Nissan produces three-millionth Altima

Smyrna, Tennessee - Fifteen years after the first Altima rolled off the assembly line at Nissan's Smyrna, Tennessee plant, the company has produced its three millionth vehicle. The Altima Sedan is currently Nissan's best-selling nameplate. "The Altima plays an important role in Nissan's line-up, and we put a lot of discipline and skill into building each one," said Greg Daniels, senior vice-president, U.S. manufacturing. "The Altima provides our customers a lot of value for the money, and we're committed to providing them with a high level of quality as well." Altima models are assembled at two U.S. plants, in Smyrna and in Canton, Mississippi. The Smyrna plant produces about 750 Altimas per day, the Canton Plant about 600; in addition, the Smyrna plant makes the Frontier, Pathfinder, Xterra and Maxima, while the Canton plant produces the Titan, Armada, Quest and Infiniti QX56. The Smyrna plant also produces all the Altimas exported outside the U.S., including those sold to Canada and Mexico. Nissan has been assembling vehicles in the U.S. since June 1983, and in July 2007 produced its nine-millionth American-produced vehicle.

Dealership charges former employees with fraud in theft of $500K

A scam involving wholesale used vehicles costs a Mercedes dealer big bucks. Although this story involves a Canadian dealership, the lessons to be learned are no less important for U.S. dealers. Four employees of a Vancouver, British Columbia, Mercedes dealership are being sued for allegedly defrauding the car dealer of about $500,000 over more than 10 years, reports the Vancouver Province. Torino Motors is asking the courts to order the four former employees, who allegedly used the money to buy real estate, to repay $79,872.08 said to have been taken by the company's controller, and a further $395,000 allegedly stolen by the general manager. According to papers filed in a Canadian court, the dealership’s business manager further defrauded the company of an undisclosed amount through a series of fraudulent transactions. Also named is a car saleswoman. Court documents claim that the employees conspired with one another through a series of frauds, including buying cars from the dealership and then selling them back at a higher price and running a rebate scam.

Consumer Reports rates seven car paint scratch removers

Consumer Reports has tested seven car paint scratch removers and reports that the best is also the most expensive, but that all have their limits. In testing, Quixx High Performance Scratch Remover did an "Excellent" job at repairing very fine scratches, and was the only product rated "Very Good" at removing fine to medium scratches. However, it was the most expensive tested, priced at more than three times the cost of other brands tested. Mothers California Gold Scratch Remover and NuFinish Scratch Doctor proved "solid options for those seeking a cheaper solution," the magazine reports; both brands were "Very Good" at removing swirl marks and fine scratches, and "Good" at repairing fine to medium scratches. However, the testers found that the do-it-yourself removers have their limits. Only Quixx Scratch Remover did a good job of smoothing out a scratch deep enough to feel with a fingernail. The products can also cause hazing when used too aggressively, as GS27 Scratch Remover and Meguiar's ScratchX products did in testing. Quixx includes a strip of ultra-fine, 3,000-grit sandpaper for deeper scratches, but the magazine reports that "if a consumer isn't careful, he or she could sand through the clearcoat, which would necessitate repainting." While all seven scratch removers tested scored at least "Good" at removing very light scratches and imperfections, Black Magic Express Scratch Treatment and Turtle Wax Scratch and Swirl Remover scored the lowest. The testers also reported that Turtle Wax was also more difficult to use.

Honda dealer's entire inventory damaged by storm; Insurance unlikely to pay

The dealer will likely be on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs after over 300 cars were banged during a recent storm. Every single car in the Rensselaer Honda lot, new and used, are now damaged with dozens of dings, reports WXXA-TV. More than 300 cars on the lot were pelted with hailstones during an August 3 storm. Dealer/principal Andy James is getting insurance estimates up to $2500 per car. The dealership already began the task of repairing the damage. The dealership is trying to accommodate all customers, especially those who just purchased a car that hasn't even left the lot. But not everyone is going along. Some customers have flat out refused delivery, others will accept a repaired vehicle, and still other customers say they'll wait for a new shipment of vehicles, but won't take a damaged car. Insurance agents say the dealer unfortunately bears the brunt of the costs. The owners of Rensselaer Honda most likely will end up shelling out a half million dollars to fix it all.

