daimlerchrysler

Fonte: investor relations Ing Porsche

Il momento e´ arrivato, dopo mesi di dinieghi Porsche ha lanciato un´ opa sulla VW. Porsche Supervisory Board approves increase of stake in Volkswagen - Company to become a European stock corporationResponse to the challenges of the international automobile market Stuttgart. At its extraordinary meeting held today, the Supervisory Board of Porsche AG authorized the Managing Board to increase the stake held in Volkswagen AG from the present 27.3 per cent to up to 31 per cent of the ordinary shares and thus to make a mandatory offer for Volkswagen. The Managing Board intends to make use of this authorization in the short term. Porsche holds an option, which is exercisable at any time, to purchase up to 3.7 per cent of the ordinary shares of VW. The mandatory offer will be made to all VW shareholders after the 30 per cent voting rights threshold is exceeded. Once this mandatory offer has been implemented, any further increases by Porsche of its stake in VW will not trigger a renewed obligation to make an offer to the remaining shareholders of the Wolfsburg-based car manufacturer. At present, it is unclear whether, when and on what terms such increases will take place. It is proposed that only the minimum price prescribed by law will be offered as part of the mandatory offer. This is expected to amount to 100.92 Euro per VW ordinary share. For the VW preference shares the price will be the minimum price which will be calculated by the Federal Agency for Financial Services Supervision (BaFin). Porsche does not consider a premium on the minimum price to be appropriate, since the price of the VW ordinary shares has already increased by more than 100 per cent since the Stuttgart-based sports car manufacturer first acquired a stake and the price of the VW preference shares has almost quadrupled. Furthermore, the mandatory offer will not be conditional upon attainment of a minimum acceptance level (e.g. a majority interest in Volkswagen). Financing of the mandatory offer has been ensured via a credit facility arranged by ABN AMRO Bank N.V, Barclays Capital, Merrill Lynch International, UBS Limited and Commerzbank AG. Part of the background to the increase of the stake to over 30 per cent is the expected fall of the VW Act. As a result of the opinion delivered on 13 February 2007 by the Advocate General of the European Court of Justice, in which he emphasizes the incompatibility with EU law of the limitations on voting rights contained in this Act, Porsche expects that the European Court of Justice will also hold the VW Act to be illegal so that the German Government will have to amend or repeal this Act. In addition, a holding structure is to be implemented the principal purpose of which is to separate operational business activities from holding activities. To this end, it is proposed to hive down the operational business of Porsche AG into a wholly-owned subsidiary under the provisions of the German Conversion Act. This company will then continue the current business operations of the sports car manufacturer under the existing company name Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG. A domination and profit transfer agreement is to be concluded between the future holding company and the operational subsidiary. The Managing Board of Porsche has, in this context, made it clear: Porsche will remain Porsche. Nothing will change with regard to the structure of the plants, the suppliers, the production and development partners, the dealers and the other partners. The existing business and legal relationships will remain unaffected by the transaction. As a result of the hive-down, the areas of responsibility of the management will in future be divided between the holding activities on the one hand and the development, production and sale of premium sports vehicles in Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG on the other. It is also proposed that the company, which will then be operating as a holding company, will be converted into a European stock corporation – “Societas Europaea (SE)”. An SE is a modern and internationally oriented corporate form which, inter alia, enables the size of the Supervisory Board (twelve members), which has proved its worth in the past, to be maintained for the future. The operational company will continue to have its seat in Stuttgart, and the new holding company will also be located in the Greater Stuttgart area. The decisions on the hive-down, the conversion and the domination and profit transfer agreement are to be taken at an Extraordinary General Meeting, which is expected to take place in June. Porsche has traditionally had a close relationship with Volkswagen. The first bestseller of VW, the beetle, was based on a development by the founder of Porsche. Many joint projects, such as the 914, the 924 and the 944, and also a joint sales company in the period between 1969 and 1974, were propitious business decisions which proved successful in the market. The results of numerous development services provided by the sports car manufacturer to Volkswagen are nowadays a standard feature in vehicles of the Wolfsburg-based group. The pinnacle of success can be seen in the current off-road models Cayenne and Touareg. The platform has now also been adopted by Volkswagen’s subsidiary Audi for its Q7. In the meantime, further joint projects have been initiated: a hybrid engine which is to come on the market in the course of the current decade, a joint electronics platform, a cooperation with regard to the building of the body shell for the new four-door Gran Turismo Panamera and further projects aimed at optimizing consumption and at safety technology. Porsche is firmly convinced that a closer bond with VW through an increase of the stake to more than 30 per cent of the Volkswagen ordinary shares will produce benefits for both partners without diluting or indeed endangering the identity of Porsche. Quite the contrary: Porsche will perform its economic and social role even more strongly.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c1.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c2.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c9.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c10.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c11.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c8.jpg http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d10/vivazi/new_c12.jpg Foto prese dal depliant

Winterkorn to Take Over Volkswagen Brand Thursday January 11, 11:33 am ET By Matt Moore, AP Business Writer Martin Winterkorn to Take Over VW Brand; Wolfgang Bernhard to Leave Company at End of January FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) -- Volkswagen AG's new chief executive consolidated his power Thursday when the automaker announced he will take control of the VW brand and its current leader will leave the company at the end of the month.The automaker said in a brief statement that Wolfgang Bernhard, who has overseen the VW brand since May 2005, would leave on Jan. 31. The decision came after reports surfaced that new Chief Executive Martin Winterkorn wanted to reorganize Europe's largest automaker after taking over at the beginning of the year. Winterkorn, who formerly headed the company's Audi AG unit, was promoted to the top job after Bernd Pischetsrieder stepped down at the end of last year. Pischetsrieder brought Bernhard to Volkswagen in February 2005 from DaimlerChrysler AG, and Bernhard took over the VW brand three months later. "It was clear that as soon as Pischetsrieder had left that Dr. Bernhard's position was less secure, since it was Pischetsrieder who had hired him," said Stephen B. Cheetham, a European auto analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd. in London. Besides his CEO duties, Winterkorn will oversee research and development for the company and personally oversee the VW brand, which currently includes the namesake models such as the Polo, Golf and Touareg, as well as brands such as Skoda, Bentley and Bugatti. But Volkswagen said it would reorganize its various brands into new units, with Audi, Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini in one group and VW, Seat and Skoda brands in another. The company also said it had established a new executive board seat that would specifically oversee all sales. Bernhard's departure comes as Volkswagen faces a fierce threat from Asian and European rivals who operate less expensively with lower labor costs. Despite that, the VW brand has been a bright star for the company with sales up 10 percent in 2006 to a record 3.4 million cars sold. Volkswagen did not specify a reason for Bernhard's departure but thanked him for his service. "The company would like to thank Dr. Bernhard for his work in the past years and wishes him all the best for his future career," it said, adding that Winterkorn said Bernhard had been a key part of the company's ongoing restructuring. Cheetham said the move was also a sure sign of a shift in strategy for Volkswagen, which has come under more influence of Porsche AG, which is controlled by the family of Volkswagen Supervisory Board Chairman Ferdinand Piech. Stuttgart-based Porsche, Volkswagen's biggest shareholder, has increased its stake in the automaker to a level just shy of the 30 percent threshold that would require it to make a takeover offer. In December, the Porsche board authorized an increase to 29.9 percent from 27.4 percent. "This marks the end of the restructuring of Volkswagen," Cheetham said. "It marks a shift in strategy from a cost reduction strategy to a volume strategy." Wolfsburg-based Volkswagen is cutting up to 20,000 jobs, instituting longer working hours at its German plants and trimming costs -- a difficult program that Pischetsrieder instituted in a bid to compete with Asian automakers and to try and snare a larger piece of the U.S. market. Shares of Volkswagen rose more than half a percent to 83.15 euros ($107.96) in Frankfurt, while Porsche shares were up nearly 1.5 percent to 1,003.97 euros ($1,303.55).

