Clarke’s Task: Boosting GM Market Share
After enacting sharp cost-cutting efforts over the past year, General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said Tuesday he will hand over direct control of the money-losing North American automotive operations to a GM veteran with a strong background in manufacturing and labor relations.
Financier Wilbur Ross to Acquire Lear’s European Interior Systems Division
Wilbur Ross, chairman of International Automotive Components Group (IAC), continues to grow his automotive empire. It was announced that IAC will acquire Lear’s European Interiors Systems Division on a debt-free basis in exchange for 34 percent of the stock in IAC. IAC was recently formed by WL Ross & Co. LLC and Franklin Mutual Advisers, LLC initially to acquire for cash the principal businesses of Collins & Aikman Corp. in Europe. Ross has been making headlines over the past several months talking about his desire to create a massive automotive supply company with the global footprint to match the automakers.
NASCAR Restructures Executive Management Team
NASCAR has announced multiple management changes, effective immediately, that the association says will position it to continue its strong growth and more efficiently manage business decisions and communications throughout the company and the industry. As part of the restructuring, Paul Brooks will be taking on additional responsibilities as senior vice president and will continue his role as president of NASCAR Broadcasting and NASCAR Digital Entertainment. Brooks will now oversee all broadcasting, new media, entertainment, corporate administration, corporate communications, diversity, international business and business affairs. In addition, Steve Phelps is promoted to chief marketing officer (CMO) and will oversee all NASCAR corporate marketing, industry marketing, brand and consumer marketing, multi-media, sales, licensing, business development and The NASCAR Foundation.
International Auto Components Buys Collins & Aikman Europe
International Auto Components Group (IAC), the joint venture company recently formed by WL Ross & Co. LLC, Franklin Mutual Advisers LLC, and Lear Corp., has signed a definitive agreement to acquire from Collins & Aikman Europe (C&A) its $600 million operations in Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. These operations serve Ford, General Motors, DaimlerChrysler, Porsche, Saab, Volkswagen, Volvo and other original equipment manufacturers.
New Life in the Aftermarket
Pricey auto accessories like Lamborghini-style flip-up doors, 24-inch rims and 10-inch television screens are fueling the latest spending craze in the automotive industry, with young enthusiasts and old hot-rodders alike “pimping out” their cars. It’s a booming $31.5-billion-a-year business, whose customers no longer fit the stereotypical image of street thugs, hip-hop stars and celebrities.
Venture has New Team of Executives
Auto-plastics supplier Venture Corp. has begun its path toward exiting bankruptcy after 26 months. The banks and investment firms to which the struggling supplier owed money have taken control of it and put in a new management team.
Obituary: John Z. DeLorean — Auto Innovator Had Flair, Infamy
John Z. DeLorean was one of Detroit’s best-known — and most controversial — automotive innovators. He designed Pontiac’s GTO muscle car in the 1960s, then left Detroit to launch his own car company, one of just a handful of U.S. entrepreneurs to undertake such a challenge in the past 75 years.
Overseas Automotive Council Selects Three New Board Members
Three new members have been elected to the Overseas Automotive Council (OAC) Board of Directors for three-year terms of office. OAC is the international aftermarket division of MEMA. The council promotes the sale in foreign markets of automotive products manufactured in North America.
DST Asks: How Do You Track Sales Force Activity?
In his movie role as a high-maintenance NFL star in “Jerry Maguire,” Cuba Gooding Jr. won an Oscar and created an enduring pop culture catch phrase with his unique delivery of that memorable line — four words that perfectly sum up the objective of a successful sale. In the final analysis, sales management is all about maximizing the ability of your sales force to “Show me the money!!”
American Axle Gets 2-Tiered Pay Plan In Tentative Deal
The UAW’s quick settlement Friday morning of the one-day strike at American Axle & Manufacturing Inc. in Detroit finds the union again authorizing a concept it once loathed — a two-tier wage structure that ensures future employees never make as much as current ones.