More bad news for Japanese auto maker Toyota Motor Corp. (TM), with the company announcing that it was recalling around 600,000 Sienna minivans sold in the United States.

The latest in a string of safety concerns involves potentially rusted spare tire cables that could break, allowing the minivan's spare tire to bust loose and tumble into the road.

Continue reading Sienna Minivans Join the Toyota Recall List

Sienna Minivans Join the Toyota Recall List originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 17 Apr 2010 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford (F) posts surprising profit for its third quarter

Ford (F) posts surprising profit for its third quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

China has taken its first major step into the U.S. car market as General Motors announced it had finalized a deal to sell off its Hummer truck brand to Chinese auto manufacturer Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery.

Under the deal, GM will continue to make the trucks no later than 2010. While a deal has been reached, it is still going to be up to Chinese regulators to approve the deal and decide if the brand can be profitable and fit into the country's overall national strategy to improve energy efficiency.

Continue reading General Motors finalizes Hummer deal

General Motors finalizes Hummer deal originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 10 Oct 2009 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford sales fall in September

Ford sales fall in September originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading General Motors to boost output

General Motors to boost output originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Aug 2009 17:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There has been a lot of debate over the past couple of months over General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM). What would be best for the company? Government bailout money to help avoid bankruptcy, or should we allow the company to go through bankruptcy proceedings?

If you are on the side of the argument that thinks GM should enter bankruptcy, well, you are about to get exactly that. According to Bloomberg, General Motors plans to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on June 1.

Continue reading General Motors bankruptcy right around the corner

General Motors bankruptcy right around the corner originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 May 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Will your next car have a made in China sticker on it?

Will your next car have a made in China sticker on it? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford struggles to see light at end of the tunnel

Ford struggles to see light at end of the tunnel originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading November a tough month for Toyota (TM)

November a tough month for Toyota (TM) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Dec 2008 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford struggles in August

Ford struggles in August originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Sep 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Earnings preview for Ford

Earnings preview for Ford originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Deep job cuts coming to Ford Motor (F) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 May 2008 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ford Motor

Ford Motor (F) to produce fewer cars this quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 Feb 2008 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In 2006, Chrysler (NYSE: DCX) lost $1.5 billion as the company failed to adapt to changing trends in the auto industry, focusing on minivans, pickups, and sport utility vehicles. By way of explanation, Chairman Dieter Zetsche offered this, which is probably one of the dumbest quotes I've seen so far in 2007:

"The crucial factor was the unforeseeable shift in demand to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles, which was triggered by increased gas prices in the U.S." (emphasis added)

Wow. What's next? Will people continue to buy dog food that kills their pets? Will Atari explain the declining sales of the Atari 2600 by saying that "the crucial factor was an unforeseeable shift toward higher quality, more enjoyable video games"?

All I can say is that if the chairman of an automobile manufacturer considers the shift toward smaller cars in light of rising gas prices as unforeseeable, the company probably needs new leadership.

On April 5th, Kirk Kerkorian offered $4.58 billion for the company, so maybe change is on the way.

Stupid quote of the week: DaimlerChrysler's poor planning originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 08 Apr 2007 16:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and watch out for more Battle of the Brands posts.

The sad part about this subject is watching these two companies going in almost opposite directions -- at least for now. General Motors General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) has a current market capitalization of $18 billion versus the behemoth Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) with a massive market capitalization of $236 billion, over 13 times bigger than GM. Yet on the surface one would never guess these numbers as their revenues are fairly close in comparison: GM for 2007, estimates revenues of $173 billion, and Toyota's at $200 billion.

It's what's underneath the hood that distinguishes these companies.

Toyota has just come off a five-year period of growth in its per-share earnings at 26% per year, an astounding accomplishment for such a large company. General Motors has experienced flat to negative earnings per share growth over the same five-year period. Toyota is opening new plants, both in Japan and the U.S., to handle demand, while General Motors is closing plants to save costs and resources.

Toyota has set itself apart as the undisputed world leader with the hybrid auto: half combustible engine, half battery powered. The hybrids are still at a price premium to comparable standard combustible, gasoline-powered models, but they will close that gap over the next two or three years. The hybrids come in luxurious lines of the Camry, the Highlander SUV, and the Lexus RX series, as well as the economical Prius model. GM has yet to enter the hybrid field in a serious way.

Continue reading General Motors vs. Toyota: Battle of the Brands

General Motors vs. Toyota: Battle of the Brands originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 08 Apr 2007 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

U.S. stock markets are posed to open down as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT) released its worst same-store sales figures in 25 years and new data underscored the weakness in the housing market. DaimlerChrysler AG (NYSE:DCX) also is expected to announce big cutbacks at its Chrysler unit.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, said January sales rose 2.2 percent, following a poor holiday season. The company has reshuffled its management ranks as it looks to regain lost traction against rivals including Target Stores Corp. (NYSE:TGT). JP Morgan Securities analyst Charles Grom told clients Saturday that Wal-Mart will "continue to face an uphill battle versus Target and other moderately priced department store chains," according to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

Two Detroit newspapers are reporting that DaimlerChrysler is expected to announce plans to cut 10,000 jobs and close three U.S. factories as it tries to become more competitive, according to the Associated Press. There also will be closer ties between the company's Chrysler and Mercedes Benz units.

Oil prices are expected to rise as a cold snap hits the Northeast. and the dollar was mixed in trading against currencies in Europe. Economists are expecting that a key measure of service industry growth will show that increased consumer spending is boosting economic expansion, according to Bloomberg News. The Institute for Supply Management's index of non-manufacturing business is expected to jump to 57 from a revised 56.7 in December, according to a survey of economists by Bloomberg.

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Before the Bell 2-5-07: Wal-Mart slides, Chrysler slashes, oil expected to rise originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 05 Feb 2007 08:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is written as part of AOL Money & Finance's Best & Worst 2006. If this post convinces you that Ford can make a comeback, cast your vote.

Recently I wrote a blog post about some of the nice things Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is doing. It was just an overview and the article was cursory at best. A member of our excellent editing staff suggested that I might have readers who want a bit more explanation of just what has happened with Ford's stock market value over the last year. I think that for an even better perspective, I'll need to take you back ... way, way back....

Ford Motor Company's stock value entered this decade at $29.30 (the actual per share value was $53.51 but there's a split adjustment factored in). By the end of 2000 Ford stock had slipped to $23.44. One year later the shares had deflated to $15.95 and by the end of 2002 investors were viewing in amazement a stock value of just $9.58. In 2003 Ford took an upswing and shares ended that year at $16.18. But 2004 ended at $14.80, 2005 nearly halved that value to $7.90, and 2006 is shaping up to finish with Ford Motor Company shares close to today's ending price of $8.13. Two factors that must be considered when viewing this historical trend are: In 2000 Ford's daily share trading volume was in the range of 3,300,000, whereas yesterday's trading volume for Ford was over ten times that much at 30,530,400 shares. How do total share availability and volume traded affect the overall price? I'll honestly tell you, that information is just plain "over my head."

Continue reading Best & Worst: Ford still America's family company, but the family is struggling

Best & Worst: Ford still America's family company, but the family is struggling originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Dec 2006 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.