La Daimlerchrysler è stata dalla nascita un' azienda a due velocità. E' un azienda enorme, ha mediamente un fatturato annuo di 150 miliardi di euro ( era la prima al mondo in tutti i campi per fatturato nel 2001 e nel 2002) ma ogniqualvolta che Mercedes andava bene, Chrysler crollava e viceversa. Tra il 2004 e il 2005 i profitti mercedes sono crollati mentre Chrysler era l' unica delle Big3 in attivo. Mercedes è stata risanata da Zetsche ( ex capo di Chrysler, attuale capo sia della Mercedes che dell' intero gruppo) con misure draconiane ma efficaci ( 802 milioni di euro nel secondo trimestre e 991 milioni di euro nel terzo come profitto operativo) mentre Chrysler ha perso ben 1,1 miliardi di euro nel solo terzo trimestre e a febbraio presenterà un piano di ristrutturazione.

Eccotelo qua: Fiat's 10 point plan for higher profit Analysts call it complex, but admit CEO Marchionne has earned credibility When Sergio Marchionne took over Fiat group in June 2004, the Italian industrial conglomerate was losing €2 million a day, weekends included. In the first nine months of 2006, the group earned €5 million a day. And if Marchionne meets his targets, the company will be making €13 million a day by 2010. Marchionne has won the respect of critics by setting and then reaching specific financial targets and by openly speaking about what must be fixed. But this month when he unveiled a very ambitious growth plan, financial analysts got queasy again. Max Warburton, an auto analyst at UBS in London, says that meeting the 2010 target "looks at least as complex as splitting the atom." If Marchionne's plan succeeds, the effect on stock prices could be "explosive," Warburton says. But he views the targets -- especially for Fiat Auto -- as extremely optimistic. Morgan Stanley auto analyst Adam Jonas agrees. It would be a phenomenal achievement for Fiat Auto to gain 1.4 million sales in four years, he says. But he urges caution. "While theoretically possible, I believe it would be ill-advised to use Fiat's 2010 targets as a base case," Jonas says. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Relationship building 12 recent Fiat Auto deals listed alphabetically by company Chery: Chinese automaker will build gasoline engines for Fiat Ford: Fiat will produce new 500 and second-generation Ford Ka at its plant in Tychy, Poland Nanjing Automotive: Fiat and Nanjing will expand production at Chinese joint venture to 300,000 units by 2010 PIDF: CKD assembly of Fiat vehicles in Iran PSA: Fiat and PSA will produce Minicargo light commercial vehicle in Bursa, Turkey PSA: Fiat will produce PSA transmissions at its plant in Cordoba, Argentina Severstal: CKD assembly of Fiat vehicles in Russia Tata: Fiat and Tata will produce pickups at Fiat's plant in Cordoba, Argentina Tata: Fiat and Tata will produce vehicles, engines and transmissions at Fiat plant in Ranjangaon, India Suzuki: Suzuki builds Fiat Sedici medium SUV in Hungary Suzuki: Suzuki gets license to build own version of Fiat-designed 1.9-liter JTD diesel engine Zastava: CKD assembly of Fiat vehicles in Serbia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Changing the debate Under Marchionne, Fiat's recovery has changed the tone of industry debate from how long Fiat Auto could survive to how profitable it could become. Marchionne's latest set of financial targets shows that Fiat group will still depend primarily on its non-car operations. Currently, Fiat Auto represents 47 percent of group revenue, but just 14 percent of profits. Even if the car unit hits its lofty 2010 goals, it would still be less than half of revenue and contribute a third of the group's projected €5 billion in profit. Marchionne laid out 10 specific actions Fiat Auto has to take to reach its goals. Each is ambitious. 1. Boost sales -- Volume growth will be the main driver in raising profitability. Marchionne said Fiat Auto's current breakeven point is 1.85 million units a year. So selling 2 million units in 2006 would generate a €275 million trading profit (operating profit before exceptional charges), a 1.2 percent margin on revenue. In 2010, selling 2.8 million units would mean €1.46 billion to €1.72 billion in trading profit and a margin of between 4.5 percent and 5.3 percent. That volume does not include vehicles built in China, India, Russia and Turkey through joint ventures and licensing agreements. By 2010, Fiat projects that these countries will contribute 700,000 units, a dramatic increase from 120,000 units this year. Their projected financial contribution to Fiat Auto, not included in trading profit but reported as investment income, would grow from €25 million in 2007 to €125 million in 2010. 2. Reduce platforms -- Fiat Auto will slash the number of vehicle architectures from 19 now to six by 2012, says Harald Wester, engineering and design director. But that means that each architecture would generate an average of 450,000 units by 2010 from 3.7 models. The current average is 150,000 units and 1.7 models. Fiat also will have fewer component designs. Wester cited as an example heating, ventilation and air conditioning modules: from 16 HVAC modules today to eight by 2010 and five by 2012. 3. Increase carryovers -- Fiat will increase carryover parts to 70 percent or 75 percent of new-vehicle development cost from less than 50 percent now. In the future, the only model-specific parts will be the upper body, interior and seat trim, dashboard, front and rear lamps and windows -- about 25 percent to 30 percent of development cost. Using more carryover parts reduces capital costs, thus lowering the point at which a vehicle starts to make a profit. Marchionne says the Bravo that replaces the slow-selling Stilo in February will break even at 75,000 units a year. Fiat is conservatively forecasting 120,000 Bravo sales a year, but financial analysts expect 180,000 to 200,000 annual sales. Besides carryover parts, Fiat plans to increase parts sharing between variants of the same architecture. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proliferating portfolios Fiat Auto plans 23 new models between 2007 and 2010 Fiat brand Bravo (February 2007) Linea (May 2007) 500 (September 2007) Minicargo Panorama (2008) B-compact hatchback to replace Palio (2009) C X-over to replace Multipla (2009) Doblo Panorama replacement (2009) Panda replacement (2010) B-compact MPV to replace Idea (2010) Bravo station wagon (2010) Fiat Light Commercial Vehicles Scudo replacement (January 2007) Minicargo (2008) Pickup done with Tata (2008) Doblo cargo replacement (2009) Lancia Delta HPE (June 2008) Ypsilon replacement (2009) Specialty product (2009) Alfa Romeo 159 Crosswagon (March 2007) 8C Competizione (September 2007) Junior (2008) Future C-segment to replace 147 (2008) 169 (2009) C X-over, which is a production version of Kamal (2010) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Get designs to market faster -- Fiat Auto's new time-to-market standard is the 18 months it took for the Fiat Bravo, down from 26 months for its predecessor. Wester says time was saved by intense use of virtual product and process development and validation for the Bravo. Faster development time cuts development costs and means styling is closer to the latest consumer trends. 5. Add more partners -- Since Fiat Auto and General Motors ended their troubled five-year alliance in February 2005, Fiat Auto has added 12 project-specific alliances with nine different automakers. (See table, above, right) Fiat doesn't want any more equity-swapping alliances like the one it had with GM. Marchionne considers such alliances "stupid." Marchionne's dealmaker, Alfredo Altavilla, head of Fiat Auto business development, says Fiat and Chery Automobile are evaluating "further opportunities for cooperation, including new-brand introductions and car production" in China. That could include launching Fiat's Alfa Romeo brand in China within three years, using a Fiat-Chery joint venture to build some Alfa models in China. What's different about Fiat's new deals? They leverage Fiat products or technology with little Fiat investment. By 2010, Altavilla says Fiat's partners will invest a combined €2.3 billion, "almost 90 percent of which won't require financial support from Fiat." 6. Enter new segments -- To reach its 2010 global sales target of 3.5 million units, Fiat Auto will launch 23 new models. (See table, left) Four of those models will open new segments for Fiat: Alfa Romeo's entry-premium Junior based on the Fiat Grande Punto targets younger buyers C-crossover models for Alfa and Fiat will blend the space and functionality of medium minivans with SUV-like off-road capability Its version of a Tata model will give Fiat its first body-on-frame pickup With PSA/Peugeot-Citroen, Fiat will introduce the Minicargo, a tiny low-emissions van for use as a delivery truck in cities. 7. Cut purchasing costs -- Fiat is coordinating purchasing activities at the group level to reduce costs. Annually, the group buys €31 billion in goods and services. Marchionne expects the changes to save a net €2.6 billion over the next four years. Gianni Coda, Fiat group purchasing coordinator, expects gross savings of €3.3 billion on materials and €400 million on services, but says price increases for raw materials will cut savings by €1.1 billion. This year, Fiat group will source €7 billion from low-wage countries, or 28 percent of total material purchases. By 2010, it will increase that to €8.5 billion or 34 percent of the total. 8. Upgrade, expand dealers outside Italy -- Fiat Auto is speeding plans to fill network gaps in western Europe. Fiat brand planned to fill 300 open points in 2005 and 2006, but found dealers for 440 spots, including 25 in strategic cities. Pietro Gorlier, head of network development, said that in the past 18 months 90 dealers have either added Fiat to their showrooms or dumped a brand in favor of Fiat. The result is that Fiat has the potential to boost its sales by 80,000 units a year. Starting in 2008, Fiat plans to add about 100 dealers a year, reaching 2010 to 4,800. 9. Improve manufacturing -- Fiat Auto is creating a new manufacturing system aimed at eliminating waste at any level, quite similar to Toyota's production system. Fiat Auto calls it World Class Manufacturing (WCM). It eventually will spread to other Fiat group divisions. 10. Share best practices -- Marchionne's turnaround plan has a basic concept: Skip the external consultants and share what works -- so-called best practices -- with others in the Fiat family

