Lexus Ranks Number One in J.D. Power and Associates Customer Retention StudySM
Lexus ranked number one in the J.D. Power and Associates 2005 Customer Retention StudySM. Results released yesterday showed Lexus gaining 3.5 percentage points from 2004 to take the lead in 2005 by retaining 63.0 percent of its customers. The industry average was 49.6 percent. The study measures the percentage of new-vehicle buyers and lessees who replace a vehicle that was previously purchased new with a new vehicle from the same nameplate. According to J.D. Power, vehicle quality and customer service experiences are key factors in influencin...


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PADILLA ANNOUNCES ACCELERATION OF FORD'S INVESTMENT PLAN IN THAILAND
Ford Motor Company's President and Chief Operating Officer Jim Padilla met with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry Suriya Jungrungreangkit today and announced the acceleration of Ford's second phase of investment at its Ford/Mazda (AAT) manufacturing facility. The second phase investment will be made over three years (2005 to 2008) and underpins Thailand's importance as a major international production hub for Ford's one-tonne pickup truck. "Firstly, let me congratulate Thailand on achieving a major milest...


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Renault Trucks at BATIMAT
The International Building Exhibition BATIMAT 2005 hosted over 500,000 visitors at Porte de Versailles in Paris. The stand for Renault Trucks highlighted its special series for public works and civil engineering professionals "BTP PRO" where many contacts were established. BATIMAT 2005 is a world leader for building trade fairs,. This year the event took place on November 7 to 12 with over 2,700 exhibitors, all of which are in the building industry, over a surface area of more than 130,000 m? at the exhibition park at Portes de Vers...


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"Car of the Year 2006" in Denmark
The new Leon has been crowned "Car of the Year 2006" in Denmark. This accolade, which has been conferred by the Danish association of motoring journalists, is the first to be awarded to the new SEAT model. During their evaluation of the candidate models, the panel of 26 motoring experts paid particular attention to the following criteria: safety elements, practicality, comfort, driving characteristics and value for money. Out of the 23 cars which were entered for this award, the Spanish model came out on top ahead of the Mazda 5 an...


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"Car of the Year 2006" in Denmark
The new Leon has been crowned "Car of the Year 2006" in Denmark. This accolade, which has been conferred by the Danish association of motoring journalists, is the first to be awarded to the new SEAT model. During their evaluation of the candidate models, the panel of 26 motoring experts paid particular attention to the following criteria: safety elements, practicality, comfort, driving characteristics and value for money. Out of the 23 cars which were entered for this award, the Spanish model came out on top ahead of the Mazda 5 an...


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Volvo, Land Rover and Ford Win Best Car Awards From Kiplinger's
The editors of Kiplinger's Personal Finance know a thing or two about getting the most value for the money and according the magazine's 2006 Best Cars awards several Ford Motor Company vehicles offer customers the best value in the auto industry. The magazine divided 2006 model year vehicles into four categories: Best in Class, Best New Cars, First for Safety and Most Fuel Efficient. Within each category, the vehicles were sub divided into five different price ranges plus sports cars, SUVs, minivans and wagons. Best in Class honors...

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NISSAN TO INTRODUCE "i-PORT" ONLINE RESERVATION SYSTEM IN JAPAN
Starting in January 2006, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., will introduce a system that will allow "car life advisors," or sales staff, in Japan to make repair shop reservations for customers online, including on a mobile phone. The new system will allow sales people, who frequently make door-to-door calls, to respond quicker to customers' requests for such reservations. In the past, sales people would have to check with their dealer for available time slots. The "i-PORT" system was introduced on a trial basis starting in May...


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FORD TO BUILD FLEXIBLE FUEL ENGINE PLANT IN THE PHILIPPINES
In his visit to the country, Ford Motor Company Corporate Vice President and President of Ford Asia Pacific and Africa, Peter Daniel, announced company plans to invest P1.1 billion (US$20 million) to build a Flexible Fuel engine plant in the Philippines. A Ford first in the region, the investment further establishes Ford's innovation leadership in Flexible Fuel technology and the use of bio-ethanol fuel. Ford's Flexible Fuel engines are designed to operate on either conventional gasoline or a combination of gasoline and bio-ethanol fu...


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NISSAN DEVELOPS WORLD'S FIRST CLEAR PAINT THAT REPAIRS SCRATCHES ON CAR SURFACES
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., has developed the world's first clear paint that repairs scratches on painted car surfaces, including scratches from car-washing machines, off-road driving and fingernails. "Scratch Guard Coat" contains a newly developed high elastic resin that helps prevent scratches from affecting the inner layers of a car's painted surface. With "Scratch Guard Coat" a car's scratched surface will return to its original state anywhere from one day to a week, depending on temperature and the depth of...


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GM overhead cam engines named among industry's best
Two of General Motors newest, high-performance overhead cam engines - the 2.0-liter Ecotec Supercharged and 2.8-liter V6 Turbo - have been named among the industry's 10 best engines of 2006 by the editors at Ward's Communications. Both engines are variants from two of GM's most popular global, modular engine families, designed, engineered, and produced around the world. They also share a similar attribute, which Ward's noted as an important development occurring in the industry today: forced induction. "Turbochargin...


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