern is also designed for a smooth,
quiet ride.
Goodyear tires are original equipment on many vehicles from Acura,
Audi, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Honda, Hummer, Infiniti,
Isuzu, Jeep(R), Land Rover, Lexus, Mazda, Mercury, Mitsubishi, Nissan and
Toyota. Traditionally, more new vehicles in North America are equipped with
Goodyear tires than any other brand.
Challenging Hemis and history
Prices for the legendary 'Cuda and Challenger continue to grow higher.
DaimlerChrysler archives / New York Times
Prices for cars like the '67 Plymouth Barracuda, top, and '70 Dodge Challenger have risen exponentially recently.
Jerry Garrett / New York Times - - Nearly 20 years ago, Barry Washington stumbled across an unusual used car, a 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A. He didn't know much about it, other than that it had cool racing stripes, wild orange paint and a motor born for racing.
He bought the car, though he recalls thinking that the price, $6,500, seemed far too high. So began a new life for the driver and the car, whose value today is comfortably in six figures.
About five years ago, Washington found a way to garage his car -- not long after he found out how valuable it had become.
Prices for Challenger T/As, along with a whole generation of Challengers and Plymouth Barracudas, have risen exponentially in recent years, particularly since DaimlerChrysler announced in July that it would bring back the Challenger in 2008.
Washington's research revealed that the 1970 Challenger T/A was a racing version of Dodge's belated entry into the muscle car wars. Only 2,518 are known to have been built; Washington knows this because he has become perhaps the top authority on the cars. He now heads the Challenger T/A Registry (challengertaregistry.com) and is the spiritual leader of a group aficionados seeking to locate T/As or document what happened to all of them.
"The holy grail of the muscle car world is the '71 Hemi 'Cuda convertible -- just because so few of them were made," said Steve Davis, vice president of the Barrett-Jackson Auction Company. "That's King Kong. After that, it would be maybe the '70 Hemi 'Cuda convertible, then the hardtop versions of those cars."
What does Davis mean by holy grail? The current auction record for a '71 Hemi 'Cuda convertible (one of fewer than a dozen made) is "well north of $2 million," he said. He predicts that this record will be easily and repeatedly broken in January when a bumper crop of Dodge and Plymouth muscle cars go on the block at Barrett-Jackson's big auction in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Chrysler enthusiasts like to point out that the company was the first with a pony car -- its Plymouth Barracuda was introduced on April Fools' Day, 1964, and was in dealerships a few weeks before the Ford Mustang. But Ford fans scoff, asking how there could have been a pony car before the Mustang, progenitor for the class, even went on sale.
In truth, the Barracuda was a pre-emptive strike; the Mustang's impending arrival was well-known, so Chrysler quickly cobbled together a fastback version of its Valiant compact, adding a huge glass rear window (dubbed the fish tank).
More than a million Mustangs were sold in just 18 months. Total Barracuda sales over 11 years never topped 400,000. (Its later-arriving cousin, the Challenger, accounted for 200,000 more.)
Not until the 1970 model year did Chrysler come up with fresh ground-up designs for pony/muscle cars, and by then the era was winding down. Within four years, Chrysler decided to discontinue them.
Yet their lack of marketplace success has helped to make Barracudas and Challengers coveted collectibles.
The cars had already earned a spot in pop culture. The Challenger was a star in films from "Vanishing Point" (1971) to "2 Fast 2 Furious" (2003). While the Barracuda had a cleaner, classier design, resurrecting that nameplate would have been problematic, given that Chrysler phased out the Plymouth division four years ago.
Instead, Dodge unveiled a design study for a reborn Challenger at the Detroit auto show in January. By summer the car had a green light for production. "We hadn't seen this kind of spontaneous, passionate response to a car since the introduction of the Viper concept in 1989," Thomas W. LaSorda, president of the Chrysler Group, said.
