“People & Products - Lafayette Journal and Courier” plus 4 more

People & Products - Lafayette Journal and Courier
Slick deals abound for car care - Arizona Daily Star
Behemoths to the fore in Frankfurt as sales window threatens to shut - Detroit News
Child safety seat event today in Alexandria - Alexandria Daily Town Talk
Skipper Beck was one of Charlotte's most familiar figures - Rock Hill Herald

People & Products - Lafayette Journal and Courier

Posted: 11 Sep 2009 10:43 PM PDT

SIA marks 20th anniversary of 'Job 1'

Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. on Friday marked the 20th anniversary of the first Subaru Legacy that rolled off the line at the Lafayette plant.

The car, dubbed "Job 1," was greeted on Sept. 11, 1989, by cheers from workers of what was then known as Subaru-Isuzu Automotive Inc.

Since then, nearly 3 million vehicles have been built at the plant on Indiana 38 East.

"For the past 20 years, SIA associates have been building high-quality vehicles here in Lafayette," Tom Easterday, senior vice president, said.

"This would not have been possible without a great spirit of teamwork among our associates, the cooperation of our suppliers and the excellent work that state and local officials have done to create a positive business environment."

Achievements

Todd Leuck will be showcasing his talents through Sept. 17 at New York Fashion Week.

He is hair stylist and owner of the Samson & Delilah's Salon and Spa and Evan Todd Lifestyle Salon in Lafayette and West Lafayette, respectively.

Leuck will team with Antoinette Beenders, global creative director for Aveda, to transform runway hair designs into reality.

Evan Todd and Samson & Delilah's are Aveda concept salons and support the Aveda environmental mission through recycling, saving energy and conserving water.

Short takes

The 2009 Fall Operations Conference will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 25 at Rawls Hall at Purdue University.

Sponsored by the Krannert School of Management's Dauch Center for the Management of Manufacturing Enterprises and Global Supply Chain Management Initiative, the event will allow industry leaders, faculty and students to discuss how to thrive in a down economy.

The conference is free and open to the public, but preregistration is required.

To register or receive more information, visit www.krannert.purdue.edu/departments/dcmme or call (765) 494-4322.

The Downtown Development Council of Greater Lafayette Commerce will present its Ninth Annual Operation Trick or Treat from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 30.

Downtown Lafayette-West Lafayette businesses interested in being open and distributing treats that night are asked to contact Greater Lafayette Commerce at (765) 742-4044 or jness@GreaterLafayetteCommerce.com

-- Staff and wire reports

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Slick deals abound for car care - Arizona Daily Star

Posted: 12 Sep 2009 12:09 AM PDT

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Behemoths to the fore in Frankfurt as sales window threatens to shut - Detroit News

Posted: 12 Sep 2009 12:45 AM PDT

Neil Winton: European Perspective

Frankfurt, Germany -- It will be like going to one of Frank Sinatra's final performances for visitors to the Frankfurt Car Show.

They will come away saying we might never see the likes of that again.

Children and grandchildren will one day hear barely believable tales of long extinct, gas guzzling 150 mph beasts like Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, Ferraris, Aston Martins, Jaguars and Porsches which were on show at the 2009 Frankfurt Car Show. Anybody could buy them, as long as they had the money.

The global car industry is on the verge of revolutionary change. New laws are about to kick in forcing manufacturers to produce more fuel-efficient cars, from governments convinced that global warming is caused by humans burning fossil fuels. This urge to fight climate change, which a vociferous and growing minority of scientists say has no basis in science and is therefore impossible, will lead to more laws forcing cars to become slower, smaller, and restrict driving in city centers.

The Frankfurt show, one of the three biggest in Europe, swaps the fall spot with Paris every year. The third show, in Geneva, Switzerland, is held every spring.

This time at the biennial Frankfurt show, expect to see more battery powered cars, led by the Japanese-French Nissan-Renault alliance. But many experts see this as a bit of a dead end, too, because despite some colorful claims by the likes of Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn about emission-free power, batteries are not much of an improvement over petrol or diesel power if you examine the whole process of generating the electricity and getting it to the car's battery. Battery price, performance and reliability also leave a lot to be desired.

Motoring excess

The fact that government pressure will shortly be mounting to curb motoring excess seems to have convinced car manufacturers that they had better get their most extreme luxury behemoths off the drawing boards and into the showrooms before it is too late. When the show opens you will see the new Porsche Panamera, Bentley Mulsanne, Rolls Royce Ghost, Aston Martin Rapide, Jaguar XJ, Ferrari 458 Italia, and assorted upmarket and souped up BMW and Mercedes sedans.

