VW, Porsche boards approve merger

British industry publication just-auto.com is reporting that the supervisory boards of Volkswagen AG and Porsche have approved a merger with of Porsche Automobil Holding SE, Porsche’s vehicle manufacturing operation with Volkswagen. The combined companies will operate under VW leadership based in Wolfsburg, Germany. Porsche itself will remain an independent company and keep its headquarters in [...]

Wiedeking out at Porsche

Wendelin Wiedeking, CEO of Porsche and Germany’s highest-paid manager, is leaving the company immediately, ending a long power struggle that pitted one of Europe’s most respected executives against two of Germany’s most powerful families. Porsche finance chief Holger Haerter will also be leaving the sports car maker.
Michael Macht, Porsche’s production chief, will replace Wiedeking and [...]

Ford sales down 38.9% in January, VW, Porsche and M-B fall, too

Ford domestic-brand sales plummeted 38.9 percent in January (Volvo has either not yet reported or had the one of worst months in the history of the automobile). Mustang sales were down 55 percent and only the F-Series pickup broke the 10,000-unit mark.
Volkswagen sales were down 11.6 percent as supplies of the Rabbit and GTI dwindle.
Daimler [...]

All automakers lose in November U.S. sales

While some automakers have not reported in yet, all the others have declared losses in U.S. sales (November 2008 vs November 2007):

BMW: down 27%
Chrysler: down 47%
Ford: down 33% (including Volvo, down 47%)
GM: down 41%
Honda: down 32%
Isuzu: down 74% (from 496 to 130 units)
Mazda: down 31%
Mercedes: down 30%
Mitsubishi: down 36%
Nissan: down 42%
Porsche: down 48%
Subaru: down 4%
Suzuki: [...]

U.S. auto sales plummeted in October 2008 (Chrysler to be reported)

The Big Four – Toyota, General Motors, Ford, and Honda – experienced plunging car sales in the United States in October 2008. The once mighty General saw sales fall by 45% compared with October 2007; Toyota, the world’s largest automaker, saw sales fall by 23%; and Ford saw a decline of 32%, with its captive [...]

Chrysler reclaims No. 4 spot as September sales crater

Let’s start the report with some good news: Chrysler regained the No. 4 spot in sales last month. Not just for the month, but in year-to-date (YTD) sales, as well. Chrysler outsold Honda by over 10,000 units in September, giving it a slim, 2,936-unit lead for the first nine months of 2008. Some more good [...]