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.

Lamborghini set sales record despite decline in U.S.

Lamborghini sales in the United States fell in 2008, but the brand still had a record year worldwide, said president Stephan Winkelmann. "We balanced sales in the Middle East, China and Southeast Asia with the drop in the United States," he said. Lamborghini sold 741 cars in the United States in 2008, down 20.3 percent compared with 2007.

New 2014 Citroen C1 priced from £8,245 in UK

Fresh from its debut at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, Citroen has revealed that prices for its new C1 city car will start from £8,245 when it goes on sale in July. For that price, buyers will get the entry-level C1 Touch with the 1.0-litre VTi, 68hp engine. Touch is the lead-in trim level and includes remote central locking, electric front windows, six airbags, an MP3 compatible audio system, a USB socket and LED daytime running lights.