Industry News
From the Officer of the Governor
Dear Fellow New Yorker,
The Governor invites you and your family to join your fellow New Yorkers in signing up for the second annual “I Love My Park Day” on May 4th – a statewide volunteer effort to help clean up and beautify our state’s parks and historical sites. At last year’s event, thousands of New Yorkers pitched in to paint, plant, clean, build, and make repairs across the state.
This year’s volunteer effort is especially important as many of our parks are still recovering from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. New York’s parks are one of our state’s most treasured assets, and this event helps ensure that New Yorkers and visitors to our state can continue to enjoy and appreciate New York’s natural beauty.
To find an event near you and sign up, click the “Read more” button below.
Sincerely,
The Office of the Governor
P.S. – Please forward this email to friends and family that may be interested in joining.
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Today in Technology
Technology
Ford to develop carbon fibre technology to reduce vehicle weight. US carmaker Ford Motor is working on a project to develop a new carbon fibre technology, in a bid to cut the weight of its cars by up to 340kg by the end of the decade as well as deliver enhanced fuel economy.
Top Headlines
Automotive Business Review
Chevrolet has unveiled a new 6.2L V-8 engine for its new 2014 Corvette sports car which is expected to be launched during late 2013.
General Motors to invest $450m in Argentina plant
General Motors (GM) will invest $450m to manufacture a new global Chevy vehicle at its Rosario Automotive Complex in Argentina. The investment will be made between 2013 and 2015 at the Rosario facility, which had produced more than 136,000 vehicles in 2011. With the investment, GM Argentina will add new vehicles for export as well as refurbish Chevrolet’s vehicle portfolio for customers and dealers in Argentina. GM Argentina President Isela Costantini said, “This new model to be based on a global platform will run in addition to the models we are currently manufacturing in our plant and will allow us to supply the regional and domestic market with even more high-quality, high value Chevrolet products.” More USA jobs gone from who we bailed out several years ago with borrowed money from China. We can do better, we should do better.Fisker Launched In The Middle East
OCTOBER 25, 2012 On Tuesday this week, Fisker Automotive made its official Middle East appearance in the heart of oil production land. Exclusive Fisker distributorship Trading Enterprises and Fisker Automotive unveiled the gas-electric Karma sedan in front of global and regional media at Al Badia Golf Club, Dubai Festival City. Senior management from Al-Futtaim and Fisker Automotive pulled the wraps off what is being called the world’s first high performance extended-range electric luxury vehicle
. The privately held Dubai-based business group is Fisker’s exclusive partner in the GCC and MENA regions.
UK Researchers Produce Petrol From Air
OCTOBER 25, 2012 In medieval days alchemists sought to turn ordinary metals to gold – an element so alluring and valuable that it has been a most prized possession, and even started wars. Today, gold is still with us as is a dwindling world supply of petroleum – which some would contend ranks equally high if not higher in economic importance. As the world contemplates electrified and other alternatives to its 100-plus-year love affair with fossil fuels, longingly looking back to good-old-days that are still playing out, people keep trying to replace gasoline and diesel with other fuels to burn, including bio-sourced, and other synthetic fuels. Now, like those practicing modern day alchemy, scientists at a UK company called Air Fuel Synthesis say they can create petrol from thin air.
Nissan Leaf Electric Motor To Be Made In The USA
OCTOBER 25, 2012 As Nissan has let it slip also that a larger, but unspecified Leaf battery is on on its way for 2013, the company is also getting ready to assemble the EV’s electric motor in the U.S. At present these motors are built in Japan, so building closer to source of production – in Decherd, Tenn., about 70 miles from the Smyrna assembly plant – is expected to simplify logistics, eliminate extra costs associated with dollar/yen valuations, and of course, will add to domestic U.S. employment.
BYD And greentomatocars To Debut EV Minicabs In London
OCTOBER 25, 2012 BYD and greentomatocars have signed a memorandum of understanding to create London’s first fleet of all-electric minicabs. Per the terms of the agreement, BYD will supply greentomatocars with 50 of its all-electric e6 models for trial use in the UK Capital.
PSA Peugeot Citroen and GM To Work On Low-CO2 Car
OCTOBER 25, 2012 PSA Peugeot Citroen and General Motors confirmed yesterday that they will collaborate on vehicle projects, including a low CO2 small car. This represents important steps toward the execution of their Global Strategic Alliance. Consistent with terms of the Master Agreement signed Feb. 29, the Alliance partners have selected four vehicle projects and confirmed the next steps in joint purchasing organization.