Marchionne: Fiat will push its rivals CEO says his successor as boss of automaking division must be fearless Sergio Marchionne expects Fiat Auto to win more than 570,000 sales from its European competitors between now and 2010. In the past, a bold statement like that from a Fiat Auto CEO would have caused the industry to collectively roll its eyes. Not anymore. The automaker has been on a roll since February 2005, which is when Marchionne added responsibility for Fiat Auto to his job as Fiat group CEO. The 54-year-old chief executive told Automotive News Europe Chief Correspondent Luca Ciferri that Fiat Auto wants to be chased by its competitors rather than the other way around. The two spoke at Marchionne’s office at Fiat group’s Turin headquarters November 27. You predict western European sales will be flat until 2010, but you expect Fiat Auto to increase its sales from 1,329,000 units this year to 1,900,000 by 2010. Which competitors will give up the largest portion of those sales to you? We are not targeting someone specific, we are only looking for space in the market. How it gets surrendered, I really do not care. The competition will pay the price for success, which is what happened to Fiat Auto. We were pummeled between 1997 and 2005. I think we need to get it back. Even if you reach your 2010 targets, Fiat Auto will remain one of the group’s weakest performers in terms of operating margin. Is this because of the structural weakness of Fiat Auto or because of the sector’s overall low profitability? It is undoubtedly true that [Fiat Auto] has historically had a very poor track record of earning a decent return on capital. It has been a destroyer of value for a long period of time. We are playing in a box, which is structurally not used to generating adequate returns. It is not just my issue, but one that affects everybody in the industry. Is it nearly impossible to generate big profits making cars today? I look at the other carmakers and I say to myself, okay, it may be true that eight other guys look like me, but there is one guy who does not, and he looks phenomenally different. This guy is Toyota. Toyota can play this game differently. I think we have to learn from what Toyota has done and to close the competitive gap. Over the next four years, I think we are going to make a significant dent in that gap. What we have that Toyota does not have – and I say this with all modesty – is the great historical heritage of the brands. If we play this the right way, there is probably a competitive advantage over their product line. However, I still think that, from a manufacturing and engineering standpoint, Toyota is miles ahead. I call them a flawless-execution machine and they are – it is scary to watch them. They have not missed a beat. If Toyota remains miles ahead, where will Fiat Auto and other European automakers be in the future? If Fiat [Auto] can get to the point where it can start earning returns that are commensurable with the capital commitment that it is making, you will have a tendency to push the other guys to do the same. If we are successful, we will also drag the others along. This is all going to become a level playing field sooner or later. This industry cannot continue destroying capital at this level. A year ago, you said the best investment Fiat could make would be to buy its own shares. Since then, the company’s shares have more than doubled in value to about €15. Would you give the same advice again? I would still do it. I think Fiat group is on its way to making the 2010 numbers. The market will eventually recognize what we are doing. When you look at the [projected] earnings for 2010, we are going to make €3.5 billion net. [but] I never worry about valuation. I worry about what drives that valuation. What drives it fundamentally is the delivery of what we commit to. You say that next year you will name one of your “kids” to succeed you as Fiat Auto CEO. What are the main characteristics you want in the future CEO? Fiat Auto is still an underdog, and underdogs need special care, since the leadership team that runs that business cannot know fear. If it knows fear, it will do nothing. The kind of leader who can ensure this mass of leaders continues to function properly has a unique set of qualities. These are people who are very good at running what I call ‘creative collaborations.’ They are, at least visually, rather messy collections of relationships that make the organization thrive and that need to be looked after constantly. It is a continuous maintenance process … and it will take a while for Fiat Auto to institutionalize that kind of management style as part of its DNA. It is not there yet. In regard to the question of whether I will leave in 2007, I will try to find a successor. I will only do so if I can find someone who ensures that what we started is finished. How is Fiat Auto’s relationship with suppliers evolving? Fiat and its suppliers have had a very strange relationship for a long time. We over-promised and under-delivered. The over-promise was not just to the press and the markets, but also to suppliers, which got used to thinking: If you say 100, you really mean 50. From now on, when we say 100, we mean 100. If you deliver 50, you are out. It will, therefore, take them a while to get rid of their bad habits. Will your B-compact architecture underpin your family of low-cost cars? It is the lowest cost to make. That does not mean we will not do any other [low-cost models]. This is the least expensive of our platforms. Are the B-compact models Fiat’s answer to the Dacia Logan by Renault? In broad strategic lines, the answer is, Yes. But I do not want to comment on whether they are the anti-Logan or not. The Logan was designed to be a spartan, limited-choice vehicle by definition. I think ours have greater potential than that, but I do not want to be derogatory about the Logan. It was a gutsy call to introduce it. Part of our plan to boost Fiat Auto’s sales from 2.12 million this year to 3.5 million by 2010 calls for a nearly three-fold volume increase to 332,000 units in “the rest of the world.” What markets are in this group? Eastern Europe, Japan, South Africa and the markets where we are represented by private importers we have neglected historically. We have just launched Fiat Auto brands in Mexico and Australia. Our competitors have done a very good job of positioning their brands outside of the traditional ‘grazing’ zone. We have done nothing, so we need to go play in those markets. You want Alfa Romeo, Lancia and China each to reach 300,000 sales by 2010. Which is the toughest challenge? China, by far. The market is there, but I am not sure we are. That is why I spent so much time building resources in China. The remedial work we are doing in China is significant. That market was neglected for a long period of time. Between 2006 and 2010 you plan to spend €1 billion to fix your dealer network in Europe. How much will you need to spend on network development starting in 2011? About €120-€150 million a year, probably closer to €150 million. Fiat Auto will reduce its number of vehicle architectures from 19 today to 11 by 2010 to 6 by 2012. That means you will go from building 1.7 models and 150,000 units a year per architecture to 3.7 models and 450,000 units by 2012. How much will this save the company? About 25 percent to 30 percent both in r&d and capital investment. It is much more difficult to give a realistic and reasonable range for the cost of components, because that also has to do with manufacturing and the commonality of the components coming off the architecture. My suspicion is that, engines and transmissions excluded, [the saving] would be about 10 percent to 15 percent in production costs. Fiat Auto will base seven models on its small architecture and produce more than 900,000 units a year off the platform once all the models are launched. Are you looking for a partner for this architecture? We have discussions going on, not just in connection with this. To the extent that I own the platform and want to allow people to come onto the platform and do things with us, I am also willing to go onto theirs. We have already seen the benefits of this sharing with the mini architecture. It was born for the Panda and planned in 200,000 units a year. With the new 500 and the other model [such as the Ford Ka successor], we will reach 400,000 units a year. Your B-compact architecture will underpin six models. What is the anticipated volume for that platform? About 500,000 units a year. That is enough to be profitable using it just for Fiat Auto but, as said before, we will