The only question is whether 2008 will be too late to take advantage of the muscle car renaissance -- or will the Challenger be late, once again, to the muscle car party?
Chrysler Group Marketing Director Emerges as Automotive Hall of Fame Awardee
* Ann Fandozzi, Chrysler Group Director of Front-Wheel-Drive Product Marketing, receives key honor
* Award recognizes men and women who have made significant contributions to the automotive industry
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ann Fandozzi,
Chrysler Group Director - Front-Wheel-Drive Product Marketing, received the
Automotive Hall of Fame's 2006 Young Leadership and Excellence Award at the
2006 Induction and Awards Night at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Dearborn on
October 3. This prestigious award recognizes young men and women ages 35
and under, who have demonstrated significant potential as future industry
leaders.
Fandozzi joined the Chrysler Group in 2001 as a Senior Manager -
Strategic Initiatives. She was appointed to her current position in
February 2006. Fandozzi is responsible for Chrysler Group's global product
marketing activities for front-wheel-drive products, which include the
Dodge Caliber, Jeep(R) Compass, Jeep Patriot, Chrysler PT Cruiser and PT
Convertible, Chrysler Sebring, Chrysler Pacifica and Chrysler Town &
Country and Dodge Caravan minivans.
Fandozzi is a member of the Society of Women Engineers, the Detroit
Economic Club and DaimlerChrysler's Women's Forum. She also works as a team
coach and sponsor of the Society of Automotive Engineers' Mini Baja
Program. In addition, she is a contributing member of the University of
Pennsylvania Hospital Fund.
The Young Leadership and Excellence Award reflects the Automotive Hall
of Fame's commitment to the future by identifying the next generation of
leadership in the industry. Only four individuals receive this distinction
each year.
The Automotive Hall of Fame, located in Dearborn, Mich., honors men and
women from the global motor vehicle and related industries. Dedicated to
preserving the history of mobility, the Automotive Hall of Fame is a
visitor attraction as well as an educational resource. More than 200
individuals have been inducted into the Hall and include such pioneers and
leaders as Carl Benz, Walter P. Chrysler and Gottlieb Daimler.
This Day in Auto History: 04 OCTOBER
10.4.1902 - Frederic Garrett Donner of General Motors is born in Three Oaks, MI 10.4.1924 - The Montlhery race track near Paris, France opens with a two-day series of races 10.4.1937 - Russell Joseph Saunders of the Freightliner Corporation is born in San Mateo, CA 10.4.1948 - Racer Bob Morris is born in Australia 10.4.1956 - Tooling is approved for the 1957 Packard Clipper using a slightly modified Studebaker body shell Source: Automobile History Day By Day, by Douglas A. Wick |
Chrysler Financial Forges Expanded Alliance With CitiFinancial Auto
FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Chrysler
Financial, a business unit of DaimlerChrysler Financial Services Americas,
announced an expanded non-prime financing alliance with CitiFinancial Auto.
"Chrysler Financial is delighted to join with CitiFinancial Auto in
support of our Chrysler, Jeep(R) and Dodge dealers," said William F. Jones
Jr., Vice President - Chrysler Financial. "Through an agreement with
CitiFinancial Auto, Chrysler Financial brings an additional finance source
into Chrysler Group dealerships, supporting our fundamental value
proposition of providing competitive financing products enabling dealers to
sell more cars and trucks."
"This alliance leverages the industry-leading systems, programs and
relationships that currently exist between Chrysler Financial and its
dealers, for example Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT), Electronic Lease
Vehicle Inventory System (E.L.V.I.S.), RouteOne and AutOrigination(TM),"
said Steve Luyckx, Senior Manager Credit Strategies. "Additionally, this
unique approach to the non-prime market merges the benefits of doing
business with a captive finance company and the benefits of doing business
with an automotive non-prime lending expert."
