Ferdinand Piech

By Chris Haak

03.30.2007

Over the past several months, Porsche has steadily increased its stake in fellow German carmaker Volkswagen. The other day, Porsche acquired an additional 3.6 percent of VW, which increased its stake to 30.9% of voting shares at Volkswagen. Under German law, once a company has acquired more than 30% of another, the acquiring company must make a tender offer to the other shareholders of the company they’re purchasing the stake in to purchase all of the remaining shares. Porsche will do this by offering €100.92 for each ordinary VW share and the legal minimum for all outstanding preference shares, and they’re pretty much ensuring that shareholders will NOT accept this tender offer, because VW shares have recently traded over €117. However, once the offer is made, Porsche does not have to make it again if it decides to further increase its stake. To facilitiate its tender offer, Porsche announced that it has taken a huge €35 billion ($46.67 billion) loan, financed by several banks. The large loan is basically broken into four pieces, or tranches, but the terms are between one and three years – not very long term.

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By Chris Haak

03.29.2007

My family was in Georgia over the weekend visiting my brother in law, who just leased a new Mazda CX-7. When we had to make a grocery store run, he tossed me the keys and let me drive. It looked great sitting in the driveway, with its 18 inch wheels, silver paint, and stylish, swoopy shape. It is a very attractive vehicle, even better in the metal than in the photos.

The CX-7 has a really slick “switchblade-type” key/fob combination, similar to what VW has had for several years. It looks great and doesn’t stab your leg from inside your pocket. Unfortunately, there is a separate small transmitter for the optional remote start, which seems like an odd solution.

Once inside, the leather driver’s seat was very comfortable. The steering wheel and shift knob were also wrapped in leather, and the shifter had a manumatic function. The CX-7 is equipped with a 244-horsepower turbocharged, direct injection four cylinder engine (the same one found in the Mazdaspeed6 sport sedan) and a six-speed automatic transmission. The instrument panel and door panels are nicely sculpted and seem to be made of quality materials. The optional 240-watt Bose stereo with surround sound sounded great. My only ergonomic complaint is probably a matter of personal preference – I had trouble getting used to the HVAC and stereo display at the back of the dash. I suppose that a driver would be less likely to take his or her eyes off the road for a long period with them at the back of the dash, but it reminded me of the controversial split instrument panel that the Honda Civic employs for its speedometer, which also takes some getting used to. There seemed to be sufficient room in both rows of seats, even when I was in a comfortable driving position (I’m 6’4”), and the cargo area seemed reasonably large for a small-medium crossover.

On the road, the CX-7 always felt much more like a car than a truck, which makes sense since it is built on a car platform. It felt neither ponderous nor top heavy, and had better than expected off-the-line torque. It moved almost V6-like from a stop. I’d never driven a vehicle with a turbo/direct injection combination before, and from what I’ve heard, it’s the hot setup for eliminating much turbo lag. Also, I’m sure that the short first gear permitted by the six-speed automatic helps. The CX-7 seemed a little weaker in the midrange than a typical V6 in the same horsepower neighborhood, but found its groove again in the higher RPMs. In terms of smoothness and NVH, it didn’t feel as good as a Honda four cylinder, and was definitely louder and less refined than a V6. The CX-7 also requires premium fuel, while many non-luxury brand V6s in its price class do not.

As far as pricing, I didn’t ask my brother in law what he paid for his CX-7, but pricing for front wheel drive models like his starts around $25,000 and all wheel drive models starts around $27,000. Start piling on options (leather seats, satellite radio, navigation, Bose, etc.) and you’re looking at low-$30,000s. For comparison, a loaded Hyundai Santa Fe is priced similarly, but includes another $2,000 in standard equipment and a V6 instead of a turbo four. The Cx-7 is significantly less expensive than an Acura RDX, which is similarly sized and configured, but more richly appointed.

I was impressed with the CX-7. It’s probably the crossover to choose if you value style and agility in a family hauler. Depending on your needs, there are alternatives with more interior space (a lower-end GMC Acadia or Saturn Outlook, or a lower-end version of Mazda’s own larger CX-9 come to mind), but few offer the Mazda CX-7’s combination of style, driving fun, and a reasonable price.

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By Brendan Moore

03.27.2007

As you have probably read, President Bush met with the CEOs of Ford, GM and Chrysler yesterday in order to discuss “our addiction to oil” and what is being done about it. Everyone talked about flex-fuel vehicles, President Bush gingerly touched a couple of the flex-fuel vehicles brought to the White House by the automakers, cameras whirred, everyone smiled, and people pronounced it a success.