be more than happy to share it with others. Could you tell us more about the new B compact architecture? It is structurally a scaled-down [small architecture], so we are not starting with a clean sheet of paper. It is designed to replace the Palio [world car family] and the Uno in the long term, being built and sold in western Europe and in emerging markets. Initially, I rejected the idea of creating our own architecture. Before we go spend a buck, let us find out whether we can join forces with somebody else. I told my guys to talk to other people and they did. We ran the numbers and the volumes; we looked at what the architecture had. But it did not have enough for us to go ahead and provide us with the solidity of a platform that would have allowed us to do what we wanted. Economically, therefore, it was not worthwhile. So we will build it alone, but there is enough volume in that to be profitable. A year ago, you said you were 20 percent complete with your work to fix Fiat group. Where do you stand now? Not much further. The problem is that the objectives a year ago were different compared with today. We set 2010 targets, so the amount of work and the way in which we measure what has been spent in terms of resources is all in relation to the ultimate objective of the endgame. A year ago, the 2010 targets were inconceivable. If I stood up and told you that we would make a €5 billion trading profit in 2010, many of people would have laughed out loud. We certainly lacked the credibility in 2005 to talk about 2010. In the past, good times at Fiat Auto meant good times for Turin-based design houses and engineering centers. Why is this not happening anymore? Interesting question, but I was not here when this parallel development was going on. First, our in-house design capabilities have been strengthened significantly. Thus the reliance on external designers for our brands today is important, but not crucial. Second, when you look at our engineering capabilities, they are much stronger than they have been since I have been here and are getting progressively better. Our need to rely on others, therefore, is decreasing. Fiat Auto used to outsource much of its engineering work. Can you now do everything in-house? With 23 new products and face-lifts coming in the next four years, we will be able to handle roughly two-thirds internally in terms of engineering and development. When I say internally I mean Fiat Auto in Italy, our engineering resources at Fiat Brazil and Comau Engineering (part of Fiat group’s production systems subsidiary). We are taking a large chunk of Comau Engineering’s resources, which in the past had been available to third parties, and redirecting them toward the needs of the group. It is also a much better utilization of internal resources. Where will Fiat Auto look to get the remain third of its engineering work done? We will look at the Italian engineering houses, as well as others. We have just gone through a total restructuring of our Chinese operation from a management standpoint. We are now investing in the resources required to run an infrastructure out of China, which is designed to serve not only Asia but also Europe. Tata will be helping us in India. Supplier strikes forced Fiat Auto plants to work on Saturdays recoup the loss of 25,000 units this year. What is being done to prevent future supplier-caused shutdowns? Actually you never recover them completely! There is a physical recovery of units that are lost. But economically I lost two days because I ran overheads while these people were just unable to produce cars. We are hopefully getting to the tail end of this unfortunate distribution of suppliers. We have worked our way through a whole pile of them in the first three years here. We have a couple left that we need to fix. We still have a few what we call ‘critical’ suppliers that are impacting us negatively, but [problems with them] will be totally worked out by mid-2007. The Bravo is the first car fully conceived under your leadership. Did you get what you wanted? What I wanted is what I got: The car will be on the market in 18 months. Is it true the Bravo’s production start was delayed a month? No, we will begin production for customers on December 1 and have the first units at Italian dealerships for the January 29 launch. Everyone is saying 120,000 units of the new 500 minicar will not be enough. If demand peaks, how many units can you produce? To 160,000 units easily, to 180,000 units with minimal investment, to 200,000 units taking some decisions on the Seicento. Isn’t the Seicento planned to exit production next summer? We need an entry-level car and the Seicento’s current transaction price is about €6,000. The model has a good following, so we are going to maintain it in production until 2009. This causes some [adjustments] on the plant production lines but we are working our way through the issues right now. When will the Fiat brand be profitable in western Europe? The official answer is: We do not elaborate on margins by brand. I will repeat this every time I am asked for any brand. Will the market except a Fiat with a Chinese engine? One of the great things about the collaboration with Chery is that it will allow us to work with them technically on that engine, effectively making it as Fiat as it needs to be. Which will be the first models to use the Chery-sourced engines? We will begin with the Linea made in Turkey. But what triggered all this is we needed an engine for the introduction of the Linea in China. The 1.8 liter we build in Italy is incompatible in the Chinese market purely on a cost basis. We needed an engine that matched that car and its reach in the marketplace. In the future, these engines will be available for our global architectures. You say it was “no miracle” to take Fiat group from a €50 million trading loss in 2004 to a €1 billion trading profit in 2005, a result you plan to increase to €1.85 billion this year and to €5 billion in 2010. How did you do it? Our revival and our plans for the future are based on five core principles: 1. We are a meritocracy 2. Leadership is a function of leading change and leading people 3. We embrace and cherish competition 4. We aim to achieve best-in-class performance 5. We deliver what we promise. The first is the clear acknowledgement that we are a meritocracy. The right to lead is a privilege that is granted only to those who have demonstrated the ability or a clear potential to lead and who have delivered in terms of business performance. Speed, simplicity and self-confidence are key. The selection of these individuals – their right to lead – has been determined by a rather thorough assessment of their leadership skills. This represents the second key element of the new Fiat context. Leadership combines the abilities to lead change and to lead people. Survival, and even more so superior performance, is earned by those who have the courage and the stamina to constantly change their position to stay one step ahead. The objective in order to ensure survival is to match or exceed the speed of the market. That is why the third element of Fiat’s new context is a requirement: That we embrace and cherish competition. Because we understand that it is at the heart of our survival The targets we have set for 2010 clearly show we aim to achieve best-in-class performance. Last but not least, we deliver what we promise. A similar process was put in place in July 2004 for the first phase of the permanent fix of Fiat group. We have achieved the targets that were due and, in certain cases, even exceeded them. And we fully intend to achieve the coming ones. By 2010, you want Alfa Romeo to sell 20,000 units a year in North America. Will you be profitable at that volume? It is highly unlikely that 20,000 units by itself will be profitable because of the amount of money it will require to build this sales volume. How much will cost to let North American consumers know that Alfa is back? Including all the elements of the re-entry, the re-positioning of the brand, the advertising and marketing support, it will cost between €70 million and €100 million. How will you build up Alfa’s North American dealer network? Because of its association with Maserati, our initial dealer base in North America is not big enough. Thus, from January 2007, we will start searching for additional dealers. Anyway, Alfa won¹t return in North America before the end of 2008, but we will have all the dealers identified much earlier. Because of CNH¹s [Case New Holland¹] activities in the US, this whole issue about parts supports and distribution is gone. We have enough