Distributor-(electronic) Cardone 31-750 Reman Fits 83-86 Toyota Camry 2.0l-l4 on 2040-parts.com

Crunch watch Jan 09: the auto industry in crisis

By Tim Pollard, Ben Pulman and Gareth Evans Motor Industry 30 January 2009 12:39 Friday 30 January 2009• Honda is about to close the Swindon factory for four months when Friday's shifts are finished; the shutdown will affect 2500 of the 3700 staff, who will receive full pay for two months and then 60% pay for the next eight weeks (BBC News)• Porsche has announced a sharp drop in sales and likely profits. It forecasts a 27% drop in 911, Boxster, Cayman and Cayenne sales to around 34,000 units in the six months to the end of January 2009 (Financial Times, subscription required)• Ford wants Washington to do more to stimulate car sales, after posting a record loss of nearly $14.6 billion earlier this week (Detroit News)• Honda's quarterly profit has crashed by 90% – forcing the Japanese car maker to halve its annual profit target (Detroit Free Press)Thursday 29 January 2009• Ford of Europe is a bright spot in the Blue Oval's quarterly results today, making $1.06 billion pre-tax profit in 2008 (up from $997m in 2007). It's the first profit of more than $1bn since 1989 (Automotive News Europe, subscription required)• Volvo suffered a 'disastrous 2008' with a pre-tax loss of $1.46bn.

Delivery mileage Volvo 1800ES can be yours for $73,900

A 1973 Volvo 1800ES shooting brake has appeared for sale. Beyond the funky styling, orange over black leather interior and five-speed manual transmission, you're asking, so what? There's a grand total of 90 claimed miles on the odometer.

July 15: Bars and potholes

Last night I wound up leaving the office around midnight. With traffic finally cleared off the Santa Monica Freeway I flew down the road at between 105 and 115 km/hr. That's 65 to 71 mph.