Ellesmere Port Vauxhall

Getting information on the above mentioned plant is not easy. However, car production started there in 1963 and is the only GMV plant making cars after the Luton plant ceased production in the year 2000.

Today the Ellesmere Port plant builds the Astra and Astra Van; in 2006 at the rate of 147,500. GM has put all it's European plants under pressure to meet efficiency targets or be closed.

What 2008 Will Bring

I'm no soothsayer but I will have a stab at what I think will be happening on the automotive landscape next year. Rather than evaluate by brand, I thought I would look at some countries.

USA: The big three look vulnerable. GM is fighting hard to stay #1 but Toyota will win that one, either in '07 or '08. Ford and Chrysler are not well. Expect falling sales as they strive to make money.

Japan:

Magna Steyr, A Real Stayer

Magna Steyr is an unusual company as although it is a vehicle manufacturer, it only assembles automobiles for other companies. It is not a car company itself. It is located in Oberwaltersdorf, Eastern Austria and is a subsidiary of Canadian company Magna International, which manufactures auto parts. Its current production involves all BMW X3 (soon to move to the US), Chrysler Voyager & 300, Jeep

NedCar, Netherlands

NedCar, or Netherlands Car B.V. is owned by Mitsubishi Motors. It is the only major car maker in the Netherlands. It is situated in Born, in southeastern Netherlands somewhere near Maastricht. It has produced 4.5 million cars since 1967 and production peaked in 1999 at 260,000 vehicles. It started making DAF cars and did so until 1976, then Volvos from 1975 to 2004. Mitsubishi got involved and

Jaguar XF

Some say that Jaguar's future is dependant on the success of the new XF. Journalists & editors love a dramatic headline but the marque is strong enough to go on regardless. The XF won't bomb as it's just too good. But if it did, it would mean the brand was sufficiently damaged so that even a good car couldn't sell with the leaping cat attached. That would probably mean making it a niche brand and

I Be Talking 'Bout Honda Swindon, Wiltshire

The Honda Swindon site was formerly an airfield and an aircraft production facility where, during World War II, Spitfire fighter aeroplanes were produced by Vickers. Honda uses one of the airfield’s former runways as the on-site test track.

Honda bought the site in 1985 and initially it was a pre-delivery inspection facility for cars built by Rover, then badged as Hondas. Honda then opened an

Where They Sell. Case Study: France

Three brands considered: Renault, Peugeot Citroen.Renault: It’s home market share from 2001 forward has dropped from up to 27% to 22% and West European (WE) share slumped from 10.5 to 7.5%. It’s home market / WE split is about 38/62. It’s home sales are about 25% of world sales, and sales outside WE are 36%. Sales are falling in WE and it needs to broaden it’s world sales, which it seems to be

Where They Sell. Case Study: Germany

Four brands considered: VW, Daimler (M Benz), BMW & Audi.

VW: It’s home market share from 2001 forward has been between 19 to 20% and West European (WE) share 10 to 11%. It’s home market / WE split is about 40/60. It’s home sales are about 20% of world sales, and sales outside WE are 55%. A well balanced sales mix which minimizes it’s risk. Presently it’s home market is in slump but it isn’t

Way To Go Morgan

The Morgan Motor Company is was founded in 1909 by Mr Morgan (surprise, surprise). The factory is in Malvern, Worcestershire and all the cars are hand built. The waiting list used to be about four years but I mean who wants to wait four years for a car? The waiting list is now a year or less due to increased production. 650 were built in 2006, up from 600 the year before. Most I assume are

Was It Smart?

