Chrysler to bring back the Dodge Dart -- Italian-style

Chrysler Group is reintroducing the Dodge Dart, a venerable name in the automaker's history that was phased out 35 years ago.

The new Dart is to be introduced as a 2013 model and pitched as a sporty compact sedan with Italian "DNA."

The new model will be the first Chrysler Group vehicle based on a Fiat architecture -- in this case, the Alfa Romeo Giulietta. Italian automaker Fiat holds a controlling interest in Chrysler, and the companies are starting to share auto development and design operations.

The Dart is Dodge's reentry into the compact sedan segment and will be an important vehicle for Chrysler as it works to improve the efficiency of its offerings to meet more stringent fuel-economy rules.

This latest version of the Dart is to offer buyers a choice of four engines, all four cylinders and ranging from 1.4 to 2.4 liters.

It's to be produced at Chrysler's Belvidere Assembly Plant in Belvidere, Ill. The company is pouring $600 million into the site to reconfigure the factory to produce a range of autos. Chrysler said it is building a 638,000-square-foot body shop at the factory and installing new machinery, tooling and material-handling equipment.

Chrysler introduced the Dart in 1960 as a small, low-price car, and it quickly became a top seller.  Interestingly, it had a touch of Italian heritage. Several years earlier, the automaker showed a concept car called the Dart, which featured styling by Ghia, the Italian auto-design house.

Although Chrysler ended U.S. sales of the Dart in 1976, it continued for some years in overseas markets before it was completely phased out.

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Photo: 2013 Dodge Dart. Credit: Chrysler Group

Honda recalling cars to fix airbags that can kill drivers

Honda Motor Co. plans to recall 273,000 Honda and Acura vehicles because of an airbag problem that can kill drivers.

It will also inspect an additional 603,000 vehicles to see if the same defective parts that cause the problem were sold to repair autos that have been in accidents. Honda said it doesn’t know how many of those vehicles might have been repaired with the defective parts.

In the recalled vehicles, the driver’s side airbag can deploy with too much force in an accident, causing a metal inflator casing -- the part that holds and channels explosive propellant -- to rupture.

“The propellant was packed improperly and that allows the propellant to burn off too quickly and it explodes and pieces of the casing are causing the injuries,” said Chris Martin, a Honda spokesman.

The airbag inflator was manufactured by parts supplier Takata in Japan.

Honda has had four previous recalls dealing the same issue, which with this latest expansion includes more than 2.5 million vehicles in the U.S.  The problem does not affect any vehicles newer than the 2003 model year.

Altogether, there have been 18 injuries and two deaths caused by the faulty airbags.

Honda expanded the recall after learning of a driver who was injured in a vehicle not included in its previous actions. It also is concerned that people are still driving unrepaired vehicles listed in previous recalls.

“We really need to get all these cars repaired and there are a lot of customers out there who have not brought their cars in after we have sent them mailers,” Martin said. “This is a very serious thing; people need to get their cars fixed.  This is not something to wait on.”

The latest recall now includes certain 2001 and 2002 Accord, 2001 to 2003 Civic, 2001 to 2003 Odyssey, 2002 and 2003 CR-V, 2003 Pilot, 2002 and 2003 Acura 3.2 TL and 2003 Acura 3.2 CL vehicles.

Honda will begin sending recall notices to owners of these vehicles later this month.

It also said the Honda owners can go to www.recalls.honda.com or call (800) 999-1009 and select option 4; Acura owners can go to www.recalls.acura.com or call (800) 382-2238 and select option 4 to get more information.

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Photo: 2001 Honda Accord EX. Credit: Honda Motor Co.

Toyota and Honda miss auto industry's November sales wave

While most automakers posted healthy gains in U.S. auto sales in November, Toyota and Honda, the Japanese giants of the industry, continued to struggle.

Toyota Motor Corp. said its sales rose 6.7% to 137,960 vehicles in November compared with the same month a year earlier. Honda Motor Co. sales fell 6.4% to 83,925 vehicles.

They continue to lose market share to domestic automakers and rivals from South Korea and Germany.

Ford Motor Co. said its November sales rose 13.3% to 166,865 vehicles compared with a year earlier. General Motors said its sales rose 6.9% to 180,402 vehicles. Chrysler Group said its sales rose 45% to 107,172 vehicles.