warehouses in the US to support any penetration of the car business. That will be done relatively easily. What about the products? We have already done studies in the US with J.D. Power. We got the first findings, so we will be working on the face-lifts for the 159, Brera coupe and Spider to ensure that when they are ready for the US launch, they incorporate all the requirements of the US market. Is it true that Alfa could also offer the Junior and the 149 in the US? We are looking at it, but no decision has been made. You said that you expect Alfa to enter China within 2 to 3 years. Will the brand form a joint venture with Chery? Maybe. Alfa breaks even at 225,000 units a year. According to you plan, that means will turn a profit 2009, right? We do not elaborate on margins by brand. Alfa has received more than 1,000 orders for the 8C Competizione. You plant to build 500 units. What will you do? We will build just 500 units, as planned. We have allocated volumes by region and it is first come, first serve. It is that simple. There are some [units] that have been allocated to North America, but I will not tell how many. I can only say that I am on the list. Are you the first one in the list? I do not know whether I am the first one. I was talking to [Fiat head of purchasing] Gianni Coda and he said he wants to be number 25. I do not know why. Maybe it is [because of] Christmas! To meet your 2010 target, Lancia has to increase annual sales 150 percent to 300,000 units. But its model range will shrink to just three after you stop building the Thesis. How can Lancia equal Alfa’s sales if it has fewer products and it available in fewer markets? The Thesis ended up being a structural failure, so its volume contribution always has been negligible. We want to be more consistent with the Ypsilon replacement. Right now, it is by far the top-selling three-door model in Italy. But its successor will also have a five-door version. We have seen initial sketches of what the new Ypsilon could look like and there is enough room to reach 300,000 vehicles in Lancia. We need to give it some muscle. We can also fight a much better battle by entering some markets where we are not present, with a narrower range, rather than expanding the range and playing on one field. Lancia said it has five proposals for its niche product. Which one do you favor? The one that I prefer – and it does not mean we will make it because I never win these arguments anyway – is probably the Fulvia coupe. This model is my favorite Lancia niche entry, but the likelihood of that being made, from what I am been told, unfortunately is relatively small. Outside Italy, Alfa dealers also are supposed to sell Lancias. But so far few dealers have agreed to add Lancia. How can you convince them to do so? Initial reaction to the introduction of the dual dealership has been good. We have gotten positive feedback. Fiat’s portfolio of car-derived vans will grow when the Scudo and Minicargo join the Doblo. Will these models hurt sales of your traditional minivans? I don’t think there will be an overlap because they compete in different markets. In addition, for the next generation of our large minivans, the Fiat Ulysse and Lancia Phedra, we are working with PSA/Peugeot-Citroen on something quite different. It is too early to tell, but we rejected the first submissions from the design guys because we were not moving sufficiently ahead of the current versions. Is human activity a significant cause of global warming? Does the auto industry have a responsibility to do something about global warming? The European automobile industry has in the last few year made a relevant contribution to the reduction of CO2 emissions – and is going to continue to do so. New technologies recently introduced, regarding both engines and vehicles, have allowed an average reduction of 13 percent in the new registration emissions in 2004 compared with 1995, notwithstanding the new regulation and quasi-regulation requirements on safety and emissions push toward weight increases. Moreover, consumers have expressed a preference for larger, more powerful and therefore less efficient vehicles. The automobile industry considers that CO2 emissions reduction has to be dealt with by all interested stakeholders – manufacturers, oil producers, governments and customers – to find solutions with a better effectiveness related to costs. This is what is effectively contained in CARS 21 [Competitive Automotive Regulatory System for the 21st Century]. CARS 21, launched in December 2005, to be perfectly honest, has not had the most brilliant of starts that I have seen. However, I think it remains a very strong commitment on behalf of both the European Commission and us to ensure that it becomes operational. That is the only way to get it done. ACEA members do not comment on the average CO2 emissions of their brands. But a recent independent report shows that the Fiat brand was already at 139 grams per kilometer of CO2 in 2005. Does that mean the 140g/km target for 2008 is more than attainable for Fiat Auto?.The Voluntary agreement is a collective commitment of the manufacturers and has to be evaluated as such. Having said that, I think we have a fuel-efficient fleet. Can you provide more on the topic since you are both Fiat Auto CEO and ACEA chairman? The efforts of Fiat and other European manufacturers to reduce CO2 will intensify in the coming years. Nevertheless, realistically, only an integrated and consistent approach, which takes into consideration the contributions coming from all actors, will lead to tangible results and prevent the advantages associated with the new technologies from being negated by other factors. The risk is that whatever we do on one side, we lose on the other. We support biofuels blended with traditional fuels as well as compressed natural gas. Fiat does have a viable technical solution for CNG and I think that we need to push for it. Is it fair to discuss mandatory CO2 legislation before the 2008 emissions results are calculated? I think the industry collectively knows more or less where we are going to end up on CO2. I think we need to go back and look at this in terms of the CARS 21 process. CARS 21 really provided the framework with which to deal with regulation of the automotive industry and we really need to continue to push that. There are no viable alternatives. Any discussions that go outside CARS 21 are by definition flawed. They do not recognize the impact of other contributors to this process, including people who provide infrastructure. You can do all the safety things you like on a vehicle, but if you do not control speed and put systems in place, it will do nothing. Do you think cars will be taxed based on their CO2 emissions? I think there will be a progressive taxation based on CO2 emissions. There will be a threshold established and anything above that [threshold] will be linear. How would you rate the first year of your two-year term as ACEA chairman? It has been a good year. We have been able to manage a number of issues as the year went on. I only regret that most of the people I started with at ACEA will not be here by the end of this year. I lost [PSA CEO] Jean-Martin Folz; I will loose [Volkswagen group Chairman] Bernd Pischetsrieder; [bMW Chairman] Helmut Panke has gone from BMW; [Renault CEO] Louis Schweitzer has gone, [Renault-Nissan CEO] Carlos Ghosn has come in. We are going to have a completely different crew at ACEA, so my second year is going to be different from the first. What ACEA wrong to deny Toyota’s bid to become a member? The decision to accept Toyota required the support of the board of directors and the vote by the assembly, but the board did not provide that support and thus [the matter] was not even taken to the assembly. I will not comment on who was supportive and who was not as a matter of general principle. I do think that any time you try to artificially limit access it is not worth the end game. Toyota, anyway, now sits on a number of ACEA working groups. They have been working very closely with our colleagues and they made significant contributions. Toyota’s position is that its request for entry remains on the table because it was not discussed. Do you agree? Technically, I think it could be reintroduced, as it was never voted on. How many auto industry and non-auto industry job offers did you receive this year? I will not tell how many job offers I received, neither from this industry, nor from other sectors. I think this will be unnecessary speculation, as it does not achieve anything. I am still here. I like it here. It is that simple.