But underlining the fragile nature of the European car business, still reeling from the sharp recession although comforted a bit by a plethora of cash for clunkers schemes, perhaps the most important real-world car on show will be the Opel-Vauxhall Astra small family sedan. In normal times, the Astra would have been expected to challenge Europe's biggest seller, the Volkswagen Golf, but the future of GM's financially crippled Opel-Vauxhall still hangs in the balance, after months of negotiations. Previous Astras in various forms notched up about half a million sales a year, or more than a third of Opel/Vauxhall's volume.

Kia of Korea, which with its compatriot Hyundai has been benefitting hugely from European clunker rebates, will unveil the little Venga city car, and a new Sorrento SUV. Ford Europe will introduce the new C-Max minivan, which will also be on sale in the U.S. Audi launches its A5 Sportback, which won't appear in America. Saab of Sweden, dumped by GM, finally has a new model, the 9-5. BMW takes the wraps of its compact SUV, the X1.

Among the concepts, BMW will show a plug-in diesel electric hybrid sports car. (Plug-in hybrids can be charged overnight from your house's electricity supply, and carry small internal combustion engines to top up the batteries on the road). Toyota is expected to announce its answer to the Chevy Volt -- the Prius plug-in hybrid. Renault will have a whole stand full of various battery-powered cars. BMW will unveil the Mini Coupe, already a shoe-in for the prize of the show's ugliest car. Mercedes also will display a plug-in hybrid. VW, Europe's biggest car company and anxious to make a splash at its home show, will test the market with an electric car, and a so-called "One liter" car, which can go for 100 kilometers on one litre of gasoline; that's about 238 miles per U.S. gallon.

Last hurrah

But all eyes will be on the last hurrah of the big beasts, which to give credit to the manufacturers, were probably conceived in more favorable times.

"This will be the last tranche of gas guzzlers; the work has been done -- so (manufacturers will) launch and recoup some of the investment," said Peter Cooke, professor of Automotive Management at Britain's University of Buckingham.

Cooke still believes there is a future for luxury cars, although they will have to make big improvements in fuel efficiency.

John Wormald, analyst with British automotive consultancy Autopolis, agrees that manufacturers had no choice but to continue with their plans to introduce their premium models, and believes the market will revive, temporarily.

"The fun comes in five to 10 years, when we will see very serious concerns about global warming. Once the world economy recovers, we will see oil prices roaring up. That wouldn't be a problem for the person who can afford say an Aston Martin or a Rolls Royce, but governments will say we can't afford more oil imports," Wormald said.

"The question is, what happens beyond that. We'll see carbon taxes, as governments try to cut carbon dioxide by up to 80 percent. There'll be pressure to downsize, to make people drive slower and less, with more restrictions like tolls to get into city centres," Wormald said.

Luxury future

Professor Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer of the Center for Automotive Research at Germany's University of Duisberg-Essen is confident luxury cars will be with us for a while yet, not least because they will ironically lead the route to green technology.

"I'm convinced that we will see super luxury cars 100 years from now. There is a small group of customers who can afford and who like it. Look at the big yachts and helicopters. For climate and greenhouse effects 50,000 cars of this category per year have really no effect. And these cars will integrate new technology like e-mobility and hybrids so that the effects will be balanced in some sense," Dudenhoeffer said.

Before the recession, the global market for luxury cars was between about 80,000 and 90,000 a year. This has since slipped to about 60,000, according to automotive consultancy CSM Worldwide.

Dudenhoeffer is less convinced battery cars will be welcomed in the marketplace.

"At the moment price is uncompetitive -- more than 12,000 euros ($17,500) just for batteries for a compact car to run 150 kilometers (93 miles) and usability is restricted by loading times and the network," he said.

Dudenhoeffer also points to upcoming problems for the German industry, which has done exceptionally well developing diesel engines. New regulations from the European Union -- so-called Euro 6 due in 2014 -- will make diesel uncompetitive and spell danger for the component manufacturer Bosch in particular and German manufacturers in general.

Manufacturers' plans for battery-powered cars don't impress Autopolis's Wormald much either.

Not yet ready for prime time

"This is pure vehicle manufacturer fantasy and product push," he said.

"If you take electricity generated from the average European power station, electric power is at least as bad (in terms of CO2 emissions) as diesel or petrol," he said.

This might not be the case in France, which has more than 80 percent of its electricity generated by nuclear power, and much hydro and some renewable capacity. But the rest of Europe relies on coal, oil and natural gas. Some experts say about two thirds of electric power will be lost between the generating station and the car battery.

"When you add up the well to wheel cost it's no better and in some ways worse; and who is going to pay twice as much for a car with worse performance. There's really no market for this," Wormald said.

