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Monday, July 11, 2011

WALKER AUTOMOTIVE AND BMW USA TEAM UP TO SUPPORT THE UNITED STATES OLYMPIC TEAM

On Monday, July 11, 2011 Walker BMW and BMW USA will host a special event to raise money for Team USA. This event is a test drive campaign that invites Americans to support Team USA by test driving one of several new BMW models. For every person who drives a vehicle at the event, Walker BMW will donate $10.00 to the United States Olympic Committee to fund Team USA.

As a special treat, attendees of the event will be able to meet Miguel Pate, a track and Field Olympian from St. Francisville, Louisiana. Mr. Pate participated in the 2008 Olympic Games and ended the 2008 season ranked #1 in the U.S. by Track and Field News. Mr. Pate’s biography is attached and he will be available for interviews at the event.

During the event, participants will have the option of driving several different vehicles including the BMW 328xi sedan, 535xi sedan, 750Li xDrive, X3 xDrive35i, the beautiful 650i convertible and competitive models from Mercedes and Lexus. In addition, each attendee who completes a post-event survey will receive a BMW / Olympic hat branded with the BMW Roundel and the 5-Olympic Rings.

Walker BMW is especially proud to be hosting this event at its all-new 30,000 square foot state-of-the-art building on Coliseum Boulevard. This is the first event to be held at the building and Walker welcomes anyone who may be interested in looking inside.

Walker Automotive was named the 2010 Better Business Bureau Torch Award winner for 2010 which recognizes local businesses for outstanding ethical practices. This was the second time for Walker Automotive to win this prestigious award. Additionally Walker was recently named to the Wards Dealer Business Dealer 500 in June 2011 which ranks dealers nationally based on total revenue. Walker has consistently made the list for the last decade.

Walker was founded in 1919 as Alexandria Auto Company, Inc. by Foster Walker Sr. Walker Oldsmobile Company and is now run by Foster Walker III. Ninety years after its inception the dealership has expanded from its meager origins to four locations, 7 manufacturers, four service departments and a collision center. Walker employs more than 175 employees. Over the last 9 decades Walker has won numerous national and factory awards for all aspects of its business. Walker Automotive offers new and pre-owned vehicles ranging from quality entry level models to German luxury vehicles.

BMW: A Driving Obsession

CNBC goes inside one of the most successfully managed brands and companies in the world — BMW. Its familiar blue and white logo stands as the symbol of prestigious, high-performance, luxury cars. A one-time aircraft engine manufacturer that eventually moved to motorcycles and offbeat sports sedans, BMW today commands brand recognition and respect that is the envy of the commercial world.


CNBC Correspondent Carl Quintanilla takes viewers inside BMW’s secretive Tech Center, where teams of engineers obsess over the technical and mechanical details that the company says justify its cars’ high prices. Acoustic specialists consider every sound in the car, from the exhaust note to the window motors; ergonomic engineers labor over the stunningly complex mechanical labyrinth that is a modern seat; and crash specialists deliberately wreck a parade of high-dollar vehicles to improve safety.

BMW is a company enjoying success, but also facing significant challenges. Growing environmental and political pressures are making it increasingly tough to market high-performance cars, but BMW is staking its future on its ability to build vehicles that are both sustainable and fun. BMW also faces daunting competition, not only from other German manufacturers like Audi, but also from carmakers in Japan, Korea — and soon, China.

BMW: A Driving Obsession is the fascinating story behind a once small, struggling company that transformed itself into a global luxury car powerhouse, and is now going flat out to maintain its edge.
 
For Video's and more information check out the link at:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/43395673?__source=vtyinsidebmw&par=vty

Friday, July 8, 2011

STUDY: 56 MPG Standard by MY2025 to Cost 220,000 jobs

FENTON, MI (July 7, 2011)—A white paper from the Michigan-based Defour Group finds that a significant number of auto sector jobs would be lost if the federal government’s proposed fuel economy mandates for Model Year (MY) 2017-2025 vehicles were implemented. Federal regulators, currently meeting with automakers behind closed doors, are considering increasing the standards to as high as 56 mpg to 62 mpg over that time period.


Dean Drake, the paper’s author, confirmed a U.S. Energy Information Administration estimate that automakers would sell 2.4 million (approximately 14 percent) fewer new vehicles if standards are set to hit 62 mpg by 2025.

“Clearly, sales losses of this magnitude could be expected to lead to job losses in the industry,” Drake said.

Drake bases the study’s job loss numbers on the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) analysis of the 2012-2016 MY CAFE standard that said that one job would be lost by the OEMs and their suppliers for every 11.3 new vehicle sales which fail to sell. The study also calculates dealerships job losses as a result of fewer new car and truck purchases.

PROPOSED TARGET (MY17-25)    LOST SALES        LOST JOBS (OEM, Supplier, Dealership)

62 mpg (6% per year)                         2.4 million                 293,100
56 mpg (5% per year)                         1.9 million                 220,000

“These projected job losses will NOT be offset by the development of new technologies creating so called ‘green jobs’ as many contend,” Drake added. “The advanced technology vehicles such as electrics will only make up a small part of the new vehicle fleet. Plus there is no guarantee that these new jobs would stay in the United States.”