April 8, 200817 yr I have this from a very reliable source, they are closing mid-month. This is a Bedford Automile institution since 1960.
April 9, 200817 yr no surprise here....Chrysler/jeep is perhaps the worst auto franchise to hold right now. their products are ridiculously inferior to the competition and buyers frankly aren't interested in the lack of reliability/styling/technology that has become Chrysler/dodge/jeep.
April 9, 200817 yr no surprise here....Chrysler/jeep is perhaps the worst auto franchise to hold right now. their products are ridiculously inferior to the competition and buyers frankly aren't interested in the lack of reliability/styling/technology that has become Chrysler/dodge/jeep. Actually I kind of like the 300 and Charger, and did even before I worked for a supplier to Chrysler. I like the Crossfire too but it's way overpriced vis a vis its competition. Chrysler is probably the toughest of the big three on its suppliers, perhaps that's the case on its dealers as well. Oh, this isn't the corporation, just one reasonably high profile dealership.
April 9, 200817 yr no surprise here....Chrysler/jeep is perhaps the worst auto franchise to hold right now. their products are ridiculously inferior to the competition and buyers frankly aren't interested in the lack of reliability/styling/technology that has become Chrysler/dodge/jeep. Actually, Jeep is Chrysler's hottest brand at the present; in fact, it is one of the U.S.'s strongest auto brands. That's why there are so many watered-down Jeeps coming out such as the Patriot, Compass, four-door Wrangler (which real Jeep people despise) and a new Liberty. In five years Jeep probably won't be a strong brand due to this tarnishing of the brand and of course fuel prices/changing lifestyles.
April 9, 200817 yr There has been a lot of consolidation in the Dealer network for Chrysler the past year. They have figured out they really don't need as many dealerships. Thomas Chrysler Jeep in Cuyahoga Falls closed last year and I'm aware they were still wanting to cut down on the smaller dealerships which I think Deluca probably is. Its stupid having a Chrysler dealership every 3-5 miles in any direction.
April 15, 200817 yr Storage facility for boats, RVs opens at former Ford Plant site JENNIFER BRACKEN, Morning Journal Writer, 04/15/2008 LORAIN -- A new storage facility for vehicles has opened at the former Ford plant on Baumhart Road, creating one of the largest indoor heated storage facilities in the state. Vermilion Indoor Storage owner Phil Cable, who most recently managed the Vermilion Power Boats Marina and is well-known in the boating community, decided to venture out on his own after seeing the need for a local indoor storage facility. Cable invested in 100,000 square feet at the old Ford Plant in December and officially opened for business earlier this month. More at http://www.morningjournal.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19483831&BRD=1699&PAG=461&dept_id=46371&rfi=6
April 15, 200817 yr one of the more gigantic ford plants....now partly reduced to boat storage. wow. on the bright side(?), good for lorain i guess. at least the facilities continue to be used instead of falling to ruin. you know, a developer with a lot of loot and vision could really turn the whole far lorain westside strip along the lake (between beaver park marina to ford and on into eastern vermilion) into quite a waterfront resort area. it's wide open for that. maybe a future westshore commuter rail stop or two along the way there could help kickstart something like that someday? the train track, once used by ford, is right there waiting for it. :|
June 3, 200817 yr http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?feed=AP&date=20080603&id=8720761 WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - General Motors is closing four truck and SUV plants in the U.S., Canada and Mexico as surging fuel prices hasten a dramatic shift to smaller vehicles. CEO Rick Wagoner said Tuesday before the automaker's annual meeting in Delaware the plants to be closed are in Oshawa, Ontario; Moraine, Ohio; Janesville, Wis.; and Toluca, Mexico. He also said the iconic Hummer brand may be discontinued. Wagoner said the GM board has approved production of a new small Chevrolet car at a plant in Lordstown, Ohio, in mid-2010 and the Chevy Volt electric vehicle in Detroit.