"We are proud to have been selected by Chrysler Financial as their
exclusive non-prime lender. We feel the growth potential for our non-prime
product is outstanding based upon the value it provides to the dealers and
the commitment and support of Chrysler Financial," said Rajive Chadha,
President of CitiFinancial Auto.
The Chrysler Financial/CitiFinancial Auto alliance became fully
operational in the beginning of August 2006, servicing more than 4,000
Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge dealerships with an existing Chrysler Financial
finance relationship.
Chrysler Group Reports U.S. Sales for September 2006
* Minivan sales improve 53 percent year-over-year, strengthening segment
leadership
* Jeep(R) Commander leads strong 11 percent increase in SUV sales, sets
monthly sales record
* Jeep Compass sales continue to gain momentum in the marketplace
* Dodge Nitro explodes into Dodge showrooms with strong September start
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Oct. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Chrysler Group
reported sales for September 2006 of 168,888 units; a decline of 7 percent
(4 percent decline, unadjusted) compared to September 2005 sales of 175,556
units. Sales are reported on an adjusted basis unless otherwise indicated.
"The new, more fuel-efficient products in our portfolio are available
in the marketplace, and customers are responding positively to their
arrival," said Steven Landry, Vice President - Sales and Field Operations,
Chrysler Group. "The Dodge Caliber and Jeep(R) Compass are both strong
selling products and the Dodge Nitro is showing great momentum in the short
time it has been available. And, we've got more great products to launch in
the fourth quarter."
The performance of several products in key segments such as minivans
and sport-utility vehicles posted significant sales gains during September,
while new product introductions continue to gain momentum and lead the way
for additional new product deliveries in the fourth quarter.
Minivans
Chrysler Group strengthened its leadership in the minivan segment with
the Dodge Caravan and the Chrysler Town & Country, both of which offer the
exclusive Stow 'n Go(R) seating and storage system. Sales for Chrysler
Group minivans increased 53 percent, posting sales of 33,122 units for
September. Previous year sales were 20,784 units.
Sport-utility Vehicles
The Jeep Commander contributed to a strong 11 percent increase in sales
of the sport-utility category for the Chrysler Group and a 22 percent rise
in Jeep brand sales. The Jeep Commander posted a monthly sales record of
9,780 units, an increase of 517 percent over September 2005 sales of 1,524
units, the first month it was available.
New Products
Several new products contributed to Chrysler Group sales and are
receiving positive customer response. The Dodge Caliber, which is making
headway in the small car segment, posted healthy sales of 8,243 units in
September. Since its inception, the Dodge Caliber has posted sales of
68,001 units.
The Jeep Compass continues its strong momentum, posting sales of 3,680
units, an increase of 85 percent over August 2006 sales of 2,061 units. The
Jeep Compass expands the product portfolio of the Jeep brand with an
all-new, modern-styled compact Jeep that delivers fun, freedom, utility,
excellent fuel efficiency and Jeep 4x4 capability at a terrific value.
The Chrysler Aspen launched in September, posted sales of 734 units,
while the Dodge Nitro posted sales of 966 units in its first month of
availability. The all-new 2007 Chrysler Aspen is the latest addition to the
Chrysler brand showroom -- a premium SUV that is a value alternative to
luxury-priced competitors while offering fuel-saving MDS technology,
best-in-class torque, horsepower and interior room.
Chrysler Group announces its "All About The Best" 0 percent financing
for 60 months on a majority of 2006 Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge products.
Qualifying customers can choose 0 percent financing for 60 months or cash
back amounts up to $6,000. The program runs through Oct. 31, 2006. Chrysler
300, Dodge Magnum, and Dodge Charger vehicles are excluded.
"We intend to remain competitive in the marketplace with great new
fuel- efficient product introductions like the Jeep Compass and Dodge
Nitro," said Michael Manley, Vice President - Sales Strategy and Dealer
Operations, Chrysler Group. "Our hallmark is great products at a great
value with the best of American and German engineering and design. We
intend to rely on those strengths and offer something truly unique to
customers in the market who want to buy a new vehicle."
