Detroit auto show: Tata’s Nano is talk of show
15 Jan 2008 10:05pm GMT Tata’s $2,500 Nano car (pictured left) may not have been unveiled at the Detroit auto show, but that didn’t stop it from being the talk of the show. Auto executives said the car could have far-reaching impact. Ford’s head of Asia Pacific, John Parker, certainly thinks so. “It is a groundbreaking product,” Parker told reporters. The car will “cause [...]
Detroit auto show: AutoNation CEO calls Chinese cars worst of show
15 Jan 2008 8:43pm GMT Some day cars built by Chinese automakers may be compared with the likes of Toyota and Honda, but not today, according to the CEO of the largest publicly traded U.S. car dealer. AutoNation’s Michael Jackson (pictured right) said at the Detroit auto show that the worst cars at the event were the Chinese-built cars. “Go down to the [...]
Detroit auto show: Dodge wants to show its softer side
15 Jan 2008 8:08pm GMT Say goodbye, or good riddance, to scantily clad models tossing footballs and other old Dodge promotions aimed solely at young men. Chrysler’s new head of marketing, Deborah Meyer, said at the Detroit auto show that the automaker wants a so-called “New Day” for the historically macho brand’s growing cadre of female customers. “We aren’t going to do that anymore,” [...]
Detroit auto show: It’s hemp, not marijuana in your car
15 Jan 2008 7:33pm GMT What do MacGyver, the A-Team and the professor on Gilligan’s Island have in common? Easy; those guys could recycle spare parts to make something useful. Well, automakers are taking a cue from those TV heroes as they increasingly use natural fibers from such materials as hemp, coconut, bamboo and kenaf in car interiors. The idea is to make the [...]
Detroit auto show: Chinese company suggests electric car for Bush ranch
15 Jan 2008 6:40pm GMT Most U.S. auto industry officials when asked about the expected Chinese invasion of the American market in the next several years react with scorn or fear (or a mixture of both). One Chinese company, however, showed at the Detroit auto show that it can evoke laughs. Bei Jing Li Shi Guang Ming Automobile Design Co displayed three electric cars, sporting names [...]