January 30, 2012

Market Share Expected to Shift in 2012
GM, Chrysler Group LLC, and Ford Motor Co. may drop a combined 1.3 percent of U.S. market share in 2012, according to a Bloomberg survey of five analysts. Toyota may capture 13.8 percent of the U.S. market this year, from 12.9 percent last year, and Honda may take 9.5 percent, from 9 percent, analysts estimate. Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp., which last year more than doubled the U.S. market share they held in 2005, may claim 9 percent of industry sales in 2012, according to the survey. The Seoul-based affiliates had 8.9 percent market share last year. According to Automotive News, Hyundai and Kia's growth will slow in 2012 after last year's combined 1.1 percentage point share gain on sales increases of 20 percent or more for each company. Nissan Motor Co.'s market share may slide to 8 percent from 8.2 percent last year. The company gained 0.4 point of share in 2011. Volkswagen, which plans to become the world's biggest automaker by 2018, may capture 3.8 percent market share with combined deliveries of its Volkswagen and Audi brands, a gain of 0.3 percentage points from a year earlier. Click here for the full report of how automakers are expected to fare this year.

J.D. Power Reveals Most Useful Automaker Websites
Releasing its 2012 Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study – Wave 1 on Wednesday – J.D. Power and Associates found that Acura, followed by Honda, has the strongest overall satisfaction when it comes to automotive websites. Auto Remarketing reports that Acura topped the list with its score of 808 out of 1,000, with Honda close behind at 806. Rounding out the top five were Hyundai (803) then Infiniti and Lincoln, each of which received a score of 802. For this analysis, the websites of automakers were evaluated based on speed, appearance, navigation, and information/content. To gather the data, J.D. Power conducted a study in November 2011 and took the responses of more than 9,400 people. Each of these new-vehicle shoppers said they plan to be shopping around for a new vehicle within the next two years. The semi-annual study found that overall, consumers are becoming less satisfied with automaker websites. In fact, the average satisfaction score for this study was 772, compared to the average of 784 in Wave 2 of last year’s study. Click here to check out the complete study results. For coverage of its findings at Auto Remarketing, click here.

Honda Begins Deliveries of Battery-Powered Fit
Honda has begun handing over the keys to its all-electric Fit EV. The first of the 2013-model cars have been delivered to Google, Stanford University, and the city of Torrance, Calif., in advance of the public introduction this summer. According to The New York Times, the three first cars will be part of a demonstration program to provide advanced research and driving feedback that Honda can use in the development of future electric cars and powertrains. The initial recipients have particular reasons for wanting to take the wheel. For Torrance, where Honda’s American operations are based, the Fit EV will be passed around to various departments like management and parks and recreation. The goal is to learn whether an all-electric city fleet would be feasible. “They’re also looking at this as an opportunity for how Torrance can become a city of the future,” said a Honda spokeswoman, Jessica Fini. At Google headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., the Fit EV will become part of what is called the G-fleet – alternative-power vehicles in the company’s car-sharing program – and will give Honda feedback on what multiple drivers like and don’t like about the car. Read more about the Honda Fit EV here.

In Beetle's Creation Story, a Plot Twist
The tale is intriguing: A Jewish engineer and journalist, whose designs and published work in the 1930s laid out the basics for the Volkswagen Beetle championed by Hitler, was arrested, chased from Germany and nearly airbrushed out of history. The story of Josef Ganz is the result of more than five years of research by Paul Schilperoord, a Dutch technology journalist who is studying industrial design in Italy. The trove of documents and photographs he assembled form the basis of "The Extraordinary Life of Josef Ganz: The Jewish Engineer Behind Hitler's Volkswagen". According to The Detroit News, the book provides a picture of the automotive culture in Germany between the wars, with many small, struggling companies. Published in English for the first time in November, the work had previously been available in Dutch, Portuguese, and German. Schilperoord said that before World War II the word “Volkswagen” was so common as to be a cliché. "People's car" in Germany in the 1930s was like "personal computer" in the United States in the 1980s. Inspired by Henry Ford, many young engineers sought to build transportation for the many. Read more about the history of the Beetle and Volkswagen here.

Someday, You'll Wish You Owned These Cars
Of all the new cars that sell for under $100,000 today, CNN Money is featuring the ten that are most likely to become highly collectible in the future, according to the experts at Hagerty Insurance, a collector car insurance company. Most of the cars on this list are high-performance special editions. While relatively affordable, these cars are still rare and exciting. For example, a 160-horsepower turbocharged engine is plenty powerful to turn the tiny Fiat 500 Abarth into a fun drive. A trip to the Abarth Driving Experience, a full of day of training from professional drivers, is included with each purchase. Likewise, the all-wheel-drive Golf R has 256 horsepower, 56 more than the GTI. Hold onto it long enough and treat it nicely and it could pay off someday, according to Hagerty. The list notes the Porsche 911 – a vehicle which always holds its value. Some other international nameplates worth collecting: the Nissan GT-R Black Edition – renowned for its ability to squeeze 530 horsepower out of a six-cylinder engine – and the Audi TT RS – a model which has the advantage of global appeal. Check out the rest of today’s future collector cars by clicking here.

Around the Web 
Spy Shots: 2014 Mercedes-Benz C Class [MotorAuthority]
Vegetable Oil Will Fuel Record Attempt at Bonneville [Wheels]
BMW Rolls Out Two-Seat Mini Roadster [Driver's Seat]
The Toughest Trucks of 2012 [Forbes]