Let’s put aside the surreal theatre of this photo-op session and talk about the subject that was studiously avoided yesterday morning; that’s right, raising the fuel economy requirements of the cars that will be for sale in the next few years. The plan by Bush (and others, most notably the Democratic House members) to raise the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) requirements of new vehicles is a cruel joke.

But the joke’s on us. CAFE is a completely bankrupt premise. It serves now as an illusion that Bush has put before the American people, an illusion that makes the public believe that the federal government is doing something about the United States using less oil, and therefore, gasoline.

It is simply the federal government trying to foist responsibility for reducing gasoline consumption on to the automakers. Hey, everybody, look over there, don’t look at us!

Only a tax on gasoline will reduce gasoline consumption, and only the federal government has the power to enact such a tax. They just don’t have the political will to do it.

So, instead, we get this completely meaningless diversion of CAFÉ that wasn’t discussed
yesterday, but is being hotly debated in Congress, and almost just-as-meaningless talk about corn-based ethanol and hydrogen flex-fuel, which, apparently is the technological breakthrough we need if you go by the meeting that took place at the White House yesterday. Except, of course, that it’s not going to happen anytime soon, and there are already some serious doubts as to whether either one is even close to a good answer to our oil addiction. The government and our representatives will do anything to distract the American public away from the real solution that no wants to talk about since it is currently political self-immolation.

Isn’t President Bush fond of saying that he doesn’t govern by public opinion; he does what’s right for America? Well, here’s his big moment – will he be found wanting?

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But the big news is the possible return of the Taurus SHO

By Brendan Moore

03.25.2007

You didn’t hear it here first; that is, if you’re a Ford fanatic, anyway. The chatter on the Ford fan-boy sites about the next-generation Taurus (due Fall 2009) has grown so loud and so sustained that we feel as if we should let you in on what all the talk is about.

No detail on the redesign other than it is expected to have roughly the same interior dimensions with a bit of the front and back overhangs subtracted, and of course, look a lot better than the current Taurus. The real back-and-forth is about the rumored engines and drivetrains. The base engine will be the current very good V6 engine with some more horsepower (but under 300 HP), available with the six-speed automatic and optional AWD. The real news is that Ford is going to bring back the Taurus SHO (although a sizable faction at Ford wants it to be called SVT) and this Taurus will offer as standard a considerably upgraded AWD suspension and braking package, upscale interior with Bluetooth and a stereo with a very large hard drive for storing MP3 files, and the best part, the GTDI D35 TwinForce V8 pumping out a wonderful 415 HP.

A full-size sedan that will go very, very, fast. Now that’s what you call a family hauler. The Taurus is a big comfortable car inside without being too big, so this would be a nice market niche for Ford.

Bear in mind that none of this is confirmed at this point, but all the talk is starting to firm up on the details, so that’s always a positive sign in these situations. And auto manufacturers in trouble have a habit of leaking details out on future product in order to keep the faithful, well, faithful, while they’re putting up with the not-so-good current product. So it would not be unprecedented for these sorts of specifications to leak out this far ahead of time.

We’ll let you know more when we know it. . . .

04.09.2008 – click HERE for updated information and a link to a photo of what may be the 2010 Ford Taurus.

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By Brendan Moore

03.24.2007

It’s been a great couple of years for Mazda both here in the States as well as the rest of the world, and the company sees more of the same on the horizon, forecasting a healthy 27% profit growth over the next four years. Mazda Motor Corporation held a press conference in Tokyo on March 22 in which company officials stated that Mazda would achieve the ambitious profit target through a combination of increased product growth and reductions in manufacturing costs. Hisakazu Imaki, CEO of Mazda, made a point of saying that the expected reductions in costs would come through even closer cooperation with Ford Motor Co., their majority owner, in a pointed effort to put paid to any lingering rumors that Ford would sell their stake in Mazda because of Ford’s desperate need for cash to fix things in Dearborn.

