The American International Automobile Dealers Association (AIADA) released April 2012 sales figures for the international nameplate automobile industry. AIADA represents America’s approximately 10,000 international nameplate franchises whose brands accounted for 55.3 percent of all vehicles sold in the United States last month.

The unusually warm winter had some analysts fearing a decline in spring auto sales, but their predictions have not yet materialized. Sales continue to grow, with the seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) for light vehicles estimated by AutoData Corp. at 14.4 million units, versus 13.2 million units a year ago. Overall sales, including domestic brands and unadjusted for business days, rose 2.3 percent compared April 2012 and 10.3 percent for the year-to-date.

Among international brands, Volkswagen saw the sharpest improvement with sales rising 31.5 percent to 37,525 vehicles, their best April in 40 years. Audi experienced a 15 percent increase in sales, and Toyota saw sales up 13.5 percent from April 2011. Honda’s sales were down 3 percent and Nissan, which cut its incentives by an average of $330 per vehicle, fell 0.9 percent. Because AIADA calculates its sales numbers without adjusting for business days, and April 2012 had three fewer selling days than April 2011, those numbers are somewhat skewed.

Incentive spending is trending down, and sales continued to climb in April, said AIADA President Cody Lusk. That’s a good sign for both dealers and the economy. In April, international brands accounted for 654,086 units sold, down from 791,169 in March.

Asian nameplates occupied 45.3 percent of the U.S. auto market, down from 47.6 in March. European nameplates grew from an 8.7 percent share in March to 10 percent. Domestic brands finished the month with a 44.8 percent share of the market, up from 43.7 in March.

Source: http://www.aiada.org/images/stories/press_releases/050212%20market%20watch%20press%20release.pdf

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The 2013 Ford Fusion has earned the Gene Ritvo Award for Design and Elegance from the New England Motor Press Association (NEMPA) in conjunction with Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts and the Larz Anderson Auto Museum. The Ritvo honors the best in design in the automotive world, whether it’s a concept car, production vehicle, a marketing campaign or a particular element of a vehicle that defines elegance in design.

“It is an honor to accept this award on behalf of the team behind the all-new Ford Fusion,” said Chris Hamilton, Fusion chief designer. “The 2013 Fusion has a revolutionary design that puts an accent on elegance: It has a sophisticated feel and a sleek profile setting it apart from traditional midsize sedans.” “When reviewing all the entries for the Design and Elegance Award,” said Meghan Melvin of the MFA, “we appreciated the simplicity of line of the Fusion’s detailing, the subtle shaping of the hood and the distinctive front composition of the vehicle.”

The design of the all-new Fusion, on sale later this year, was built upon five key elements:

* lhouette innovation: Fusion’s sleek profile sets it apart from the “three-box” powertrain/cabin/trunk designs synonymous with midsize sedans
* Perceived efficiency: Fusion character lines sweeping to the rear and thin roof pillars suggest the car is nimble and light on its feet
* Refined surface language: Fusion demonstrates that a tasteful, well-executed design does not require add-ons or visual clutter
* chnical graphics: Fusion’s functional design elements such as headlamps, LED taillamps and polished exhaust tips communicate enhanced echnological capability
* w face: Fusion signals the next evolution in Ford global design language for midsize cars and smaller
Hamilton is accepting the award tonight.

“Gene would have been pleased to see a car like the Ford Fusion win this award,” said Keith Griffin, NEMPA president. “It’s an elegant vehicle that is a true head turner. At the same time, it’s practical transportation. I was happy to see the Museum of Fine Arts and Larz Anderson – who partnered with NEMPA for the first time this year in judging the entries – select this as the winner.”

The award is named for the late Gene Ritvo, a devoted NEMPA member and veteran concours photographer who had an unusually keen eye. The first Ritvo Award was presented in May 2011 to Infiniti for its marketing campaign that focused on design and elegance.

The 2013 Ford Fusion debuted at the 2012 North American International Auto Show in January.

Source: http://corporate.ford.com/news-center/press-releases-detail/pr-new-ford-fusion-earns-the-2012-36492

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CCTV News broadcasted a main report as the topic of ‘Anhui: manufacturing, studying, researching join hands to promote industry enhancement’. The news used JAC Motors as the breakthrough point to introduce the important function of combining manufacturing, studying and researching in the process of JAC new engine vehicle R&D. The following are the details:

On one side, the enterprises were embittered by the difficult problems of technology. On the other hand, scientific research institutes feel powerless because their research results can’t change to practical application. How to make two sides benefit and promote the industrial restructuring and upgrading? Anhui province made beneficial exploration.

The remaining battery power on the instruments board is not accurate, so that the drivers can’t estimate the mileage accurately. It was a big problem for the development of JAC new energy vehicle. The engineer of JAC Mr. Qin liwei has done thousands of experiments, but the effect was not ideal.