June 3, 200817 yr It a shame to see these jobs lost in this region. But, its good to see GM finally changing some of their production models. Lets hope ABX doesn't lose all the jobs that are being predicted (6,000?) in Wilmington. That would be a pretty hard hit for southwest Ohio.
June 3, 200817 yr GM to build new Chevy compact in Lordstown, add third shift Akron Beacon Journal POSTED: 12:07 p.m. EDT, Jun 03, 2008 LORDSTOWN: General Motors Corp. said Tuesday that it plans to build a new generation compact Chevrolet at its sprawling plant in northeast Ohio and add a third shift there. ''This car will represent the first U.S. application of our global architecture strategy,'' Chief Executive and President Rick Wagoner said today in Wilmington, Del., where GM is having its annual meeting. ''This strategy will pay major dividends as we leverage our extensive car product development capability in Europe, Korea, and other locations to accelerate the shift in our U.S. product portfolio.'' He said the GM board has approved the next-generation Chevrolet compact car that will have a 1.4-liter turbo engine and represent a 9-miles-per-gallon improvement in fuel efficiency over current models. Find this article at: http://www.ohio.com/news/top_stories/19486449.html
June 3, 200817 yr Good news for the Youngstown area...they need it. As for suppliers, in Dayton the local tool and die industry made a concious effort starting back in the 1990s to move away from auto parts supply as way to protect themselves against a downturn, so that sector may not be hit as hard as expected. But this is still a big jobs hit for Dayton, coming on top of the Delphi shut-downs. Hopefully this will be the bottoming out of the crash in manufacturing jobs, particulary lower skilled assembly work.
June 4, 200817 yr The GM Moraine plant was the last GM plant to produce a mid-sized SUV - the Trailblazer. When I worked in the auto industry, I was on the project to launch that vehicle. I worked in Syracuse for a major supply - we made the transfer case (4-wheel drive unit). As a supplier, we spent millions and millions of dollars on new equipment to cut the gears, grind the shafts, weld the planetary components. A great deal of time, effort, and money went into producing the transfer case. I'm sure a lot of other suppliers invested a lot of money as well, but we were probably the largest supplier outside of GM plants. We produced all the T-cases for all GM, all Dodge, all Jeep, the Ford F250HD and above, and BMW, in addition to other drive-train components. I don't work there anymore. Neither do 60% of the people I worked with.
June 4, 200817 yr 2 weekends ago, my son has a classmate from school over to play at our house. His dad dropped him off, and picked him up. His dad works at the Moraine plant. I wonder if my son's classmate will be in our school district in 3 years?
June 12, 200817 yr Ford workers caught by industry shift Transmission assembly to end Friday at Batavia plant BY MIKE BOYER | [email protected] BATAVIA - Transmission assembly ends Friday at Ford Motor Co.'s sprawling plant off Ohio 32 east of here, the latest victim of the downsizing under way among US automakers. The 28-year-old plant, once Clermont County's largest employer with more than 2,600 workers, is a shadow of what it once was. About 780 hourly and management employees remain. That number will drop by about 200 at the end of this week when assembly operations cease... http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080612/BIZ/806120336/1076
June 17, 200816 yr More Ford cutbacks on the way Business Courier of Cincinnati - by Thomas Hartley Courier Contributor http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/06/16/daily11.html?surround=lfn
June 18, 200816 yr The comments below are by a friend of mine. The video is pretty remarkable.... This is a video of a new Ford plant in Brazil. One look at this and you will instantly be able to tell what is wrong with the manufacturing plants of the US car makers and why there will probably never be another one built in the US. It also shows why more will go off shore. No wonder manufacturers want to leave the US! The UAW will not allow this type of manufacturing process to happen. And our medical insurance costs are astronomical making our domestically produced cars more expensive to build. What is needed to get American manufacturing humming again is a complete restructuring. http://info.detnews.com/video/index.cfm?id=1189 "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 18, 200816 yr You don't need to. They're screwing themselves. Too bad their own brand of greed, for which they rightfully fought in corporate America, is now screwing the working men and women of this country. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 18, 200816 yr It is the weakness of unions that has likely prevented the current inflation from escalating. Union contracts drove much of the 70s inflation, though this could return but in a nasty way since the largest and most powerful unions these days are in education and government employment. This means if they start agitating for inflationary pay raises we are all going to pay.
