Goodyear CEO Expresses Confidence in Tiremaker’s Recovery
Addressing hundreds of people at an Akron, Ohio, Roundtable lunch last week, Robert Keegan, chairman, president and CEO of the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., told attendees that Goodyear would bounce back from its recent financial hardships.
ASA Adds New Affiliate
The Automotive Service Association (ASA) board of directors has named ASA-Texas as its 15th affiliate. Terry St. Pierre, owner of The Muffler Shoppe in Abilene, Texas, and president of ASA-Texas, said he is excited about the future of ASA-Texas and the direction it’s headed. St. Pierre said he encourages all service professionals to grow their local chapter, which will in turn grow their state groups, which will grow ASA on a national level.
Wade&Partners Adds New Account Executive
Wade&Partners aftermarket consulting firm has added Aileen Gildea as a new account executive. In this role, she will be responsible for client contact, as well as a large range of public relations activities. Prior to joining Wade&Partners, Gildea was an advertising production manager at O’Reilly Media and had worked for WBUR radio.
Manufacturer’s Rep Conference Cancelled
The Manufacturer’s Rep Conference, scheduled to take place May 16-17, in conjunction with the Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium (GAAS) in Chicago, has been cancelled. According to event organizers, the conference was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts.
Cooper Unveils New TV, Print Ad Campaign
Cooper Tire & Rubber has unveiled a multi-million dollar advertising campaign aimed at reinforcing the tire brand’s performance and value. The campaign adds to Cooper’s tag line, “Don’t Give Up a Thing,” with an additional message, “Get Everything You Want.” The ads focus on emotional considerations of buying tires, rather than product features. The campaign involves three, 30-second television spots and seven print ads.
Ex-Detroit Exec Named to Alcoa Post
A former Detroit executive has been named vice president and general manager of Alcoa’s Warrick Operations – the highest position at the facility, the company said Thursday. Michael Lucas, who began his duties Monday, came to Alcoa from Piston Automotive, a diversified company that provides manufacturing, assembly and logistics services to the automobile industry. He served as chief operations officer for Piston.
Pep Boys Prices Common Stock Offering
Pep Boys has announced a public offering of 4,250,000 shares of common stock at a price of $24.75 per share. All of these shares will be sold by the company. Goldman, Sachs & Co., Morgan Stanley, Wachovia Securities and Advest, Inc. acted as representatives of the underwriters. The underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase an additional 396,464 shares of common stock from the company to cover over-allotments.
TRW Automotive and FAWER Sign Commercial Steering Joint Venture Agreement
TRW Automotive J.V. LLC and FAWER Automotive Components Co. Ltd. have formed a new joint venture called TRW FAWER Commercial Vehicle Steering (Changchun) Co., LTD. The new company will manufacture and sell steering gears for the commercial vehicle market.
Judge Dismisses Class Action Move Against Steeltex Tires
A California judge today dismissed a motion seeking national class action status for an on-going lawsuit alleging defects in Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire’s entire Firestone Steeltex line. The ruling, which came after months of delays, is expected to be appealed by attorney Joseph Lisoni, who has made it a personal crusade to force the court-ordered recall of all Steeltex tires.
Circuit City to Sell StreetGlow Products
StreetGlow, Inc., which produces performance lighting products for the aftermarket, has announced that its Auto-Neon brand of performance lighting products will now be distributed through the national Circuit City retail electronics chain. Circuit City will offer more than one-third of StreetGlow branded products with the remainder of the line available through special order. StreetGlow products can also now be professionally installed at Circuit City.