Automotive News - February 15, 2021 - 36

36 * FEBRUARY 15, 2021

N.A. auto plants affected by microchip shortage
PLANT

PRODUCTION CHANGE

EST. UNITS LOST

WHAT IT BUILDS*

Ford
Kentucky Truck

Slow production in Jan.

500

Chicago

2 of 3 shifts canceled for week in Feb.;
more expected

4,700†

Explorer, Aviator

Kansas City #1, Mo.

Closed 1 week in Feb.

2,600†

Transit

Dearborn, Mich.

2 days shortened in Jan.; additional
reductions in Feb.

6,800†

F-150

Kansas City #2, Mo.

2 days shortened in Jan.; additional
reductions in Feb.

4,000†

F-150

Oakville, Ontario

Slow restart pushed back to Feb. 8.

8,700†

Edge, Nautilus

Louisville, Ky.

Shut Jan. 11 through Feb. 7; shut late
Feb., early March

25,700 †

F-250-F-550, Expedition,
Navigator

Escape, Corsair

General Motors
Orion Twp., Mich.

Down 1 week in Feb.

1,200†

Bolt, Cruise AV

Ramos Arizpe #2, Mex.

Down 2 weeks in Feb.

8,200†

Blazer, Equinox

Bowling Green, Ky.

Down 2 weeks in Feb.

2,000†

Corvette

San Luis Potosi, Mexico

Down in Feb. and March

19,500†

Equinox, Onix, Terrain

Ingersoll, Ontario

Down in Feb. and March

10,900†

Equinox

Fairfax, Kan.

Down in Feb. and March

14,800†

XT4, Malibu

Alliston #1, Ontario

Reduced Q1 production

3,900†

Marysville, Ohio

Reduced Jan. output

2,500

ILX, TLX, Accord,
CR-V

Greensburg, Ind.

Reduced Jan. output

1,000

Civic, CR-V, Insight

Lincoln, Ala.

Reduced Jan. output

900

Odyssey, Passport, Pilot,
Ridgeline

East Liberty, Ohio

Reduced Jan. output

800

MDX, RDX, CR-V

Honda
Civic

Mazda
Salamanca, Mexico

Reduced Q1 output

6,100† CX-30, Mazda2, Mazda3

Nissan
Canton, Miss.

Specific workdays affected

2,300

Altima, Frontier, NV, Titan

Stellantis
Belvidere, Ill.

Down 1 week in Feb.

4,700 †

Toluca, Mexico

Down 4 weeks until Feb. 15

18,600† Journey/Fremont, Compass

Toledo North

Reduced Jan. output

2,800

Bramalea, Ontario

Down 3 weeks in Jan.

11,300

Windsor, Ontario

Down 3 weeks starting Feb. 8.

Toledo Supplier Park

Reduced Jan. output

14,900†
900

Cherokee
Wrangler
300, 300C, Charger,
Challenger
Pacifica, Voyager/Grand
Caravan
Gladiator

Subaru
Lafayette, Ind.

Reduced Jan. output; shutdown Jan. 29;
expected losses in Feb.

20,200† Impreza, Legacy, Outback,
Ascent

Loss of 4,900 Tundras in Jan. and 5,600
in Feb.; more possible in March. Loss of
2,700 Tacomas in Jan. and 200 in Feb.

13,400†

Toyota
San Antonio

Tundra, Tacoma

Volkswagen
Puebla, Mexico

Jetta adjustments through March 5

1,900†

Golf, Jetta, Taos, Tiguan

San Jose Chiapa,
Mexico

Reduced shifts in Jan., Feb.

5,800†

*Not all vehicles built at each plant are necessarily impacted by production change
†AutoForecast Solutions projects this number will increase
Information current through Feb. 12.
Source: AutoForecast Solutions Inc. for plants, production change, units lost;
Automotive News Research & Data Center for what the plants build

GPB

Under monitor, future
of Prime stores unclear
continued from Page 8

" The principal source for potential investor recovery is revenue generated by the several dozen
automobile dealerships owned by GPB Capital, "
the SEC said in a memorandum of law in support of its motion for the monitor last week.
" These dealerships have contractual relationships with lenders and manufacturers that
are now at risk of termination because of,

among other things, Gentile's arrest. "
GPB spokeswoman Nancy Sterling said in a
statement to Automotive News last week that a
monitor's appointment " should have no impact whatsoever on any of the dealerships. "
Gardemal is managing director for consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal Holdings in Washington, D.C. He is a certified public accountant
and certified fraud examiner with more than
20 years of experience in auto industry-related
valuations. He has worked with dealerships
and automakers and as an SEC expert on dealerships.
Gardemal will be able to approve or disapprove corporate transactions and extensions of