June 18, 200816 yr Union contracts drove much of the 70s inflation, .... I think energy was at least as powerful of a motivating factor. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 19, 200816 yr Energy was the spark but the wage inflation that took place from the late 60s through the late 70s was connected heavily to union power. That and a bunch of machinations that came about in an attempt to provide guns and butter during 'Nam.
July 10, 200816 yr Workers at GM's Lordstown, OH plant just got another shot of good news from the General: the next-gen compact car from Chevrolet will be built there. The Chevy Cruze will replace the Cobalt, which recently had a third shift added to its production, and will make its initial debut at the Paris Motor Show in October. Europeans will get the first shot at the new car with sales beginning in April of 2009. The U.S. won't get the car until the following year, as the Lordstown plant begins phasing out the Cobalt and ramping up production of the Cruze in June of 2010. Both cars will be built simultaneously for a short time, according to UAW Local 1714 President Dave Green, who represents the workers at the Lordstown assembly plant. A look at recent spy shots has our interest piqued over the new small sedan. Styling looks to be worlds better than the just decent Cobalt and the promised forty miles per gallon sounds like just what the doctor ordered in the face of ever-increasing gas prices. http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/09/chevy-cruze-to-be-built-in-lordstown/
July 10, 200816 yr It means that come August we will have 1400 new jobs at Lordstown as they add the 3rd shift again to build more Cobalts, the #1 car of Chevy, and prepare for the Cruze come 2010.
July 10, 200816 yr Yep, but let's hope what happened in the '70s and '80s doesn't happen. America's small cars didn't measure up to the imports and lost sales because Detroit was doing things the old way -- big and bulky.
July 10, 200816 yr I saw in another article that it is supposed to get close to 45 mpg. Looking big and bulky means little compared to the vehicle's actual curb weight, mechanical efficiency, and aerodynamic drag.
July 10, 200816 yr Yep, but let's hope what happened in the '70s and '80s doesn't happen. America's small cars didn't measure up to the imports and lost sales because Detroit was doing things the old way -- big and bulky. That's hardly a complete accounting of what happened. For example, the wiring in my Datsun was hardly the equal of what GM was producing in 1978. I bought the Datsun used because it was cheap and I was on a low gasoline budget. I bought a used 1981 Ford that was a world better than Datsun for that matter, too.
July 10, 200816 yr A nice looking front end. I wish Chevy would replace the gold-colored emblem with what they use in other nations -- the chrome, hollow version. 40 MPG? Nice, but at the most basic level. Expect 30-32 MPG for their supercharged model. Looks a hell of a lot better than the underwhelming Cobalt.
July 11, 200816 yr Datsun/Nissan hadn't quite hit its stride in the '70s-early '80s, except for the legendary 510 and Z-cars. Honda, Toyota, Volkswagen and Subaru were just better cars at that time. Meanwhile, the General was serving up the pop can Chevette, surprisingly heavy Citation and underdeveloped Cavalier, which did little to placate quality hounds.
July 11, 200816 yr Is there a purpose for painting them like that when in testing? Does it tend to distort perception?
July 11, 200816 yr Is there a purpose for painting them like that when in testing? Does it tend to distort perception? Yes. Another trick auto manufacturers use is to cover the car with some sort of loose fabric/plastic.
