The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has started an investigation into over 850,000 General Motors SUV’s after receiving complaints of inaccurate fuel gauges. Of the 668 complaints received, 58 said that their vehicle ran out of fuel even though the fuel gauge said there was still fuel in the tank. The vehicles involved in this investigation include:
It’s been a slow recovery, but on Thursday, Chrysler announced that they expect to pay back the $7.5 billion in Government loans by the end of next month. Although the details are still being negotiated, Chrysler hopes to sell new bonds to investors and use that money to help pay back the loans. This will allow Chrysler to strengthen its alliance with Fiat and revamp its operations to gain market shares.
According to Rebecca Lindland, an analyst with the research firm IHS Global Insight, “Tuning up their balance sheet and reducing debt will help Chrysler direct more money towards product development.” First on the list is to add more fuel efficient cars to its truck heavy lineup. The integration of Fiat and Chrysler will speed up the arrival of new Fiat based models to be sold to the American market. Without the psychological and financial drag of the loans Chrysler can start to slowly rebuild its company.
On Monday, Fiat announced they will be increasing ownership of Chrysler by 16% for a total 46% of the company. Once the auto manufacturers government loans have been paid, Fiat hopes to take a 51% majority stake in Chrysler as early as by the end of this year.
Sergio Marchionne, chief executive of both auto makers, says that this is an important step towards the integration of Fiat and Chrysler, started under two years ago. The result will be the creation of a global auto maker. They have chosen to speed up the pace to bring about the birth of a single group capable of international activities. Fiat outlined its plans after reaching an agreement with Chrysler’s shareholders, which include the U.S. Treasury Department, the United Auto Workers’ health trust fund and the Canadian government. The move shows that there is confidence in Chrysler turning around and becoming a profitable auto manufacturer. It does not mean Chrysler is fixed, it does show that Marchionne believes it is on track.
The modern car interface can do everything from making a dinner reservation to reading your text messages. In order to do this, an array of knobs and buttons are needed on the dashboard making the use of the system much more confusing. Sam Grobart, the Times’ personal technology editor, shows us three different interface systems that are trying to solve this problem. He test drives the Acura ZDX, Ford Focus, and the Audi A8 and finds that making our lives easier can often be frustrating.
Disruption in the auto industry because of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan last month have been minimal so far, but the continued aftershocks and impending nuclear meltdown causing roaming power shortages is starting to take it’s toll. Shortages of vehicles built in Japan are starting to be noticed around the world, and the lack of parts is making it difficult for other auto manufacturers to run their assembly lines. Auto analysts predict that Japans auto industry may not hit it’s full manufacturing potential until late this summer. This uncertainly has suppliers, automakers and dealers scrambling.
Car buyers are already having difficulty finding models they want in certain colors, and auto plant workers are expecting they will soon be told to stay home. The complexity of the auto supply chain shows just how vulnerable the industry can be. With over 3,000 parts going into a single car or truck, one missing part means the vehicle cannot be built. Customers not only notice auto shortages, but rising prices, especially on fuel efficient hybrids as gas prices rise.
IHS Automotive predicts that one-third of daily global automotive production will be cut because of supply chain disruptions. That means about 5 million vehicles worldwide won’t be built, out of the 72 million vehicles planned for production in 2011. In the U.S., some car manufacturers are considering shifting part manufacturing operations to local companies, but stringent safety requirements and exacting high tech specifications will limit a company’s flexibility. For now car executives are allocating certain parts to build the more popular and profitable vehicles.
Scheduled to take effect in December, California lawmakers will no longer be provided with a state purchased car, but instead will be given a monthly transportation allowance of $300 a month. According to the California Citizens Compensation Commission, the group responsible for setting state officials’ salaries and benefits, this change will cut the lawmakers’ transportation costs in half, saving the state of California over $2.3 million over the next five years.
The salary for California legislators is one of the highest in the nation even after salaries and benefits were cut in 2009. The panel decided not to cut lawmakers’ salaries again but said it may revisit the issue if Governor Jerry Brown cuts paychecks for other state workers to help reduce the budget deficit.
Senate leader Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) said the move makes it harder for lawmakers to travel to and in their districts to connect with constituents. He feels the arguments for cutting legislative salaries and benefits have gone from being balanced, rational and a reflection of our economic times to simply trying to make a political point.
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With rising fuel costs, many consumers are turning to diesel vehicles for their better fuel economy. Most people who operate and maintain diesel engines are familiar with a black material seen in fuel filters or at the bottom of the tank, but many don’t realize that it is a growing “algae”. This organism inside the tank will lead to poor combustion, carbon buildup, and could end up costing the owner of the vehicle large amounts of money.
The algae is the result old fuel, and while the problem is often found in boat engines, automobiles are not immune. So what can be done to prevent the problem? There are additives you can use, but if it is not caught soon enough, it can still end up being costly to the consumer. Your best line of defense is being educated about the problem, and keeping up with regular maintenance.
California lawmakers are one step closer to passing a bill that will force automobile rental companies to immediately pull recalled vehicles from their fleet until the problem has been fixed. Carol Houck has been fighting for this bill since 2004 when her two daughters died in a rented PT Cruiser accident caused by a recall. Assemblyman Bill Monning, who presented the bill said, “Consumers need to know that when they rent these cars, that the cars are safe. Auto dealers can’t sell or lease cars that have been recalled, and this bill would close the loophole that allows rental car companies to continue doing so.”
Rental company representatives argue that 90 percent of vehicles are repaired withing 30 days of receiving a recall notice, making the bill unnecessary. They feel that the bill targets their industry unfairly and ignores other vehicle fleets, like taxi, limousine and shuttle bus services, private companies and governments.
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