Toyota Recall Causes Production Halt of Most Models

Toyota's announcement of the massive recall and assembly plant shut down is the most dramatic action ever taken by an auto manufacturer. It seems that Toyota's attempts for a "field" fix just isn't working. Initial action was to remove the driver's floor mat and then have the accelerator pedal modified by trimming the bottom edge of the pedal. It now seems that the complete "arm" and pedal must be redesigned for a confident fix. The problem is that the supplier plant in Elkart, Indiana will have their hands full producing millions of the redesigned part. No manufacturer ever wants to have an assembly line idled for even an hour let alone days or weeks. The ripple effect of this action will be devastating not only to the assembly worker but right down to the dealerships which will not only have to stop doing business, but will also have to have a solid plan to communicate with a hoard of concerned and angry clients. Toyota wants the fix done properly and seems to be committed to doing it the right way.
Toyota has been the poster boy of the renowned Asian quality. The domestics have scratched their heads for decades trying to emulate the quality of Toyota and Honda. It will be interesting to see how deeply this accelerator problem will tarnish the Toyota's quality reputation. The media will run hard with this one and Toyota will try mightily to control the damage. If they are perceived as "doing the right thing" and going above and beyond to correct the problem, the damage might be temporary. If the public thinks that they dragged their feet and tried to shrug off the matter as a crumpled floor mat, then a long term drop in Toyota sales will be at hand. Does anyone remember the Audi sudden acceleration problem? It hurt their reputation for over 15 years! The world's number one auto maker is going to take a big hit on this one. It will be interesting to find out just what went wrong with the design of a very simple part. Correcting the problem will take many months compounding the daily damage done to Toyota's quality reputation.
It would certainly be interesting to listen in on "war room" at Toyota! I'm sure that they want this nightmare to go away. The US motoring public does not react well to recalls! Time will tell!

Chrysler now using smoke and mirrors

Chrysler just announced 5 new, err, "refreshed" models are being released. Sounds exciting, right? Well, truth be told, these awesome new models consist of some decals, blacked out "athletic" grilles (what the heck is an athletic grille? One designed by an NBA player?) and some names from the past like Renegade and Island Edition. This breaking news will certainly outshine Ford's announcement of all new engines and transmissions coming in 2010-11 with better fuel economy, performance and emissions. Ford is clearly in the driver's seat to become the number one domestic manufacturer as they have begun to INCREASE their market share making Government Motors 1 (GM) and Government Motors 1a (Chrysler) take notice.
While GM and Chrysler flounder by cutting dealerships, managers, and designers like a cork bobbing in Lake Michigan, Ford is offering US driver's a great array of leading edge products. I'm a former GM dealer and it hurts to see this happen. GM has some extraordinary products right now and more on the way. Too bad they don't have a "car guy" running the show! If you want an example of just how bad things are at GM marketing, go to You Tube and watch the Chevy "Volt Dancers" at the LA auto show. One word of caution. Do not view the dance after you have eaten or there will be consequences. It is THAT BAD.
Next on the horizon is the Detroit Auto Show. I understand that the Nation's savior of the auto industry, Queen Nancy our Speaker of the House will be in attendance. Let's all ask HOW she gets to Detroit? She had better arrive driving a Prius from DC to Detroit. Any bets that a US government aircraft will be involved? How soon we forget the browbeating the CEOs of Ford, GM and Chrysler were lambasted for their greedy corporate jets! Stay tuned on this one.

Thank Goodness it is 2010!!

There was so much negative news during 2009 I can only see a better economic forecast for 2010! Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined General Motors and Chrysler going bankrupt in the same year. The auto industry disaster even hit South Haven, Michigan hard as our top employer, Noble, closed and left over 300 folks out of work. The auto industry is far from being out of the woods as the perfect storm seems to be hitting domestic manufacturers from all sides. GM has made some moves that this former GM dealer just doesn't understand. Pontiac has so much value in terms of name recognition: GTO, Bonneville, Grand Prix, Grand Am, Firebird, Trans Am, LeMans, and the Judge will bring smiles to the faces of millions of drivers across the USA. Saturn. Remember the "different kind of car company"? You could go to a Saturn dealership and not have to face the "games" and pressure so prevalent in today's auto dealerships. Now the "New" GM has Cadillac, Buick, Chevy and GMC. How did GM justify dropping Pontiac and Saturn while keeping redundant truck divisions. Chevy and GMC have duplicate models nearly across the board. That also means marketing dollars for trucks have to be split between to competing divisions within the same GM! Wonder why Ford is able to tout the F-150 as the best selling truck in the US for over 25 years? It's because you can't add Chevy and GMC sales together! It just doesn't make any sense.
On a much brighter side, VanDerZee Motorplex is already making plans for the 2010 BOAT SHOW SEASON! Ah, yes, SPRING is less than 80 days away even though we are looking out at over 2 feet of snow right now. 2009 showed us that we have to work harder and look further for clients. VanDerZee Motorplex has sold autos, personal watercraft, atvs and utility vehicles to clients in 43 states, including Hawaii! (We just haven't found a client in Alaska yet). We've shipped used motorcycles, atvs and personal watercraft to Canada, the Philippines, and Norway. The Internet has made this such a small world. Our staff knows how important it is to take care of our clients whether they are just down the street from the Motorplex or on the other side of the world!
So 2010 has arrived. I'm still not quite sure what we are supposed to call this year. Is '10, '010, 2010, 2K.10? What decade is this? The 10's? I guess I'm exposing that I'm a child of the '60's. Peace, dude. Now where did my wife hide my tie dyed t-shirt?

