While America Slept. Monday, January 19, 2009

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt
Definitely infrequent for a few weeks while I’m in Europe, hunting the elusive Euro: An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Berlin – when I’m in Berlin.

Hybrid price war: Toyota plans to lower the Japanese price for the existing Prius hybrid when it releases a redesigned, more efficient version in May, the Nikkei (sub) writes. Japan’s top automaker will continue to sell the existing Prius after the new version’s release in May. Toyota plans to cut the price for the current model to around 2 million yen. Rival Honda is slated to release the Insight hybrid in February, with a starting price of less than 2 million yen. The remodeled Prius will cost 2.5 million yen.

Mazda cutbacks: Mazda will slightly increase plant operating hours in Japan in February and March, but will stick with its plan to cut output through March by 100,000 vehicles or more in addition to the originally planned 73,000-vehicle cutback for the period, the Nikkei (sub) writes. Mazda has started cutting salaries of manager-level employees by up to 10 percent from this month. Its executives already began returning 20 percent of their salaries to the company from December.


Chinese car credit: China’s Central Bank urged banks to open the credit tap to support the slumping auto industry, Gasgoo reports. The People’s Bank of China calls for the establishment of more auto financing companies and encourages banks to cooperate more with them. The central bank also stressed that auto dealers have to build up their own self-discipline to ensure that auto financing develops in a safe, sound manner. Banks are urged to lend more money to the sluggish auto sector without sacrificing risk control. Auto dealers are expecting to get bank loans as soon as possible.

Russians want assets of bankrupt Ssangyong: Russian automaker Sollers showed intention to buy the production rights for three Ssangyong SUV models and is also looking to take over South Korean carmaker’s components manufacturing base, Gasgoo reports. Joint venture partner SAIC refused to comment, citing that they are awaiting the court ruling on how to deal with the Korean carmaker’s assets since Ssangyong entered into court receivership. Sollers already produces the Korean company’s Rexton II and Kyron SUVs in Russia through a licensing agreement. The deal would secure the uninterrupted production of Rexton II and Kyron SUVs. Industry analysts say Sollers is not capable of producing Ssangyong models independently because of the brand’s low localization rate.

Dongfeg breeds homegrown: China’s third largest automaker, Dongfeng, so far stuck with joint ventures (Kia, Nissan, PSA.) Now they join the homegrown fray. The first Dongfeng-brand passenger vehicle, the size of the Excelle, will debut at the 2009 Shanghai auto show in April, Gasgoo writes. Dongfeng has product plans from the A00 class to the B class.

Even more cars in Beijing: Beijing’s attempts to limit traffic by keeping cars off the street on certain days, depending on their license plates, had the opposite effect: In 2008, there were 490,000 new vehicles sold in Beijing, up 12 percent year on year, while the China market as a whole had 9,380,500 vehicles sold, up 6.7 percent y/y, Gasgoo writes. After a few months of downturn, Beijing’s auto market began to recover.

France aids auto industry: France wants to help its auto industry to the tune of five to ten billion Euro, Automobilwoche (sub) writes. Definitive measures will be announced by end of January. Possible are credits or credit guarantees. Direct subsidies are not planned.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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  • Wave54 Wave54 on Jan 19, 2009

    re: Emissions controls on Chinese cars -- yes they use catalytic converters and have standards just a bit behind the West. From a Wikipedia article: China Due to rapidly expanding wealth and prosperity, the number of coal power plants and cars on China's roads is rapidly growing, creating an ongoing pollution problem. China enacted its first emissions controls on automobiles in 2000, equivalent to Euro I standards. They were upgraded again in 2005 to Euro II. More stringent emission standard, National Standard III, equivalent to Euro III standards went into effect on July 1st 2007.[6] Plans are for Euro IV standards to take effect in 2010. Beijing introduced the Euro IV standard in advance on January 1st 2008, became the first city in Due to rapidly expanding wealth and prosperity, the number of coal power plants and cars on China's roads is rapidly growing, creating an ongoing pollution problem. China enacted its first emissions controls on automobiles in 2000, equivalent to Euro I standards. They were upgraded again in 2005 to Euro II. More stringent emission standard, National Standard III, equivalent to Euro III standards went into effect on July 1st 2007.[6] Plans are for Euro IV standards to take effect in 2010. Beijing introduced the Euro IV standard in advance on January 1st 2008, became the first city in mainland China to adopt this standard.[7]

  • Menno Menno on Jan 19, 2009

    I saw the BYD hybrids and Brilliance cars at the Detroit auto show on Saturday, and looked under the hood of the Brilliance M1 (about the size of a Kia Optima), and the M1 had a Brilliance mfd. 1.8 turbo four and automatic tranny, 167hp (about what is needed for the US), and Euro IV emissions. After a catastrophic (as in BAD) epic failure in a crash test in Germany last year which resulted in viral video on the www, within weeks, Brilliance had shown a willingness to improve and improve quickly by going back to the drawing board with help from the West, altered their M1 car and re-tested for 3 stars. I think the cars would be saleable in the US right now, but suspect that the political aspects of bringing a Chinese car to the US at this time might prevent them from pulling the trigger. I also noted that the interior quality of the M1, which had leather, was only so-so in some areas. The leather was fine, but the hard plastics were literally no better than Chrysler (sub-par). But then again, this is from a relatively new car manufacturer in a 2nd world nation compared to a car manufacturer considered one of the Detroit 3... so who does that reflect worse on? Chrysler or Brilliance? I say, Chrysler. And I'd be willing to bet that Brilliance improves their plastics before selling cars in the states. I noted also that both BYD and Brilliance seemed to be making plans for the distant future which include FACTORIES IN THE US, unlike the Detroit 2.8 which have been exporting jobs for decades. I'm not pro-Chinese (in fact, I nearly constantly grumble about the poor quality of their goods from clothing, to toasters, to water faucets, to hot water kettles....) but indeed, I did hear some Detroit (presumably auto industry) natives saying "um, these guys are about where Hyundai were a few years ago, already. We're in trouble. They're learning really fast." (This was at the Brilliance stand). I think the guy was impressed by the steel work (as I also was). Also, Brilliance has a big advantage over BYD in that Brilliance seems to be about where Nissan (Datsun) was in the mid-1960's - hiring Italian expertise to style and design cars. BYD's cars were unashamedly rip-offs of other designs (Toyota for the two smaller cars, Honda for the F6 sedan). Unlicensed intellectual theft. BYD's advantages include their batteries and hybrid systems, self-engineered (they are, after all, something like the 2nd or 4th largest cell phone battery company in the world).

  • 3-On-The-Tree Son has a 2016 Mustang GT 5.0 and I have a 2009 C6 Corvette LS3 6spd. And on paper they are pretty close.
  • 3-On-The-Tree Same as the Land Cruiser, emissions. I have a 1985 FJ60 Land Cruiser and it’s a beast off-roading.
  • CanadaCraig I would like for this anniversary special to be a bare-bones Plain-Jane model offered in Dynasty Green and Vintage Burgundy.
  • ToolGuy Ford is good at drifting all right... 😉
  • Dave Holzman A design award for the Prius?!!! Yes, the Prius is a great looking car, but the visibility is terrible from what I've read, notably Consumer Reports. Bad visibility is a dangerous, and very annoying design flaw.
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