The problem puzzled Mr. Qin Liwei, which has been broken though by the profession Mr. Chen Qiuming in Hefei University of Industry. In a exchanging conference, Mr. Qin Liwei made acquaintance with Mr. Chen Qiuming, and two sides have cooperation immediately.

Now, 1000 units JAC new energy vehicle applied this technology have been launched into the market, and warmly welcomed by customers.

Source: http://jacen.jac.com.cn/article/20120511/75160724.html

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Cooper Kenworth has recently opened an expanded 31,000 square-foot parts and service operation along U.S. Interstate 40 in Asheville, North Carolina. The new Cooper Kenworth – Asheville facility joins a Kenworth dealer network of more than 320 locations in the United States and Canada. The parts and service operation is located on nearly 6 acres at 1895 Old Haywood Rd., less than a mile from the Smokey Park Highway underpass at Exit 44.

The parts and service operation features 14 service bays, with one bay dedicated to offering Kenworth PremierCare® preventive maintenance services, and a 7,000 square-foot parts department to provide excellent parts availability. A spacious drivers’ lounge offers a comfortable place for customers to relax and get caught up on paperwork while their trucks are serviced.

This is a great site for our newest location, said Russell Laing, vice president of Cooper Kenworth, which operates nine other North Carolina locations in Clinton, Concord, Durham, Greensboro, Hickory, Raleigh, Rocky Mount, South Charlotte and Wilmington. It offers ample space for truck and trailer parking and great visibility from Interstate 40, the nation’s third longest east-west interstate that extends west to Barstow, Calif., and east to Wilmington, N.C. Plus, the Asheville location has a modern alignment machine, as well as full certifications for PACCAR MX and Cummins engines.

The parts and service departments at Cooper Kenworth-Asheville are open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and the parts department is open from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday. The toll-free number is 800-876-0860 and the local number is 828-667-8771. The parts manager is Jay Harrell and the service manager is Dan Rice.

The new location is part of Kenworth’s constant commitment for superior satisfaction as demonstrated by Kenworth receiving the 2011 J.D. Power and Associates award for “Highest in Customer Satisfaction for Heavy Duty Truck Dealer Service.

Kenworth Truck Company is the manufacturer of The World’s Best® heavy and medium duty trucks. Kenworth is an industry leader in providing fuel-saving technology solutions that help increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The company’s dedication to the green fleet includes aerodynamic trucks, compressed and liquefied natural gas trucks, and medium duty diesel-electric hybrids. Kenworth is the only truck manufacturer to receive the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air Excellence award in recognition of its environmentally friendly products. In addition, the fuel-efficient Kenworth T700 equipped with the low-emission PACCAR MX engine was named the 2011 Heavy Duty Commercial Truck of the Year by the American Truck Dealers. Kenworth is also the recipient of the 2011 J.D. Power and Associates award for Highest in Customer Satisfaction for Heavy Duty Truck Dealer Service.

Source: http://www.kenworth.com/news/news-releases/2012/may/cooper-kenworth-expands-to-10-locations-with-new-parts

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Opel is fundamentally renewing its engine range. Three completely new gasoline and diesel families are replacing the core of the current portfolio. The aim is to take an industry lead, not just with fuel consumption and emissions but with specific torque and noise reduction.

The first new engine to be introduced is a turbocharged 1598 cc, four-cylinder gasoline unit with direct injection and Start/Stop. The new SIDI (spark ignition direct injection) ECOTEC engine will be available in various power outputs and across several car lines. Production at the Szentgotthardt plant in Hungary will begin in late 2012.

Smooth acceleration, strong pulling power, low noise levels and low fuel consumption were the main focus. The emphasis was on torque with the engineers achieving up to 187.5 Nm per liter of displacement – a benchmark for gasoline engines produced in high volume. Maximum torque is up to 300 Nm and is already available at 1,700 rpm. Peak power of up to 200 hp is reached at 4,700 rpm. Compared to the predecessor 1.6 liter turbocharged gasoline engine, fuel consumption and CO2 have been cut by 13 percent.

In just twelve months we are launching three completely new engine generations. This shows how fast we are introducing new products, says Opel CEO Karl-Friedrich Stracke. Our new 1.6 liter direct injection engine is a real giant in terms of torque. Power builds up very smoothly and quietly, the director of gasoline engines, Thomas Johnen, explains.

The first Opel engine with spark ignition direct injection technology, the 114kW/155 hp 2.2 ECOTEC direct made its debut in Opel’s Signum and Vectra in 2003, succeeded by the Zafira. In 2007, the GT offered the first turbocharged gasoline engine with direct injection from Opel, a 2.0 liter unit with 194kW/264 hp. One year later this engine was introduced in the Insignia and was available in the Opel flagship in two variants: 162 kW/220 hp and 184kW/250 hp. The new Astra OPC will be powered by the latest version of this engine offering an output of 206kW/280 hp.

Source: http://media.opel.com/media/intl/en/opel/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/intl/en/2012/opel/05_14_New_generation_1_6_turbo

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