http://carczarconsulting.com The Secrets of Profitable Automotive Retail Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:12:08 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://carczarconsulting.com/11/26/gm-stock-runs-flat-as-us-investigates-chevy-volt-fires-ford-stocks-dips-below-10-on-layoffs/ http://carczarconsulting.com/11/26/gm-stock-runs-flat-as-us-investigates-chevy-volt-fires-ford-stocks-dips-below-10-on-layoffs/#comments Sat, 26 Nov 2011 03:09:28 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=10354 Car Czar Consulting says: Who knew driving a “toaster-oven” could be such “fun.” Separately, the Euopean economic contagion appears to be effecting GM and Ford. WASHINGTON (AP) — New fires involving the lithium-ion batteries in General Motors Co.’s Chevrolet Volt have prompted an investigation to assess the risk of fire in the electric car after a serious crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday. One Volt battery pack that was being closely monitored following a government crash test caught fire Thursday, the safety administration said in a statement. Another recently crash-tested battery emitted smoke and sparks, the statement said. GM, which was informed of the investigation on Friday, said in a statement that the Volt “is safe and does not present undue risk as part of normal operation or immediately after a severe crash.” More at: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Battery-fires-prompt-govt-apf-2101608852.html?x=0 Meanwhile, Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F – News) plans to layoff 4,000 workers at its Valencia, Spain assembly plant for 39 days between January and October in 2012 in response to weakening demand for cars in Europe on the back of the ongoing eurozone financial crisis. The plant employs a total of 6,200 workers. The automaker plans to stop assembling Ford Fiesta hatchback [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/11/26/gm-stock-runs-flat-as-us-investigates-chevy-volt-fires-ford-stocks-dips-below-10-on-layoffs/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/10/07/the-new-electric-vehicle-math-gm-says-it-will-produce-same-amount-of-chevy-volts-on-1-shift-vs-2/ http://carczarconsulting.com/10/07/the-new-electric-vehicle-math-gm-says-it-will-produce-same-amount-of-chevy-volts-on-1-shift-vs-2/#comments Fri, 07 Oct 2011 23:10:24 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=10279 DETROIT– General Motors Co. is delaying plans to add a second shift at the factory that makes Chevrolet Volt electric cars.  The company said Friday it has found ways to make one shift more efficient, so it can produce the same number of cars as two shifts.     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40zuFc4d3dA&feature=player_embedded             See more at:  http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i1SzY4urbz__J8gBFqCb0_YcdLJg?docId=c9c35550417a4e5f8764c62133c6c7f7   Huh? Why not just admit they’re not selling in sufficent quantities to warrant a second shift.   It strikes us as another thing you have to say and do when you accept the government’s money.   Model Units vs. last month vs. September 2010 CYTD vs. CYTD 2010 Nissan LEAF 1,031 -24.3% n/a 7,199 n/a Chevrolet Volt 723 139.4% n/a 3,895 n/a Buzz This Post Post to Delicious Digg This Post]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/10/07/the-new-electric-vehicle-math-gm-says-it-will-produce-same-amount-of-chevy-volts-on-1-shift-vs-2/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/10/03/ford-gm-stocks-hit-52-week-low-despite-sept-u-s-auto-sales-rise/ http://carczarconsulting.com/10/03/ford-gm-stocks-hit-52-week-low-despite-sept-u-s-auto-sales-rise/#comments Mon, 03 Oct 2011 22:41:12 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=10232  It was a wild day down  to be sure – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoFm3qWzN9k     (AP) “…Analysts had expected U.S. vehicle sales to rise as more Japanese vehicles fill showrooms after months of earthquake-related shortages.  General Motor Co.’s sales rose 20 percent compared with last September, led by a 34-percent rise in full-size pickups and SUV sales. Chrysler Group’s overall sales rose 27 percent, including a 45-percent jump in Ram pickup sales.  