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Suppliers love Toyota and Honda: Why that matters to you

You might think that a survey of automotive suppliers and their relationship with OEMs is the automotive equivalent of nerd prom. In some ways that's what the North American Automotive OEM-Supplier Working Relations Index (WRI) is. The study, the 17th annual conducted by Planning Perspectives Inc., is based on input from 652 salespeople from 108 Tier One suppliers, or, PPI points out, 40 of the top 50 automotive suppliers in North America. Suppliers to General Motors, Ford, FCA, Toyota, Honda, and Nissan. But the results have consequences in terms of tens of millions of dollars for OEMs - and in the quality, technology, and cost of the next vehicle you buy. There are a couple of ways to look at the results of the WRI. One is, "So what else is new?" And the other is, "Damn! How did that happen?" The study looks at five relationship areas — OEM Supplier Relationship; OEM Communication; OEM Help; OEM Hindrance; Supplier Profit Opportunity — within six purchasing areas — Body-in-White; Chassis; Electrical/Electronics; Exterior; Interior; Powertrain. In the overall rankings, Toyota is on top for the 15 th time in 17 years, with a score of 328. Honda, the only company to best Toyota (in 2009 and 2010), comes in second, at 319. Those two companies, explains John Henke, president of PPI, have collaborative working arrangements with colleagues and suppliers alike built into the very fabric of their cultures. This, however, is not a situation where one can readily conclude it is about "Japanese companies," because the third company with headquarters on the island of Honshu, Nissan, came in dead last. This is the "How did that happen?" portion. The Nissan score of 203 puts it 125 points behind Toyota. There hasn't been a number that low since the then-Chrysler Corp. scored 187 in 2010, when the company was clawing its way out of the recession. Clearly, the suppliers don't feel particularly engaged by the buyers at Nissan. Henke explains that whether a company does well or not on the WRI is rather simple. All people do things based on what they're measured on. "If you're measured on taking 10% out of your annual buy, you immediately know how to do it. But if you're also measured on improving relations, suddenly there is a new dynamic as to what you can do to achieve both.

Best cheap SUVs: You don't have to pay a lot to get a lot

Here's a news flash: Everything is a lot more expensive now! And that definitely goes for new SUVs, with prices that keep nudging higher and higher. Actually "nudging" might be too soft of a description for their motion. "Skyrocketing" is probably more accurate.  While higher prices and hefty interest rates have likely knocked a lot of people out of the new car market entirely, there are still quite a few cheap SUV choices. Better still, they're not terrible! Far from it, in fact. While the lowest price SUVs used to be drab, sorry affairs best left to the lots of Avis and Budget, that is definitely not the case today. Not only are there legitimately appealing cheap SUV choices, they offer genuine differences in character, capability and design. It's not just a series of anonymous boxes with different badges. Below you won't just find a simple list of the cheapest SUVs available. We are actually pointing out the best ones. They are listed from least expensive to most expensive, with none exceeding a starting price of $30,000. Most are subcompacts, but a few of our top choices in the compact SUV segment snuck on. Finally, please excuse the crummy photo quality. We sought out representative trim levels of the prices in question rather than just reusing pretty carmaker-provided photos of the most expensive trim levels. This is what the cars will actually look like. Kia Soul Why it stands out: Ample space and abundant features for the money; unique style; strong turbo engine upgrade Could be better: All-wheel drive is not available Starting Price: $21,315 Read our most recent Kia Soul Review The Kia Soul definitely didn't start off as a small SUV, and the term "crossover" is probably better applied to it. Still, what started life as an undefinable funky tall hatchback now finds itself in its third generation with numerous vehicles of similar shape and size that are dubbed "small SUV" or "small crossover." If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck ... Call it what you will, but the Soul delivers the goods with tons of equipment and space for its price and size, an agreeable driving demeanor, and an even more powerful engine upgrade than the Kona's. We also think it's pretty cool. All of the above helped it win our subcompact SUV comparison test. Now, if there's one area where the Soul does not satisfy a typical SUV requirement, it's the lack of available all-wheel drive.

Nissan will build just 45 examples of this 45th Anniversary GT-R

It's been 45 years since the release of the original Nissan Skyline GT-R, so to celebrate, the Japanese automaker has announced this special commemorative edition. Based on the newly updated 2015 Nissan GT-R in Premium trim, the 45th Anniversary edition is done up in a unique shade called Silica Brass – the same color as the legendary R34-gen 2001 Skyline GT-R M-Spec. It also comes with the requisite special badging inside and under the hood, but unfortunately, that's about the extent of the special touches applied to this celebratory model. Nissan will only make 45 highly symbolic examples of this special edition, each to be sold on a strictly first-come, first-served basis. And unfortunately they'll be restricted to the Japanese market, where they'll each command a sticker price of 10,787,040 yen – equivalent to about $91,700 at today's rates, which is already a good ten grand less than what you'd pay for a standard GT-R in the US, anyway. Nissan Releases the Limited-Edition "45th Anniversary" GT-R – Production will be limited to 45 vehicles – YOKOHAMA, Japan (November 25, 2014) - Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. today announced that the Limited-Edition "45th Anniversary" Nissan GT-R will go on sale in early February throughout Japan, in conjunction with the release of the 2015 model year GT-R. Since its release in 2007, the Nissan GT-R has been recognized as the world's foremost high performance super sports car, which embodies Nissan's commitment to "innovation that excites" like no other. The GT-R's legacy continues as the ultimate "GT" (Grand Tourer), armed with a comfortable ride, a high level of refinement and benchmark fit and finish; while its world-class high performance embodies the "R" in its name (Racing technology). Thus, its "multi performance" character allows the driver to enjoy the full depths of the GT-R's capabilities, whether navigating corners of a winding mountain road, simply cruising on the open highway or even running errands on neighborhood streets. Based on the 2015 Nissan GT-R, which features ride quality that has been specially tuned to exhibit a more mature, better refined feel than its predecessors, the "45th Anniversary" will come with a special paint color, "Silica Brass" – the same trademark color as the Skyline GT-R M-Spec (R34 Type), which was touted as the "a GT-R that satisfies the mature driver" when it was released in 2001.