INDYCAR Adds Polycarbonate “AEROSCREEN” to Vehicles
Serious safety added to the open-wheeled racers
Gary S. Vasilash
Editor-in-Chief, AutoBeat Group
Safety Advocate Clarence Ditlow Dies
Clarence Ditlow, the executive director of Center for Auto Safety, died Thursday at the age of 72 following a year-long bout with cancer.
Bridgestone Debuts Firestone Tire Brand in India
Bridgestone Corp. launched its Firestone tire American brand in India today with a line of replacement tires for car and SUVs.
Bridgestone Divests Venezuelan Tire Operations
Bridgestone Corp. has agreed to divest its tiremaking operations in Venezuela to the Corimon Group, a Caracas-based paints and resins conglomerate.
Bridgestone Will Acquire Pep Boys for $863 Million
Aftermarket parts chain Pep Boys has agreed to be acquired by Bridgestone Americas Inc. for $863 million after the Tokyo-based tiremaker sweetened its bid late last week to match a rival bid from investor Carl Icahn.
Bridgestone to Buy Pep Boys Aftermarket Retailer
Bridgestone Americas Inc. has agreed to buy aftermarket parts retailer Pep Boys for $835 million.
Designing & Engineering Safety for Racing
Think of it as “safety fast.”
Christopher A. Sawyer
Contributing Editor
Study: Recalls Don’t Hurt Used-Car Value
High-profile recalls such as this year's callback of 2.6 million General Motors Co. cars for faulty ignition switches don't hurt depreciation rates for the affected vehicles, says Black Book, a provider of used-car pricing trends and risk analysis data.
Study: Recalls Don’t Hurt Used-Car Value
A study by Black Book shows high-profile recalls do not hurt the depreciation rates for affected vehicles.
GM Hires a Crisis Communications Advisor
General Motors Co. has retained Jeff Eller former director of media affairs for the White House during the Clinton administration to help manage its response to the company's delayed recall of some 2.6 million defective ignition switches linked to 13 deaths.
William Clay Ford Dies
William Clay Ford, the last surviving grandchild of Henry Ford and father of Ford Motor Co.
William Clay Ford Dies at Age 88
William Clay Ford, the last surviving grandchild of Henry Ford and father of Ford Motor Co. Chairman Bill Ford Jr., died on Sunday at age 88.
Toyota, Conspiracies, Six-Sigma, & Auto Engineers
As is well known but never documented, a water-powered carburetor was invented in the early 20th century.
Firestone: In the Car Business 112 Years
While it may be a bit of a stretch, Firestone (part of Bridgestone Americas) is running an advertising campaign that has an interesting thesis: although it is not a car company per se, given its 112 years in producing automotive tires, and its 86 years in service, during which it has serviced 11,000 makes and models and over 500-million vehicles in total, it sort of is a car company.
Gary S. Vasilash
Editor-in-Chief, AutoBeat Group
Tires of the Future?
If automotive tire upstart Amerityre can perfect its polyurethane tires, we may soon have to revise the phrase "where the rubber meets the road."
Jacques Nasser Was Right
There is no such thing as a mundane product or mundane business. Only mundane ideas.
What You Can Learn from Firestone & Ford
During recent months, the Firestone/Ford Explorer fiasco has shaken the entire automotive industry to its core.
Ford: Explorer, Flex & Volumes
The headline to a piece in last Friday's Detroit Free Press by Brent Snavely pretty much answers itself: “Is car-based Explorer the same rugged SUV?” The issue, of course, is the forthcoming Ford Explorer, the vehicle that really transformed the SUV marketplace in the late '90s and early '00s before falling off of a sales cliff as a result of factors including the Firestone tire problems as well as a growing consumer taste for CUVs—car-based crossover utility vehicles—and a growing indifference toward SUVs—truck-based sport utility vehicles.
Gary S. Vasilash
Editor-in-Chief, AutoBeat Group
