plus 1, Clunkers’ program improved car sales, fuel economy - Houma Courier

Clunkers’ program improved car sales, fuel economy - Houma Courier

Posted: 28 Nov 2009 09:58 PM PST

Ford F-150 and Chevrolet Silverado pickups were by far the best sellers among local dealerships during the federal government's "Cash for Clunkers" rebate program, aimed at taking older cars off the road and replacing them with more fuel-efficient models.

That comes as no surprise to local dealers, who say the "Clunkers" figures mirror general sales patterns in the market, typically dominated by the first-place F-150, which gets 16 to 17 miles per gallon. There were 38 F-150s sold under the program in Terrebonne, Lafourche and Assumption. There were 22 Silverados sold.

"If it's ever skewed any other way, there's a problem in the economy," said Heinke Trapp, of Trapp Cadillac Chevrolet of Houma. "For as long as I can remember, trucks have outsold cars."

Though pickups were most popular, the program did improve efficiency overall and perk up sales among local transactions, an analysis of government data by the Courier and Daily Comet shows.

The Car Allowance Rebate System, the formal name of the clunkers program, provided $3 billion in rebates for buyers trading in older, less fuel-efficient cars for eligible newer models. Consumers qualified for individual rebates of $3,500 or $4,500. Dealers are not allowed to resell the trade-in vehicles.

But though the program was intended to benefit the environment and prop up struggling car dealers and auto makers, the Associated Press reported that the swap of an older pickup for a newer, marginally less gas-guzzling model was widespread across the country.

Locally, 86 percent of the vehicles traded in under the program were trucks. Fifty-five percent of the new vehicles purchased with the rebate were trucks.

A LOOK AT LOCAL DATA

The local "clunkers" traded in had an average odometer reading of 148,494 miles and got an average of 15.3 miles per gallon. The cost to U.S. taxpayers was about $1.59 million in rebates to customers in Lafourche Terrebonne Assumption. The average gas mileage of the new vehicles was 22.7 mpg. That's an improvement of 7.4 mpg.

About one in five local trade-ins only improved gas mileage by 1 or 2 mpg, at a cost of $301,500 to taxpayers.

Besides trucks, the program also resulted in the purchase of more efficient cars. After the pickups, the 26-mpg Nissan Altima was No. 3, with 16 sold, followed by the 29-mpg Honda Civic, with 15 sales.

There also were seven hybrid vehicles sold locally, including six 50-mpg Toyota Priuses and one 42-mpg Honda Civic Hybrid.

But the fuel economy doesn't tell the whole story, dealers said, emphasizing that today's pickups are safer and cleaner. And it's not a demand pattern likely to change soon: The trucks were still selling as fast as when gasoline was $4 per gallon, Trapp said.

Many are bought for commercial use, including oilfield hauling and construction jobs. Plus, many seek out trucks as versatile family transportation that can haul boats, campers and ATVs.

"The need for those vehicles is still high," Trapp said.

UPTICK IN SALES

Dealers said the program upped traffic at dealerships and renewed buyer enthusiasm, both among those who bought qualifying vehicles and those whose existing cars weren't eligible for the program.

"We definitely got some business from it. We're grateful to have it," said Greg LeBlanc, who owns Nissan, Toyota and Hyundai dealerships in Houma and Thibodaux.

Because of the way the program was structured, some drivers with older vehicles that got above what some dealers said was arbitrary gas mileage weren't eligible.

"It was good for a lot of people," LeBlanc said. "It was unfortunate that a lot of people didn't qualify."

The complete results from the program aren't in yet, since many dealers waited to register the vehicles until reimbursement from the government was paid.

But new-car sales in September were up 11 percent from the year before, according to the Terrebonne sales-tax office, the agency in which the majority of the area's dealers are located.

"The general attitude was improved," said Bob Israel, president of the Louisiana Auto Dealers Association. "People talked about it, got excited about it."

Statewide, September and October saw sales gains of about 15 percent, Israel said, after declines since November 2008.

FOR SOME, RED TAPE STRETCHES ON

The big question mark for some dealers was the time frame for collecting from the government the reimburse they gave buyers.

Israel said most dealers in the state were paid within two to three weeks after the program, which ran from July 24 to Aug. 25, thanks to an influx of government employees assigned to process the payments.

At least one local dealer, however, has not been paid. Jeff Teuton, a dealer with Southland Dodge, said the government still owes him more than $70,000, or about half of the rebates for vehicles sold on his lot. All other local dealers who returned phone calls said they've been paid in full.

Teuton has contacted the local congressional delegation for help, to no avail.

"I figure if the senators and reps can't help me, I'm just going to lose (the money)," he said. "In my particular case, not getting this money is just horrible."

He said he could perhaps make 10 to 20 percent of the rebate value by selling the old vehicles.

