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No hogs for Murfreesboro

Posted on November 5, 2009 at 7:54 am

Harley-Davidson officials have eliminated Murfreesboro and Shelbyville, Ind., from the short list of cities where it might move its 2,300-employee York, Pa., operations.

Big wheels driving Nissan sales

Posted on November 4, 2009 at 9:20 am

Nissan North America’s truck sales rose more than 17 percent last month, helping the Franklin-based auto maker post an overall volume increase of almost 8 percent. Shipments of Infiniti-brand vehicles, however, fell almost 10 percent.

For the people, with the people

Posted on November 3, 2009 at 7:27 am

Spring Hill Mayor Michael Dinwiddie has begun working the line at GM’s Spring Hill plant, where the last Chevy Traverse will roll off the line in three weeks.

One in eight Tennessee factory jobs gone since 2007

Posted on November 2, 2009 at 12:49 pm

More bleak data from the manufacturing sector: Tennessee factories has shed more than 56,000 jobs since September of 2007. The automotive sector accounts for more than 9,000 of those losses and has been laying off workers more quickly than the rest of the industry.

Cash for clunkers’ local boost

Posted on October 30, 2009 at 2:26 pm

Middle Tennessee’s factory sector saw a nice boost in activity during September, with hours worked at durable goods manufacturers jumping almost 20 percent.

Nissan’s electric project getting tax breaks

Posted on October 29, 2009 at 10:56 am

The Rutherford County Industrial Development Board will cut the auto maker $62 million worth of slack over 20 years in return for the more than 1,700 jobs expected to be created at its electric car and battery operations.

Ghosn: Electric cars need regulatory help

Posted on at 8:12 am

Speaking at UPenn’s Wharton School of Business, Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn said that — between public perception and emerging-market growth — the auto industry has no choice but to dive headlong into the production of cars that don’t need fossil fuels. That said, he does say car makers need a good bit of government help to build a mass market.

The equipment isn’t cheap: A quick-charge device, Ghosn said, costs $30,000 — an investment that might make sense once there is a critical mass of electric-car drivers already on the road, but something that could seem expensive for service station owners in a market where electric cars remain rare. He called for governments to step in and spur the market via regulation. One idea: Make quick-charge facilities mandatory for anyone operating a gas station starting in 2012.

GDP growth tops estimates

Posted on at 7:44 am

The consensus from economists on third-quarter economic acticity had been growth of 3.3 percent. The Bureau of Economic Analysis says it was a little higher than that, with the auto industry — thanks to cash for clunkers — accounting for almost half of the growth.

Which begs the question: Why not Spring Hill?

Posted on October 26, 2009 at 11:31 pm

Hybrid electric-car maker Henrik Fisker plans to convert a 52-year-old former GM plant in Delaware with the help of a massive credit line from the Department of Energy. (For more on Fisker, check out this Forbes story.)

I already have two possible answers to my question, one practical, the other political. The first: The Wilmington plant already has closed, while Spring Hill will crank out cars for a few more weeks. The second: This gentleman is from Delaware.

Got any other good answers?

Nissan gets into the battery recycling business

Posted on October 20, 2009 at 10:53 am

From the AP:

Nissan Motor Co. said it will set up a joint venture with a Japanese trading house for recycling of electric car batteries.

Nissan said Tuesday the joint venture with Sumitomo Corporation is expected to begin operations in late 2010 in Japan and the United States. The companies have yet to finalize details including the capitalization of the venture.

The launch is in line with a potential surge in demand for electric vehicles powered by batteries.

Harley sets a timeline for ‘Boro decision

Posted on October 16, 2009 at 10:19 am

Executives at Harley-Davidson say they will likely choose what to do with their York, Pa., plant in December. Murfreesboro is in the running for the factory, which would bring with it some 2,000 jobs.

Pennsylvania prepared to pay $20M for Harley

Posted on October 14, 2009 at 10:28 am

Gov. Ed Rendell said Pennsylvania has up to $20 million in incentives ready if Harley-Davidson officials will commit to sizable job growth at a retooled York plant that may move to Murfreesboro.

Nissan makes like a fish

Posted on October 12, 2009 at 10:11 am

From NPR’s Morning Edition:

Researchers at Nissan have been studying how quickly and how closely individual fish can swim together without bumping into each other. Last week, at a technology show outside Tokyo, the carmaker unveiled a group of little robots that mimic fish, using hi-tech wizardry that could end up in future vehicles.

Hopeful Harley noises from Pennsylvania

Posted on October 9, 2009 at 10:27 am

Harley-Davidson officials and union representatives say a plan to restructure the motorbike maker’s York, Pa., plant just might work. Murfreesboro is in the running for a new factory should it not.

The trouble with being in the auto business right now

Posted on October 8, 2009 at 12:41 pm

Companies in many sectors are complaining about the lack of available credit, but few could say they have it as bad as automotive suppliers. WPLN’s Daniel Potter reports on the hunt for capital and the rays of hope in auto manufacturing.

“Even good suppliers are being viewed skeptically by and large because they’re associated with the automotive industry. And the industry as a whole is in fairly difficult shape.”

DeKoker has tracked about 50 parts supplier bankruptcies so far – nowhere near the fallout he would’ve predicted in this economy. He chalks that up to companies “hibernating” – slowing production in hopes of lasting until business can pick up again.

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