July 28, 200816 yr GM to cut 2nd shift, 1,000 jobs at Moraine plant http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/07/28/daily8.html
July 29, 200816 yr http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121625840867860609.html GM Gives a Lift to Ohio Town's Fortunes Firm's Lone Small-Car Plant in U.S., A Rare Bright Spot Amid Slowdown, Adds Workers By JOHN D. STOLL July 17, 2008; Page B12 LORDSTOWN, Ohio -- The economy in this small industrial town in northeast Ohio has strained under the mortgage meltdown and the uncertain outlook for General Motors Corp., the area's dominant employer that has been losing money, shedding jobs and closing assembly lines around the country. Then on June 3, GM announced it will add a third shift of workers at its Lordstown plant to make more Chevrolet Cobalt compacts, whose sales have jumped as gas prices have soared. Even with GM's financial health still uncertain, the move will create 1,400 jobs and has helped boost the region's outlook almost overnight. "I thought I was going to pass out," recalled real-estate agent Yvonne Smith in nearby Warren, Ohio, who said messages began flooding into her cellphone after GM made its announcement. "It lifted the world off my shoulders. I said, 'This is exactly what we need to get this area going."' ... Write to John D. Stoll at [email protected]
July 29, 200816 yr Lordstown almost met a similar fate. Opened in 1966, the plant is known as a United Auto Workers stronghold, where workers once protested corporate strategy by breaking off keys in the trunks of Chevrolet Vega small cars. Most people here are too young to remember, but this was in the news a bit back in the 1970s, the disgruntled GM workers at Lordstown, who did sabotage for fun. This place must have really turned around in attitude.
July 29, 200816 yr http://blog.cleveland.com/business/2008/07/gm_gets_huge_tax_credits_for_l.html GM gets $82 million tax package for Lordstown expansion Posted by Robert Schoenberger July 28, 2008 18:47PM On the same day that General Motors announced it was cutting 2,000 jobs in Moraine, the state awarded the company more than $82 million in tax credits to guarantee a 30-year future for its Lordstown plant. The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 75 percent reduction in GM's income taxes for up to 15 years to help fund a $317 million expansion of the plant, the largest tax credit award this year and possibly a record for the state. The biggest awards this year have been $30 million to Goodyear to keep its headquarters in Akron, $24 million to NetJets Inc. to keep its headquarters in Columbus and $18 million for Bridgestone Firestone to keep open plants in Akron.
August 3, 200816 yr GM loses $15.5 billion Automaker continues cost-cutting, shifting emphasis to cars Saturday, August 2, 2008 - 3:01 AM By Tom Krisher and Dee-Ann Durbin ASSOCIATED PRESS DETROIT -- With another huge quarterly loss now in its rearview mirror, General Motors Corp. faces the thorny task of raising revenue by selling cars rather than trucks. But even with plans to boost production of its hot-selling fuel-efficient models and cut output of unpopular trucks and sport-utility vehicles, the company is running short on time if it keeps burning through more than $1 billion in cash each month. GM reported a $15.5 billion second-quarter loss yesterday, the third-worst quarterly performance in its nearly 100-year history. Through the first half of the year, it used up more than $7 billion in cash, including $3.6 billion from April through June. ... Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/08/02/gm_0802.ART_ART_08-02-08_C8_MOATRD9.html?sid=101
August 21, 200816 yr GM To Announce Multimillion-Dollar Investment At Lordstown POSTED: 8:09 pm EDT August 20, 2008 UPDATED: 8:12 pm EDT August 20, 2008 LORDSTOWN, Ohio -- General Motors is expected to official announce a multimillion-dollar investment into its Lordstown facility on Thursday. The announcement will also include the release of the first photos of the Chevrolet Cruze, GM's new small car. The announcement will be made at 2 p.m. GM CEO Rick Wagoner, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and others are expected to participate. http://www.newsnet5.com/news/17248435/detail.html
August 28, 200816 yr State offers GM $56M to Keep Moraine Plant Open By Thomas Gnau Staff Writer Wednesday, August 27, 2008 DAYTON — Ohio Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher has signed a letter offering General Motors Corp. more than $56 million to keep 2,400 jobs at the automaker's Moraine assembly plant. ... http://www.crainscleveland.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=framelink&link=www.daytondailynews.com%2fb%2fcontent%2foh%2fstory%2fbusiness%2f2008%2f08%2f27%2fddn082708gmweb.html&oas=www.daytondailynews.com_b_content_oh_story_business_2008_08_27_ddn082708gmweb.html
August 29, 200816 yr GM declines Ohio's $56M offer to keep plant open Staff and Wire reports Thursday, August 28, 2008 DAYTON — The Ohio Department of Development says General Motors Corp. has declined a tax credit and grant package worth more than $56 million to keep open its SUV plant in the Dayton suburb of Moraine. Department spokeswoman Kelly Schlissberg said Thursday the state is disappointed and will continue to look for alternate uses for the plant, which employs about 2,400 workers. The automaker has said it plans to close the plant by 2010 or sooner because of a customer shift to smaller vehicles. ... http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2008/08/29/mj083008vpcandidate.html
October 6, 200816 yr GM closing Moraine assembly plant Dec. 23 http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/10/06/daily5.html General Motors Corp. will close its assembly plant in Moraine, south of Dayton, on Dec. 23, ending the jobs of the final 1,400 workers two days before Christmas. General Motors (NYSE: GM) announced this summer that the plant would shutter by 2010 in response to a significant sales drop in the SUVs it makes there. County and city officials all said they were surprised and disappointed GM dropped the ax so soon though.
