Automotive News - September 22, 2008 - (Page 37)

SEPTEMBER 22, 2008 • 37 Honda will let supplier assemble on-site at Ohio plant Ralph Kisiel rkisiel@crain.com Honda de-cycling A unit of Ernie Green Industries will produce car suspension subassemblies at a soon-to-bevacated Honda motorcycle plant in Ohio. The supplier will make subassemblies for the Honda Accord sedan and coupe Acura TL sedan Acura RDX crossover Source: Honda of America Manufacturing, Marion Industries take on work that Honda outsourced from its engine plant in Anna, Ohio. MARYSVILLE, Ohio — Honda of America Manufacturing Inc. will consolidate suspension subassembly for several car plants at an unused motorcycle factory, and a U.S. supplier will do the work. Marion Industries Inc. will lease space in Honda’s Marysville Motorcycle Plant after motorcycle output ends there in June. The plant is next to a factory that builds the Accord sedan and coupe and the Acura TL sedan and RDX crossover. The arrangement marks a major change for Honda. At other automakers’ assembly plants, suppliers often build parts on-site or run the paint shop. Honda is known for doing as much work in-house as possible — even building its own machine tools. “Marion Industries will be our first Ohio ties Marion Industries is part of Ernie Green Industries Inc., of Dayton, Ohio. Ernie Green, the company’s founder, has deep ties to Ohio. In the 1960s, he was a Pro Bowl fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. Ernie Green Industries ranks No. 67 on the Automotive News list of the top 150 suppliers to North America, with estimated parts sales to automakers totaling $704 million in fiscal 2007. The company also supplies General Motors, Toyota, Nissan, Chrysler and Ford. Honda is its largest customer. “It’s kind of a confirmation that they are pleased with us, and we are pleased with the relationship that we’ve been able to foster with Honda over the years,” Green told Automotive News. “We’re happy to be part of it.” Suspension subassembly work now is done in the Marysville Auto Plant; the East Liberty Auto Plant in East Liberty, Ohio; and at several supplier locations. “It’s much more efficient at one location,” Lietzke says. Consolidation at one location will free space in both auto plants, adding to their flexibility and ability to take on new models, he says. on-site supplier here,” says Honda spokesman Ron Lietzke. “It makes sense for them to do it. Marion already makes a major component for us.” Marion Industries has supplied knuckles and related suspension parts to Honda since 2000. Marion Industries was launched specifically to Knuckle know-how Ernie Green Industries had been supplying Honda with injectionmolded parts in the late 1990s when the automaker came to the supplier with a proposition. Honda wanted to outsource production of suspension knuckles. “We didn’t have a lot of experience doing those kinds of things and wondered why they offered the project to us,” Green recalled. Honda was impressed with the supplier’s work and its working relationship with the automaker. Said Green: “For a year, they took us into one of their facilities and taught us how to do the work their way, and it became a very successful project for us.” Being an Ohio company probably didn’t hurt, says Sam Morgan, Green’s business partner. “We are local, close, and we developed a good relationship with them, which has lasted ever since,” Morgan says. The Marion plant, about 25 miles north of Marysville, opened in 2000 and continues to be an exclusive supplier to Honda.c As cars get small, Ford thinks young Jamie LaReau jlareau@crain.com Leading the way for Ford along the road to smaller cars: the new Fiesta. Jim Farley started a subcommittee of 20 young Ford dealers or children of dealers to study the operations of current dealerships. bringing at least six new small vehicles from Europe to the United States within three years. Those cars most likely will be the new European Focus four-door, five-door and convertible; the new Fiesta; and the C-Max and Kuga small crossovers. Asked whether dealers will need more help servicing small-car customers than what their stores are used to, Farley said: “In the volumes we’re talking about? Yes.” “I’m not talking about just the Fiesta. I am literally talking about 700,000 to 800,000 units of volume,” Farley said. “When you look at that level of volume and that level of customer, even if 40 percent of them are new, it is a different ballgame operationally.”c SIENA, Italy — Ford Motor Co. is calling on young dealers to help it prepare for a wave of new small vehicles coming to Ford’s lineup within three years. Those vehicles will attract a new type of customer, Ford hopes. That means the automaker and its dealers must know how to serve them. Jim Farley, Ford’s group vice president of marketing and communications, started a “young leadership” subcommittee of 20 young Ford dealers or children of dealers to study the operations of current dealerships. The purpose is to recommend ways to improve. It’s an idea Farley got when he was with Toyota’s Scion brand, and it