May 2010

Ford begins production of Fiesta at Mexican plant

(May 11, 2010) CUAUTITLAN IZCALLI, MEXICO — Ford Motor Company today celebrates the start of production of the all-new 2011 Ford Fiesta at its Cuautitlán Stamping and Assembly Plant (CSAP), which has been transformed from a truck plant to a car plant producing the all-new Fiesta for North American customers.
 
The start of Fiesta production at Cuautitlán marks another milestone in the ONE Ford plan to deliver even more products people really want while better leveraging the company’s global product and manufacturing strengths. 
 

Ram, Zac Brown Band kick off 'Letters for Lyrics' letter-writing campaign

(May 11, 2010) The Ram Truck Brand, in partnership with the Zac Brown Band, kicked off “Letters for Lyrics,” a national letter-writing campaign targeted to U.S. soldiers over the weekend. The goal for the Ram Truck Brand and Zac Brown Band is to send 1 million letters to U.S. troops deployed around the world.

Toyota forecasts a 48 percent rise in profit

(May 11, 2010) Toyota has forecast that profit will rise 48 percent this fiscal year as auto demand recovers in North America, its largest market.

The company may boost net income to 310 billion yen ($3.35 billion) in the year ending in March, from 209 billion yen a year earlier, the automaker said in a statement Monday.

The company's U.S. sales rose 24 percent in April as incentives boosted demand for its Corolla and Prius models and offset the impact of recalls of more than 8 million vehicles worldwide for defects related to unintended acceleration.

Hyundai considers moving some production of the Santa Fe to Kia plant

(May 10, 2010) Some production of the Hyundai Santa Fe SUV may be shifted from Hyundai's Birmingham, Ala., plant to the new Kia plant in West Point, Ga., Automotive News reports today.

Hyundai said it is near capacity at its Alabama plant, which also builds the Sonata mid-sized sedan, and needs to find additional capacity for the popular Santa Fe.

Ford teams with magazine to roll out customized DUB edition of 3.7-liter Mustang

(May 10, 2010) DEARBORN, Mich. — Ford Motor Company is teaming up with automotive lifestyle magazine DUB to roll out a specially customized version of the new 2011 Mustang, introducing the iconic sports car to a new generation of enthusiasts.
 
The DUB Edition Mustang is based on Ford’s outstanding new 3.7-liter V-6 Mustang and will be available this fall. A collaboration between Ford, DUB and Roush Industries, the DUB Edition Mustang will be offered as a coupe, convertible or with the best-of-both-worlds Glass Roof option. Both six-speed manual and automatic transmissions are available.
 

Nissan to donate to Red Cross, Nashville-area food bank in response to flooding

(May 9, 2010) NASHVILLE -- Nissan will give as much as $300,000 in cash to the American Red Cross and a Nashville-area food bank in response to floods that destroyed homes and businesses around the city, Automotive News reports.

Nissan, which is headquartered outside of Nashville in Franklin, Tenn., also said it will allow delayed finance payments on Nissan vehicles for owners who were affected by the floods in Tennessee and southern Kentucky. In addition, the automaker said it will offer employee-pricing on auto purchases to flood victims who have lost their vehicles in the disaster, which was triggered by record-breaking rains last weekend.

Aston Martin V-12 Vantage will be sold in North America

(May 8, 2010) In response to unprecedented customer demand, Aston Martin has confirmed that the V12 Vantage — the most potent production sports car in the marque’s 96-year history — will be made available in North and South America from later this year.

Based on the hugely successful V8 Vantage, the V12 Vantage features a 6.0-liter  V12 engine producing 510 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque with a top speed of 190 mph and a 0-62 mph time of 4.2 seconds.

Originally launched in 2009, the V12 Vantage has quickly established itself as a firm favorite with enthusiasts and media observers alike, winning a series of accolades and praise around the world and proving a huge sales success for the British marque.

Toyota passes 3 million mark in performing recall remedies

(May 8, 2010) TORRANCE, Calif. — Toyota this past week provided a report on the significant progress that has been made to modify recalled Toyota and Lexus vehicles. To date, more than three million remedies have been performed for three recent recalls, including approximately:

• 1.6 million to address the potential for sticking accelerator pedals,

12 Chevrolet models will get six-speed automatics for 2011

(May 7, 2010) With the introduction of the all-new Chevrolet Cruze, 12 Chevrolet models will be offered with fuel-saving, six-speed automatic transmissions. Chevrolet has quickly become a leader in six-speed automatics, which will be available on 75 percent of all Chevrolet cars, trucks, SUVs and crossovers for 2011. Compared to traditional four-speed automatics, six-speed automatics offer consumers up to four percent better fuel economy, and smoother, more responsive vehicle performance.

“Our advanced six-speed transmissions offer customers wide-ranging benefits,” said Charlie Klein, Director, GM Global Mass, Energy and Aerodynamics, “including reduced cost of ownership, improved vehicle performance, lower CO2 emissions, and a lesser dependence on foreign oil. As such, the wide availability of six-speed transmissions is a real advantage for Chevrolet customers.”

Consumer Reports lifts its 'don't buy' label from Lexus GX 460

(May 7, 2010) Consumer Reports has lifted its “don’t buy” label from the 2010 Lexus GX 460 SUV.

The magazine said in a statement Thursday that the handling issue it identified during testing was corrected after Lexus developed software for the SUV’s electronic stability control system. GX 460 owners have been asked to bring their vehicles in for repairs.