William Maley

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com October 10, 2012 The Scion FR-S marks a return for Toyota of building a sporty RWD coupe, and it might not be the only one. Top Gear Philippines had the chance to sit down with Tetsuya Tada, chief engineer for the FR-S and other members (Toyota GT86 and Subaru BRZ). Tada revealed that the FR-S was the first of three new sports cars being worked on by Toyota. "The first is more mass-market and cheaper than the 86. And the third is more upmarket than the 86," Tada said. When asked if the third vehicle is the successor the Supra, Tada said it could possibly be but that nothing is sure at the moment. Source: Top Gear Philippines William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

This is easy for me.. CHEERS indeed

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com October 9, 2012 The way Tesla sells their vehicles is very different from other automakers. Their seventeen stores are modeled after the Apple Store; most are in malls for anyone to walk in and look at the vehicles. If you want to order a Tesla, you can do an online reservation. This has drawn the ire of dealers and dealer organizations, which have begun legal efforts to make Tesla's factory stores illegal. Their argument: "Tesla's factory-owned stores present unfair competition for rival dealerships, are inconvenient for consumers needing repairs and, if left unchallenged, ultimately threaten the franchise system," according to a new report from Automotive News. "If a manufacturer sees that Tesla is successful with this kind of business model, who's to say they don't break out their own EV product lines and create a separate system that bypasses dealers? It's extremely problematic," said Bob O'Koniewski, executive vice president of the Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association. Four states (Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Oregon) have complained about Tesla's business practices and are looking to the law to fight it. Other states have brought questions dealing with Tesla's stores. "Tesla may not yet recognize the value of the independent, franchised dealer system, but as its sales increase, NADA is confident it will re-examine its business model. Other companies such as Daewoo did. All companies should be complying with existing laws in the same way dealers are required to," said Montana dealer and NADA Chairman Bill Underriner in a statement. Tesla doesn't see a problem with their stores. "We do what we're capable of doing, and we do whatever they let us do. It's unique for each location. If we can't be a dealer in a mall, we won't do reservations on-site. We tell people where to go on our Web site to make a reservation." said George Blankenship, Tesla's vice president of sales. "We just want to locate in high-traffic locations and interact with people when they are specifically not thinking of buying a car. We have no motivation to change the laws or how the car industry does its business." Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com October 9, 2012 General Motors has made made some big plans for Cadillac that include a possible new flagship sedan, two-seat sports car, and a refreshed lineup.To help put these plans into motion, they have announced a new Global head of Cadillac. Today, the company has announced that Robert E. Ferguson will become the Global head of Cadillac starting January 1st. Ferguson will oversee marketing, brand management and advertising for Cadillac in marketplaces around the world. "I’m excited to join a talented team during a period of revitalized growth. The opportunity to strengthen and grow Cadillac is ours for the taking. More people in new markets will experience what makes Cadillac one of the industry's most revered brands," said Ferguson in a press release. Ferguson has been at GM since 2010 as the vice president for global public policy, the face of GM on Capitol Hill. Before this, Ferguson worked at Public Strategies, a business advisory and strategic communications firm. Source: GM William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. Press Release is on Page 2 GM Names Ferguson Cadillac Global Brand Chief Exclusive marketing focus to accelerate premium luxury brand's international growth DETROIT — General Motors today appointed senior executive Robert E. Ferguson to lead the global growth and development of the company’s iconic Cadillac brand. In the newly created position of vice president, global Cadillac, Ferguson will be responsible for marketing, brand management and advertising for Cadillac in markets around the world. The move is effective immediately and he will report directly to GM chairman and CEO Dan Akerson. Responsibility for sales is also expected to transition to Ferguson in the new year. “Bob is a proven leader with vision and a will to win at this critical time for Cadillac,” said Akerson. “He brings a deep business and marketing background that has been marked by delivering results at every stop and under every circumstance. The Cadillac brand will hit a higher gear under his watch." Ferguson heads Cadillac at a time when GM's premium luxury brand is planning the most extensive round of product launches and upgrades in its history, and is poised to enter new international markets with industry-leading products like the XTS, ATS and SRX. "I’m excited to join a talented team during a period of revitalized growth,” said Ferguson. “The opportunity to strengthen and grow Cadillac is ours for the taking. More people in new markets will experience what makes Cadillac one of the industry's most revered brands." U.S. vice president for Cadillac marketing Don Butler and U.S. vice president for Cadillac sales and service Chase Hawkins will report to Ferguson as he begins building out his global team. Ferguson, 53, joined GM in 2010 and is currently vice president for global public policy. He is credited with helping GM strengthen its position and voice on Capitol Hill, and with its many regulatory agencies, on a wide range of business challenges related to energy, tax, labor and finance policy. In that role, Ferguson has become particularly familiar with GM’s product portfolio and advanced technology plans as the automaker contends with new fuel economy rules and safety regulations. Prior to joining GM, Ferguson was at the business advisory and strategic communications firm Public Strategies, where he worked with a diverse and international group of clients as a senior strategist. His work with the firm included providing international relations and crisis counsel to the president of the International Olympic Committee during the period leading up to and during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, as well as leading strategy around several high-profile and complex financial and merger and acquisition transactions. Before joining Public Strategies, Ferguson spent more than 10 years as an executive at AT&T, most recently as the president of state legislative and regulatory affairs. He also gained a depth of experience on the sales side of the business, as group president and CEO of SBC's Enterprise Business Services. In that role, he had responsibility for 10,000 employees — one of the nation’s largest sales and engineering organizations at the time. During his tenure, Ferguson oversaw data services, Internet, long distance and customer service operations and grew revenues of $5 billion and EBIT of $1.9 billion. Ferguson's previous responsibilities in Washington will be assumed by Selim Bingol, who will also retain his current communications role and will become vice president, global communications and public policy. Bingol, who also will serve as chairman of the GM Foundation, will continue to report directly to Akerson and remain based in Detroit. Bingol, 52, joined GM in March 2010, having served as a senior communications and public affairs strategist for a number of large, international clients across diverse industries. Prior to GM, Bingol was senior vice president, corporate communications at AT&T, during a time of unprecedented growth, merger and acquisition activity, and federal and state regulatory scrutiny. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com October 8, 2012 Nissan set a very ambitious goal of selling 20,000 Leafs this year. At the end of September, Nissan only sold 5,212 Leafs, way off the mark. "We don't plan on the moment of changing the projection. We're a little disappointed. … The uptake isn't as strong as we first hoped," said Nissan's executive vice president of product planning, Andy Palmer. Palmer puts blame poor marketing around the world and a lack of production in the U.S. At the moment, the Leaf is currently built at a plant in Japan and being sent around the world. Another problem for the Leaf is the pricetag. The base Leaf currently starts at $36,050, including shipping. Include the $7,500 U.S. tax credit, that puts it below the Chevrolet Volt. The Volt though comes with a gas engine that acts like a generator, giving it more range than the Leaf. To help with sales, Automotive News reports that Nissan is planning a lower cost version of the Leaf when a face-lifted version is introduced sometime in 2013. The model will drop LED lamps for HID-Headlights and some of the advanced features offered in the current navigation system. The model will also feature components being combined to help cut costs. Source: The Detroit News, Automotive News (Subscription Required) William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article