Hyundai Motor America said its sales rose 22% to 49,610 vehicles in November. Volkswagen of America said sales of its VW brand jumped 40.7% to 28,412 vehicles.

Nissan was the lone standout of the big Japanese brands with sales growing 19.4% in November to 85,182 vehicles.

Altogether, the industry sold vehicles at an annual sales pace of about 13.5 million units, the highest level since the 'cash for clunkers' stimulus program of August 2009.

To be sure, Toyota and Honda were snakebit by events out of their control.

The March earthquake and tsunami in Japan interrupted global production for both automakers and created inventory shortages for some of their most popular cars. More recently, flooding in Thailand has shut auto parts suppliers and also slowed manufacturing for both companies.

But Toyota and Honda also have made strategic mistakes that are hurting their U.S. sales, said Jesse Toprak, an analyst with auto information company TrueCar.com.

With their most recent model redesigns “they are just being too safe in terms of vehicle styling. They are not taking the competition as seriously as they should,” Toprak said.

The latest generation of both companies’ best sellers -- Toyota’s Camry and Honda’s Civic -- look too much like the older models and only the most “die-hard fans” would note any difference, Toprak said.

“The competition, like Hyundai, as well as the domestic brands are taking greater chances with their styling,” Toprak said.

That’s shown up in sales figures. Chevrolet has sold 215,000 units of its new Cruze subcompact car so far this year, more than double the Cobalt model that it replaced. This is first time that General Motors has had a popular alternative to the Civic and Toyota’s Corolla.

During the same period Hyundai’s Sonata mid-size sedan has become a strong competitor to the Camry and Honda Accord, Toprak said. The Sonata outsold the Accord 15,668 to 14,355 in November.

He said the latest generation Civic is an example of design complacency. The new version was panned in many reviews, including the influential Consumer Reports magazine that has previously given the Civic good marks.

Honda is now rushing to redesign the vehicle yet again.

Toyota and Honda also have been slow to react to changes in consumer attitudes.

Shoppers aren’t as loyal as they once were and they now have more choices in almost every segment of the market in which Toyota and Honda have historically been strong, Toprak said.

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Photo: The 2012 Toyota Camry was little changed from the previous year's model, a factor in the carmakers' lackluster November sales, according to at least one analyst. Credit: Associated Press

Lexus, Mini owners most satisfied with auto sales experience

New car buyers report greater satisfaction with the sales process than in previous years and have given Lexus the highest sales marks among luxury automakers and Mini the best among mass-market brands.

That’s the finding of the J.D. Power and Associates' 2011 U.S.  sales satisfaction study.

Car buyers collectively gave the industry a score of 648 on a 1,000-point scale when it comes to the sales experience. That’s 13 points higher than 2010 and most likely reflects greater resources automakers and dealers are putting into customer satisfaction as the auto industry recovered from the recession, according to J.D. Power analysts.  

Buyers also are spending more time at the franchise, taking delivery of their vehicles. They spent  11 minutes more, bringing the entire process to 4.3 hours. The time increase resulted from dealers taking more time to explain the technology of the new car, features such as Bluetooth, audio and navigation. Other studies indicate that complex technology has become a source of frustration for many buyers.  

Cadillac and Mercedes-Benz ranked second and third in the luxury auto segment. Volvo ranked the lowest, with Acura and Audi next up the list.

Buick and GMC followed Mini among volume brands. Volkswagen had a huge improvement, jumping to fourth from No. 13 a year ago.

Jeep was rated the worst among the mass brands, followed in reverse order by Ram and Kia.

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Photo: Lexus CT 200h. Credit: Tim Andrew

Black Friday pushes November sales for Ford, other carmakers

Watches, video games, cashmere -- add automobiles to the list of goods selling briskly in the days following Thanksgiving. It seems car buyers caught Black Friday fever this year.

Galpin Ford, the nation’s largest Ford dealership, sold 140 new vehicles on the Friday after Thanksgiving, a single-day sales record for the San Fernando Valley franchise.

“It was surprising for all of us,” said Beau Boeckmann, Galpin’s vice president. “I don’t think we expected that November would be the biggest car month since 'cash for clunkers' two years ago. Our November sales will be 50% above last year.”

