c
compose new post
j
next post/next comment
k
previous post/previous comment
r
reply
e
edit
o
show/hide comments
t
go to top
esc
cancel

Updates from January, 2012

  • Automotive mirror supplier Gentex Corp. posted lower-than-expected fourth-quarter profits because of a drop in overseas shipments, but expects sales to grow 15 percent to 20 percent in the first quarter.
    5:22 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • Volkswagen AG plans to boost output of the VW Passat at its new plant in Tennessee by 13 percent and add 200 jobs.
    4:50 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • Everything is smaller when folded, but could that work for cars as well?Everything is smaller when folded, but could that work for cars as well?


    4:17 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • Lexus today released its first Super Bowl TV commercial, a 30-second spot for the 2013 GS, on Lexus social media channels.
    3:36 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • General Motors said today that it will start construction next week on a $200 million stamping plant in Arlington, Texas, creating about 180 jobs.
    2:10 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • As part of its overall effort to make vehicles more sustainable, Ford is making the material inside the door — known as the bolster — in part from kenaf.

    Kenaf is a tropical plant that looks similar to bamboo and is related to cotton. The plant replaces oil-based materials inside the doors of the Escape.

    Related

    Ford says the use of kenaf is anticipated to offset 136,000 kilograms of oil-based resin per year in North America; use of this eco-friendly material reduces the weight of the door bolsters by 25%. Weight savings translate into fuel savings for drivers.

    “Kenaf and the other renewable materials in the Escape have made the vehicle more environmentally friendly and fuel efficient,” says Laura Sinclair, materials engineer for the Escape.

    Kenaf oil is used in cosmetics and kenaf fibre is used as an alternative to wood in the production of paper. The upper leaves and shoots of the plant are edible.

    The kenaf is combined with polypropylene in a 50/50 mixture inside the Escape’s door.


    2:00 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • The best-selling cars through history have appealed to a broad buyer base because they are within the reach of the masses -- and that includes the Toyota Corolla and the Ford Model T. The best-selling cars through history have appealed to a broad buyer base because they are within the reach of the masses -- and that includes the Toyota Corolla and the Ford Model T.


    12:25 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • The best-selling cars through history have appealed to a broad buyer base because they are within the reach of the masses -- and that includes the Toyota Corolla and the Ford Model T. The best-selling cars through history have appealed to a broad buyer base because they are within the reach of the masses -- and that includes the Toyota Corolla and the Ford Model T.


    12:25 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • On top of the of the $548 million in fines issued by the federal Justice Department on Monday, executives from Denso and Yazaki will take temporary pay cuts due to their involvement in global antitrust investigations.
    12:04 pm on January 31, 2012
     

  • Midwestern lawmakers and union groups today urged President Barack Obama to restrict imports of auto parts from China that they said benefited from massive illegal subsidies and threatened hundreds of thousands of American jobs.
    11:31 am on January 31, 2012
     

Older Posts →