Drive UPDATE concerning the Van Buren County Road Commission

Our 3 year battle goes on! Most of you know of our dilemma attempting to get a driveway approval for a safe and convenient access to our Motorplex from the 4 lane road in front of our property: Phoenix Street. Linda and I have attended the past 2 Van Buren County Road Commission meetings in Lawrence. I have read a written statement during the "public comment" portion of the meeting, given the board a copy and asked that it be entered into the record. The board and their engineer manager have been asked to respond to 5 specific questions concerning the process of granting driveways. The Van Buren County Road Commission has not responded by phone, fax, email, letter, or smoke signal!
I then attended a Van Buren County Board of Commissioners meeting last week. I read a written statement and then asked just who the Road Commissioners were accountable to. The answer I got should concern everyone: In essence, I was told that the Board of Commissioners only get involved with the 6 year appointments of the individual and that ends their accountability until the end of the 6 year term! We have an elected county board that appoints folks to a 6 year road commission term with no accountability for their actions for the entire term? What's wrong with THAT picture?? This situation needs to be confronted and corrected to protect everyone who resides in Van Buren County. The Road Commission seems to think that if they ignore our requests we will just fade away. NOT A CHANCE. Things are going to get very interesting..... Stay tuned. I will never give up in my fight for what is right!!

The REAL COST of Cash for Clunkers? $24,000 per incremental sale!!

The Edmund car site just released a study on the true cost of the government's Cash for Clunkers program. They used the actual sales records for the period, units that were sold under the clunker program, compared the data to "non incentive" months and came up with this stunning number: $24,000 per car sold under the program! Great job feds. I'd sure like you running our marketing at the Motorplex! The sad fact is that many auto dealers are still waiting for their money! I've been told that each transaction under the program entailed 27 pages of required documentation.
The auto news only got better this week when ONE US automaker reported a profit: Ford Motor Company which is looking more and more like the ONLY intelligent auto maker as they turned down a government bailout. Stay tuned this week when Fiat will attempt to instill public confidence in Chrysler as they reveal future product plans. Listen carefully and you'll find out just how bare the new product cupboard is at Chrysler. The situation is beyond critical with virtually no new car updates until 2012 at the EARLIEST. The only new products coming in 2010-2011 are 3/4 and one ton trucks along with a new Jeep Grand Cherokee. Now those are 3 hot sellers in this market! Ouch! Some re-badged Fiat are being "Americanized" as we speak. I really don't think that FIAT is a car that comes to mind for most Americans considering a new car!
The automakers have things coming at them from all sides. New government regulations for fuel economy are certainly justified, but limiting the amount of sunlight entering the car is just bizarre. Ford Motor has a UAW that will not accept the same contract terms as they gave to GM and Chrysler. Now we hear the the government is "guiding" GM and Chrysler in product planning! This can only be a major disaster alert! Before it's over there may just be a whole new meaning to "postal van"!

VanDerZee Motorplex Expands Services!

The economic climate in Michigan continues to be a colossal challenge. We're listening to our clients and we are responding with new services: We now offer virtually every major brand of tire for your car, van, truck or trailer. We purchased the equipment from South Haven's OK Tire when they closed. You can be confident that our prices will be competitive. What makes us different is that your tires will be installed by a certified auto technician who will do a professional job and look over your vehicle for any necessary repairs. Just call Grant Hammock at 269 637 8788 for fast estimates and scheduling.
We have also expanded our personal watercraft winterizing services. We can winterize, shrink wrap and store your watercraft and maintain the battery! Just drop off your unit and we'll do the rest. Have a restful winter and then call us in the spring. We'll have your watercraft uncovered, battery installed, checked over and ready to ride! If you've been paying a premium for indoor storage, give us a call and I'll bet that we will save you some serious money!
Keep an eye on this blog for more updates concerning our VanBuren County Road Commission battle! It's going to get real ugly if they continue their current course! Stay tuned, folks!

GM's 60 Day Money Back Promo is a FLOP!!

As I predicted a few weeks ago, the GM Money Back Plan has been a total FLOP. Yesterday GM's Bob Lutz announced that during the program 150,000 GM vehicles have been sold! That sounds pretty good, right? Well, the only problem is that GM actually LOST market share! Here's how the GM dealers presented the "deal of the decade": a potential GM purchaser was enticed with the huge national advertising campaign of "bring it back in 60 days if you're not happy"! What GM didn't tell you was that when you actually closed the purchase, you had a choice: sign the 60 day money back agreement OR (and this is one that most dealers wouldn't let their salespeople talk about) there was a 500.00 rebate in lieu of the Money Back deal. Bob Lutz "thought" that about 100 people signed up for the 60 day program while everybody else took the money! He claims that one person returned a Corvette to exchange his 6 speed manual for an automatic! So let's see if I understand. GM spent millions of dollars promoting a 60 day money back may the best car win program that had 100 takers? The result was 150,000 sales and LOSS OF MARKET SHARE? As Ricky Ricardo would say: "The person that came up with this winning idea has lots of SPLAINING to do!" I did hear that the guy behind the 60 Day MONEY BACK program had the confidence of GM management because his previous successful campaign was the SHAMWOW! I can't wait for the next GM promotion! I've heard rumors about buy a GM car and we'll include you in our health care program! Hey, the government owns GM so why not?