Israel questioned whether dealers got the boost they were promised.

"We keep talking about dealer benefit and sales," Israel said. "But the $3 billion went into the pockets of the consumers."

Staff Writer Kathrine Schmidt can be reached at 857-2204 or kathrine.schmidt@houmatoday.com.

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Honda Commemorates 50 Years of Innovation in America - SuperCross.com

Posted: 20 Nov 2009 03:55 PM PST

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Courtesy American Honda

Honda (NYSE: HMC) today marked its first 50 years in America, commemorating the establishment of American Honda Motor Co., Inc., in a small Los Angeles storefront on June 11, 1959. Honda associates observed the occasion with a brief ceremony at the company's Torrance, Calif. headquarters.

"On behalf of the tens of thousands of Honda associates in America, past and present, we offer our deepest thanks to our customers for placing their trust in Honda over the past 50 years" said American Honda President & CEO Tetsuo Iwamura.

"Today, in the face of new challenges, including the preservation of our environment, we renew our commitment to exceed the expectations of our customers and society."

Starting in 1959, with the fuel-efficient Honda 50 motorcycle, to the newly launched 2010 Honda Insight gas-electric hybrid vehicle, Honda has introduced new technologies and business strategies that have shaped the industry and the growth of Honda, including:

First automaker to meet U.S. Clean Air Act without a catalytic converter –Civic CVCC (1974)
First vehicle to top U.S. EPA list of most fuel efficient cars – Civic (1977)
First Japanese automaker to build motorcycles (1979) and automobiles (1982) in America – Marysville, Ohio*
First Japanese automaker to establish a luxury automobile brand -- Acura (1986)
First mass produced gas electric hybrid car introduced in America -- Insight (1999)
First government-certified hydrogen fuel cell vehicle -- FCX (2002)

Mr. Honda

Honda has steadily expanded its U.S. presence to encompass a broad range of products and operations. Today, Honda employs more than 27,000 U.S. associates engaged in the design, development, manufacturing, sale and servicing of Honda and Acura products including automobiles, motorcycles, ATVs, personal water craft, power equipment, and an advanced light jet.

Honda operates 10 U.S. manufacturing plants with two new plants under construction, along with 14 R&D facilities and more than 12 regional sales, parts and service, and finance offices around the country. The company's network of U.S. parts suppliers comprises 545 companies in 34 states with annual purchases exceeding $17.5 billion in 2008.

Honda History in America:

American Honda was the first overseas subsidiary of Honda Motor Co., Ltd., established eleven years after HMC's inception as a small motorcycle manufacturer in Japan. Honda entered the U.S. market in 1959 with the step-through Honda 50 motorcycle and helped spur the dramatic growth of the U.S. motorcycle market, as it became the best-selling brand in America.

The introduction of the fuel-efficient Civic in 1973 paved the way for Honda's entry into the U.S. auto industry. As America faced the first oil crisis in 1973 and then the U.S. Clean Air Act tightened air emissions standards in 1975, Civic became both the first automobile to meet the Clean Air Act without the need for a catalytic converter and was ranked number one on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's first list of America's most fuel efficient cars (1977).

Based on its longstanding commitment to develop and build products close to the customer, Honda established research and development operations in America in 1975, and U.S. manufacturing in 1979, starting with production of motorcycles in Marysville, Ohio. Honda became the first Japanese automaker to build cars in America with the start of Accord production at the Marysville Auto Plant in November 1982. In May 2009, Honda reached the 15 million unit milestone in U.S. automobile production.

In 1986, the company expanded into the luxury automobile market with the creation of the Acura brand, the first luxury nameplate from a Japanese automaker. Acura earned a top rating in J.D. Power and Associates' Customer Satisfaction Index for four consecutive years (1986-1989).

In the 1990s, Honda introduced the U.S. automobile industry's first low-emissions vehicles, meeting challenging new emissions requirements in California while also enhancing fuel efficiency. In 1999, Honda introduced America's first mass production hybrid vehicle, the Insight, followed in 2002 by the Honda FCX, the first fuel cell vehicle certified by the U.S. government for daily use and the first to be placed in the hands of an individual consumer.

In 2008, the company began leasing its next-generation FCX Clarity fuel cell sedan, the industry's most advanced zero-emissions vehicle. In March 2009 Honda introduced the 2010 Honda Insight, America's most affordable hybrid, with plans to launch another all-new hybrid within the next several years based on the company's sporty CR-Z hybrid concept vehicle.

"Looking to the future, we are committed to advancing Honda's legacy of environmental leadership to help address the twin challenges of global climate change and energy sustainability" said Iwamura. "Along with a renewed focus on quality, we begin our next fifty years by accelerating our efforts to develop and deploy new technologies that put Honda at the forefront of this global challenge, to create a cleaner and more sustainable future for generations to come."