Il rapporto tra Ford e mazda è diverso da quello tra fiat e Gm. Innanzitutto esiste ancora. Nei primi anni 90 la casa di Deraborn comprò il 33% di quella di Hiroshima che era sull' orlo del fallimento diventandone il primo azionista. Dopo una ristrutturazione piuttosto lunga Mazda è tornata all' attivo e attualmente le strategie di gamma delle 2 case sono molto interconnesse. La fiesta europea presta la base alla Mazda 2 e succederà lo stesso per la prossima generazione, Focus europea e Mazda3 condividono con altri marchi il pianale C1. Inoltre dal pianale della Mazda6 (da cui derivano i corssover Cx7 e Cx9) la ford ha ricavato moltissimi modelli della sua gamma americana come la Ford Edge, la ford Fusion, lincoln Mkz etc....

Gm: Gmc, Chevrolet, Saab, Hummer, pontiac, buick, Vauxhall, Opel, Holden ( divisione australiana), daewoo, Saturn, 3% di suzuki ( fino all' anno scorso gm era il primo azionista della compagnia nipponica non più come nei casi di Isuzu e Subaru entrambe cedute), Toyota: Hino motors ( veicoli commercilai), Scion, Lexus, Toyota Ford: Volvo, aston Martin, Jaguar, Land rover, Ford, Mercury, Lincoln, Volkswagen: vw, audi, Seat, Skoda, Bugatti, Lamborghini, bentley, 20% di man, 34% di scania Daimlerchrysler: Mercedes-benz, Smart, Maybach, dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, (d'ora in poi tutti veicoli commerciali)Setra, mb commerciali, Freightliner, Mitsubishi fuso trucks, Sterling trucks, Western trucks, orion, Thomas built buses. Nel 2004 daimlerchrysler ha ceduto il 15% di Hyundai e il 37% di Mitsubishi motors. Nissan-Renault:samsung ( solo in Corea e cina), Dacia, Renault, nissan e infiniti. honda: Acura, Honda Psa: Peugeot, citroen suzuki: Maruti ( filiale indiana), Suzuki fiat: fiat, Lancia, alfa romeo, Maserati, iveco e Ferrari.

