– General Motors Corp., faced with sluggish automobile sales, is extending through Jan. 2 its “triple zero” incentive program on most of its vehicles. Its offer of no down payments, no payments for three months and no-interest loans was scheduled to expire Oct. 31.
– General Motors will offer a remote start feature in a variety of its vehicles for the 2004 model year so the motorist can sit in the house while his or her car warms up. Ford insiders say the automaker also is considering remote start, but don’t look for Chrysler group to jump at the system. “When we do research and ask people what they want, we’ve come up dry [on remote start],” says George Murphy, senior vice president of marketing for Chrysler Group.
– Now that Chrysler has sold motorists on front-wheel-drive, how does it market rear-wheel-drive when the RWD LX sedans replace the FWD LH sedans in the 2005 model year? “When the FWD models came out, we didn’t have stability control,” Murphy says of the feature that will erase memories of RWD cars slipping and sliding in the Snow Belt.
– Auto and auto equipment makers soon will be required to reimburse motorists who paid to repair defects or replace parts that were later the subject of recalls. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration rule takes effect in January and stems from consumer and safety regulations ordered by Congress after Firestone tire defects were linked to deadly crashes. Manufacturers must submit reimbursement plans to regulators for approval. The industry also has some latitude for determining reimbursement amounts and can reject claims.
– The California Supreme Court has let stand a $290 million jury award against the Ford stemming from a Bronco rollover accident in 1993, about 80 miles south of Sacramento. Three members of a family were killed and two others hurt.