Hot tools for today’s market
Allen screws are great, but I hate using one of those Swiss Army Knife-style Allen key wrench sets for even the simplest tasks. I prefer a T-handle Allen ball driver–the end of the hex is ground into a semblance of a sphere, which allows the shank of the driver to be held at a substantial angle from straight along the bolt. That’s amazingly handy when you can’t get a straight shot along the bolt’s axis, allowing you to cant the driver as much as 30 degrees and still spin it.
China has overtaken the U.S. to become the world’s largest auto market. But growth in Chinese auto sales slowed in July.
Passenger car sales slowed to an 11 percent growth rate, down from June’s 15.8 percent rate, according to China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, quoted by the AP
Meanwhile, total vehicle sales climbed 8 percent, down from 10 percent in June.
Last night, China’s massive economic data dump showed that retail sales slowed to 13.1 percent year-over-year, and a sub-index showed that auto retail sales growth by value fell to 4.7 percent in July, from 6.2 percent in June.
This will definitely be worrisome for international car manufacturers that have been looking to China too boost auto sales as their local markets slow.
In fact, the focus of the auto industry has been shifting to China, after auto sales jumped in 2009 after Beijing cut taxes and offered subsidies in the wake of the 2009 financial crisis. IHS Global Insight had projected that annual auto sales in China will grow by 74 percent to over 30.6 million a year by 2020.
Despite the growth prospects, automakers will be concerned with the recent slowdown in China, the investment in subways and railways, and curbs on auto sales in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Guiyang.
Bosch reorganizes U.S. aftermarket resources
Robert Bosch LLC has announced a reorganization of several of its Independent Aftermarket resources in the United States. The Bosch Car Service Network, the Bosch Technical Training and Service organization, and both the Parts and Diagnostics/Wheel Service sales organizations will now all be aligned into a single structural unit in an effort to simplify sales and service in the independent aftermarket. The company says the changes are intended to more effectively support sales of Bosch products through WDs, jobbers, retailers and repair shops. The new organization also includes the addition of Customer Marketing Services and E-Commerce/Digital Marketing functions. Bosch says it has built an industry-leading advantage in digital marketing, having developed and executed training apps for technicians, informative and educational social media campaigns, and generally bringing customer-specific sales processes to a mobile environment. “What is exciting about this new arrangement is our ability to utilize the best of our existing organization and add new talent from both inside and outside the industry,” says Bobby Bloom, vice president, Independent Automotive Aftermarket for Bosch in the U.S. “All of these efforts are focused on becoming an even better partner in the aftermarket by focusing our strategy on the trends that are occurring, as well as those yet to come.” Bloom says that as vehicles become more and more complex, technicians, shop owners and parts professionals have an increasing need for support at every level, including sales, training and marketing. “Our strategy will allow us to fully leverage our leading-edge product innovation and deliver training to installers on critical technologies such as Gasoline Direct Injection,” says Bloom. “We will have dedicated personnel for various channels of distribution within the aftermarket. This will allow our people to focus their efforts on the specific needs of the channel and level of distribution they service.” Counterfeit Airbags Casts BETHESDA, Md. (Oct. 26, 2012) — The Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) is concerned that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) recent consumer advisory on counterfeit airbags casts the automotive aftermarket as criminals. The Oct. 10 NHTSA safety alert “unfairly cast the full automotive aftermarket as culprits in the illegal sales of faulty airbags bearing counterfeit OEM logos,” the AAIA said in an Oct. 24 letter to the agency. The vast majority of auto repair shops buy airbags from trusted sources they have purchased from for years, according to the AAIA. “However, motorists were led to believe by NHTSA that they might be most at risk if they had their vehicle repaired at a non-dealer repair facility,” the association said. The NHTSA alert covered only a small number of replacement airbags but created confusion among vehicle owners as to whether they were at risk, the AAIA said. The AAIA asked NHTSA why it believes that faulty airbags can be replaced or remedied only at dealerships; why NHTSA failed to work with the aftermarket industry to coordinate an effective response; and why it took so long for NHTSA to tell the industry and the public about the airbag problem after first discovering it. In issuing the alert the way it did, NHTSA showed a real lack of understanding of the auto aftermarket, the AAIA said. “(The) AAIA strongly asserts that a better line of communication between us is critical for the independent repair industry, but more importantly for consumers who depend on our industry,” it said. 
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