July 30, 2010

Nissan Leaf Rollout Plan Has Some Surprises
The rollout schedule for Nissan's electric car, released yesterday, has a surprise: the Leaf will not be available in New York until late 2011. Nissan North America's executive vice president, Carlos Tavares, revealed the initial Leaf markets would be California, Washington State, Oregon, Arizona, and Tennessee. More than 55 percent of all reservations originated in these states. Customers in the initial markets can place orders in August. Click here to visit the Leaf's website.  The New York Times reports a charging-infrastructure plan is being implemented, called the E.V. Project. About 12,500 220-volt charge points and 250 quick-charge systems would be installed in metropolitan areas. The second Leaf wave hits Texas and Hawaii in January 2011, followed by North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, South Carolina, Alabama, and the District next April. Remaining markets receive Leafs beginning fall 2011. Nissan's rollout deviates from Chevrolet's Volt, which mainly targets the tri-state region of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Nissan says 75 percent of all Leaf reservations came from single-family homes, where power sockets are accessible for overnight charging, a difficult endeavor for apartment dwellers. For more on the Leaf's rollout schedule, click here.

Obama to Pitch Early Success of Auto Bailouts
President Barack Obama will travel to the heart of the U.S. auto industry today on a mission to convince taxpayers that their investment in the bailouts of GM and Chrysler will bring a return. Heading into a congressional election season in which polls show the public skeptical about the $84.8 billion rescue and anxious about economy, Obama is using the backdrop of Detroit- area plants to promote what he says is an industry revival that has saved more than a million jobs. Automotive News reports that Obama previewed the argument he'll make in an interview broadcast yesterday. "We are going to get all the money back that we invested in those car companies," Obama said on ABC's "The View" program. The industry's resurgence "tells a good story" about the U.S. economic recovery, he said. However, many voters don't see it that way. A Bloomberg National Poll conducted July 9-12 that shows the federal assistance package to automobile companies is becoming less popular: 48 percent say they had become less supportive in recent months versus 17 percent who say they have become more supportive. For more on the president's appeal to voters, click here.

Reviving Saab: An Uphill Battle
The latest chapter in the effort to revive Saab cars by its new owners played out this week with the media launch of the Saab 9-5 Aero. Click here for photos. According to Fortune magazine, the automaker faces a daunting task of reestablishing itself as a legitimate automaker after halting production and advertising for months - and thus nearly vanishing from the consciousness of potential customers. Saab has survived since 1937, but the last 18 months have been the most tumultuous in its history. After several potential deals to sell Saab last year fell through, GM announced it would wind down the brand starting January 7, 2010. The process of closing the company had already begun when Dutch entrepreneur Victor Muller stepped in and bought it with $1 billion in capital. To restart Saab, Muller and team are draining the product pipeline left over from GM's ownership. After the 9-5, which hadn't been replaced for 12 years, comes the 9-4x crossover vehicle in 2011 and a new 9-3, the Saab mainstay, is due in 2012. Muller believes there are a huge group of Saab loyalists who have been denied the opportunity to buy a new Saab because GM was so desultory about renewing the model lineup. "People will buy the same car twice," he said during an interview, "but not three or four times. That's too much." For more on Muller's efforts to revive Saab, click here.

VW's China Surge Yields Biggest Profit in Two Years
Volkswagen AG yesterday reported its biggest quarterly profit in two years on higher demand in China for the namesake brand's Jetta and Lavida and the Audi luxury unit's A6. Second-quarter operating profit in China, VW's largest market since 2009, more than doubled to 518 million euros ($677 million) from 193 million euros a year earlier, according to VW's figures. BusinessWeek reports that CEO Martin Winterkorn needs China to help achieve his goal of surpassing Toyota in sales and profitability by 2018. In the last two months VW has announced plans to build two new plants in China, the world's biggest automobile market, to double production capacity. "China has become hugely important for VW's business targets," said analyst Frank Biller, who recommends buying the stock. "The margin per car is clearly in the double-digit range." Volkswagen, the first overseas carmaker to enter the Chinese market three decades ago, is counting on the country to offset stagnating sales in Europe, where the end of government scrapping incentives is hitting demand for vehicles. VW's first-half China sales advanced 46 percent to 950,729 vehicles, accounting for 26 percent of deliveries worldwide. For more on VW in China, click here.

Opinion: Sales Are Up (So How Come So Glum?)
Automotive News editor Jesse Snyder can't believe what a miserable bunch of sad sacks we all are. U.S. auto sales are rising in July, running ahead of last year's pace. July will be, in fact, the eighth straight month of year-over-year sales gains. Automakers, suppliers, dealers - nearly everybody - are lean, mean profit machines these days. Analysts universally forecast annual sales increases the next four years at least. So why is the auto industry so miserable? We are, in a word, disappointed. We want so much more. And we want it so much faster. Yes, U.S. auto sales are up 17 percent in the first half of 2010. But that's compared to the worst six months in any of our adult memories. And yes, we're all properly glad that we cut costs enough to survive. We are also impatient. After crashing from eight years of 16 million annual sales to 10.4 million in 2009, we want a bigger, faster bounce on the recovery side. But maybe it's time to savor small gains. Last July, cash-for-clunkers boosted demand during the last week enough for the seasonally adjusted annual sales rate to climb above 10 million for the first time that year. July 2010 should beat those numbers. And that's something to smile about. To read Snyder's full opinion, click here.

Around the Web
Meet the VW House and Restaurant [Jalopnik]
How to Steal a Nissan Leaf [CNet]
The $41,000 Question: Is the Chevy Volt Worth It? [New York Times]
2010 BMW Z4 sDrive35is Limited Edition Mille Miglia [Got Broken]