Dealers such as Galpin contributed to a 13.3% gain in Ford's November auto sales. The automaker sold 166,865 vehicles, compared with 147,338 in November 2010.

Other automakers also reported gains in November. Altogether, the industry sold vehicles at an annual sales pace of about 13.5 million vehicles, the highest level since the cash for clunkers stimulus program of August 2009.

Nissan said its sales increased 19.4% in November to 85,182 vehicles.

General Motors said its November sales rose 6.9% from the same month a year earlier to 180,402 vehicles. Chrysler Group said its sales rose 45% to 107,172 vehicles. Volkswagen of America said sales of its VW brand jumped 40.7% to 28,412 vehicles.

Automakers said the strong finish contributed to the sales gains.

“We were planning for a strong close for the month and expecting to see good traffic and it ran ahead of our expectations,” said Jonathan Browning, chief executive of Volkswagen of America. 

Browning said shoppers are enjoying low interest rates, strong resale value of their trade-ins and good lease deals.

“Certainly we saw a kick at the end of the month,” said Don Johnson, GM's vice president of U.S. sales operations.

Thanksgiving weekend has emerged as a popular car-shopping weekend since the recent recession, said Jessica Caldwell, an analyst with auto information company Edmunds.com.

“It is a factor of the deal mentality out there,” Caldwell said. “With Black Friday everyone just assumes there is a deal for everything, whether it is a sweater or jewelry or a car.” 

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Photo: Small cars such as the Focus and Fiesta, shown at the Maroone Ford of Miami dealership, contributed to Ford's strong November sales. Credit: Associated Press

Auto industry puts up strong sales numbers in November

Shoppers streamed into car dealers in November, pushing auto sales to their highest annualized rate since the federal government's "cash for clunkers" program in August 2009.

By most estimates the annual sales rate was expected to hit about 13.5 million vehicles last month, modestly higher than in October and up about 10% from November 2010.

"The market is getting stronger.  Prices have eased from the spring and summer and people are seeing a lot of advertising out there," said Jessica Caldwell, an analyst with auto information company Edmunds.com.

General Motors Co. said it sold 180,402 vehicles in the U.S. last month, up 6.9% from a year earlier.

“We are seeing a broad spectrum of customers return to the market,” said Don Johnson, GM's vice president of U.S. sales operations. “Truck sales showed a very solid increase, as we expected, but the momentum building behind our most fuel-efficient vehicles was even stronger.”

Chrysler Group said its sales rose 45% in November to 107,172 vehicles.

Volkswagen of America said sales of its VW brand jumped 40.7% in November to 28,412 vehicles. VW is benefiting from a retooling of its passenger car lineup over the last year, including new models of its Beetle, Passat and Jetta.   

This year is shaping up as VW’s best since 2002.

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Photo: A 2012 Chevrolet Cruze on the lot at a car dealership in San Jose. Credit: Associated Press

GM to provide loaner vehicles to Volt owners following fires

General Motors Co. is offering to provide a free loaner car to any Chevrolet Volt owners who are concerned about the safety of their vehicle following a series of fires that occurred in crash-testing of the electric vehicle and its batteries.

"Our customers' peace of mind is the most important thing. This technology should inspire confidence and pride and not fear and doubt," said Mark Reuss, president of GM North America. "It underlines our commitment to the vehicle and its owners."

Reuss said the vehicles are safe to drive and won't spontaneously catch on fire, even in a crash.

Federal officials on Friday launched a formal safety-defect investigation into GM's plug-in hybrid vehicle after crash tests on several Volts and their batteries resulted in fires. In one case, a fire that started in one of the test vehicles consumed three others parked nearby.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it was "concerned" that damage to the Volt's batteries sustained in tests designed to replicate real-world crash scenarios resulted in the vehicles catching fire.

The problem occurs when electricity is left stored in the batteries for some time following a crash, said Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president of global product development.

The automaker's engineers are working with safety regulators to better understand the problem, she said, adding that GM is confident the fires would not occur in batteries that are fully drained following a crash.

"You need to depower the battery," she said.

When electrical energy is left in a battery after a severe crash, it could be similar fire hazard to leaving gasoline in a tank after a car crash, Barra said.