worked well, he said. “The key is not so much the physical dealership; it’s the operational business — for example, accessory business,” Farley said. “The way we approach the accessory business of this operation is going to be really important.” The group is looking at financing packages, used-car trading policies, dealer marketing and technical training, he said. Ford’s turnaround plan hinges on Farley: Retool image for era of the small car SIENA, Italy — If Ford Motor Co. is to succeed in its small-car push, it needs to rebuild its image as a car brand, its top marketer says. “I think the Fiesta will help a lot,” said Jim Farley, Ford’s group vice president of marketing and communications. “The Focus has got us to a pretty good place.” Ford is bringing its European Fiesta small car to America early in 2010 as a 2011 model, with the next-generation Focus due later in 2010, also as a 2011 model. Farley spoke with Staff Reporter Jamie LaReau about Ford’s challenges in the immediate future. What are some of the obstacles Ford dealers face going forward? The operational fitness to serve a different customer. Again, they’re going to be bringing in different cars. You attract them and market them differently; their revenue questionanswer Ford marketing boss Jim Farley says dealers will have to adapt to attract a different kind of customer. stream within the dealership is different. If you don’t have a good relationship with the captive credit company or the captive credit company doesn’t have a good first-time-buyer program or a college grad program, what are you going to do? You don’t have any hope. GM is facing the difficult task of making the small car aspirational and pricing it accordingly. Has Ford solved that problem? We won’t know until it goes on sale, but I would say making your product the design leader when it comes out and having features that people expect on the vehicle above that category and putting it together in interesting packaging is absolutely the way. It’s a possibility. And it doesn’t mean your whole pricing range is higher; it means that you may have versions of this product that are (priced) higher. You mean higher-priced variants? Yes, and those have to be exclusive and aspirational. You have the (Chevrolet) Cobalt SS, and that’s so sporty that that isn’t attractive to many people. They have to have insurance, and it’s really expensive, and there are not that many young people who want a supersporty car.c AUTO SHOWS Sept. 26-Oct. 19 — State Fair of Texas Auto Show, Fair Park, Dallas, 214-421-8728, www.bigtex.com Oct. 2-5 — Orange County Auto Show, Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif., 323-782-2216, www.motortrendautoshows.com Oct. 2-5 — San Antonio Auto & Truck Show, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, 210-732-9647, ww.saautodealers.com Oct. 4-19 — Paris International Motor Show (press days: Oct. 2 and 3), ParisExpo – Porte de Versailles, Paris, 33-1-56-88-2240, www.mondial-automobile.com Oct. 10-12 — Northwood University International Auto Show, Northwood University, Midland, Mich., 989-837-4823, www.northwood.edu/mi/studentlife/ autoshow Oct. 16-19 — Long Island Auto Show, Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, N.Y., 717-671-4300, www.autoexpo.com GENERAL Sept. 23-25 — Assembly Technology Expo, Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont, Ill., 310-445-4200, www.atexpo.com Sept. 23-25 — AutoRomania, InterContinental Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania, 44 (0) 20 7368 9465, www.wbr.co.uk/autoromania Sept. 24 — Customs Town Hall, Automotive Industry Action Group and Ford Motor Co., Ford Conference Center, Dearborn, Mich., 248-358-3003, www.aiag.org Sept. 25 — Automotive Marketing & Media: Reaching Consumers Through the Noise, Automotive Women’s Alliance Foundation, Management Education Center, Troy, Mich., 877-393-2923, www.automotivewomensalliance.com Sept. 30-Oct. 2 — NAAA Equipment and Services Exposition, National Auto Auction Association, Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, 301-696-0400, www.naaa.com Oct. 6-8 — GlassBuild America, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, 703-442-4890, ext. 300, www.glassbuildamerica.com Oct. 7-9 — SAE International Powertrains, Fuels & Lubricants Meeting, Society of Automotive Engineers, Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont, Ill., 877-606-7323, www.sae.org Oct. 12-15 — Brake Colloquium and Exhibition, Society of Automotive Engineers, Grand Hyatt, San Antonio, 724-776-4841, www.sae.org Oct. 13-16 — SCMLogistics World, Raffles City Convention Centre, Singapore, +65 6322 2757, www.terrapinn.com/2008/scmlog http://ww.saautodealers.com http://www.glassbuildamerica.com http://www.mondial-automobile.com http://www.atexpo.com http://www.sae.org http://www.automotivewomensalliance.com http://www.bigtex.com http://www.northwood.edu/mi/studentlife/autoshow http://www.wbr.co.uk/autoromania http://www.sae.org http://www.motortrendautoshows.com http://www.naaa.com http://www.autoexpo.com http://www.aiag.org http://www.terrapinn.com/2008/scmlog

