Americans are gravitating toward the kinds of vehicles theyâ??ll be buying for the next several years, says
one of the nationâ??s leading automotive forecasters.
John Wolkonowicz, senior auto analyst at IHS Global Insight, says the dominant vehicle of the future will…
For an interesting take on how mass transit could help revitalize Indianapolis, see IBJ reporter Chris Oâ??Malleyâ??s
story this week on the topic. Ball State grad students dreamed up several concepts for plunking new rail
stations along existing…
How do you feel about taxing commuters to supplement promotion of the cityâ??s convention industry? The idea
was floated in an article by IBJ reporter Anthony Schoettle about the Indianapolis Convention & Visitors
Association asking for more money…
As just about everyone expected, General Motors and Chrysler are back asking for more bailouts. Instead of
$17.4 billion, they now want $39 billion.
As part of its turnaround plan, GM plans to jettison Saturn, the brand launched in…
A number of car companies have introduced, or plan to introduce, clean-diesel engines to cater to buyers
wanting better fuel efficiency.
Diesels from Volkswagen and other manufacturers boost mileage by about a third, but much of that advantage
in the past…
Politicians are about to step in for directors and force sweeping changes on the Detroit car companies, judging
from the direction of talks in Congress.
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd yesterday called for the firing of General Motors…
The jobs bank has come to symbolize whatever the general public thinks is wrong with the United Auto Workers
and Detroit car companies.
For many years, the UAW contract has stipulated that laid-off workers be paid nearly their entire compensation.
Now,…
Open a local phone book or punch in a Google search on car dealers, and itâ??s immediately apparent Detroit
companies have many, many more dealers than their foreign competitors.
Chevrolet and Ford, for instance, each have more than a dozen dealers…
More than half the cars, vans, pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles assembled in Indiana failed to make
the Insurance Institute for Highway Safetyâ??s latest list of safest vehicles.
Making the list are the Subaru Legacy and Tribeca, assembled in…
Two schools of thought are emerging over the proposed bailout of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler.
One is that the auto industry is too big to fail. Itâ??s not just because of the manufacturing operations
and all the suppliers…
The latest unnamed source to discuss the future of Chrysler raises the possibility of the company being sold
off in pieces.
This, after it became public that General Motors is interested in Chrysler to snag desperately needed cash.
Nissan…
Executives of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are optimistic about their chances of getting inexpensive federal
loans to help tide them through the credit crunch and sales downturn.
The discussions, which have come to light in recent weeks, have the execs…
Small, fuel-efficient cars are in and big, thirsty vehicles are out. But as consumers try to save money
on gas, their odds of getting hurt increase, the Insurance Research Council warned today.
The Pennsylvania organization, which researches the property and casualty…
Gas prices have been up for quite a while now, so are buyers of the H2 Hummer, the king of sport-utility
vehicles, pulling back?
Not as much as one might think, says Corey Lockhart, Hummer general manager at Lockhart Hummer in…
More than a month has passed since the June 7 floods inundated much of southern Indiana, plenty of time
for unsuspecting consumers to buy once-soggy vehicles.
The flooding was a drop in the bucket compared to what hit New Orleans and…
Detroit keeps turning out bad news, what with General Motors, Ford and Chrysler losing market share and Volkswagenâ??s
announcement last fall that it would abandon the city and move its U.S. headquarters to Virginia.
Now Volkswagen is days away from unveiling…
A Purdue University civil engineering professor made news this week by rolling out a study showing the new
70 mph speed limit on rural interstates in Indiana caused virtually no increase in fatalities or injuries.
The study was prompted by the…
It seems like more people are driving below the speed limit now that gas has become expensive.
Particularly on interstates, it isnâ??t uncommon to come upon congestion only to realize that somebody, for
no apparent reason, is puttering along and holding…
Gas is over $4 in northwest Indiana, according to http://www.indianagasprices.com/.
In some places, itâ??s up to $4.09.
How long until it hits $4 in the Indianapolis area, and how high will it go?
If youâ??re looking for another reason Toyota is pushing Detroit carmakers around, notice how their workers
spend their time when vehicle sales soften, spurring production cutbacks.
Detroit companies send their workers home with nearly full compensation.
At its plant in Princeton, Toyota…
