UK: General Motors Europe to build next Opel/Vauxhall Astra at Ellesmere Port
General Motors Europe's Opel /Vauxhall unit on Thursday (17 May) assured the future of its Ellesmere Port plant in northwest England with the announcement that it would be the lead plant of only two in Europe building the next generation Astra.
US: Nissan starts redesigned Altima production
Nissan has begun production in the US of its fifth generation Altima after making over 4.4 m of the previous generations which date back to 1992 - the original was the US version of the Bluebird and replaced the Stanza.
US: Tributes flow for Ford's 1980s turnaround chief
Tributes are flowing in for a top Ford man who help revive the troubled automaker in the 1980s - former chairman and CEO Harold 'Red' Poling - who died at the weekend.
US: Ford starts selling C-Max hybrid
Ford has begun taking orders for the C-Max hybrid in the US, claiming it is America's most affordable, fuel-efficient hybrid utility vehicle.
US: GM reshuffles sales team ahead of product blitz
General Motors has reshuffled its US sales team "in preparation for numerous product launches in the coming months".
US: Chevrolet confirms Holden-built SS for MY2014
Chevrolet has confirmed an open secret - return of an Australian-made V8 powered, rear-wheel-drive performance sedan to the US lineup, the Holden Commodore-based Chevrolet SS.
The redesigned Audi A3 will offer buyers greater choice than either of the previous two versions, including a four-door sedan for the first time.
Latest automotive news 
USA: Lexus HS 250h hybrid axed due to poor sales
18 May 2012
Toyota has axed the slow-selling Lexus HS 250h after fewer than three years on the market. The car was sold mostly in Japan, the US and Canada.
UK: Greece will stay in Euro believes BMW UK MD
18 May 2012
BMW's UK managing director says he believes Greece will stay in the Euro currency as the the South East Europe country's woes continue to create huge bow waves of economic uncertainty for automakers.
US: Subaru to increase Indiana plant capacity by 15%
18 May 2012
Subaru maker Fuji Heavy Industries said it would increase production capacity at its Lafayette, Indiana, plant by 15% due to growing demand for the Outback crossover vehicle and Legacy car.
THE WEEK THAT WAS: Vauxhall workers get a reprieve
That huge collective sigh of relief you probably heard from Merseyside (and very likely Westminster) yesterday would have been Vauxhall management, workers and politicians greeting the news from General Motors' European unit that the Ellesmere Port Astra plant is good to go.
Hot issue
Quarterly results season rolls around again
It's quarterly results time and we've been slicing and dicing the reports to remove the bumpf, claimed 'highlights' and so on to bring you just the facts. Analysis, where applicable, courtesy of Rob Golding.
Read more here / View all hot issues
Latest comment
THE WEEK THAT WAS: Vauxhall workers get a reprieve
That huge collective sigh of relief you probably heard from Merseyside (and very likely Westminster) yesterday would have been Vauxhall management, workers and politicians greeting the news from General Motors' European unit that the Ellesmere Port Astra plant is good to go until at least around 2020.
US: Toyota to expand Alabama V6 output
18 May 2012
UK: April car production up 9.3%
18 May 2012
May 2012 management briefing: European car market forecasts (France)
As the financial crisis in Europe swirls, we bring you exclusive extracts from LMC Automotive's suite of quarterly European national market sales reports and forecasts. The reports cover forecasts for car and light commercial vehicle sales by make and model over the next seven years.
Hot issue
Auto China, Beijing 2012
Once upon a time, few from the west would have bothered with the Beijing show. Times change. With news like three more JV plants in one week, no one ignores China any more. Press days were 23 and 24 April and our previews and coverage are here.
Latest automotive interview, analysis, comment and insight articles
THE WEEK THAT WAS: Vauxhall workers get a reprieve
18 May 2012
That huge collective sigh of relief you probably heard from Merseyside (and very likely Westminster) yesterday would have been Vauxhall management, workers and politicians greeting the news from General Motors' European unit that the Ellesmere Port Astra plant is good to go until at least around 2020.
PRODUCT EYE: Heads-up on BMW's 640d Gran Coupé
18 May 2012
BMW tends to do things in style and with just a month or two before this year's Tour de France, they turned on a bit of that glamour with the press drive yesterday (17 May) of its 640d SE Gran Coupé west of Strasbourg in the Vosges mountains.
May 2012 management briefing: European car market forecasts (France)
17 May 2012
As the financial crisis in Europe swirls, we bring you exclusive extracts from LMC Automotive's suite of quarterly European national market sales reports and forecasts. The reports cover forecasts for car and light commercial vehicle sales by make and model over the next seven years. This first extract from the quarterly series is France.
