November 2008 Archives

ROCK AND ROLL OVER. Cops of the summer capital now drive around in these all-terrain vehicles, part of its modernization drive. But police officers still have no weapon against second-hand smoke. (Photo by Vincent Cabreza of INQUIRER Northern Luzon Bureau)

By Agence France-Presse BRUSSELS -- New car sales in Europe slumped 14.5 percent in October, the European automakers association ACEA announced Friday, as the global financial crisis plunges the region into recession. The figures marked the sixth consecutive monthly fall in new car registrations which were also down 5.4 percent for the 10 months to October. "Reflecting the financial and economic crisis, new car registrations have now decreased for six consecutive months," the association said in a report. The figures were released amid expectations that the 15-nation eurozone would be formally declared in recession later in the day. The European Commission was swift to respond to the disappointing car figures. Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said that the EU is ready to take action at the World Trade Organisation if it judges that US aid for its struggling auto industry is "illegal." The US Congress approved an aid package worth 25 billion dollars in September to help the auto industry invest in new generation technology but no timetable was fixed for payments to be made. Meanwhile, European automakers -- who have cast an envious eye at the US plan and called for similar action at home -- have been forced to close factories and cut jobs. "We are looking at the (US) plan. The plan has not yet been made official but certainly, if it amounts to illegal state aid we will act at the WTO," Barroso told Europe 1 radio when asked about the US bailout package. Since then, problems have mounted as the global financial crisis has savaged the economy, with all three US majors -- General Motors, Ford and Chrysler -- clamouring for help in the same way as Washington has bailed out the US banks. The economic news coming out of Europe was making equally gloomy reading. Official figures released Friday in Rome showed the Italian economy in recession -- defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction. A day earlier Europe's biggest economy Germany declared itself in recession while the French economy only narrowly escaped the "R" word. A reecssion announcement on the eurozone as a whole was expected later Friday. In total, 1.134 million new cars were registered in Europe in October in the 28 countries reviewed -- the 27 EU member states, minus Cyprus and Malta but plus Iceland, Norway and Switzerland. Only the Austrian car market avoided the sales drop, while Ireland and Spain crashed 54.6 percent and 40 percent respectively in October compared to the same month last year. The Spanish figures were at their lowest for 13 years. In response to waning sales, French car maker PSA Peugeot-Citroen has ordered a 30 percent production cut while Renault is to temporarily shut down several factories in France and Europe as the global financial crisis undercuts the economy. The bad news on car sales news has had ramifications beyond the auto industry. Last month, steel giant ArcelorMittal announced it was shutting down furnaces at a dozen sites across Europe for at least six months in response to a sharp fall in demand from crisis-hit carmakers. The car registration figures were less grim, according to the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), in the mainly eastern European new member state markets, with sales down 3.3 percent in October. The Polish market was up 12.3 percent over October 2007. All main carmakers saw their sales drop with Chrysler, already a relatively small player in Europe, seeing its figures fall by a whopping 49.4 percent. General Motors, the biggest US carmaker, saw its October sales fall by a little over 25 percent. Germany's Volkswagen sold the most cars in Europe last month, with 249,948 new vehicles registered, a drop of 7.6 percent over the same month last year.

By Edd Snyder THE financial storm that has swept across the globe since late summer has touched virtually every segment of the economy. It has hit millions of homeowners and affected thousands of small businesses as well as major corporations and even sovereign governments. It has had a devastating effect on the auto industry, which has encountered a sales slump unlike any other in more than two decades and 2.5 million jobs in the U.S. are at risk. The financial crisis is affecting the auto industry because the car business runs on credit, and the credit markets are not functioning as normal. Many lenders have suffered loan losses and have either decreased or stopped lending. As a result, automakers and suppliers are unable to get credit to invest in retooling factories or developing advanced-propulsion technologies. Auto dealers are unable to get credit to finance their inventories and other routine business expenses. At the same time, many consumers find it more difficult to obtain credit for a car purchase while low consumer confidence prevents those with approved credit from buying a car. Every state and virtually every community in America has a stake in the future of the domestic auto industry. In the U.S., General Motors, Ford and Chrysler directly employ 240,000 people, provide healthcare to nearly 2 million Americans, and pay pension benefits to 775,000 retirees and surviving spouses. GM, Ford and Chrysler support another 5 million American jobs at parts suppliers, service providers, and dealerships, supporting jobs in all 50 states. GM alone has more than 6,000 dealerships in the U.S.; these independent small businesses employ 344,000 people. According to a recent study by the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), if the domestic automakers cut output and employment by 50 percent, nearly 2.5 million jobs would be lost and governments would lose $108-billion in revenue over three years. Economically, almost 4 percent of U.S. gross domestic product is auto-related, representing 10 percent of U.S. industrial production by value. One out of every 10 U.S. jobs is connected to the industry. GM, Ford and Chrysler account for roughly 70 percent of U.S. auto production and last year purchased $156 billion in U.S. auto parts. The industry is the largest purchaser of U.S. steel, aluminum, iron, copper, plastics, rubber and computer chips.

