European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 27, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday. December 27, 1990 the stars and stripes a a big 3 bracing for continuing . Car makers face editors note with today s car Cornett we close out another year of automotive news and views. This report written from Detroit by Dpi Auto editor Jan a. Zverina takes a look at the american car scene during 1990. It was anything but an upbeat year for the automotive Industry Zverina says by Jan a. Zverina Detroit up a top automakers Are closing out j990 in much the same Way As they ushered it in a by idling numerous Assembly plants and thousands of workers but now their reasons for such actions Are a bit Giorc severe because recession has finally come Home to Roost. There were some automakers and economists who optimistically predicted a recession would not materialize. Some government officials still Are sticking to that line Labelling it Quot an economic  Quot but general motors Ford and Chrysler have agreed on one thing a recession seems to have parked itself in the Auto business aided by rising concerns Over the persian Gulf crisis that erupted in August. And it May not move on until mid to late 1991. The nations big three car makers opened 1990 by temporarily closing nearly three dozen Assembly plants to dig themselves out from under a stockpile of unsold cars and trucks. Now they Are slashing fourth Quarter output on fears that Low consumer Confidence and a i Rocky Economy will make new car showrooms a lonely place to be. What surprised analysts and automakers alike was How Long it took for buyers to react to the dire economic news and threats of War although sales were not exactly robust before that. Steadily rising gasoline prices had to first translate into higher unemployment and headline news about the sagging Economy. Total . Vehicle sales counting domestically made and imported cars and trucks Are. Expected to reach about 14.2 million units for 1990. That s about 800,000 units less than some automakers boldly predicted at this time last year and Down from nearly 14.9 million vehicles sold in 1989, _ sales Are expected to slide further to about 13.5 million units for 1991, with the Industry a a health largely dependent on How and when the Mideast crisis is resolved and when the Economy will be revived. How this shrinking Market will be carved up among automakers and vehicle types also will depend on Oil prices the Economy and new tax Laws. Quot the first seven months of 1990 were a continuation of what we saw throughout the 1980s a a continued shift from cars to trucks especially minivans and sport Utility vehicles Quot said Joel Picoff. A sales analyst for the Ford motor co. While those two segments still have some strength the Overath truck Market has been weakened by higher fuel prices and a slumping construct Ion Industry. An 8 percent gain in luxury car sates during 1990 could be erased in 1991 because of the 10 percent tax on vehicles costing Over $30,000, the doubling of the Gas guzzler tax and tax increases for higher income households said the National automobile dealers Assoc a lion. A. The association also forecast that a lending crunch and tightening credit May make it harder for buyers to Trade in their aging 1985-1987 cars for new ones which will delay any Industry rebounds. Still 1990 was a breakthrough sales year for sonic car makers. Industry Leader pm was the Only one of the nations top automakers to eke out a Market gain although just about All of it came from its Chevrolet division and its japanese built cars in particular. Pm s share of the . Vehicle Market Rose to 35.2 percent in Early december is 34.6 percent for All of 1989. V Toyota Honda and Mazda also posted share gains in a shrinking Market. Some of those gains however came from unprecedented advertising Levels and dealer incentives on older models. The . Auto Industry in 1991 will be marked by further penetration by japanese automakers As they step up production at their North american plants. These Quot transplant operations assembled Over 1 million cars in 1989 and will double that by the Early 1990s. But those gains will be partly blunted by lower exports from Japan. A company earnings also reflected weaker sales and. Higher marketing costs during the year in spite of massive Cost cutting efforts by top car makers. Pm Ford and Chrysler Are expected to Post combined losses of nearly $1 billion for the final Quarter of 1990. Ford is expected to show its first quarterly red Ink in eight years. And profit sharing among big three Auto workers this year will amount to nothing More than a memory especially for Ford workers who had grown used to generous payouts during the past five  the innovation front Gmys Long awaited Saturn w a. Corp. Was finally  october alter nearly eight Vears of hoping its Mission to domestically and profitably build a subcompact car to compete with the japanese. But dealers who poured millions into a Saturn franchise entered 1991 with few if any. Ears because of production slowdowns to ensure High Quality. New dealer Points have been postponed until Spring and it May be two years or More before Saturn is a profitable com pan. A a lord also was Hurt by poor planning in the introduce. Tion of its All new escort and tracer  cars critical to its meeting fuel Economy standards. These cars were designed As import fighters although japanese car maker Mazda was instrumental in their engineering. Japanese car makers meanwhile continued their assault on the luxury car Market with Toyota s lexus division quickly establishing a Strong reputation. But the entire Market was again under attack by asian Quot Auto makers. Quot it has really been a Blitzkrieg Quot said one sales analyst when asked to describe the state of the Industry. A the brightest spot is that the consumer got a hell of a  but there were other Bright spots. The United Auto workers Union was victorious in achieving Quot pattern labor agreements at All three top car makers without a strike. The three pacts were sugar coated with generous income see Rily guarantees major Benefit gains and Layoff limits. Pm got a new chairman. So far Robert Plempel has received nothing but Praise for his management skills that should help the automaker realize a Long overdue resurgence. Pm s Crosstown rival also got a new inti at its Helm when Ford president Harold a. Poling agreed to stay beyond retirement to head the no. 2 car maker. Poling is known As a Tough manager with a firm grip on the company reins. 0. Third ranked Chrysler however lost Gerald Green Wald heir apparent to company chairman Lee Loco Cha. Greenwald left Chrysler to Lead a now jailed employee buyout of United air lines it looks like Laconca will stay beyond 1991 to oversee severe Cost cuts to help Chrysler survive into the mid-1990s. Mazda s novo to doing Well on . Market the new Mazda Navajo sport Utility vehicle recently named Quot truck of the year a by motor trend Magazine has been instrumental in putting Mazda a american sales ahead of its record Pace of last year. A v a / a a a according to Mazda a american head quarters in Irvine Calif the firm s Overall Model sales for november were topped by the new Navajo Model and the a series  Navajo which arrived on the mar act in october is another example of How american and japanese firms work together to get results. In this ease the Navajo is simply a two door version of Fords new explorer off Road vehicle another Strong seller. Ford and Mazda Are partners a the new escort is another example of Ford Mazda knowhow a and when Mazda needed an off Road vehicle in its expand my lineup Ford came to the Rescue. The Navajo was designed and engineered by Ford with development input from Mazda in the areas of vehicle standards development and testing. The navajos Are coming off Fords Assembly lines at its Louisville ky., truck Plant. A the two door Navajo features Standard four wheel drive a 155-horsepower v-6 engine Power steering Power windows and door Jackland a ramp a wheel anti lock system. A re it a a 1-1 s n ii in. S the199j Mazda Navajo counterpart of the Ford explorer is powered by a 4-liter v-6 engine on other matters japanese aug makers like Mazda that produce cars in the United states Are mounting a drive to increase Quot reverse exports of their vehicles Back to Japan and to other countries. This action is being taken amid signs of a . Market sales slowdown. Japanese car production in the United states is expected to top l3 million units this year. The Japan automobile importers association Jaia says that Honda a . Made cars were particularly popular in Japan last month helping boo a imported car sales there Japan a imported car Market has grown uninterruptedly since 1986, Jaia says adding that Japan a car imports in 1989 Rose to 196,682 units for a 27.7 percent gain Over the previous year with German cars dominating the Market. Total import sales this year Are expected to reach the 240,000 Mark. But Jaia put a dumper on the 1991 Outlook predicting that growth of imported car sales in Japan in 1991 is expected to slow by 13 percent due largely to rising interest rates and uncertainty Over the japanese  Randy Barnett  Auto columnist