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Automotive News - September 22, 2008

Credit-crunched BMW to cut volume and jobs in U.S. Did dealer pitch have a catch? Henderson will keynote World Congress Suppliers: Chrysler jury a worry Learn how going green can be good for business Hyundai hesitates on i10 Ram launches with incentive Dodge RamBox cost: $1,895 Toyota seeks bids to build A-BAT Volt: A pricey short hauler? A horse of a different, uh, color Delphi work moves to N.Y. from plant in Mexico GM store count down 226 so far this year Bill Heard shuts Arizona dealership Would Mazda2 hurt Mazda3? Chrysler dealers may see Volt fighter GM gets more bucks for its 4-bangers GM's '09 list prices rise 2.7% Suppliers seek piece of loan package Don't attach too many strings to federal loans Cars run on money and credit, not gas The workplace is a democracy? Free Choice Act must be defeated Extreme makeover Logo no go A 4-cylinder Cadillac? Get real A double standard on idle workers? Free Choice Act means no choice Saccucci: Let's hear it for free enterprise Dealers signal support for 35% estate tax rate Dealers Designing for MPG Slippery styling What happened to Volt's racy design? Aerodynamics Belletech will supply Honda in Indiana Practicality will top panache at Paris show Chrysler seeks to build loyalty with service Band buddies Personnel Auction group's new boss sees dip in volumes Wholesale prices of big used trucks rise 8.6% in August Big-truck sales off 22.6% in Aug. August sales in Europe worse than in U.S. Honda will let supplier assemble on-site at Ohio plant Farley: Retool image for era of the small car O'Donnell: No stranger to U.S. Honda to debut camera, airbag American Axle lands contract Ex-Ford dealer prevails in court Dodge plans Web blitz for Ram Federal-Mogul will idle 4,000 Sparks will fly over GM, Toyota plug-ins Negotiations fail; chaos (allegedly) ensues Bo plays defense, helps GM avoid weather woes Critics say the new Volt was jolt Lithium, schmithium-- Will the ladies like it? Small and beautiful-- mutually exclusive? Where Andrea Pininfarina saw design headed Designers think small to make it big Designers can't ignore history Pretty and petite Toyota goes its own way with green designs The elements of style It's difficult to design fuel efficiency into big pickups Specialty-car maker has bright design ideas Form follows fashion Vehicle designers aim to please Chinese Suppliers to the 2009 Dodge Ram Eaton will equip '09 VW Golf IAV to move into new tech center BorgWarner makes Tesla deal Mann plans 4th China plant NovaCast buys into Korean firm Valeo shifts rear-light work Supplier personnel

Automotive News - September 22, 2008

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