Archives: June 2007

GM Puts Another Bullett in IPG

Posted by: David Kiley on June 26

GM Puts Another Bullet in IPG General Motors finally, after years of criticism, yanked the Buick business from IPG’s McCann-Erickson, Detroit, consolidating the Buick, Pontiac and GMC business at Publicis’s...

The Irony of Fuel Economy Legislation

Posted by: David Welch on June 23

To the American car buyer, I say prepare to downsize your vehicles or pay more for them. Late Thursday, the Senate approved a bill that would require auto makers...

Ford Suprises By Going Outside WPP For Focus Assignment

Posted by: David Kiley on June 23

Ford Motor Co. is looking beyond its Ford brand agency of record JWT to handle the launch of the 2008 Focus this Fall. As previously reported in AB (June 13,...

Auto Industry's word of the year: "Transformational"

Posted by: David Kiley on June 22

Detroit's Big Three have been saying for months that this year's contract talks with the UAW have to be "transformational." They can't afford to have mere incremental cost reductions in...

Another $3,000 Car in the Works

Posted by: Gail Edmondson on June 21

It's official -- Renault and Nissan are working on designing a $3,000 car for the Indian market. That move will challenge India's Tata Motors for a slice of the fast-growing...

Another Bad Week for Li-Ions

Posted by: Ian Rowley on June 20

For car companies developing hybrids, lithium ion cells are the Next Big Thing. More powerful than today's nickel metal hydride cells, Li-Ions are also lighter and take up less space....

The Fuel Economy Debate Will Get Silly Before Its Over

Posted by: David Kiley on June 14

I know the debate over fuel economy, especially as it relates to the legislation currently being jawboned in Congress, is complicated. But consider a few facts that will illuminate some...

Ford's Focus Challenge A Big One For An Ad Agency

Posted by: David Kiley on June 13

The shake up at Ford is underway. Ford North America president Mark Fields and Ford ad director Barry Engle are opening up its advertising assignments, with the struggling automaker...

The Anti-Detroit Bias

Posted by: David Welch on June 12

The hecklers are out. Last week, I gave General Motors a well-deserves lashing for its lame response to the company’s own mediocre (and that’s being generous) performance in the...

Toyota execs cash in

Posted by: Ian Rowley on June 12

Unsurprisingly, Toyota execs are benefiting from Toyota's growth surge. According to an article in the Nihon Keizai, a Japanese newspaper, late on last week, Toyota's top 32 execs rose 40%...

Mercedes E Class Back on Top

Posted by: Gail Edmondson on June 11

Imagine the cheers in Stuttgart and the grumbling in Munich. The Mercedes E Class Sedan ranked best premium mid-sized sedan in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Survey -- after several...

Ford Catches a Break

Posted by: David Welch on June 07

Finally a bit of good news for Ford Motor Co. Amid its ongoing restructuring, talk of bankruptcy, the massive debt it has taken on and the market share losses, the...

GM's Quality Spin

Posted by: David Welch on June 06

Here we go again. After years of quality improvements from Detroit, General Motors and Chrysler tumbled down the list in J.D. Power and Associates’ annual Initial Quality Study. The...

Toyota in trouble again with Brit ad watchdog

Posted by: Ian Rowley on June 05

Two weeks ago I noted that Toyota had got a smack on the wrist from Britain's Advertising Standards Authority(ASA) over misleading magazine ads for the Lexus RX 400h hybrid. Now,...

Ford May As Well Ditch The Ranger

Posted by: David Kiley on June 05

Automotive News reports this week what has been long known at Ford, but not articulated lately; that is whether or not the company should plan a replacement for the...

Super 'Vette or Mini Car?

Posted by: David Welch on June 04

The car nut blogosphere has been abuzz recently over the possibility that General Motors Corp. might develop a mid-engine Corvette when the next-generation sports car comes out in 2010...

More Argument For Permanently Higher Gas Prices in the U.S.

Posted by: David Kiley on June 01

As comments on this blog attest, I have been taking a beating for pointing out that gas prices need to go higher yet in order to get American consumers to...

Ford Gets A Good One In On Obama

Posted by: David Kiley on June 01

I don’t know if Bill Ford came up with this himself, or he had it written for him. But he scored a nice upper-cut punch against Presidential hopeful Senator...

Brits Give Mercedes Passing Grade on Quality

Posted by: Gail Edmondson on June 01

When an automaker's reputation for quality crashes, it takes a painfully long time to convince car buyers the problem is fixed. But a recent customer satisfaction survey of 18,000 British...