When GM learns of a crash involving a Volt from the vehicle's onboard communications system, the automaker sends technicians to hook up equipment to drain the electricity from the battery.

The NHTSA said it was too soon to say whether its probe would lead to a recall, but it vowed to "take immediate action" if it found any unreasonable safety risk. Measures would include notifying consumers and ensuring that GM communicates with Volt owners.

The investigation comes as GM has pushed for wider adoption of the plug-in hybrid, which according to the Environmental Protection Agency gets an equivalent of 93 mpg. GM has sold more than 6,000 Volts since the car was rolled out in December 2010. The Volt, which won the Green Car of the Year award at the Los Angeles Auto Show last year, is designed to run off its batteries for about 40 miles. When the batteries run low, a gasoline engine kicks in and functions as a generator, powering electric motors and extending the range of the sedan to more than 300 miles.

GM and the NHTSA are looking at test data to attempt to determine the precise cause of the fires.

The latest tests were part of an initial probe begun after the NHTSA found a Volt it had crash-tested in May caught fire three weeks later.

In a series of follow-up tests, the NHTSA subjected three additional Volt batteries to a crash simulation last week, intentionally damaging the cars' battery compartment and rupturing their coolant lines. One battery caught fire about a week after the test. A second vehicle's battery "began to smoke and emit sparks" just hours after the impact, the agency said.

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Photo: Chevy Volt electric vehicles and Opel Amperas come off the line at the General Motors Detroit Hamtramck Assembly Plant in Hamtramck, Mich. Credit: Getty Images

 

Details of Volt fire offered to clarify electric vehicle safety

Federal safety regulators released more details about the Chevrolet Volt fire that has caused officials to look into post-crash protocols for electric vehicles.

The fire occurred more than three weeks after the plug-in hybrid sedan was crashed as part of the agency’s New Car Assessment Program in May.

Officials from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the crash damaged the Volt’s lithium ion battery and that damage eventually caused the fire.

“That incident — which occurred at the test facility and caused property damage but no injuries — remains the only case of a battery-related fire in a crash or crash test of vehicles powered by lithium-ion batteries, despite a number of other rigorous crash tests of the Chevy Volt separately conducted by both NHTSA and General Motors,” regulators said in a statement.

NHTSA said it believes that electric vehicles have no greater risk of fire than any other vehicles.

But since electric vehicles represent new technology just coming to the market, regulators want to develop protocols for post-crash situations to make sure that consumers and emergency responders don't get hurt and that damaged vehicles are stored in a manner that would prevent a fire at a later time.

The agency has asked all electric vehicle manufacturers to provide information on the protocols they have established for discharging and handling their lithium-ion batteries—including any recommendations for reducing the fire risk.

“Ultimately we hope the information we gather will lay the groundwork for detailed guidance for first-responders and tow truck operators for use in their work responding to incidents involving these vehicles,” the agency said.

The Volt is designed to run purely off its batteries for about 40 miles. When the batteries run low, a gasoline engine kicks in and functions as a generator, powering the electric motors and extending the range of the sedan to more than 300 miles.

Other electric cars currently for sale include the Nissan Leaf and the Tesla Roadster.  Several other automakers, including Toyota, Ford and Mitsubishi plan to launch sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids in the coming months.

General Motors Co., which owns the Chevrolet brands, said the Volt is safe. It said it is working  “cooperatively with NHTSA as it completes its investigation.”

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Photo: Chevolet Volt.  Credit: Associated Press.

 

Safety regulators open probe of electric vehicles after Volt fire

Federal safety officials have launched a probe into whether the batteries in Chevrolet’s Volt plug-in hybrid sedan are prone to fires.

The probe by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was launched after a Volt caught fire following a crash test.

The Associated Press, which learned of the probe from a federal safety regulator, said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will be looking at the safety of batteries from several makes of electric vehicles.

The Volt is designed to run purely off its batteries for about 40 miles. When the batteries run low, a gasoline engine kicks in and functions as a generator, powering the electric motors and extending the range of the sedan to more than 300 miles.

Other electric cars currently for sale include the Nissan Leaf and the Tesla Roadster.  Several other automakers, including Toyota, Ford and Mitsubishi plan to launch sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids in the coming months.