Chrysler Group finished the month with 533,220 units of inventory, or
an 82-day supply.
DaimlerChrysler Corporation U.S. Sales Summary Thru
September 2006
Month Sales DR % Vol %
Model Curr Yr Pr Yr Change Change
Sebring 1,664 6,116 -74% -73%
Concorde 0 0 0% 0%
300 10,632 12,283 -17% -13%
Crossfire 1,431 1,227 12% 17%
PT Cruiser 10,675 11,742 -13% -9%
Aspen 734 0 0% 0%
Pacifica 7,446 5,784 24% 29%
Town & Country 14,629 8,394 68% 74%
CHRYSLER BRAND 47,211 45,546 0% 4%
Compass 3,680 0 0% 0%
Wrangler 5,032 5,463 -11% -8%
Liberty 12,367 12,108 -2% 2%
Grand Cherokee 11,034 14,025 -24% -21%
Commander 9,780 1,524 517% 542%
JEEP BRAND 41,893 33,120 22% 26%
Neon 67 12,344 -99% -99%
Caliber 8,243 0 0% 0%
Stratus 371 6,249 -94% -94%
Intrepid 0 0 0% 0%
Charger 10,228 6,809 44% 50%
Viper 110 98 8% 12%
Magnum 3,668 2,876 23% 28%
Dakota 4,617 8,921 -50% -48%
Ram P/U 25,081 35,502 -32% -29%
Caravan 18,493 12,390 44% 49%
Durango 5,652 9,656 -44% -41%
Nitro 966 0 0% 0%
Ram Van/Wagon 0 3 -100% -100%
Sprinter Van 2,288 2,042 8% 12%
DODGE BRAND 79,784 96,890 -21% -18%
TOTAL CHRYSLER
GROUP 168,888 175,556 -7% -4%
TOTAL CG
CAR 33,716 45,941 -29% -27%
TOTAL CG
TRUCK 135,172 129,615 0% 4%
Selling Days 26 25
Sales CYTD DR % Vol %
Model Curr Yr Pr Yr Change Change
Sebring 46,726 68,543 -32% -32%
Concorde 0 210 -100% -100%
300 106,107 106,384 -1% 0%
Crossfire 7,381 11,503 -36% -36%
PT Cruiser 106,114 100,179 5% 6%
Aspen 734 0 0% 0%
Pacifica 60,885 67,282 -10% -10%
Town & Country 127,053 141,301 -10% -10%
CHRYSLER BRAND 455,000 495,402 -9% -8%
Compass 6,448 0 0% 0%
Wrangler 54,234 64,697 -17% -16%
Liberty 103,214 130,986 -22% -21%
Grand Cherokee 109,158 163,821 -34% -33%
Commander 64,829 1,524 4135% 4154%
JEEP BRAND 337,883 361,028 -7% -6%
Neon 17,044 99,332 -83% -83%
Caliber 68,001 0 0% 0%
Stratus 50,284 77,167 -35% -35%
Intrepid 0 298 -100% -100%
Charger 87,768 23,721 268% 270%
Viper 1,113 1,157 -4% -4%
Magnum 32,646 42,671 -24% -23%
Dakota 61,473 86,243 -29% -29%
Ram P/U 275,225 318,812 -14% -14%
Caravan 170,351 179,307 -5% -5%
Durango 53,417 90,792 -41% -41%
Nitro 966 0 0% 0%
Ram Van/Wagon 0 405 -100% -100%
Sprinter Van 16,777 14,337 17% 17%
DODGE BRAND 835,065 934,242 -11% -11%
TOTAL CHRYSLER
GROUP 1,627,948 1,790,672 -9% -9%
TOTAL CG
CAR 394,407 403,838 -3% -2%
TOTAL CG
TRUCK 1,233,541 1,386,834 -11% -11%
Selling Days 230 229