No one is allowed to escape the grinding maw of Detroit's woes -- not even Detroit Piston extraordinaire and hometown mayor Dave Bing. The mayor owns an automotive supplier called The Bing Group that provides stamped parts for carmakers. The recession has put the company on such slippery footing that it told GM it couldn't provide any more parts, and it's looking to sell itself.
As part of assuming the position of mayor, Bing stepped away from the day-to-day operations of the company by creating a blind trust. Or at least, he was supposed to -- Bing remains the registered agent for the company, and that makes him the first person the state would go to for information on the firm, which suggests that he should know something about how its currently run.
Regardless, Bing is still considering whether to sell and will decide early next year. GM has told the company that as a condition of GM's bankruptcy its suppliers are compelled to keep sending parts even if GM didn't pay them, but that didn't appear to take into account the supplier nearly going bankrupt without that money. In the interim, GM is moving toward paying its suppliers on a weekly basis, which should help The Bing Group (and others). Yet in spite of the talked-about economic rebound, Detroit still hurts
Talk to most gearheads about induction and they'll be picturing turbos and superchargers. But at this year's Woodward Dream Cruise, seven legendary figures from American racing were chosen for induction of another kind – into the Motorsports Hall of Fame.
Not to be confused with the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in Talladega, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is located in Novi, Michigan, on the outskirts of Detroit. This year's induction ceremony, however, was held at the old Fillmore Theater in Detroit proper, where Kenny Bernstein, David Hobbs, Scott Parker, Les Richter, Al Unser, Jr., H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler and Joe Weatherly were officially inducted.
Superstar comedian Jay Leno announced Monday night on his show that he was planning a free show in Detroit on April 7th. The reason? We'll let him explain: "I want to do a show for the, not just the auto workers, but anyone out of work in Detroit. But it'll be free. It won't cost you a dime. Not that I'm the greatest comic in the world, but it's free. If you don't like it, you get your money back!" To benefit from Jay's generosity, Detroit-area residents will need to show a photo ID and tell the ticket counter representative that they are unemployed, which will grant them four free passes. Pepsi has also joined in to offer free refreshments and The Palace of Auburn Hills, home of the Detroit Pistons, has promised free parking.
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With both evidence and speculation mounting that General Motors and Tier-1 supplier Visteon Corp. have bleak futures, both companies' stock shares continue to get hammered, with GM's shares trading as low as $1.40 Friday morning and Visteon dropping from 7 cents to 2 cents on Thursday. For GM, that's its lowest price since May 23, 1933, and the price for Visteon is so low that the New York Stock Exchange delisted it – its last day on the exchange was yesterday.
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Regardless of their displeasure with the cost, size and quality of Cobo Hall in Detroit, executives from BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen have committed to at least one more round of exhibits at the annual North American International Auto Show held at the venue each January. The German automakers occupy serious square footage at the show, and the exhibits generate much needed jobs and revenue, so the news was obviously welcomed by show officials. As automakers scale back and exit auto shows due to the economy, or rethink marketing strategies as new markets in India, Russia, and Brazil open up, the big traditional auto shows (such as those in Detroit and Tokyo) are feeling the pressure. The latest news is that Tokyo's show is now on the verge of cancellation with the departure of Detroit's three automakers. While the Germans returning for NAIAS 2010 is welcomed news, the underlying message is that local officials (and the Detroit city council) are going to have to work even harder to save the show for 2011.
Last year, organizers for the Woodward Dream Cruise teamed up with Motorcities National Heritage Area to bring the classic car festivities all the way from the southern suburbs in Oakland County to Downtown Detroit. Ironically, it was the first year that the longstanding event officially entered the Motor City itself. Next year, the Dream Cruise will retreat back across 8 Mile and out of Detroit. Why? The economy, of course, as it seems the Detroit-specific programs didn't earn enough money to repay the costs associated with promoting and running them. The good news is that the 2009 edition of the Dream Cruise is still on schedule to run on a hot, humid Woodward weekend in August, and Autoblog will be there to bring you live coverage as always.
In last night's televised speech to a joint session of Congress, President Obama vowed to commit to a reworking of the domestic auto industry, saying that it is too important to let go:
But we are committed to the goal of a re-tooled, re-imagined auto industry that can compete and win. Millions of jobs depend on it. Scores of communities depend on it. And I believe the nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it.
Obama will present is first budget proposal on Thursday, but in his speech, he said that his administration will focus on three things: energy, health care, and education. All three components of his focus have the potential to impact the auto industry, but Obama took particular pains to acknowledge that the U.S. has fallen behind in renewable energy production, noting that "New plug-in hybrids roll off our assembly lines, but they will run on batteries made in Korea."
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Each year, thousands of journalists arrive in Detroit to see the best and brightest concepts and production vehicles automakers have to offer. It's estimated that the Detroit Auto Show brings in $500 to $600 million dollars annually to the region, which is struggling more than most due to the global recession. For years, the City of Detroit has failed to expand Cobo, and each year there are threats that the NAIAS will be taken away from the Motor City. The state of Michigan has been working with executives from Wayne and Oakland counties and the city of Detroit to upgrade Cobo, but yesterday the Detroit City Council voted down the proposed plan by a five-three tally. The proposed expansion was to add a much needed 166,000-sq. ft. of floorspace at a cost of $288 million.
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Between the flow of bailout bucks and the economic turmoil threatening to topple the Detroit 3, you'd figure the investigative efforts of the Detroit News would be better spent digging through the viability plans of Chrysler and General Motors, delving into the minutia that could make or break the domestic automobile industry. Apparently not. Although the Detroit News has given us a few stories about the people behind the Obama administration's Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry, this piece focuses almost entirely on each member's (and their aides') chosen chariots rather than detailing how their experiences will help the industry. So it may or may not come as a surprise that the panel's personal rides are primarily comprised of foreign marques, ranging from an Acura TSX to a MINI Cooper S. While some of the public records show that a few members of the committee have driven domestics in the past (including a 1996 Taurus GL and a Jeep Grand Cherokee), the bulk have made the switch to foreign brands. In total, only three members of ten-member panel drive vehicles built by the Detroit 3, while another three don't own a vehicle at all.
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With sales at a 26-year low, the Detroit 3 are trying almost anything to reduce costs and make more money from the cars they are selling. One of the biggest changes coming apes what some of the more successful Japanese makers have done all along: offering fewer configurations of their models. If you want leather, you option up for the higher-spec model and get the sunroof, two-zone climate control, larger wheels, and steering-wheel-controlled MP3 stereo system too. Soon, you'll see a similarly simplified menu in domestic showrooms.
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