Mazda, based in Hiroshima, galloped past their sales and profit targets for the period ending this month as it notched up large increases in Mazda3 models and Mazda6 sedan sales, as well as respectable increases in sales across the rest of the model range, while simultaneously benefiting from a weaker yen worldwide. Since much of the sales surge occurred in exports for Mazda (18% sales increase), it made the weak yen even more of a factor in the profit column. In 2006 the company built approximately 1.3 million vehicles worldwide with 75% of the total manufactured in their home country of Japan. Japan, however, accounts for only about 20% of retail sales volume for Mazda. The company projects that an even greater percentage of total units retailed will be exports in the next four years since all of the new sales growth is forecasted to occur outside of Japan..

Mazda laid out the following in the presentation:

In 2011, the company expects a profit of $1.7 billion USD – Mazda forecasted a profit of $1.34 billion USD in 2006-2007

The company plans to increase its operating margin to 6% from the current 4.9%

Consistent payouts on dividends will be established

Mazda will add one core model to their lineup in the next four years

The company expects a 23% increase in sales in this same period

“Deeper relationships with Mazda’s younger customer base will be established” in North America (hopefully that means more cars like the completely-addictive 263 HP MazdaSpeed3)

Mazda says it will increase R&D funding by over 30% within the next four years

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By Brendan Moore

03.20.07

A lot of people in the U.S. don’t really think much about Buick anymore when they’re ready to buy a new car. Buick hasn’t gone away like Oldsmobile did a while ago, but for many Americans; Buick ceased being relevant years ago.

Sales figures bear this out with Buick selling 40% less vehicles in 2006 (240,000 U.S. sales) than it did in 2000, and the 2000 numbers were already down from the 1990’s. Some of this decline was of course attributable to the same import tide that has washed away domestic sales across the board, but Buick has lost more sales than average, and lost those sales more quickly as well. And all of this despite a lot of positive attention from GM, which has replaced everything in the Buick lineup in recent years, mostly to the indifference of the buying public. Buick does have two recent additions to the fold which are very good vehicles; the Enclave, an elegant crossover, and the Lucerne, an attractive, capable sedan that is bargain-priced for its segment. These two vehicles will suffice to keep the division afloat while reinforcements are rushed to the front lines over the next few years.

2007 Buick Lucerne

Then there is China. General Motors is the number-one carmaker in China, and Buick is the brand responsible for most of that success. Most Americans are stunned when you tell them that Buick is considered a premium brand in China, and a brand millions and millions of Chinese aspire to own. Buick sold more vehicles in China last year than in the U.S. with over 330,000 units retailed in 2006. When GM decided to start selling cars in China in the 1990’s, they chose to brand the vehicles as Buicks since the brand enjoyed a stellar reputation there before WWII. Sometimes GM gets it right, and that turned out to be a prescient decision on their part.

2006 Buick Royaum – China-only model

When will this sales schizophrenia end for Buick? When the U.S arm of Buick gets it together, basically. Buick in China is on a roll, and if Buick North America could replicate their success, there’d be a lot of big smiles over at Buick Division headquarters.

In the interim, since you, like the rest of the country, haven’t been thinking about Buick much either, here are some random facts about Buick:

Buick is 104 years old, has good brand recognition in other countries, and still enjoys a good reputation for American quality and dependability internationally.

Buick dealers in the United States were offered a version of the excellent rear-wheel-drive platform from Holden in Australia that will soon be used in Pontiac and Chevrolet performance models, and politely declined. They conveyed their fears that the car would steal sales from their current FWD offerings that are approximately the same size. Reporter’s note: this is a mistake.

The brand managers at Buick believe that black buyers are an untapped gold mine for the brand and have experimented with expensive marketing campaigns aimed at young black professionals in metro areas like Atlanta.

Buick is bringing back the “Super” name to use on their highest-trim level models. The name was last used in the Fifties.

Most of the large Buicks in China are for executives and are chauffer-driven.

Nicola Bulgari of Bulgari jewelry fame, has over 40 Buicks housed in Italy that he uses for high-speed driving across Europe. Among these cars is the last retail sale Riviera Silver Arrow up-rated with a 420 HP supercharged engine, heavily modified suspension, special over-sized disc brakes, and performance-rated tires. To quote Bulgari, “”I fell in love with the Buicks. To me, they were the symbol of America. They had glamorous styling, personality, power and responsiveness.´ And then, “For me,” says Bulgari, “Buicks are the most elegant cars. Mercedes are no longer a status car. To me, they are just taxis.” Bugari has another approximately 50 Buicks stored in the U.S. that he uses when he visits the States.

Buick says the 2008 Buick Enclave is targeted at Lexus RX 330 and Acura MDX buyers.

2008 Buick Enclave

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