KALAMAZOO -- Citing high labor costs and the erosion of vehicle sales by its car-making customers, Checker Motors Corp. filed Friday for bankruptcy protection. The automotive supplier, perhaps best known for the Marathon taxicabs its supplied to the world from 1923 until 1984, filed for protection from its creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in U.S.... Full story »

TRAVERSE CITY -- A northern Michigan auto dealership with ties to Henry Ford may be sold to a dealer connected to another globally known business family in the state. Grand Rapids-based Fox Motors has reached a deal to buy Grand Traverse Auto in Grand Traverse County's Garfield Township. Full story »

DETROIT -- Since millions of African-Americans began leaving Southern farms for Northern factories nearly a century ago in what is still known as the Great Migration, the destinies of many have been entwined with the auto industry. Now, with Detroit reeling, many blacks find their economic well-being threatened. The New York Times explored this trend last month. Full story »

The 11th annual Michigan International Auto Show takes over DeVos Place next month amid a steep economic recession. With almost 40 manufacturers bringing in around 300 new vehicles, plus a special display of antique cars and exotic luxury vehicles, the show should not disappoint. • Read the story Full story »

AutoCycle Sales, a dealership on South Division Avenue, sells a three-wheeled, 60 miles-per-gallon, Chinese-made gas sipper known as the Wildfire. "Gas prices will go back up," predicts dealership owner Jerry Persons, and he will be ready. • Read the story • Watch Wildfire on the road  Full story »

New pacts between Midwest credit unions, General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC promise a rich combination: low-interest loans and automaker rebates. • Read the story Full story »

KENTWOOD -- When factory worker Dawn Lambert decided to poll co-workers at their former Plastech LLC plant, she wasn't surprised to hear plenty of gripes about their United Auto Workers pact. "I started to listen to people talking at their breaks," the 40-year-old Wyoming woman said. "People are aggravated." By the time she started circulating a petition to decertify the... Full story »

GRAND HAVEN — Shape Corp., one of Ottawa County's largest employers, has shut down manufacturing lines that supply the automotive industry, leaving 400 employees out of work until further notice. A company spokesman said the "temporary layoffs" begin Jan. 5 and will remain in effect until orders from automotive manufacturers like General Motors, Chrysler LLC and Nissan pick up.... Full story »

GRAND HAVEN -- Shape Corp. says it will idle about 400 employees beginning Jan. 5. The Grand Haven-based auto parts supplier says the layoffs will be the first in its 34-year history. Shape reported the job cuts are necessary due to reduced demand caused by the downturn in the economy and the decision by domestic automakers to close many or... Full story »

KENTWOOD -- A move to oust the United Auto Workers at a former Plastech LLC plant in Kentwood is under way, according to a blog by the National Right to Work Foundation. Now owned by JCIM, a subsidiary of Johnson Controls Inc., the plant at 4741 Talon Court St. previously had a card-check system that would approve UAW representation with... Full story »

West Michigan auto suppliers are already bracing themselves for a bitterly cold market, so today's news of a $13.4 billion short-term federal loan for General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC felt unseasonably warm. • Read the story • Bush: Automakers to get $17.4 billion • Complete auto industry coverage Full story »

NORTHVILLE — Auto parts supplier Key Plastics LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday and submitted a pre-packaged reorganization plan. The company has a plant at 5375 International Parkway SE in Cascade Township. The company makes plastic parts such as door handles and other molded components for carmakers and suppliers, and said it secured up to $20 million in... Full story »

At the Wyoming Grill, down the street from West Michigan's only General Motors Corp. operation, the 36th Street stamping plant, the talk this morning was about the Senate's failure to pass a $14 billion bridge loan for Detroit's automakers. (Press Photo/Jon M. Brouwer) • Read the story | Latest on bailout • Susan J. Demas: Ignorance results in death sentence • Battle lines and boomerangs Full story »

ZEELAND -- The pharmacists at the Zeeland Family Fare are only a two-minute walk from Gentex Corp. across the street. But soon, they will be even closer, thanks to a partnership between the grocery retailer and the Zeeland automotive supplier. A benefit available to 1,900 Gentex employees will be regular visits by a pharmacist to the plant to answer... Full story »

Competitors and industry watchers said the closing of the second-largest Chevrolet dealer in the Grand Rapids area was probably necessary for a healthier General Motors Corp. dealership network. • Read the story | More auto industry news Full story »