Top auto brand images

The winners of Kelley Blue Book’s 2009 Brand Image awards have been announced:

• Best Value Brand: Toyota
• Coolest Brand: BMW
• Most Family Friendly Brand: Toyota
• Most Rugged Truck Brand: Ford
• Best Performance Brand: BMW
• Best Comfort Brand: Cadillac
• Best Exterior Design Brand — Luxury: BMW
• Best Exterior Design Brand — Non-Luxury: Nissan
• Best Interior Design Brand: Cadillac
• Best Prestige Brand: Mercedes-Benz

Jack R. Nerad, executive editorial director for Kelley Blue Book and kbb.com had this to say, as reported by the Detroit Free Press:

"The winners of this year’s Brand Image Awards exemplify automotive brands that are on the right track, making a great impression with consumers not just on a specific model level, but across the entire brand lineup."

Tags: Toyota, BMW, Ford, Cadillac, Nissan, Mercedes Benz, Kelley Blue Book, brand image, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry

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Winners and losers in global market share: forecast

According to Global Insight, a leading American market intelligence specialist, these are the automakers that will grow the most in global market share over the next five years:

1. Tata (India): will grow 0.6 percent (current market share: 0.6 percent, 2013 forecast: 1.2 percent)
2. Chery (China): will grow 0.4 percent (0.6, 1.0 percent)
3. Renault (France): will grow 0.3 percent (3.1, 3.4 percent)

Other brands that will gain market share: Maruti (India), Nissan, BMW, Audi, Mitsubishi, Skoda and Wuling (China). All will increase 0.1 percent.

Brands that will stay the same: Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Dodge.

Carmakers that will lose global market share:

1. Ford: will lose 0.7 percent (current market share 7.1, 2013 forecast: 6.4 percent)
2. Peugeot: will lose 0.4 percent (2.9, 2.5 percent)
3. Daihatsu: will lose 0.3 percent (1.2, 0.9 percent)
4. Lada (Russia): will lose 0.2 percent (1.1, 0.9 percent)

Other automakers that will lose global market share: Toyota, Chevrolet, Volkswagen, Kia, Hyundai, Fiat, Suzuki, Mazda and Opel.

Tags: auto industry

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Only Honda is selling more in U.S.

Vehicle sales for June 2008 fell substantially in the U.S., compared to the same month last year. Only Honda was able to gain ground.

• Honda: Sales improved by 13.8 percent. June sales totaled 142,539 vehicles, a new monthly record. For the first half of 2008, Honda sales also rose, by 4.8 percent.
• Toyota sales fell by 11.5 percent. For the first half of 2008, they sold 1.24 million vehicles, down 6.2 percent.
• Ford sales dropped 28 percent. They sold 167,090 vehicles in June, and 1.1 million for the first half of 2008 (down 14 percent).
• GM sales were down by 18.5 percent (265,937 units in June compared to 326,300 a year ago). For the first half of 2008, sales were 1,6 million, 16.5 percent down. Hummer was especially hit with a drop of 59.3 percent.
• Nissan sales fell 17.7 percent, although sales of their more fuel efficient cars did grow.

Tags: Honda, Ford, GM, General Motors, Toyota, Nissan, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry

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2008 highest quality trucks and multi-activity vehicles

J.D. Power’s 2008 Initial Quality Study is out, and these are the top trucks and MAVs (multi-activity vehicles) in each segment:

Compact MAVs

1. Honda CR-V
2. Chrysler PT Cruiser
3. Ford Escape

Midsize MAVs

1. Dodge Durango
2. Hyundai Santa Fe
3. Toyota Highlander

Large MAVs

1. Toyota Sequoia
2. Chevrolet Tahoe
3. GMC Yukon

Midsize premium MAVs

1. Lexus RX
2. Lexus GX 470
3. Porsche Cayenne

Large premium MAVs

1. Lincoln Navigator
2. Infiniti QX56
3. Cadillac Escalade

Large pickups

1. Chevrolet Silverado LD
2. Toyota Tundra
3. Chevrolet Avalanche

Midsize pickups

1. Dodge Dakota
2. Ford Ranger
3. Toyota Tacoma

Vans

1. Ford E-Series
2. Nissan Quest
3. Chevrolet Express

Tags: J.D. Power, Dodge Durango, Dodge, Hyundai Santa Fe, Hyundai, Toyota Highlander, Toyota, Toyota Sequoia, Chevrolet Tahoe, Chevrolet, GM, General Motors, GMC Yukon, Lexus, Lexus RX, Lexus GX 470, Porsche, Porsche Cayenne, Lincoln Navigator, Infiniti, Infiniti QX56, Cadillac, Cadillac EscaladeChevrolet Silverado, Toyota Tundra, Chevrolet Avalanche Dodge Dakota, Ford, Ford Ranger Toyota Tacoma Vans Ford E-Series Nissan Quest Chevrolet Express, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry

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2008 highest quality premium cars

J.D. Power’s 2008 Initial Quality Study is out, and these are the top cars in premium segment:

Entry premium cars

1. Infiniti EX-Series
2. Infiniti G-Series
3. Acura TSX and Volvo S40

Midsize premium cars

1. Infiniti M-Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class
2. Audi A6
3. Lexus ES 350

Large premium cars

1. Lexus LS
2. Mercedes-Benz S-Class
3. Cadillac DTS

Tags: J.D. Power, Infiniti, Infiniti EX-Series, Infiniti G-Series, Acura TSX, Volvo S40, Volvo, Acura, Infiniti M-Series, Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Audi, Audi A6, Lexus, Lexus ES 350, Lexus LS, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Cadillac, Cadillac DTS, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry

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2008 highest quality brands

J.D. Power’s 2008 Initial Quality Study is out, and this is their full quality ranking by brand, measured in problems per 100 vehicles or PP100. The industry average was 118 which is an improvement over last year.

1. Porsche, 87 PP100
2. Infiniti, 98
3. Lexus, 99
4. Mercedes-Benz , 104
5. Toyota, 104 (TIED)
6. Mercury, 109
7. Honda, 110
8. Ford, 112
9. Jaguar, 112 (TIED)
10. Audi, 113
11. Cadillac, 113 (TIED)
12. Chevrolet, 113 (TIED)
13. Hyundai, 114
14. Pontiac, 114 (TIED)
15. Lincoln, 115
16. Buick, 118
17. Acura, 119
18. Kia, 119 (TIED)
19. Nissan, 124
20. Volvo, 124 (TIED)
21. BMW, 126
22. GM, 127
23. Mazda, 127  (TIED)
24. Volkswagen, 128
25. Hummer, 132
26. Subaru, 133
27. Scion, 138
28. Dodge, 141
29. Chrysler, 142
30. Mitsubishi, 149
31. Saab, 149  (TIED)
32. Suzuki, 152
33. Saturn, 157
34. Land Rover, 161
35. Mini, 163
36. Jeep, 167

Special kudos to Toyota for being the highest ranked mass-market auto manufacturer.

Tags: J.D. Power, Porsche, Infiniti, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry, car quality

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Most productive auto plants in U.S.

Who has the most productive auto manufacturing plants in the U.S.?

According to the 2007 Harbour Report, among multi-plant manufacturers that honor goes to Toyota and Chrysler. Both scored 30.37 hours to fully assemble a vehicle. Chrysler improved 7.7 percent while Toyota actually fell 1.5 percent.

Closely following the leaders by less than 3.5 hours are Honda, General Motors, Nissan and Ford. These four have been persistently closing the productivity gap over the past five years.

It’s worth noting from the Harbour Report press release that:

"Toyota fabricates and assembles a greater percentage of its vehicle parts with its own employees, while the Detroit Three purchase many modules and subassemblies from suppliers, thus saving labor. Toyota also has retained nearly all its employees even in plants that experienced lower production."

The most productive single plant in North America?

Chrysler’s Toledo Supplier Park which takes just 13.57 labor hours to build a Jeep.

You can read more here…

Tags: Harbour Report, Toyota, Chrysler, Nissan, GM, General Motors, Honda, Ford, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry

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Renault-Nissan: big plans for electric cars

Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Renault-Nissan, has made a firm commitment: Renault-Nissan will be the world leader in the electric vehicle industry, and their efforts will be far-reaching and profitable.

And hopefully world-changing.

Renault-Nissan has teamed up with Silicon Valley-based electric vehicle startup Project Better Place. These are their plans:

• 2010: Nissan will launch a battery-powered car in the U.S.
• 2011: Renault-Nissan will introduce all-electric vehicles and a network of charging points in Israel and Denmark.
• 2012: Renault-Nissan will offer a complete range of electric vehicles in every large car-market.

Ghosn highlights these major points:

Electric cars will be less expensive

Renault-Nissan’s electric cars will be less expensive than equivalent gasoline-fueled models.

Only better batteries are missing

Technically, everything is in place for electric vehicles to become mainstream, except for the batteries. He says that Nissan and NEC are investing massively in this industry, in order to improve range and recharge times.

A new way business model

Renault-Nissan’s business model will be very different: car owners will subscribe to a battery-replacement and charging plan based on anticipated mileage. Recharging will be done at Project Better Place-built stations.

To summarize his commitment, Ghosn has said,

"We must have zero-emission vehicles. Nothing else will prevent the world from exploding."

Read more at the Economist.

Tags: Renault, Nissan, Renault-Nissan, Carlos Ghosn, Project Better Place, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry, alternative energy, sustainable energy, electric cars

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Geneva show boasts green

The EU is about to make official their proposal that will force carmakers to cut average carbon dioxide emissions by 25%; current levels stand at 160 grams per km.

That’s why most automakers will be showing off their environmentally friendly vehicles at the Geneva Motor Show this week. Standouts include:

• Saab 9-1X, a compact, ethanol-powered crossover
• Toyota  iQ concept car
• Audi A3 convertible
• Kia Soul

New SUVs will be on display as well, most notably:

• Toyota Urban Cruiser, based on the Yaris
• Volvo XC60, a smaller XC90, based on the Land Rover Freelander platform
• Renault Koleos, their first SUV, based on partner Nissan’s X-trail

Diesel electric hybrid SUV concepts will be shown by BMW and Mercedes Benz, the latter with their GLK model.

Tags: Saab, Saab 9-1X, Toyota, Toyota iQ, Audi, Audi A3, Kia, Kia Soul, Urban Cruiser, Volvo, Volvo XC60, Renault, Renault-Nissan, Renault Koleos, BMW, Mercedes Benz, Mercedes GLK, GLK, automotive, auto industry, automotive industry, alternative energy, renewable energy, sustainable energy, electric cars, hybrids, hybrid technology, flex-fuel, diesel

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Top cars in China

J.D. Power has a performance survey in China, where they measure what "excites and delights owners about their new vehicle’s performance and design during the first two to six months of ownership".

An interesting conclusion from the study: "Higher-priced vehicles display higher appeal on average in the competitive Chinese market".

Here are the winners of the 2007 China Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study are each segment measured:

• Compact car: FAW Tianjin Xiali
• Premium compact car: FAW Tianjin Vela
• Entry midsize car: Nissan Tiida
• Midsize car: Nissan Sylphy
• Lower premium midsize car: Volkswagen Sagitar
• Upper premium midsize car: Toyota Camry
• MPV segment: Buick GL8 (*)

(*) If you’re wondering what MPV stands for: multi-purpose vehicle.

Tags: automotive, auto industry, automotive industry, China, Chinese auto industry, Chinese automotive industry, JD Power, Dongfeng Nissan, Guangzhou Toyota, Nissan Sylphy, Nissan Tiida, Tianjin, Tianjin FAW, FAW, Tianjin Vela, Tianjin Xiali, Toyota, Toyota Camry, VW, Volkswagen, Volkswagen Sagitar, Buick GL8

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