Electricity generation

Buckingham University's Cooke also points to big problems if battery power caught on, from the pressure on the generation of electricity to the inefficiency of delivery.

"The big problem will be from electricity generation. Britain faces a huge shortage and other European countries have problems too. Electricity, unless nuclear, can create a huge amount of CO2, and pushing it down wires is not very efficient," Cooke said.

There is one car expected to be on display at the show which might cause buyers to ignore all the disadvantages and go for battery power; that's the little Electric Trabant. A German company, Herpa Miniaturmodelle, wants to reintroduce the old East German car with a battery. The new Trabant won't be made of plastic mixed with paper or cotton fiber like the old clunky original communist icon, but if it is half as cute and adorable as its first pictures, this will be a big success, if its backers can raise the finance.

The show opens to the public Sept. 19-27.

Neil Winton, European columnist for Autos Insider, is based in Sussex, England. E-mail him at neil.winton@btinternet.com.

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Child safety seat event today in Alexandria - Alexandria Daily Town Talk

Posted: 12 Sep 2009 12:45 AM PDT

Nationally certified child passenger safety technicians will be on hand today to ensure child safety seats are installed properly.

State Police said nine out of 10 parents are using their child safety seats wrong. Parents are encouraged to come to Walker Automotive for the car seat event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

In addition to having the officers on hand to teach parents how to properly install and secure their child's car seat safely, a limited number of booster seats are being given away.

For information, call (318) 561-4162 or (318) 448-6970.

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Skipper Beck was one of Charlotte's most familiar figures - Rock Hill Herald

Posted: 12 Sep 2009 12:38 AM PDT

Over the years, Beck and his wife, Lynn, presented checks and accepted awards for their fundraising efforts, most often on behalf of children. Sons Brandon and Graham also are among his survivors.

Beck "rarely said no when asked to support virtually any initiative," said friend Steve Luquire, principal of the advertising and public relations firm Luquire George Andrews. "He was gracious to a fault."

His standing in the city's business and social circles was such that he teed off, beaming, with golf partners Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan in the Wachovia Championship Pro-Am two years ago.

When embarrassing legal problems surfaced at the beginning of the year, that standing didn't change.

Friends and colleagues said Beck, chief executive of the holding company Beck Management Group, was a tireless cheerleader of his companies and causes, often personally greeting customers at the Mercedes dealership.

Most recently, Beck and his younger brother, Bobby, ran Beck Automotive Group, operating dealerships across the country. In 2007, his Web site says, Lewisville Volkswagen was the volume VW leader in Texas and the seventh largest dealer in the United States.

A few years ago, Beck joined the board of directors at DesignLine International, a Charlotte-based company that makes coaches, buses and specialty vehicles.

"Fundamentally and foremost, when he set his mind to do something, it happened," said retired Gen. Buster Glosson, the board chairman. "His success speaks for itself."

Several years ago, when pro basketball returned to Charlotte, Bobcats owner Bob Johnson searched for local business leaders to invest in the team. One name he heard again and again, he recalled, was Skipper Beck.

Beck not only jumped at the chance — he owned a less than 5 percent interest in the team — but talked several others into investing too, Johnson said.

Public scandal

Beck was charged in January with soliciting for prostitution, as part of a probe into the HushHush call-girl ring. The misdemeanor charge was dismissed a month later after he attended a treatment program.

Friends say the experience deepened Beck's generous nature.

"Skipper was in the process of letting the Lord take over every part of his life," said the Rev. David Chadwick of Forest Hill Church. "He'd gone on two separate mission trips that I know of to Africa.

"The most recent one, he was working in the slums of Nairobi digging ditches and supplying fresh water to poor folks there and doing whatever he could to alleviate suffering."

In 2007, the Charlotte chapter of American Fundraising Professionals honored Lynn and Skipper Beck for volunteer fundraising that benefited more than 30 children's charities. Earlier that year, the couple chaired a fundraising event that raised more than $540,000 for the Family Center and its programs that fight child abuse and neglect. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society honored the Becks' support with its Hope Award in 2006.

"We were competitors in the daytime and very close friends at night," said longtime friend Felix Sabates, who owns a rival Mercedes dealership. "To me, he was like one of my own kids.

Sabates said Beck learned to fly within the past year and a half. The FAA said Beck earned his pilot's license last November.

In an undated section of the Beck Management Group Web site, Beck wrote: "I have always teased my wife and others that anything that had a motor in it, I could drive it.

"Well, I also have a desire to fly it. I am currently flying a 2008 Cirrus SR22 G3 Turbo and working to get my instrument rating this summer."

Kirsten Valle, Steve Lyttle, Franco Ordonez, Ames Alexander, April Bethea and Jim Morrill of The Charlotte Observer contributed.