At Ford, sales were up just 9 percent. But SUVs rose 35 percent and pickup climbed 15 percent…”  Ford Motor Company‘s Common Stock (NYSE: F ) Last Trade: 9.37 Trade Time: 4:00PM EDT Change: 0.30 (3.10%) Prev Close: 9.67 Open: 9.66 Bid: 9.33 x 400 Ask: 9.34 x 1800 1y Target Est: 17.63 Day’s Range: 9.36 – 9.92 52wk Range: 9.32 – 18.97 Volume: 72,644,137 Avg Vol (3m): 69,893,500 Market Cap: 35.60B P/E (ttm): 5.40 EPS (ttm): 1.74 Div & Yield: N/A (N/A General Motors‘ Company Common S (NYSE: GM ) Last Trade: 19.73 Trade Time: 4:00PM EDT Change: 0.45 (2.23%) Prev Close: 20.18 Open: 20.14 Bid: 19.56 x 300 Ask: 19.65 x 800 1y Target Est: 38.76 Day’s Range: 19.65 – 20.90 52wk Range: 19.65 – 39.48 Volume: 13,949,103 Avg [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/10/03/ford-gm-stocks-hit-52-week-low-despite-sept-u-s-auto-sales-rise/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/02/15/gms-focus-on-china-the-now-revolutions-7-shifts-to-make-your-business-more-social/ http://carczarconsulting.com/02/15/gms-focus-on-china-the-now-revolutions-7-shifts-to-make-your-business-more-social/#comments Tue, 15 Feb 2011 15:28:36 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=9799 Car Czar Consulting says: Per HuffingtonPost today -”…BEIJING — China will play a much bigger role in General Motors Co.’s plans including clean energy vehicles as it moves to capitalize further on rapid growth in the world’s largest auto market, the company’s CEO said Tuesday. Calling China “the crown jewel in the GM universe,” Chief Executive Daniel Akerson said the automaker plans to launch more than 20 new or redesigned cars in China over the next two years. “China is central to our global strategy,” he said at a news conference. “We want to understand the preferences that the China market wants. We bring our best designs, best technology to China.” GM sold more cars and trucks in China last year than it did in the U.S. for the first time in the company’s 102-year history. An expansion of sales into provincial cities helped the company sell 2.35 million vehicles in China in 2010, up 29 percent from the previous year…” In a possibly related must-read, “The NOW Revolution: 7 Shifts to Make Your Business Faster, Smarter & More Social,” is available now.  Download the first chapter free at Facebook.com/nowrevolution. Sometimes, all does not go according to plan in social [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/02/15/gms-focus-on-china-the-now-revolutions-7-shifts-to-make-your-business-more-social/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/11/14/chinses-carmaker-saic-invests-in-new-gm/ http://carczarconsulting.com/11/14/chinses-carmaker-saic-invests-in-new-gm/#comments Sun, 14 Nov 2010 21:00:09 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=9411 Car Czar Consulting says: Can there be any doubt now about “who owns whom?” How’s that bailout working for you? Buzz This Post Post to Delicious Digg This Post]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/11/14/chinses-carmaker-saic-invests-in-new-gm/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/09/23/obama-to-21k-retired-delphi-white-collared-workers-drop-dead/ http://carczarconsulting.com/09/23/obama-to-21k-retired-delphi-white-collared-workers-drop-dead/#comments Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:37:58 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=9145 Car Czar Consulting says: Michelle Malkin’s  “The Delphi Disaster: An Economic Horror Story Obama Won’t Tell” is a “killer!” story as repeated below. Sept. 20, 2010, The White House believes it can win back depressed and economically stressed voters by turning President Obama into the storyteller-in-chief again. But victims of Obama’s Chicago politics don’t want to hear any more of his own well-worn tales of struggle and sacrifice. They’ve got their own tragedies to tell — heart-wrenching dramas of personal and financial suffering at the very hands of Obama.Sept. 20, 2010, Consider the real-life horror story of 20,000 white-collar workers at Delphi, a leading auto parts company spun off from GM a decade ago. As Washington rushed to nationalize the U.S. auto industry with $80 billion in taxpayer “rescue” funds and avoid contested court termination proceedings, the White House auto team schemed with Big Labor bosses to preserve UAW members’ costly pension funds by shafting their nonunion counterparts. In addition, the nonunion pensioners lost all of their health and life insurance benefits. The abused workers — most from hard-hit northeast Ohio, Michigan and neighboring states — had devoted decades of their lives as secretaries, technicians, engineers and sales employees at [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/09/23/obama-to-21k-retired-delphi-white-collared-workers-drop-dead/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/09/23/china-to-invest-in-gm-as-ipo-come-up-short-another-union-bailout/ http://carczarconsulting.com/09/23/china-to-invest-in-gm-as-ipo-come-up-short-another-union-bailout/#comments Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:16:45 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=9141 Car Czar Consulting says: See the video below ho GM may go to the Chinese. Why, then, did we bail them out with taxpayer dollars? In a separate matter the AP reports how “Gov’t needs $133.78 a share to recover GM money; Watchdog says US government must sell GM for $133.78 per share to get back bailout money.” September 22, 2010, DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. government would have to sell its General Motors stock for $133.78 per share to recoup the nearly $50 billion it spent bailing out the Detroit automaker, according to a watchdog of government bailout funds. Neil Barofsky, the special inspector general for the $700 billion bailout of the financial industry and automakers, revealed the figure in an Aug. 30 letter to Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa. The letter was obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday. GM repaid the government $6.7 billion. The remaining money was converted to a 61 percent ownership stake in GM plus $2.1 billion worth of preferred stock. The government plans to start selling its shares as part of a GM initial public stock offering that is tentatively scheduled for mid-November. The government won’t sell all the 304 million common shares it [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/09/23/china-to-invest-in-gm-as-ipo-come-up-short-another-union-bailout/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/09/16/gm-to-us-taxpayers-trust-me-ceo-cant-pay-back-loan-in-one-feel-swoop/ http://carczarconsulting.com/09/16/gm-to-us-taxpayers-trust-me-ceo-cant-pay-back-loan-in-one-feel-swoop/#comments Thu, 16 Sep 2010 14:32:38 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=9113 Car Czar Consulting says: Ya gotta love it! GM says “the check’s in the mail!” Collateral? Easy! An over-priced electric vehicle yet to launch with no place to plug it in. Reminds us of the old Wimpy Popeye cartoon when he exclaims ” I’ll have a hamburger for which I’ll will gladly pay you on Tuesday” (see below). We’ll someone needs to tell GM that their “Tuesday’s” have come and gone! DETROIT (AP) 9/16/10 – It will take a couple of years for taxpayers to get back the billions they spent bailing out General Motors, but the company has a goal of returning the money, GM’s new CEO said Thursday. CEO Daniel Akerson told reporters that that the government won’t be repaid with the company’s initial public stock offering, which could happen later this year, but couldn’t answer more specific questions about the sale. “I don’t think that’s going to be done in one fell swoop,” he said. “I think that’s unrealistic.” Akerson, who has been in charge of GM since taking over for Ed Whitacre on Sept. 1, is the company’s fourth CEO in less than two years. But he indicated that management will be stable in the future, [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/09/16/gm-to-us-taxpayers-trust-me-ceo-cant-pay-back-loan-in-one-feel-swoop/feed/ 0 http://carczarconsulting.com/04/23/9001/ http://carczarconsulting.com/04/23/9001/#comments Fri, 23 Apr 2010 00:47:30 +0000 Car Czar Consulting http://carczarconsulting.com/?p=9001 Car Czar Consulting says: Oh please, the GM Bailout was a failure, and no,  the Taxpayer hasn’t made money Apr. 22, 2010, BusinessInsider, GM repaid $6.7 billion in US loans and another $1.4 billion in Canadian government loans. So where does that leave GM? Let’s take a look. Please consider Gas in the tank: GM repays $8.1B in gov’t loans: Fallen giant General Motors Co. accelerated toward recovery Wednesday, announcing the repayment of $8.1 billion in U.S. and Canadian government loans five years ahead of schedule. Much of the improvement comes from GM slashing its debt load and workforce as part of its bankruptcy reorganization last year. But the automaker is a long way from regaining its old blue-chip status: It remains more than 70 percent government-owned and is still losing money — $3.4 billion in last year’s fourth quarter alone. And while its car and truck sales are up so far this year, that’s primarily due to lower-profit sales to car rental companies and other fleet buyers. The U.S. government still owns 61 percent of GM. The automaker is counting on a public stock offering to allow the U.S. government to begin recouping its remaining $45.3 billion investment. The [...]]]> http://carczarconsulting.com/04/23/9001/feed/ 0