vive la france © TheAlieness GiselaGiardino²³

Do you remember the article on car purchases by the Italian State, which has stimulated a heated debate on this blog? With all the related discussion on globalization, market and liberalization?

Well brace yourselves because while half of Europe is drifting, the other half knows where is going, and without wanting to be ironic, hats off to their rulers! Read more »

Fiat Strada 1.6 Adventure Crew Cab 2011 © order_242

The Brazilian car market ended 2012 as the best year in its history, with a volume of 3,634,510 units sold (cars + LCVs), an increase of 6.1% compared to 2011. Read more »

…from the first part!

May I ask a more generic question? What professional differences are there, for a person in your position, between working in Turin and working in Detroit?
Both Turin and Detroit have a strong, proud automotive heritage. While both have gone through tough times, both continue to maintain a vivid passion for cars. From a professional standpoint, I feel at home in both places. Read more »

Date of the interview: March, 26 2013

Professional Profile: Pietro Gorlier was born in Turin (Italy), he joined the Fiat Group in 1989 as a market analyst in Iveco helding various positions in logistics, in the After Sales and Customer Care, before joining Fiat Group Automobiles in 2006.
After the experience in FGA and in CNH Global N.V., he joined Chrysler Group. He is President and CEO of MOPAR® since 2009 and , from its establishment on Sep. 1, 2011, he is member of the Group Executive Council (GEC). The GEC is the highest executive decision-making body within the Company outside of its Board of Directors.

In the next years we will see a close fight on everything concerning care, attention and customization of the car; this competitive scenario will generate significant margins, much more than the ‘metal’ alone.
In this perspective, it is strategic the position that Mopar® is taking on within Fiat Group Automobiles and Chrysler Group’s activities. Read more »

Mondial de Paris 2012 -Press Days- Peugeot Onyx © christian.parreira

Sometimes, you just do not close those annoying spots, imposed and uninteresting, that show up before the video you have decided to watch on You Tube begins. Read more »

The Joys of Driving © @ANDYwithCAMERA

Yes, you read correctly, and it is no use you get excited – I’m referring to the pro Germans (VW e.n.). The numbers speak clearly, whether you like it or not!
But what is surprising is how the news is virtually absent from any type of media; then perhaps we can find some painful – but true – explanation without a particular effort. Read more »

… the first part!
Speaking of electric cars, what is your opinion of the EC 2011 White Paper and of the studies conducted in the US, by Exxon and by Toyota itself, according to which a significant market is only possible after 2020?
Don’t you think Renault’s anticipating the times is counterproductive? And if you don’t, why not? Read more »

Interview Date: January, 21 2013

Professional Profile: Jacques Bousquet is a graduate of the EDHEC Business School in Lille and majored in Business Management at the University of Michigan of Detroit, the Duke University in North Carolina and the INSEAD in Fontainebleau. From 1982 to 1998 he held positions of increasing responsibility in Ford; from 1999 to 2002 in Fiat Auto, and later DaimlerChrysler France as Managing Director and then he covered the role of CEO of Chrysler Europe from 2006 to 2008. Since January 2009 he was President and CEO of Renault Italy.
Since June 2011 Jacques Bousquet is also President of UNRAE. Read more »

A post on one of my LinkedIn groups highlighted a concern that I have long held with pre-reporting units. Over the years I have struggled to understand the benefit to anyone for doing so.

I remember as a Sales Manager for one of the OEM’s we would dread month end because it usually entailed phoning dealers to put pressure on them to capture sales cards on unsold vehicles in their stock. One divisional manager I worked for sometimes even captured a few sales cards ‘on behalf of’ dealers who did not comply with his request for them to do so! Read more »

…the first part!

GLOBALISATION!  This term should allow you to achieve a product that is in line with the tastes of the “entire world”, with the underlying principle of listening to your customers. Are Lancia and Chrysler getting to grips with this term? Do they listen to the large mass of customers who are trying to convey their expectations? If not, what’s missing and what will you do to address this issue? Read more »