2014 Ford F150 on 2040-cars

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Obama to herald auto industry turnaround from idled Ford plant

President Barack Obama will tout the recent successes of the American auto industry in a speech on Wednesday. This would be a fine and dandy plan aside from two small hitches. First, the president is visiting Ford's Wayne, MI factory, which is rather strange considering the government bailed out the company's local rivals, Chrysler and General Motors. Even more worrying, considering the topic of the speech, is that the Wayne facility has been idled due to a lack of demand. According to The Detroit News, the White House said the speech will focus on "the workers in the resurgent American automotive and manufacturing sector now that the auto rescue has been completed and the decision to save the auto industry and the over one million jobs that went with it." Wayne Assembly employs some 5,100 Michiganders when its lines are up and running, but as gas prices have plunged below $2 per gallon in some areas over the past month, its fuel-efficient products – the Focus and C-Max – have seen their sales plummet, as well. In December, the Focus' year-over-year sales were down 4.4 percent, while the C-Max dipped 3.3 percent, Ford told The News. Lagging sales for the two compacts aren't a new thing, though. Focus sales in all of 2014 were down 6.4 percent, while the C-Max struggled with a 21.6-percent drop last year. According to The News, Ford made the decision to idle the factory before being approached by the White House. Considering that, we wonder what the team at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue was thinking when it selected the Ford facility, and what impact the location will have on the president's message. News Source: The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Mira Oberman / AFP / Getty Images Celebrities Government/Legal Plants/Manufacturing Ford

Pickup prices rising at 2x industry average

We've said it before, but bears repeating: Pickup trucks are the financial engines of America's automakers. Good thing, then, that the segment is in rude health - in fact, Automotive News is suggesting that pickup truck sales are arguably healthier than they were pre-recession, even though the segment's volume is still significantly down from where it was before the bottom fell out of the US economy. That's because per-unit profits on full-size trucks are skyrocketing, outpacing the industry's average price increases by more than double since 2005. According to data from Edmunds, the average transaction price of a full-size pickup is now $39,915 - a heady increase over the $31,059 average price in 2005 - a gain of over 8 percent after inflation is factored in.
Just how important are trucks to automakers' bottom lines? Automotive News quotes a Morgan Stanley analyst as saying the Ford F-Series is responsible for 90 percent of the company's 2012 profits, and General Motors isn't far behind, with the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra twins chipping in about two-thirds of the automaker's earnings.
Automotive News points out that Detroit's automakers now have the money to invest in modernizing their full-size truck offerings, in part because they don't have the same overhead and legacy costs that pushed General Motors and Chrysler into bankruptcy. Certainly, the pickup segment has seen a lot of innovations as of late, including turbocharged V6s, coil-spring rear suspensions and active aero. Those improvements in important areas like fuel economy and ride comfort have given existing pickup buyers new reasons to upgrade. In addition, automakers are piling on the tech and luxury goodies, creating more and more high-content, high-profit models like the Ford F-150 King Ranch, Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn and Chevrolet Silverado High Country (shown).

Consumer Reports says Toyota, Ford, Honda and Chevy are big winners in brand perception survey

According to Consumer Reports, the automotive brands that stand out in the minds of car buyers are, in order: Toyota, Ford, Honda and Chevrolet. This news comes after the magazine polled its readers, asking them to take into account vehicle quality, safety, performance, value, fuel economy, design/style, and technology/innovation - which are the factors that car shoppers are most influenced by.
It's important to note that this award is only about perception. In other words, it's perceived quality, not actual quality. "Often, perception can be a trailing indicator, reflecting years of good or bad performance in a category, and it can also be influenced by headlines in the media," said Jeff Bartlett, Consumer Reports deputy automotive editor.
The brand that made the biggest jump in perception amongst Consumer Reports readers is Tesla, which posted an impressive 47-point gain to finish in fifth place. Subaru is also notable for finishing in the top 10, despite being one of the smaller manufacturers doing business in the US. Scroll down below for all the details from Consumer Reports, if you're so inclined.