The original idea behind the smart car was that the vehicle would be easy to drive and park in congested cities. It is short enough to allow it to be parked facing the kerb. The car started selling in 1998 with initial sales encouraging. This led to an expanding of the smart car brand with the introduction of the Roadster and Roadster-Coupe in 2003 and the Forfour sedan in 2004. Smarts were

Maybach

In the 1920’s Karl Maybach started making expensive limousines. During World War II, Maybach built tank and boat engines. After the war, the German economy could not support a premium automobile and production never resumed. Only 1,800 were made over 20 years which wasn’t too shabby for the time I’d imagine. The brand disappeared until the 21st century when Mercedes Benz resurrected it to be the

Ugly Cars (In My Eyes Anyway)

They say beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, meaning each individual sees beauty differently. What constitutes ugly is the same. When I look at a car, I immediately get a positive or negative impression. I find German cars tend to be ugly as the design brief seems to put too much emphasis on a practical aspect which over rides aesthetics. So here are some examples of German automotive

Lotus Cars

Lotus Cars is a manufacturer of sports cars known for their light weight and fine handling. It was founded by Colin Chapman in 1952 and is based in Hethel, Norfolk, UK. The site is a the former RAF base and the test track is the old runway. It entered Formula 1 in 1957 and took the world title seven times. It is now owned by Proton. Much of it’s business is in consultancy work, especially

South Of The Border, Down Mexico Way

No I’m not breaking out into song, just looking at the Mexican market. In 2001, there were 16 car brands plying their trade. By 2006, there were 27. The big 5 of 2001 have naturally lost market share as the new arrivals took some for themselves. The head honcho in the market, GM, only lost .4 % share while # 4 VW lost 6% to just under 12%.







2001




2007

Please, No Škoda Jokes

The history of the Škoda goes back to 1895 when they produced motorcycles & they were making cars by 1905. In 1925, it became part of the the biggest industrial enterprise in the land, Škoda Works. Thereafter it's cars bore that name. After world war 2, Škoda came under state control. They were sold in NZ & had a poor reputation but were cheap to buy. VW starting investing in Škoda and increasing

SEAT, The Car Brand From Spain

SEAT stands for Spanish Society of Touring Cars. It was founded in 1950 I think as an initiative of Franco for a Spanish car. It ended up basically manufacturing rebadged FIAT cars. In 1900, VW took the reins but it remains a Spanish car company, situated near Barcellona. In 2006, 430000 came off the production lines. Sales have been around this figure for all the 21st Century. Production by

Jaguar, What Is Selling In 2007?

Top dog for Jag in 2007 is the X-Type, 16500 being made for the first 9 months. Sales down a third isn’t good on paper, but monetary loses on the model will have all but ended. The sales pain has been worth it. A freshen up of the car coming on line next year will help, but the fact that it is being pulled from the US market is disappointing.


The aging but better than ever S-Type comes in

Cars That Did Something Special (And One That Didn't)

Cars sometimes come along and do something special for one reason or another. I have selected a few of my picks of what some of those cars were.

Model T Ford.

Why I selected this car is that it was the first mass production car that brought personal transport to the masses. I don't see the car as anything special in itself but for bringing motoring to the people it has to be here. It's like

S-Types Are So Nice

Many feel that Jaguars are naff. I'm sorry but you are wrong. Actually, I'm not sorry. How many potential E-Class or 5 Series drivers would at least test drive an S-Type? I'd wager that there is more chance of the French making English their official language. You are the loser though as they are sooooo underrated, it's not funny.

The S-Type will soon be replaced by the XF, which does look a

What Is It About Lexus?

It seems that Lexus is viewed very differently around the world. North America loves it, everywhere else not an enamoured. On the other hand, other luxury marques are viewed in a more consistent light ie. popular everywhere. In the US, it is ‘the’ luxury car in its segment. From 2001-06 it sales went as follows (000): 225, 235, 260, 290, 300, 320. Impressive. Whereas in the EU (000): 17, 21, 20,

What's Up At Renault?

As late as 2004, Renault was king of Western Europe; numero uno. It sold 1.5 m cars, 50,000 more than it's nearest rival. This year, it will sell a little over 1 m cars, down nearly a third. Market share will have fallen from 10.5% to about 7.5-8%. It will be only the fourth ranked car brand. Why? It seems many manufacturers are price driven rather than product driven. In other words, sales

My First Post

Hello to any who find this blog. It is #1 and I hope it will edify those who find cars and the associated industry of interest. I have no connection with the car industry, these will be jottings of a spirited amateur. Please feel free to leave comments.