October 9, 200816 yr Someone e-mailed this little tale to me: A MODERN PARABLE . . A Japanese company ( Toyota ) and an American company (Ford) decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri River . Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race. On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile. The Americans, very discouraged and depressed, decided to investigate the reason for the crushing defeat. A management team made up of senior management was formed to investigate and recommend appropriate action. Their conclusion was the Japanese had 8 people rowing and 1 person steering, while the American team had 8 people steering and 1 person rowing. Feeling a deeper study was in order, American management hired a consulting company and paid them a large amount of money for a second opinion. They advised, of course, that too many people were steering the boat, while not eno ugh people were rowing. Not sure of how to utilize that information, but wanting to prevent another loss to the Japanese, the rowing team's management structure was totally reorganized to 4 steering supervisors, 3 area steering superintendents, and 1 assistant superintendent steering manager. They also implemented a new performance system that would give the 1 person rowing the boat greater incentive to work harder. It was called the 'Rowing Team Quality First Program,' with meetings, dinners, and free pens for the rower. There was discussion of getting new paddles, canoes, and other equipment, extra vacation days for practices and bonuses. The next year the Japanese won by two miles. Humiliated, the American management laid off the rower for poor performance, halted development of a new canoe, sold the paddles, and canceled all capital investments for new equipment. The money saved was distributed to the Senior Executives as bonuse s and the next year's racing team was out-sourced to India . The End. Here's something else to think about: Ford has spent the last thirty years moving all its factories out of the US , claiming they can't make money paying American wages. TOYOTA has spent the last thirty years building more than a dozen plants inside the US . The last quarter's results: TOYOTA makes 4 billion in profits while Ford racked up 9 billion in losses. Ford folks are still scratching their heads. ------------ IF THIS WEREN'T TRUE, IT MIGHT BE FUNNY. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 9, 200816 yr GM, Ford fall sharply as outlook dims A new report says U.S. auto sales will hit recession levels this year, threatening their survival. By Alex Taylor III, Fortune, October 9, 2008 NEW YORK (Fortune) -- How bad is it going to get for automakers? Worse, much worse. Investors made a shocking vote of no confidence in the future of U.S. automakers Thursday. GM (GM, Fortune 500) stock was down more than 14% to $5.92 a share, while Ford (F, Fortune 500) fell 7.5% to $2.46. That gave GM a market capitalization of $4.3 billion - chump change for this industrial behemoth - while Ford stood only slightly better at $6.6 billion. The stock selloff effectively puts these companies on death watch and it is easy to see why. A new report by Global Insight, the economic forecasting and consulting firm based outside Boston, shows U.S. auto sales hitting recession levels this year - and then sinking lower in 2009.... http://money.cnn.com/2008/10/09/news/companies/taylor_death_watch.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008100911 Three weeks later, you have to wonder what he'd be saying today?
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