Per adesso Audi da 15 passa da record in record di produzione e vendite, quest anno arriverà a 890.000 auto vendute rispetto alle 390.000 del 1993 e quest anno dovrebbe registrare 1,5 miliardi di utile operativo. Inoltre secondo i piani di Winterkorn la gamma sarà ampliata dagli attulai 22 modelli/versioni a 40 con la nuova A5, Q5, a7, A1, forse la Q3..... Sembra una crisi che molti altri costruttori vorrebbero avere.

La volkswagen lancia questo suv con in mente soprattutto il mercato nord americano. Il marchio negli usa nel segmento truck è presente solo con la Touareg ( che lì è un flop). Inoltre i piccoli suv sono molto popolari anche in europa, la toyota riesce a piazzare annualmente 100.000 rav4 in europa ( oltre ai 150.000 negli usa e altri 100.000 nel resto del mondo). Il suv medio della Vw sarebbe dovuto uscire nel 2004 ma a causa di continui problemi di costi è stato rimandato al 2007.Imho è un bel suv anche se la concept a prometteva molto meglio.

Sì, liberty è il nome americano della Cheerocke. Sarà una Dodge Nitro con frontale della Commander.

La cromatura ci sarà per le versioni base, Dodge utilizza il frontale in tinta con la carrozzeria per le versioni più spinte. basta veder le Dodge Nitro Slt ( cromata ) e Srt ( in tinta).

http://www.autoblog.com/2006/09/04/spy-shots-2007-dodge-avenger/ E' la gemella della Chrysler Sebring nuova. Avrà motori 2.4 da 170 cv, un 2.7 e un 3.5 da 250 cv. In più il classico 2.0 tdi da 140 cv di origine Vw.

Attualmente gli operai tedeschi della Volkswagen ( marchio non gruppo) vengono pagati il 20% più dei loro connazionali del settore metalmeccanico e lavorano solo 28 ore a settimana. Uno dei grandi risultati ottenuti da Bernhard e Zetsche alla Chrysler fu quello di far scendere il tempo medio di produzione di un veicolo da 48 ore alle 32 attuali ( il target è di 28 ore per il 2008 per raggiungere il benchmark di Toyota e Nissan). Per ridurre il tempo di assemblaggio bisogna progettare componenti meno complesse e maggiormente condivise, non puntare a soluzioni tecniche non abbastanza collaudate e utilizzare nuovi robot. Uno dei maggiori problemi della Vw è l' eccesivo costo di produzione dei modelli costruiti in Germania e ciò ha impedito all' azienda di ampliare la gama secondo le richieste del mercato. Ad esempio il suv su base golf iniziò ad essere progettato nel 2002 ma arriverà sul mercato solo nel 2008 perchè fino al 2005 non erano riusciti a far quadrare i conti. Il touran è arrivato con quasi 7 anni di ritardo rispetto alla Scenic e così via.

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Invece io trovo che sia un segno positivo per la Vw. Uno dei problemi del marchio di Wolfsburg è quello di contare troppo sui modelli classici come Polo, Golf e Passat e cercare di mporli sui mercati mondiali ( con cattivi risultati sui mercati Usa e Cina). In futuro ci saranno molte più auto di nicchia e modelli concepiti specificamente per i singoli mercati.

http://auto-motor-sport.de/news/auto_und_produkte/neuer_vw_golf_neues_design_neue_motoren.104963.htm Secondo molte riviste tedesche a partire da ams, autobild, spiegel e Focus la Vw avrebbe deciso di anticipare l' uscita della nuova Golf al 2008. La causa principale sarebbero i costi troppo alti del modello attuale e l' eccessiva raffinatezza tecnica del modello che richiede ben 50 ore per essere assemblato contro le 24 richieste da una meganè. Il principale ispiratore di questa decisione è l' aggressivo nuovo capo del marchio Vw Wolfgang Bernhard. Gli scenari sono ancora aperti perchè attualmente è in corso una dura lotta di potere tra Pischetsrieder e Bernhard da un lato ( fautori di una ristrutturazione del marchio) e Piech e i sindacati ( che non vogliono perdere posti di lavoro nè aumentare la produttività). Secondo ams la nuovca Golf sarà basata sullo stesso pianale attuale, sarà più sportiva e gli stati uniti riceveranno una versione unica della futura jetta invece che ricevere la versione mondiale della Golf a 4 porte. Intanto il marchio Vw offrirà poche novità nel 2006 e nel 2007 mentre nel 2008 usciranno la nuova Polo, la nuova Scirocco, Golf, il suv medio e il minivan per il mercato statunitense su base Chrysler. http://bilder.autobild.de/hefte/autobild_200610.jpg

La suzuki intende vendere la sua versione della 16 negli stati Uniti. Cmq il mercato americano sta cambiando velocemente. 10 anni fa il successo delle Scion e della Mini sarebbe stato impensabile, invece oggi Nissan, Honda, Gm e Toyota propongono veicoli di segmento B.

Il giudizio non è mio ma dell' autore dell' articolo. Cmq è piuttosto interessante come suv.