General Motors Co., which owns the Chevrolet brands, said the Volt is safe.

“We are working cooperatively with NHTSA as it completes its investigation.  However, NHTSA has stated that based on available data, there’s no greater risk of fire with a Volt than a traditional gasoline-powered car,” said Jim Federico, General Motors chief engineer for electric vehicles.

“Safety protocols for electric vehicles are clearly an industry concern. At GM, we have safety protocols to depower the battery of an electric vehicle after a significant crash,” he said. “We are working with other vehicle manufacturers, first responders, tow truck operators, and salvage associations with the goal of implementing industry-wide protocols.” 

GM shares fell 19 cents, or about 1%, to close at $22.51 on Friday, while the stock market overall rose sharply.

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Photo: Chevrolet Volt. Credit: Associated Press.

GM profit dips as revenue rises; European sales a sore point

General Motors Co. saw its profits slide 15% in the third quarter.

The nation’s largest automaker said it earned $1.7 billion, or $1.03 per share in the quarter. That compared to a profit of $2 billion, or $1.20 a share in the same period a year earlier.

Revenue rose 7.6% to $36.7 billion.

“GM delivered a solid quarter thanks to our leadership positions in North America and China, where we have grown both sales and market share this year.  But solid isn’t good enough, even in a tough global economy,” said Dan Akerson, GM’s chief executive.  “Our overall results underscore the work we have to do to leverage our scale and further improve our margins everywhere we do business.”

GM is still losing money in Europe but is profitable in North America and is running at the break-even level or better in the rest of the world.

The report continues a string of seven profitable quarters for GM, which emerged from a bankruptcy reorganization and federal government bailout in 2009. On a fully diluted basis -- which accounts for stock options and warrants in the marketplace not yet exercised, taxpayers still own about 27% of the automaker.

And with the news, GM's shares fell $1.70, or nearly 7%, in early trading to $23.34. The stock is almost $10 off its initial offering price of $33 of last November, when it started trading following the automaker's financial restructuring.

GM's financial results were helped by it spending less money to get buyers into its vehicles. Discounts and incentives for the third quarter were 15.5% less that the same period in 2010, according to auto information company Edmunds.com. So far this year, the company is spending about 8% less on sales incentives, according to Edmunds.com estimates.

At the same time, GM is solidifying its place in the auto market.

GM has grown its market share to 20.1% in the third quarter, up from 18.6% in the same period a year earlier, according to Edmunds.com.

Part of the gain comes from the supply crunch suffered by the big Japanese automakers after the that  nation's earthquake in March. 

The shortage of Japanese brands of cars -- especially Toyotas and Hondas -- allowed GM to cut back on  incentive spending, said Jessica Caldwell, an Edmunds.com analyst.

"The addition of compelling products like the Chevy Cruze also contributed to their success," Caldwell said. "But with their Japanese competitors re-emerging, GM will have a tougher fight on their hands in the coming months against refreshed  and redesigned offerings like the Toyota Camry and Honda Civic.”

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Photo: General Motors employees works on a van assembly line in Wentzville, Mo. Credit: Associated Press.

Insurance group gives top safety ratings to five minivans

An insurance industry trade group has given top safety ratings to five minivans but said two others were not as good.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety awarded the 2012 Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Grand Caravan and Volkswagen Routan — which all share a common structure — and the Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna vans its “Top Safety Pick” ranking following evaluations for rollover protection.

To win the ranking, the vehicles go through tests and must have the highest rating of good for frontal, side, rollover and rear crash protection.

The trade group said that two other minivans, the Kia Sedona and the Nissan Quest, “fall short on rollover protection, with the Sedona receiving the lowest rating of poor and the Quest ranking as acceptable."

"Safety-conscious parents shopping for a family hauler should be pleased with today's minivan choices," says David Zuby, the institute's chief research officer. "At the same time, the ratings show that major differences remain in this segment when it comes to protection in a rollover crash."

In 2009, more than 8,000 people were killed in rollover crashes in the United States, according to the insurance group.  That number has fallen as more vehicles have come equipped with electronic stability control, which helps prevent rollovers.  As of the 2012 model year, all new vehicles must be equipped with electronic stability control and anti-lock brake systems.

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Photo: Volkswagen Routan minivan. Credit: Volkswagen