It's All About the Customer
from AutoInc.
Many aftermarket shops we have visited work very hard at establishing a warm relationship with their customers. As one shop told us, "I have to see the customer before I see the car." The death knell for any independent repair facility is poor customer service. If you expect to outgun your competition, you had better plan on outclassing them on service. More

Auto Sales Plummet to 27-Year Low

U.S. auto companies continued their free fall into the new year, posting their lowest sales totals in more than two decades. Detroit's manufacturers were hit the hardest in January, punctuating the plight of General Motors and Chrysler as they seek additional government aid. The automakers are scheduled to return to Congress Feb. 17 with plans showing how they hope to remain viable, a key condition for receiving additional federal loans. More

Florida's Department of Environmental Protection Adopts California Motor Vehicle Emission Standards
from Automotive Service Association
Florida's Department of Environmental Protection has adopted the California Motor Vehicle Emission Standards to establish a Florida Low-Emission Vehicle (LEV) program. The rule now goes to the Florida legislature for ratification, but the following two things must happen prior to its implementation: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency must grant a waiver to California allowing it, and other adopting states, to enforce the greenhouse gas emission standards; and, the Florida legislature must ratify the Department's rule. More

More Than Brake Deep

Anti-lock braking systems have been around for more than 20 years, and Uncle Sam says that by 2012 all new cars and trucks will have mandated stability control. Scanners, oscilloscopes and digital volt-ohmmeters are now everyday diagnostic tools. But braking still is a matter of using friction materials to grip a rotating disc or drum. More

Diesel vs. Hybrid

While carmakers lament their overflowing lots full of unsold cars, slow demand isn't a problem for Volkswagen's 2009 Jetta TDI, the first passenger car with a clean-diesel engine that gets 40 miles per gallon on the highway. "We're selling every one we get," said Jim Gill, a spokesman for Volkswagen Group of America. The performance-oriented and fuel-efficient engines are also making their way into the company's Rabbit and its Touareg SUV. More

Hyundai Defies U.S. Slump as Asians Grab Record Share
from Bloomberg
Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp., South Korea’s largest carmakers, defied lower U.S. demand in January to help Asian brands grab record market share and outsell U.S.-based competitors. Hyundai’s U.S. sales gained 14 percent after it began a program to let customers who lose jobs return cars. More

Carlyle-owned Auto Parts Maker Enters Bankruptcy
from The Washington Post
A German auto parts manufacturer owned by Carlyle Group declared bankruptcy this week, causing the District-based private-equity giant to lose its $180 million investment, a Carlyle spokesman said. The insolvency of Edscha, which manufactures door hinges, convertible roofs and driver controls for major carmakers, follows a 50 percent drop in some of the company's businesses during the fourth quarter of 2008. More

BMW Designer Chris Bangle Leaving Auto Industry
from USA Today
Christopher Bangle, one of the auto industry's most influential and controversial designers, is leaving his longtime post as BMW's top designer at the end of the month. In fact, he will quit the auto business entirely, BMW says. More

Goodyear Answers Economy with New Products
from Tire Review
In an unprecedented strategy to fight the faltering economy, Goodyear is giving its dealers a strong weapon – 12 new products, the most ever introduced in a single year, the tiremaker said. At its annual dealer conference, held earlier this week in Washington, D.C., Goodyear introduced the new tires – spread across the Goodyear, Dunlop, Kelly and Fierce brands – to the 1,350 dealers in attendance. More

DOJ Puts Auto Fraud Database Online
from The National Law Journal
After 16 years and litigation by three consumer safety groups, the U.S. Department of Justice has made an online database available to states and consumers to discover automobile fraud and to provide new tools for law enforcement to investigate fraud, theft and other crimes involving vehicles. More

Automakers Make Technology Case at Auto Show
from The Associated Press
Displaying green cars, automakers told the Obama administration this week that they have the technology to help the country reduce its dependence on imported oil and help the struggling industry enter a new era. Members of President Barack Obama's cabinet and lawmakers visited the Washington Auto Show, viewing fuel-efficient cars, plug-in hybrids and battery-electric vehicles under development. The cars are part of a shift away from conventional gasoline engines. More

Senate Votes to Give a Tax Break to New Car Buyers
from The Associated Press
The Senate voted Tuesday to give a tax break to new car buyers, setting aside bipartisan concerns over the size of an economic stimulus bill with a price tag edging above $900 billion. The 71-26 vote came as President Barack Obama said he lies awake nights worrying about the economy and signaled he'll try to knock out "buy American" provisions in the legislation to avoid a possible trade war. More