Bridgestone Firestone to Launch New Ad Campaigns
Bridgestone Firestone’s North American Tire division is preparing to launch new slogans and advertising campaigns to raise awareness of, and to distinguish, its Bridgestone and Firestone brands. Company officials say they hope to build upon the new campaign themes and slogans for years to come.
Bush Meets with U.S. Automakers Today
Detroit-based auto industry leaders are meeting with President Bush to press their concerns about health care and trade issues, while making clear that the troubled industry does not want a federal bailout. General Motors Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner, Ford Motor Co. Chief Executive Alan Mulally and Tom LaSorda, president and chief executive officer of DaimlerChrysler AG’s Chrysler Group, are sitting down with Bush today after months of scheduling conflicts and delays.
Steel Tariff Debate Escalates: Auto Future an Issue for Federal Hearing Today
A heated dispute over the future of U.S. manufacturing hits a federal trade panel today, which will hear arguments from steel companies and automakers on whether tariffs on certain types of steel widely used in cars and trucks should be removed. The debate pits six large automakers against the three largest U.S. steel companies, each using a form of economic jujitsu to make its case.
Troubles at Ford Extend to NASCAR
Amid distressing news of layoffs, buyouts and factory closings, the Ford brand also is taking hits at the racetrack these days. Even longtime Ford driver Mark Martin is ditching the Dearborn , MI , company to drive a Chevrolet in 2007. That leaves the Ford teams in NASCAR — already fewer than the dominating Chevrolet teams — with precious few big names and lots of question marks just as yet another manufacturer, Toyota, is joining the competition for wins, championships — and drivers.
No Shotgun Wedding for Ford and GM
It would make about as much sense as Microsoft and Apple Computer merging. Or the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. Executives at Ford Motor and General Motors whispered on Monday that a report in trade publication Automotive News was on the money — that the chief financial officers of the two ailing auto giants did meet recently to discuss an alliance of some kind. It did happen. Those same executives, though, quickly added that the two sobered up, retreated to their offices, and agreed that nothing would come of it.
$83 Billion in Auto Parts Sales Could Depend on Domestic Content, According to New Report
The Level Field Institute, a grassroots organization founded by retirees of Chrysler, Ford, GM and the companies that supply them, has issued its first report on the U.S. automotive parts industry. Level Field seeks to promote U.S. jobs, R&D and infrastructure investment by offering clear comparisons of how various automakers contribute to the U.S. economy. This first study focuses on how differences in "domestic content" among automakers affect the U.S. economy and jobs.
GM’s Suit Against Goodyear Moves to Federal Court
A lawsuit General Motors Corp. filed last month against the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. entered federal court Wednesday, accusing Goodyear of threatening to stop tire deliveries for GM’s new vehicles. The vehicles involved, including the Saturn Outlook and GMC Acadia, are among the most important models GM will introduce over the next year. The automaker is counting on them to contribute strong sales and billions of dollars to keep its recovery on track.
NAPA Chassis First-to-Market with 72 New Part Numbers
NAPA Chassis has announced it is first-to-market with 72 new part numbers to fit 1993 and newer import and domestic cars and trucks. These new part numbers span the entire breadth of NAPA Chassis’ product offerings, including ball joint assemblies, upper and lower ball joints, sway bar frame bushings, inner and outer tie rod ends, front coil springs and adjustable rear arm assemblies.
Car Buzz Shifts to South: A GM-Nissan Alliance Would Spark Nashville
A Tale of Two Cities is emerging in the U.S. automotive industry. Detroit, once the proud capital, has been struggling to maintain leadership, bleeding jobs, investment and power to the South, where foreign rivals have been setting up shop for more than two decades. At the center of this shift, an exuberant, welcoming Nashville is turning over dirt throughout its hillsides, readying to build itself as the heart of what some call the new domestic auto industry: One that is foreign-owned and thrives, without the challenge of unions, retirees or decaying brand names.
Nissan Endorses Talks on Buying GM Stake
The board of Nissan Motor, the Japanese carmaker, voted Monday to explore a proposal to form an alliance with Renault and General Motors to create a new global auto giant. The vote came hours before the board of Renault, the French car company that owns a controlling 44 percent stake of Nissan, was scheduled to discuss the same proposal, put forward by a group of GM shareholders led by the American billionaire Kirk Kerkorian.