Contract negotiations between Chrysler and the United Auto Workers Union kicked off on Monday, as the industry fights to stay competitive with foreign automakers. Fellow "Big Three" companies General Motors and Ford will also begin negotiations with the UAW later this week. Will the parties involved be able to reconcile their demands and reach a suitable agreement before contracts expire in mid-September? Paul Eisenstein, publisher of The Detroit Bureau, has been following the negotiations.

President Obama will be speaking with workers at a Chrysler plant in Toledo, Ohio, on Friday. The visit comes on the back of a report released showing the government’s $80 billion auto bailout will only cost taxpayers about $14 billion at the end of the day – far less than originally expected. The report also shows the American car industry has created 115,000 jobs since the government stepped in. The president will be selling this as a big success story – but is it?

Toyota announced that it would suspend U.S. production for one week beginning today. The car maker's decision in part due to problems with the Toyota supply chain, which was disrupted by March’s Sendai earthquake. However, it is unclear exactly what is causing the shutdown. To get to the bottom of the announcement, is Paul Eisenstein, publisher of website TheDetroitBureau.com.

As potential car buyers flock to the New York International Auto Show this week, some industry bigwigs are skipping the annual American show for another auto event — in Shanghai. The Chinese auto show and the American auto show overlap this year, and they are certainly competing over the industry spotlight. Paul Eisenstein, publisher of The Detroit Bureau.com, is at the New York show this week. He talks about the growing importance of China's auto show. Some of America's biggest launches, including the Chevy Malibu, are happening at that show as China becomes a major market for American cars.

The auto industry might just be driving the U.S. economy. U.S. car sales rose in March by 16.9 percent and Chrysler, Nissan and Ford are vying for the top slots. Chrysler hit its highest monthly total in three years in March with a 31 percent increase. And lot of that growth was fueled by hybrid and electric car sales. However, despite this good news, there are also reports that car companies are scaling back overtime hours and production schedules, especially in their small truck production.

What cars — and trends — are making their debut at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show? Paul Eisenstein of The Detroit Bureau says that following a surprisingly strong year for the Big Three, things are looking good for American automakers at this year's show. Meanwhile, this was the first visit to the show by Toyota's CEO, who was in Detroit to promote the Prius. He admitted that his brand has faced a challenging year.

Don’t call it just a minivan. Rapping parents in a viral ad for the Toyota Sienna call the four-door family-mobile a “swagger wagon." According to a recent story from The New York Times, automakers are re-marketing the minivan as a cool car. Is 2011 the year of the minivan?

Paul Eisenstein, publisher of TheDetroitBureau.com, joins us with his predictions for the auto industry in 2011. "Barring a huge and fast runup in fuel prices, most people are predicting that this is going to be a pretty darn good year," says Eisenstein. The year also looks to be particularly good for Detroit and the Big Three. Meanwhile, rising fuel prices may also create a bigger market for electric cars.

After unexpectedly strong interest from potential investors made itself apparent, formerly-bankrupt carmaker GM raised its initial price on last night's stock offering to $33/share. This morning, the auto giant helped start off the NYSE with a Comaro's horn. Selling at $33/share should potentially net GM more than $23 billion, and allow it to pay back half of the money still owed taxpayers and the Treasury Department after last year's automaker bailout.

Thinking about the Detroit Opera company trying to survive Detroit’s economic woes, it certainly seems that the abandoned buildings and tragic urban landscape of parts of Detroit  provide that city with an opportunity for theater at the very least.

The stark triumph (or not so much) over adversity themes in "La Boheme" ought to make it a Motown fave given the economy. You could stage it in some of Detroit's most troubled neighborhoods. "Boheme" is obvious though, so why not imagine other stories of operas starring some of the fallen, or embracing some of the narratives in the motor city? You’ve got discredited mayor Kwame Kilpatrick as Lt. Pinkerton in "Madame Butterfly" leaving Detroit in the lurch. GM would be perfect as suicidal "Tosca," or evil "Don Giovanni." Ford is clearly "The Magic Flute" in this narrative… you could imagine Andre Chenier for Alan Mulally over at Ford but then he doesn’t climb the scaffold in the end.

Today "Government Motors" gets to be General Motors again, when the company announces its initial public offering. It's a cautious success story — the company had a $2.1 billion proffit this quarter. But is it the right time to go public? We speak with Paul Eisenstein, publisher of The Detroit Bureau, which covers the auto industry, for more.

In early 2009, Kokomo, Indiana, was emblematic of the bleak state of recession-age America. With an economy dependent on the American auto industry, the city's unemployment rate had risen to 20 percent.

But over a year later, things in Kokomo are looking up. Unemployment is down to 14 percent, and several companies are creating new jobs. While there is much disagreement about the effectiveness of the economic stimulus package, Kokomo residents and politicians are quick to credit it with their city's recovery.

Electric cars are good for the environment, but can they be made affordable and viable for a cash-strapped American public? European governments and car manufacturers are investing heavily in electric cars for both environmental and economic reasons. The U.S. government is gearing up to do the same, by offering heavy tax incentives to Americans who buy electric cars.

We look ahead to this week of Middle East peace talks, a new jobs report, and auto sales numbers. On Tuesday, President Obama will address the nation from the Oval Office as combat operations in Iraq officially end. On Wednesday, we'll hear about auto sales numbers for August, and on Thursday, a new round of Middle East peace talks will begin. Friday brings the anticipated jobs report from the Labor Department.

Ford has been open about its plans to phase out the massively popular Crown Victoria line in 2011, but is inviting stiff competition from both Chrysler and General Motors, who are unveiling vehicles aimed squarely at police fleets. Will Ford be able to keep the 75 percent market-share of the police cruiser market, that the Crown Victoria managed?

Barely 24 hours after announcing the company's positive second quarter earnings, GM CEO Ed Whitacre announced yesterday that he would be stepping down from the company. It was an expected move; Whitacre came out of retirement to steer the company towards better economic waters, and promised it would be a short term undertaking. But his departure took some by surprise, who expected he would stay through the company's stock offering, which should take place next week. What shape does Whitacre leave the company in? And what ahead?

Things are looking up for U.S. automakers. Sales are up, and some companies like Chrysler are projecting that they will end this quarter in the black. This is big news for an industry which required massive government support to avoid bankruptcy less than two years ago. Paul Eisenstein, publisher of The Detroit Bureau, says that the car companies have been making smart moves. 

Detroit got a dose of good news, yesterday. For the first time in the 24 year history of the JD Power and Associates Initial Quality Study American car makers beat out imports. Porsche still topped the list, but Ford was in the top five up there, along with luxury brands. That is the only time a mainstream American brand has been in that group. 

At their convention today in Detroit, the United Autoworkers Union will elect a new president, ending the eight-year tenure of Ron Gettelfinger. Gettelfinger led the union through one of the most difficult periods in its history. The UAW was once one of the largest and most influential unions in the country, but these days its membership is the smallest it’s been since the end of World War II.

One year ago today, General Motors filed for bankruptcy and became the fourth largest U.S. bankruptcy on record. President Obama vowed to turn GM around and make it a profitable company once again. We look at how GM has changed in the past year with the help of Rebecca Lindland, an auto analyst for IHS Global Insights, and find out how the rest of the auto industry is doing as well.