RESEARCH SNAPSHOT: Taiwan's auto industry
14 May 2012
Taiwan has, due to its geographic position, political stance and population size, traditionally had both its import and export potentials defined by external factors. This quarterly report from Business Monitor International assesses prospects for its automotive market and industry.
COMMENT: GM and PSA's plans to share plants and architectures
14 May 2012
The past few days have seen all sorts of rumours and supposed leaks from plant managers, union officials and senior executives at Opel and PSA. What should we believe?
THE WEEK THAT WAS: Autonomous motoring
11 May 2012
Most popular news article this week: an interview with Nady Boules, director of General Motors' electrical and control integration research skunkworks. He told how the automaker sees the pathway, timeframe and costs in moving through semi- to fully autonomous driving - the automaker has begun road testing prototype Cadillacs capable of semi-autonomous driving. GM calls the system ‘Super Cruise’.
COMMENT: Germany can afford it
11 May 2012
Well, that was unexpected. Normally, the last thing safe, conservative, can we even say staid, German politicians do is pitch head first into domestic wage negotiations, preferring to stay grandly above the fray until the dust settles.
INTERVIEW: GM's autonomous car specialist
9 May 2012
GM has begun road testing prototype Cadillacs capable of semi-autonomous driving. GM calls the system ‘Super Cruise’. just-auto spoke with Dr Nady Boules, director of GM’s Electrical and Control Integration Research Lab. He outlined how GM sees the pathway, timeframe and costs in moving through semi- to fully autonomous driving.
Q&A with Nexteer Automotive: Staff retention and recruitment in the global automotive industry
8 May 2012
Continuing just-auto’s series of interviews with leading automotive component manufacturers, Matthew Beecham talked with Pascale Ruiz, Nexteer Automotive’s Human Resources Director for Europe about staff and recruitment issues in the automotive industry.
just-auto's research round-up
Here's a brief run-down of reports available in our research store that caught our eye over the past week or so...
Get connected:
Reports in focus
Global Electric Vehicle Charging Station Market 2011-2015
TechNavio’s analysts forecast the Global Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station market to grow at a CAGR of 76.9 percent over the period 2011–2015. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the increasing need for energy independence. The Global EV Charging Station market has also been witnessing increasing demand for energy. However, limited performance of EVs could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.
Published May 2012 - (€ 1147.04)
- Automotive Industry in Russia. Results of 2011. Prospects
Published Apr 2012 - (€ 420.00) - China Automotive Windshield Wiper Industry Report, 2011-2012
Published Apr 2012 - (€ 1529.38) - Connected Cars - Global End User Survey
Published Aug 2011 - (€ 5000.00) - Tire Market in India 2011-2015
Published May 2012 - (€ 1147.04)
Latest just-auto research
- Global market review of starter motors and alternators - forecasts to 2026
Published May 2012 - (€ 1350.00) - QUBE starter motors and alternators intelligence service (annual subscription)
Published May 2012 - (€ 1350.00) - Global market review of vehicle access, anti-theft and security - forecasts to 2026
Published May 2012 - (€ 1125.00) - QUBE vehicle access, anti-theft and security intelligence service (annual subscription)
Published May 2012 - (€ 1125.00) - Global market review of automotive HVAC - forecasts to 2026
Published May 2012 - (€ 1125.00)
The just-auto blog
FI Monaco race
By: Dave Leggett
19 May 2012
I see the Formula 1 circus is next to descend on Monaco.
AvtoVAZ hits milestone
By: Dave Leggett
18 May 2012
Job#27m has rolled off the line at the AvtoVAZ plant.
UNI-CUB: Honda looks beyond bikes, cars, robots & jets
By: Glenn Brooks
16 May 2012
Honda thinks it might have found itself another new revenue stream: personal mobility devices.
Production life database
Global current and future (to 2025) vehicle database
PLDB (Product Life Database) from just-auto covers all regions, so researching both existing vehicles and models yet to be launched by all of the world's major manufacturers is easy.
This database, which is constantly audited and updated, can be searched by various fields, including segment, vehicle architecture/platform, plant location or country of build. PLDB also lists each car or light truck's lifecycle, expected next styling refresh or schedule replacement date. Where possible, vehicle codenames are also included.
PLDB lists 1530 current and future global models from 95 OEM groups, spread across 186 brands, with data for 1035 vehicles having been checked or revised in the last month. Simply click on the link below to take a tour and see pricing.
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‘Black box’ technology could drive down car insurance costs
The Department for Transport (DfT) has said it will work together with the motor industry in a bid to drive down the number of fraudulent claims for whiplash and other injuries, which would reduce the overall cost of car insurance from providers like Staveley Head.
New vs second hand carsIf we all had our way, every car we ever buy would be brand new; shiny, unmarked and full of the new car smell. However, the reality is that we're often restricted financially, or circumstances may present us with a second hand car as our most convenient option.
