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A + B = C right? Look at the headlines from two Reuters stories this morning... Japan overall auto sales -14.5 pct in June and Japan non-mini auto sales down 13.5 pct in June Doesn't that mean that larger vehicles are selling better (less worse if you prefer) than mini-vehicles?..

Think about it. Very few people probably buy a vehicle because they saw a SuperBowl commercial. The place where the bread is buttered and could be a good indicator of a rebound is local advertising...

The road to hell is paved with good intentions and I'm pretty sure it starts in California. On the surface, it sounds like an idea that nobody should disagree wtih... require manufacturers to hav sun-reflecting glass on cars sold in California to keep them cooler during hot weather, reducing the amount of air conditioning their drivers and passengers need...

From Bloomberg.com By Ben Livesey June 25 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. has asked investors to make improved offers for its European division, to rival the bid from Magna International Inc., the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co...

No, it's not John Wilkes Booth, it's Rudolph Diesel and Audi is planning to offer two diesel models in the U.S. by the end of the year as a better way to cut oil use than hybrids and electric cars. “We’re not saying these technologies are nonsense,” Johan de Nysschen, president of Audi of America Inc., said yesterday in a telephone interview...

The shifting landscape of the North American auto market has shuffled market share and Toyota, who has held the top spot in light vehicles sold globally since last year, is about to move into that spot in the U.S. market. Its share of the North American light-truck and car market probably will rise to around 20% from 18.4%...

Wandering through the news this morning and came across the not-surprising headline: GM in Daily Talks With Obama Auto Task Force Then I came to this paragraph: GM will retain four plants it had planned to close, putting them on so-called standby status in case the North American auto-sales market accelerates faster than anticipated and it needs more capacity. Isn't it that kind of overly optimistic planning that got GM into their current condition in the first place?

And some people wonder why the auto industry is in trouble. Consider the headline I saw this morning: Honda’s Hybrid Insight May Miss U.S. Sales Forecast Now that doesn't seem like a surprising headline given the situation the North American auto industry finds itself in, but would you expect that they may miss the forecast by 33%??..

For those fans of government intervention in the auto industry out there, be careful what you ask for. If you don't think they would love to decide what cars you can and cannot buy, conisder that a couple of Senators are saying that the "cash for clunkers" bill encourages the purchase of gas guzzlers like the Hummer H3T. See, it's not about buying a new vehicle that gets better mileage than your old vehicle...

Here's the problem with opening the can of worms when you throw money at a failing company. Where do you stop?  June 10 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp...