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Mahindra reportedly inks deal to buy Ssangyong for $463M

Filed under: Etc., Earnings/Financials, India, South Korea

Mahindra logo Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra has officially sunk its teeth into South Korean automaker Ssangyong to the tune of $463.6 million. For that low, low price Mahindra has effectively walked away with a 70 percent controlling stake in Ssangyong through the purchase of newly released shares in the company and existing corporate bonds. The move follows up on a pact to acquire Ssangyong that Mahindra signed earlier this year, and according to The Wall Street Journal, the two companies look to close the deal by March of next year.

According to Mahindra, the match is a partnership made in heaven, with the Indian carmaker able to supply both cash and marketing grunt that should mesh well with Ssangyong’s technological prowess.

We’re guessing that the South Korean carmaker is just glad to have someone to help pull it out of the throws of bankruptcy.

[Source: The Wall Street Journal – sub. req.]

Mahindra reportedly inks deal to buy Ssangyong for $463M originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 23 Nov 2010 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is the New GM a Buy?

Filed under: GM, Earnings/Financials

After next month’s elections, General Motors will rev up its engines to go on the road and try and sell its initial public offering of common stock to savvy investors, especially the big institutional investors with millions of dollars, hundreds of millions in some cases, to put into a stock they like.

So, is the new GM a buy? Let’s look at some facts. It has had four CEOs since Spring 2009. It has gone into and come out of Bankruptcy. And it’s current chairman, Edward Whitacre Jr., tapped by the White House because of his extraordinary history of management and corporate governance, apparently is so checked out already, despite the fact that he has the job until the New Year, that he yammered to a reporter about details of GM’s stock plans despite the fact that the company is in a Securities and Exchange Commission-imposed “quiet period.” Oops.

“It’s a little too early to say, but it is going to be somewhere in the $20 range …$20 to $25, something like that would be my guess,” Whitacre told Reuters. Reuters also quoted Whitacre as saying, “I can’t say how much we’ll sell, but I can say we’ll have a successful IPO sometime in November.” GM has had to distance itself from the comments of its own chairman.

While these facts don’t necessarily inspire confidence, hold your judgement. Stock market investing can be an emotional game, especially for amateur individual investors. But it pays to look at stocks and the future with a more unemotional view.

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Is the New GM a Buy? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 22 Oct 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GM completes buy of AmeriCredit, to be called GM Financial

Filed under: Etc., GM, Earnings/Financials, By the Numbers

GM logo General Motors is just about ready to start offering in-house financing once again. Its acquisition of AmeriCredit is complete, pending approval by AmeriCredit’s shareholders. The merger is officially effective as of October 1st, 2010 and is an all-cash transaction valued at $3.5 billion.

The company will be renamed GM Financial. Having a captive finance arm allows GM and its dealers to expand finance and lease options, which is good news for both The General and its customers. GM Financial has targeted first quarter of 2011 to begin its initial leasing program.

You can read the full press release after the jump.

[Source: General Motors]

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GM completes buy of AmeriCredit, to be called GM Financial originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 03 Oct 2010 13:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don’t buy ’em?

Filed under: Car Buying, Budget, Hybrid, Sedan, Hatchback, Design/Style

2011 Ford Fiesta hatchback

Hatchbacks and their sedan counterparts – Click above for high-res image gallery

There’s a well-worn cliché that is uttered periodically by just about every product planner and PR wonk in the auto industry – one that’s been dutifully parroted by the journalists and enthusiasts that surround them, and it goes something like this: “Sorry, fellas, Americans just don’t buy hatchbacks.” Typically, that chestnut is trotted out whenever an automaker is compelled to explain why a particularly desirable new hatchback won’t be sold in U.S. showrooms. Thing is, this commonly accepted bit of wisdom isn’t as true as we’ve been led to believe.

The hatchback accounts for 60 percent of Fiesta sales.

Just ask Ford, who announced today that its new-for-2011 Fiesta is selling more in five-door guise than it is in its more traditional four-door sedan format. According to figures the automaker has sourced from Ward’s Auto, the jaunty hatch accounts for over 60 percent of the Fiesta’s sales. Little wonder, perhaps, as Ford has seemingly devoted the Fiesta’s entire marketing budget to that particular bodystyle.

As a further statement of faith in the viability of the utilitarian bodystyle, the Blue Oval is readying its 2012 Focus in both sedan and five-door formats, with the two-door Focus coupe being discarded in favor of the hatchback – a configuration unavailable since 2007. Ford sales analyst George Pipas nutshells what he sees as a growing trend:

“American car buyers have grown accustomed to the convenience of hatch bodystyles after years of owning SUVs and crossovers. Combined with a generation of younger drivers who have been exposed via the Internet to popular high-performance hatchback offerings in Europe and Asia, we may be seeing the beginning of a shift in buyer acceptance of hatchbacks.”

Ford isn’t alone in its bid to disprove that consumers are inherently averse to two-box designs because they feel they’re cheap and frumpy – sensible as opposed to stylish. Autoblog recently inquired with a number of automakers who offer entry-level models available in both hatchback and sedan bodystyles, only to find out that in many cases, bubbleback models are outselling their trunked counterparts.

Gallery: Hatchbacks and Their Sedan Counterparts

2011 Ford Fiesta hatchback 2011 Ford Fiesta sedan 2010 Toyota Yaris hatchback 2010 Toyota Yaris sedan 2010 Hyundai Accent hatchback

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Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don’t buy ’em? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Tesla to buy old resources from GM, Toyota for NUMMI plant

Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Tesla

Tesla Model S – Click above for high-res image gallery

When Tesla struck a deal a few months ago with Toyota to buy the closed NUMMI factory in Fremont, CA, it was made clear that the $42 million price tag only included the building and property. At the time, Tesla officials indicated that most of the equipment previously used to build Toyota Tacomas and Pontiac Vibes was unsuitable for its upcoming products.

Apparently, after going through the available machinery, Tesla did find some items it can use and has reached an agreement with Toyota and Motors Liquidation Company (the remnants of the old, bankrupt General Motors) to buy some of the equipment for a total of $15 million. Tesla has paid $4.6 million as a deposit toward the purchase and will close the deal along with the property purchase. The purchase likely covers generic equipment such as lift trucks, robots and paint equipment.

Gallery: Tesla Model S

[Source: The Street]

Report: Tesla to buy old resources from GM, Toyota for NUMMI plant originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: VW wants to buy Alfa Romeo, Fiat unwilling to part

Filed under: Volkswagen, Earnings/Financials, Alfa Romeo, Fiat

According to Automotive News Europe, Volkswagen is keen on continuing its hungry, hungry hippo march through the automotive world. The report says that the German manufacturing giant has its eye on snapping up Alfa Romeo, even though parent-company Fiat has no intention of turning the brand loose.

The news comes courtesy of two unnamed, high-ranking VW officials who claim that the company has developed a serious taste for Italian as of late. Meanwhile, a similarly shadowy figure in the upper echelons of the Fiat kingdom says that Fiat won’t sell Alfa Romeo to the Germans.

While the two companies appear to be drawing lines in the sand, Fiat has said that it wants Alfa Romeo to become a world-class luxury manufacturer. That includes selling upwards of 500,000 units per year by 2014 – nearly five times what the company managed to move in 2009.

So why does VW want Alfa Romeo? Nabbing the brand would be an easy way to help the carmaker in its quest to take down Toyota as the world’s number one automaker. Dipping into the Alfa Romeo stable would also give VW access to a wealth of new front-engine, front-wheel-drive chassis options as well.

[Source: Automotive News Europe]

Report: VW wants to buy Alfa Romeo, Fiat unwilling to part originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 12:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Iranians can’t buy Toyotas anymore

Filed under: Car Buying, Government/Legal, Toyota, Middle East

The current situation over in Iran is pretty grim, what with major countries like the United States and Europe imposing new sanctions on the Middle Eastern country. The reason? International concern over the country’s nuclear program.

Because of this situation, Toyota has decided to cease exports of its vehicles to Iran. The automaker issued a statement saying that this decision was made after considering “the international environment,” and that it would “continue to closely monitor the international situation.”

Toyota’s sales in Iran have fallen drastically over the past few years – only around 220 vehicles were sold this year, up until the company’s decision to remove Iran from its export list. This is indeed quite a change, as Toyota sold nearly 4,000 vehicles in Iran just two years earlier.

Currently, no American automakers have a presence in Iran, and with Toyota moving to stop exports to the country, we’ll be interested to see if other manufacturers follow suit. Currently, major European automakers like Mercedes-Benz and BMW continue to export to Iran.

[Source: CNN, BBC News]

Iranians can’t buy Toyotas anymore originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 13 Aug 2010 13:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2010 Porsche 911 Sport Classic is proof that money really can buy happiness

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Porsche, Specialty, Quick Spin

2010 Porsche 911 Sport Classic – Click above for high-res image gallery

The Porsche 911 Sport Classic, introduced late last year, never made it into North American showrooms. The Feds wanted it certified, and with a production run of just a couple hundred units, the German automaker couldn’t accomplish the task in a financially feasible manner. That’s a cryin’ shame, as the gray 911 sporting retro-styled Fuchs wheels and a ducktail is likely one of the best street vehicles to ever come out of Stuttgart.

As good fortune would have it, we crossed paths with a 911 Sport Classic factory prototype in France at the 2010 Le Mans Classic earlier this month. Not only were we able to spend three days with the ultra-limited-edition Porsche, but we had the opportunity to take her out for several hot laps of the complete Le Mans circuit. What differentiates the Sport Classic from the Carrera S, and what’s the story behind those retro-styled touches? How does the Sport Classic drive, and can it be compared to a track-ready GT3? Lastly, what’s the justification for such a high sticker price? Find these answers, and more, after the jump.

Gallery: 2010 Porsche 911 Sport Classic: Quick Spin

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Quick Spin: 2010 Porsche 911 Sport Classic is proof that money really can buy happiness originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 22 Jul 2010 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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