Japanese Automakers See Bumpy Road Ahead

The gas tank is half empty, as the company cuts global outlook

(NEWSER) - Honda announced an 8.1% gain in net profit yesterday for the quarter ending June 30, riding demand for its fuel-efficient models and beating analysts’ estimates, the Wall Street Journal reports. Honda has been hurt less by falling demand than rivals Toyota and Nissan because it's the least invested in truck and SUV lines. "Honda is better positioned than anyone else in the industry," one analyst tells the Journal. More»

(NEWSER) - The "cash for clunkers" program might be a boon for car dealers, but for American automakers the news isn't so good—four of the five top-selling cars in the program are Japanese. While the Ford Focus is the No. 1 seller, Toyota and Honda occupy the next four spots. The new vehicles get an average of 25.4 miles per gallon, while the traded-in cars—more than 80% of which were trucks and SUVs—get just 15.8 mpg. More»

Masses of unsold imports back up in lots

(NEWSER) - The new car market is so flat that massive numbers of imported vehicles are being warehoused at ports and other available space, Reuters reports. Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen, and other dealers can't take fresh deliveries because their sales lots are jammed with thousands of unsold vehicles. Demand for all categories of vehicles, from luxury sedans to compacts and hybrids, has imploded. More»

But gov't risks big job losses if Big Three fail

(NEWSER) - If Detroit’s “Big Three” do collapse, foreign-owned automakers would be able to pick up the slack, industry experts tell the New York Times. These foreign giants have a big enough US presence to swiftly take over the industry and its supplier network, but the transition would likely be painful, with hundreds of thousands losing their jobs. More»

Carmakers building plants in India, Africa, and Russia as traditional markets slow

(NEWSER) - Japan’s automakers, traditionally focused on North America and near-home markets, are expanding aggressively into new territories as opportunities shift to Africa, India, and the former Soviet Union, reports the New York Times. One analyst said 76% of the global growth of the Big Three—Toyota, Honda, and Nissan—in the next 6 years will come from expanding markets that “used to be an afterthought.” More»