INQUIRER.net executive editor Leo Magno takes the 2009 Ford Escape for a spin. In this review, he discusses the smaller, more economical SUV that costs more than P1 million.

By Fung Yu Contributor Author’s Note: This article uses virtual reality technology to provide an immersive experience. Adobe Flash 9.0 or above is required to view the 360-degree VRs. Average VR size is 2.0Mb each. Yellow ‘hotspots’ are clickable. SO I got an invitation from Honda Cars Philippines a while back to test drive the all new Jazz for 2 days in picturesque Ilocos Norte. My first thought was to clear my schedules, refresh my memories of Ilocos, and pray that we’ll have fair weather during those days. Alas, I guess I didn’t pray hard enough. Having seen the 2008 Honda Jazz in the recent 2nd Philippine International Motor Show, I can say it is indeed a beauty. The new Jazz expresses dynamism and a super-forward looking form that you can readily see at a glance. The new body structure conforms to a variety of design requirements, including safety and spaciousness. This is a car that merges seemingly contradictory traits to genuinely enhance people’s lifestyles; the design is sporty yet spacious; performance is powerful yet efficient; utility is compact yet capacious, comfortable yet versatile. Among the new exterior features of the all-new Jazz are: the push-lift fuel lid that is synchronized with the door lock; the larger side-view mirrors providing 30 percent more visibility (as compare to the old Jazz); a wider 80-degree angle rear doors that open for easier loading and unloading; bigger front and rear lamps that provide more distinctive styling. As one enters the Jazz, you immediately notice the spaciousness of the interior, couple that with the wider glass area and larger front windshield makes you feel almost boundless. The cockpit is an awe-inspiring 3D design with large-diameter meters of sculpted surface and hairline accents; this exudes in a sporty and advanced feeling that contributes to enhanced visibility. One notable new feature in the dashboard is the fuel consumption meter; a first for small cars, this instantaneous and average reading of fuel consumption provides a LCD display of fuel utilization that translates to better economical driving. View 360VR So what was it like for a 2-day test drive with the Honda Jazz in Ilocos Norte? Our first day was rather gloomy. Rain clouds seem to follow us from Manila to Loaog; the only time we felt the warm sunshine was for a few minutes at 30,000 feet. We arrived in Honda Cars Ilocos before noon and after a sumptuous lunch and briefing, we all put on our Jazz t-shirts and did the first challenge: the utility contest. This challenge aims to show the spaciousness of the Jazz and by configuring the seats, you can stuffed big and long items together almost effortlessly. After which, it was finally time to do our test drives. The drive towards the town of Burgos is both idyllic and relaxing, along the way, we performed several more trivia challenges from counting palayoks (urn), haggling prices of some local commodities, to interviewing the caretaker of Cape Bojeador lighthouse; and lastly, en route to our resort, a treasure hunt in Paoay Church. We reached our place of accommodations after sunset, dinner was coupled with a picture sharing session, and a light social capped the night. View 360VR View 360VR Waking up in the Bali-inspired Playa Tropical Resort the next day, all well rested and up for another days’ activities; with weather a lot better, I took the wheel, this time of the 1.5 Jazz, on a leisurely cruise. Our group started the drive from Currimao to Saud Beach in Pagudpud; stopping at the town of Bangui to appreciate the giant wind turbines and more photo-ops. Compare to the 1.3 model we drove yesterday, the 1.5 Jazz feels much more ‘solid’, acceleration is more responsive, and a host of other features and technologies such as the paddle shift makes driving more enjoyable. View 360VR View 360VR View 360VR View 360VR We started the Eco Challenge after lunch. Four teams, with two teams driving the same engine displacement models pitted against each other in a ‘race’ of speed and fuel efficiency. With Ulysses Ang of motioncars.com at the helm and this writer as navigator, it took us about 1.5 hours to cover a distance of 66Km and consumed 2.9 liters of fuel, a 22.67 kilometers/liter average on uncongested rural roads. The other team did much better with a 30.39 kilometers/liter finish. Of the 4 teams in our batch, each team won a challenge or more: team 4 of Jouel Lacampuenga and Kankan Ramos won the utility challenge and the eco challenge in the 1.3 category; team 2 of Marvin Tan & Albert Goquingco won one category of the photo contest; team 1 of Roy Medina and Iñigo Roces won the utility challenge, the treasure hunt, another category of the photo contest, and the eco challenge for the 1.5 category, they also emerged as the overall winner; our team ate the most slices of pizza, oh wait, that wasn’t a challenge!? All VRs taken on October 15, 2008; with the exception of Bangui Wind Turbines, Poaoy Church and Cape Bojeador Lighthouse taken on December 2006. The author can be reach at: fung@firefly.ph.