An eternally unanswerable question seems to be whether or not Ford is actively shopping around Volvo for a buyer. Just this week we reported that Chinese automaker SAIC and some Russian investors had expressed interest in purchasing the Swedish carmaker from Ford, but today we learn from a source within SAIC that the company is doing nothing of the sort. The unidentified source said that, as far as he/she knew, the two companies were not in contact about a possible purchase at all. Volvo's staying quiet and licking its wounds after announcing 2,000 layoffs this week, while Ford is singing the same old song with a catchy chorus that insists Volvo is not for sale. Well, the rumor that some Russians are interested in Volvo hasn't been refuted yet, so until someone named Boris says otherwise, let's considerable Volvo on the market despite Ford's protest.
If everyone else is going to build cars like Tata's headline-grabbing Nano, GM's going to pile on, too. The Lutz cites GM's part-ownership stake in Wuling Motors, a Chinese manufacturer of sub-$3,000 utility vehicles as a possible source of a GM Nano competitor. Lutz went on to say that one way to make an inexpensive car for the developing world is to repurpose a legacy platform that has become obsolete. The tooling and design will have long been paid off, and there'll be plenty of experience from the manufacturing side, too. This is essentially what GM China is already doing with the Daewoo Matiz/Chevrolet Spark. It might smack of dumping an old product that isn't safe or clean enough for mature markets, but is "good enough" in other parts of the world. That said, it could also be a way to maximize the life of an investment while also providing developing markets with a better product than they'd have otherwise. Lutz also called into question whether the average Nano would sell for its rock-bottom $2,500 price of entry, anyway. Adding extra amenities will likely push the price of most Nanos higher, says Bob.
MG's former Longbridge, UK headquarters has been pretty quiet since production ceased in 2005. Newly-merged owners SAIC and Nanjing want the clatter of carbuilding to once again echo through the plant and plan to base their European and overseas operations there. The plant itself has the capability to build up to three different models; the challenge is deciding which of the former rival's products to build there. MG TF roadsters will likely lead the charge, with cars due at retail locations by March 1st. MG Rover holdovers could return to their roots if SAIC/Nanjing decide to build the MG 3 and MG 7, while the newly deisgned Roewe W2, pictured above, looks like a solid possibility, as well. In addition to manufacturing, R&D and sales efforts will also be strengthened. From the sound of things, it won't be long before Longbridge is once again turning out cars (some of the same cars, even) at a healthy clip.
Source: Auto News
Chrysler examined again that he does not save expenses, in order to draw prominent illustrations in the industry, around the helmet of to man it is return. Today Chrysler announced LLC that it a 32-Jahr-Veteran von General of engine and Executivveep the Chinese Joint venture GR. with SAIC engine Corp employed., Phil Murtaugh, as the man, in order to lead Chryslers asiatic enterprises. Murtaugh takes control on 1 October and Standplätze, in order to get an abundance of the knowledge of its 15 months of the guidance with from of China leading automakers to.
Chryslers new owners, cerium bus main management, note everything too the fact that extending markets as China, the backbone of the future of each possible automaker is. The movement to employ Murtaugh is nevertheless another crucial activity, after the new announcement that Jim Press Toyota would connect the older management and would show that Chrysler has each intention of progressing in the following years.