CHINA

Shoppers wary of
3-cylinder engines
continued from Page 8

there, attitudes are changing.
Ford launched the compact sedan in China in 2005, followed by a
hatchback variation the next year
- the first global brand to offer a
hatchback there.
With the car's design and Ford's
prestige as an international brand,
Focus sales rose steadily in China.
From 2012 to 2014, it became the
market's top-selling sedan. That enthusiasm helped move Ford to decide that China, not North America,
was the sweet spot for the Focus.
But after its high of 392,000 sales
in 2014, Focus sales went into decline. Last year, as China's automakers worked through the pandemic, the Focus mustered only
35,000 sales, according to China
Passenger Car Alliance, the data
unit of the China Automobile
Dealers Association.
According to the dealer group
executive who runs Ford stores in
the Shanghai area, the model is
falling victim to fast-rising competition.
" Unlike 10 years ago, the Focus
now has too many competitors in
the market, " he said.
The competition comes not only
from the compact cars of other
global brands - including Volkswagen, Buick, Toyota and Nissan
- but also from similar models of
major Chinese marques such as
Geely and Roewe, which have improved product quality over the
years, he added.

Price, engine matters
Ford also may have been out of
step with its competitors on marketing last year.
To stimulate sales demand in the
wake of the coronavirus disruption, most global mass-market
brands slashed prices on their
compact sedans. Ford did not. The
Focus price range remained unchanged at the equivalent of about
$16,900 to $24,400.
" At such a price range, the Focus
lacks competitiveness in its segment, " the executive said.
Ford also faces a hurdle in stoking demand for the car's three-cylinder gasoline engines, said John
Zeng, Asia director of LMC Automotive.
In its current form, the Focus uses the engine technology it adopted in late 2018, a 1.5-liter naturally
aspirated or turbocharged threecylinder engine. The higher- priced
wagon variant has a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine.
Some Chinese shoppers ex-

credit, according to the court order. He will report his recommendations to the court within
60 days, though he can ask for an extension.
The monitor will remain in place until the
court terminates his agreement.
Mark Johnson, president of dealership buysell firm MD Johnson Inc. in Enumclaw, Wash.,
said he believes the monitor is the first step toward a receiver being appointed to " wind up "
operations of GPB and Prime's dealerships.
" The most likely outcome here is a receiver is
appointed and they will try to do an organized
liquidation of the funds and try to return as
much money back to the investors as possible, "
said Johnson, who has worked as an adviser to

pressed their disappointment on
popular local auto websites such
as Yiche and Autohome after the
three versions of the Focus went
on sale in November.
But the unfavorable view of
three-cylinder engines is not
unique to the Focus.
Grumbling emerged in 2018
when General Motors took the lead
among global automakers in installing three-cylinder engines in a
wide array of its compact products.
That quickly created consumer
backlash.
" Consumers typically complained that the engines created
too much vibration and noises, "
Zeng said.
GM defended the reliability of its
three-cylinder engines. But tumbling sales of related models
prompted it to add four-cylinder
engine variants in 2020 for some of
the models, such as the Buick Excelle and the Chevrolet Cruze.

Hope remains
Despite a 32 percent sales rebound of crossovers and SUVs,
Ford brand's China deliveries
dipped 1.2 percent from a year earlier to roughly 324,000 in 2020, according to Ford Motor Co.'s China
unit.
But Jimmy Tsung, COO of Lio Ho
Vehicle Group China, a Taiwan-based company that operates
more than 10 Ford franchises in
mainland China, believes the Ford
brand still needs the Focus, as well
as the smaller Escort, a nameplate
Ford resurrected in China in 2014.
" Ford must sell Focus and Escort
well in the Chinese market to have
a chance to gain a larger market
share, " Tsung said.
But Ford has a long way to go to
restore the two sedans as volume
generators. Data from the China
Passenger Car Alliance show Escort sales in China also thinned to a
trickle last year, to about 33,100.
Tsung believes the automaker is
moving in the right direction to
boost Focus sales.
While leaving the model's exterior little changed in the freshen,
Ford upgraded the interiors to appeal to young customers. It now
comes with an 8-inch full LCD digital instrument panel, matched
with a 12.3-inch color touch
screen. It also is equipped with
Ford's SYNC+ infotainment system
that integrates artificial intelligence technology of Chinese Internet giant Baidu.
Adding the wagon version will
help the Focus meet consumers'
diverse needs, Tsung said. To win
shoppers over to the three-cylinder
engine, Ford is now offering a lifetime free warranty on the engine.
Tsung and others believe there is
still life in the Chinese sedan. m

receivers in cases involving dealerships.
Prime's dealerships and other assets would
likely be sold, Johnson said.
GPB is under contract to sell five dealerships:
stores representing Chevrolet and Subaru and
three representing Toyota, Automotive News
previously reported.
It's unclear what may happen to those deals
under the monitor.
GPB sold at least 13 dealerships last year.
SEC officials have been concerned that GPB
and Prime could sell dealerships, " which
would deplete the assets that could be used to
redeem investors, " the commission said in its
motion support filing last week. a

https://www.autonews.com/dealers/prime-automotive-group-sells-10-stores-settles-disputes

Automotive News - February 15, 2021

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