Prefigura il prfossimo suv su base golf. Ecco alcune caratteristiche: http://www.racewaynews.net/galleria.php?a_id=606&photo=2 Volkswagen Concept A FOTOGALLERY La più bella 4x4 degli ultimi anni? Volkswagen has revealed its latest design study, the Concept A, a crossover between a sports car and a compact SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle). At 4,348 mm long and 1,854 mm wide, Concept A is 144 mm longer and 95 mm wider then the Golf Mk V. The height of Concept A is 1,551 mm, compared with 1,485 for the Golf; while its 2,602 mm wheelbase is 24 mm longer than the Golf’s. The concept combines a sleek coupe-style silhouette with the raised stance of an SUV. At the front, the shield-like front grill which is common to the Passat and Jetta has been developed to emphasise Concept A’s off-road styling by forming part of the underbody protection. High-efficiency LED headlights add a further modern touch. At the rear, Concept A has a practical hatchback tailgate; but this is coupled to a pick-up style fold-down rear section beneath the rear LED light clusters. This hatch can be opened independently and remain open while driving so long loads can be carried. Concept A does away with the traditional B-pillar. It features opposing opening wing doors which allow easy access for front and rear passengers as well as giving a feeling of space and light. This airy feel is enhanced by Concept A’s concertina-style soft-top which slides all the way back to the C-pillar. Inside are four sculpted, patent leather seats and ultra-modern facia with stylish and ergonomic controls. Under the bonnet is a 150 PS TSI engine: this uses Volkswagen’s latest turbo and supercharger technology for maximum performance but minimum fuel consumption. Designers say alternative engines, including TDI diesel units, could also be used in the concept. Whatever its source, power is distributed via six-speed DSG automatic transmission to all four 20-inch wheels using the 4MOTION system currently employed in the range-topping Passat and Golf R32. Concept A made its world debut today in Berlin and will be revealed to the public at the Geneva Auto Salon which starts at the end of this month. Production plans for the vehicle have not been confirmed. However, the concept further expands Volkswagen’s model range, at a time when customers’ needs continue to diversify

Volkswagen 4th-Qtr Profit Almost Doubles on Sales, Lower Costs Feb. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Volkswagen AG, Europe's largest carmaker, almost doubled fourth-quarter profit as new models attracted customers and the company's German employees agreed to work more for less pay. Net income climbed to 435 million euros ($521 million) from 234 million euros a year earlier, according to Bloomberg calculations subtracting nine-month profit from full-year figures released by the company. Net income for 2005 rose 62 percent to 1.12 billion euros from 693 million euros in 2004, Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen said today in a statement. Chief Executive Bernd Pischetsrieder, 57, introduced new models last year such as the Passat midsize sedan and the Audi A4 luxury car and planned to reduce costs by 3.1 billion euros to boost profit under a program dubbed ForMotion. Wolfgang Bernhard, hired from DaimlerChrysler AG last year to revive profit at the Volkswagen brand, won price concessions in 2005 from parts suppliers and from employees to work longer hours. The growth in profit ``is attributable primarily to the ForMotion program,'' while the ``earnings level is still unsatisfactory,'' Volkswagen said. Shares of Volkswagen rose as much as 2.37 euros, or 4.7 percent, to 52.99 euros and were up 4.5 percent at 52.92 euros as of 1:52 p.m. in Frankfurt. Fourth-quarter net income beat the 223 million-euro median estimate of seven analysts. Sales in the quarter rose 12 percent to 25.4 billion euros from 22.6 billion euros. Full-year revenue gained 7.1 percent to 95.3 billion euros. Bernhard's Role Bernhard, who took over the Volkswagen brand last May, helped fix DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler division by cutting 40,000 jobs, closing factories and trimming supplier costs. Bernhard, 45, said in July that Volkswagen's costs are 40 percent higher than those of competitors. He plans to cut 7 billion euros in expenses by 2008 and introduce as many as 10 new models. He won three agreements last year from suppliers and German workers to reduce spending. The suppliers accord may save at least 100 million euros. Factory employees in Wolfsburg and Emden, Germany, agreed to work more hours for less pay in exchange for a guarantee of building new models at the plants. New models have bolstered demand at the carmaker. The Volkswagen group's European vehicle sales rose 2.4 percent in the fourth quarter to 661,169 units, while U.S. sales of the Volkswagen and Audi brands rose 4.2 percent to 84,619 cars. Job-Cut Target Pischetsrieder said Sept. 5 the carmaker needs to reduce its western German workforce of 103,000 by several thousand positions. He's offering severance packages and early retirement to get workers to leave voluntarily. ``It is better to pay a generous amount now and have a smooth settlement than to spend endless amounts of time around a negotiating table,'' Stephen Pope, head of Equity Research at Cantor Fitzgerald in London who has a ``buy'' rating on the stock, said before earnings were released. Volkswagen is trying to reduce labor costs through voluntary measures because it's bound by an agreement reached in November 2004 with employees guaranteeing their jobs in exchange for a wage freeze that will eventually save 2 billion euros annually. ``We have factored in 715 million euros for the headcount reduction, of which 315 million euros is charged in the fourth quarter of 2005 and the remaining 400 million this year,'' Patrick Juchemich, an analyst with Sal Oppenheim in Frankfurt who has a ``buy'' rating on the stock, said before earnings were released. Pischetsrieder said Sept. 9 that Volkswagen had reduced labor costs 1 billion euros through the agreement with labor and that he needs to speed up efforts to cut the rest. He's trying to more than quadruple pretax profit to 5.1 billion euros in 2008 from 1.1 billion euros in 2004. Porsche AG, the German sports-car maker that's now Volkswagen's largest shareholder with an 18.5 percent stake, said Jan. 20 that Chief Executive Officer Wendelin Wiedeking would join Volkswagen's supervisory board effective immediately. Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piech will step down in 2007 as head of the supervisory board, and the chairmanship will be taken by someone unaffiliated with either Porsche or the German state of Lower Saxony, the second-biggest shareholder with an 18.1 percent stake, Porsche said. Il 2005 è stato un anno discreto per l' azienda di Wolfsburg. Grazie al taglio dei costi operato da Bernhard e all' aumento delle vendite in europa il livello dei profitti è quasi decente.

Per quanto riguarda il nome Mercedes, era la figlia di Emil Jilenek ricco imprenditore austriaco che a fine '800 era console dell' impero austro-ungarico a Nizza. Era un appassionato di corse e finanziò alcuni modelli costruiti da Maybach e Daimler. il nome benz fu aggiunto quando la Daimler acquisì la Benz fondendo i due marchi.

Foto definitive. http://www.mph-online.com/web/prtranslated/00505 http://www.mph-online.com/web/prtranslated/00504 Negli Usa avrà successo, in europa è più difficle che sfondi.