After hinting that it would be exploring unnamed options for getting more out of some of its signature house brands, Sears has announced that it will be expanding DieHard’s reach in the automotive market by selling passenger-car tires under the brand. [More]
automotive
Icahn Reportedly Wins Pep Boys Bidding Battle For $1B; Bridgestone Leaves Race
By 12.30.15
And just like that, it appears the auto parts retailer love triangle has ended: Bridgestone, the one-time preferred suitor of Pep Boy, reportedly bowed out of the months-long bidding war with Icahn Enterprises. [More]
Auto Parts Retailer Love Triangle Reaches $1B With Icahn Once Again Topping Bridgestone In Bid For Pep Boys
By 12.29.15
The auto parts retailer love triangle continues to take new twists and turns as the year comes to an end, with Icahn Enterprises once again upping the ante – to the tune of $1 billion – in its bid to steal Pep Boys away from suitor Bridgestone. [More]
Pep Boys Concedes That Icahn’s Offer May Be “Superior” To Bridgestone, Will Explore The Deal Further
By 12.8.15
When Dollar General entered an unsolicited billion dollar bid for Family Dollar last year, the smaller company said thanks but no thanks. The latest merger-love triangle appears to be taking a different path: auto parts retailer Pep Boys seems to be mulling the idea of ditching its already agreed upon deal with Bridgestone in favor of more money from Auto Plus owner Icahn Enterprises. [More]
Auto Parts Love Triangle: Icahn Offers $837M For Pep Boys, One-Upping Bridgestone’s $835M Bid
By 12.7.15
Love triangles are generally a plot device used in movies and television shows to keep viewers’ eyes glued to the screen, screaming for their preferred suitor to win out. Recently, though, the messy affairs have infiltrated the mergers and acquisitions realm with the months-long dollar store war – Dollar General and Dollar Tree fighting over Family Dollar. Today, that trend continued with the company behind Auto Plus offering to buy the already betrothed Pep Boys retail operations out from under Bridgestone. [More]
Bridgestone Buys Pep Boys Auto Service Retail Operations For $835M
By 10.26.15
Have we seen the last of Moe, Manny, and Jack – you know, the faces of the Pep Boys auto parts brand? It’s possible as the retail chain has agreed to be acquired by tire giant Bridgestone for $835 million. [More]
Gas Prices On The Rise For No Good Reason
By 4.5.10
Several states are reporting this morning that average gas prices have crept up slightly, despite the fact that oil consumption has dropped and refiners are operating below capacity. The Miami Herald blames the price creep on Wall Street speculators who are optimistic that the economy is getting better, which in turn will lead to increased gas consumption. [More]
Mercedes Shows Off New Safety Feature For Cars
By 3.9.10
Last week, Mercedes showed a bunch of journalists some new safety features it’s working on to prevent deaths in the event of a car crash, and BNET describes them. I hope you like air bags going off all around you–the demo even has air bags for the car. Sadly, the people-scooper feature–something about when you hit a pedestrian, the car “scoops” the body onto the hood and keeps the person there, probably so that his screaming can alert you that you’ve been in an accident–will only be available in Europe. [More]
Guy Refuses To Return Insurer's Calls, So Insurer Says It Doesn't Have To Pay For The Car He Hit
By 2.3.10
A woman in Philadelphia says her neighbor just laughs every time he sees her now, because his insurance company refused to pay a claim on her car that he hit. The company told her that the man won’t answer his phone, so there’s nothing they can do. Update: Right after I posted this, the OP emailed with an update. See the bottom of the post. [More]
Ford Announces Solution To America's Car Woes: The 1993 Taurus
By 11.5.09
Here’s a video from The Onion that pretty much sums up our nation’s automobile situation. The added incentive of a free Primus tape is really what sold me.
Was Your Cash For Clunkers Deal Rejected After Being Approved?
By 9.8.09
Edmunds.com, the car info website, is asking people who participated in the short-lived Cash for Clunkers program to contact them if something went wrong. Although they can’t fix any problems, they’re trying to collect data on consumers who are being asked to pay back the government rebate after already being approved, which was forbidden under the rules of the program, so they can present the data to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Airbag Defect Prompts Honda To Recall 440,000 Cars
By 8.1.09
If you own a Honda and don’t like getting shot in the face with jagged metal fragments, you may want to keep an eye out for a recall notice. The automaker announced yesterday that it would recall 440,000 Civics, Accords, and Acura TL sedans sold between 2001 and 2003.
Use Google Trends To Find The Best Time To Go Car Shopping
By 7.29.09
Engine Industries used Google Trends to map the frequency of search terms like “used car,” “new car,” and “buy car” through Google. They found that “people search car-related keyterms most in the summer and least in the winter, with a small spike right before Christmas.”
Trade In Your Clunker, Get $4,500. Maybe.
By 6.28.09
The government is offering a $4,500 credit to anyone willing to trade in their old clunker for a new fuel efficient car, but there’s a catch. Well, several catches…
Car Rental Tips From A Pro
By 6.2.09
Reader P. works for one of those big national car rental companies, on the customer service front lines. She has some insights for how to get on the good side of car rental employees, how to make sure the car you ordered ends up where you need it, and the potential hazards of online reservation systems.
In GM Bankruptcy Plan, Government Will Select New Board Of Directors
By 5.28.09
Let’s say the U.S. has poured billions of dollars into a failing company. How strongly should it try to protect that money once the company files for bankruptcy? The Washington Post is reporting that the plan for GM—which may go belly up as early as Monday—is for federal officials to select 5 or 6 of the company’s new board members, and have a say over which 6 of the existing board will remain. The UAW gets to choose another, and Canada might possibly be given one slot to fill. The rest of us will probably just get t-shirts or a souvenir mug.
Customer Drops Off Car At Dealership For Repairs, Gets Tires And Wheels Stolen Instead
By 5.27.09
Before you drop off your car at your local dealership for any sort of repairs, make sure you’re clear on the chain of liability should anything happen to it—especially right now, when dealerships can barely afford those flappy air things, much less tires. A woman in Charlotte, NC was left with around $1,000 in damages when the tires and wheels were stolen from the 2005 Audi she’d left with the dealership over the weekend.
Sorry, GM's Lots Are Too Full To Take Your Lease Back
By 4.29.09
Nearing the end of his lease on a Chevy Equinox, Tom wanted to turn the vehicle in before he used up his allotted miles, and drop it from his insurance as soon as he could. The dealership he leased it from, their lot clogged with cars and trucks that nobody particularly wants to buy, wasn’t really keen to take it back. So Tom got creative.