Federal agency probes Lexus after acceleration reports

The US federal government has upgraded an investigation into the 2007 Lexus ES 350 sedan after at least 12 people were injured when the vehicle accelerated without warning. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a report issued this week that an all-weather floor mat can trap the throttle pedal when it's not properly secured, resulting in unwanted acceleration. The all-weather floor mat has been found in a majority of the vehicles that reported the problem, NHTSA said. Toyota Motor Corp. told NHTSA it sent a mailing to ES 350 owners in late April warning them about improper installation of the all-weather floor mat. The mat should be secured with clips and shouldn't be placed over the standard floor mat. Toyota also said it changed the labeling on the floor mat. NHTSA is now deciding whether Toyota's actions were sufficient. Vehicle investigations can lead to product recalls. There are 98,454 ES 350 sedans on the road. Lexus spokesman Greg Thome said because the investigation is ongoing, it's too early to say whether floor mats are definitely causing the alleged defect. Thome said owners should call the company's customer service number if they have questions. NHTSA and Toyota have received 40 complaints about unintended acceleration, NHTSA said. Eight crashes have been reported, including one that caused a seven-vehicle pileup. In some cases, drivers traveled several miles at speeds of more than 90 mph before they were able to stop, NHTSA said.

The minivan is dead; long live the minivan?

Blame it on the sliding doors. Long stigmatized as terminally unhip suburban kid transporters, minivans have been facing a reckoning of sorts over the past year, with some manufacturers giving up on the segment altogether. Ford Motor Co. has discontinued making minivans to focus on a new trio of so-called crossovers -- models with sport utility-vehicle proportions and practicality but generally smaller in size, with car-like handling and fuel economy. General Motors Corp. has announced it will stop producing minivans next year. All told, the number of minivan models has shrunk to 15 for 2007, from a high of 21 in 2004, and six of those models have recently been discontinued or are slated to be soon. Sales are plunging so far this year, while sales of crossovers are surging. The main reason? With so many vehicles aimed at families, one feature primarily distinguishes minivans from other, newer vehicle types: two sliding rear doors. "Frankly, sliding doors are what give minivans open access, but that's what makes them uncool," says Detroit-based AutoObserver.com editor Michelle Krebs. "Practical, yes, but uncool." Wes Brown, president of the Los Angeles-based automotive marketing firm Iceology, says the sliding door epitomizes the less-exciting realities of minivan ownership, compared with the proactive, vibrant images of go-anywhere SUVs and crossovers. "Ultimately, it's a symbol of being stuck in a rut of having a family," he says. The remaining minivan makers have had to resort to drastic selling techniques to lure consumers away from shiny new crossovers and their cousins, including "tall wagons" like the Subaru Outback and "microvans" like the Mazda 5. Incentive spending on minivans averaged a whopping $3,900 in June, significantly outpacing the industry average of $2,483, according to consumer auto Web site Edmunds.com. Even famously frugal Japanese companies like Toyota Motor Co. and Honda Corp., which sell the popular Sienna and Odyssey minivans, respectively, have greenlighted lucrative discounts this summer, prompting dealers to soap the windshields of new vehicles on the lot with rebate offers worth thousands of dollars. While minivans range somewhat narrowly in price, starting around $20,000 and edging up to $40,000, crossovers range from $15,000 to well over $50,000. But minivans with third rows of seats and similarly sized crossovers are comparably priced. A top-of-the-line 2008 Buick Enclave CXL -- GM's newly released flagship crossover -- lists for $36,255, while a 2008 Chrysler Town & Country Limited minivan retails for $35,670. Last year Americans bought 990,596 minivans, the first year since 1992 that annual sales fell below one million units, according to Edmunds.com. So far this year, sales are down 22 percent, potentially putting the industry on track to sell just 760,000 for the year. For the first half, minivans represented just 5.3 percent of total new-vehicle sales, down from 8.5 percent in 1995, according to the Power Information Network, a unit of J.D. Power & Associates