SoCal auto importers seek parking places for unsold cars

SoCal auto importers seek parking places for unsold cars Thousands of imported autos are backing up at the nation's busiest port, a manifestation of the downturn in regional auto sales due to the international credit crunch.
   The backlog is becoming so pronounced that carmakers Nissan, Toyota and Mercedes have been forced to lease additional storage space at the Port of Long Beach for the imported vehicles as their normal import facilities near capacity.
   The port is leasing portions of the partially completed Pier S container terminal to the automakers.
   Toyota operates a 150-acre import terminal at Long Beach where the Japanese automaker brings in a quarter-million cars a year.
   While demand for new cars has dropped dramatically, factories have continued to ship the same number of vehicles because they require several months to curtail production levels.
      Automakers have seen sales over the past several months dwindle as financing for new cars has become harder for potential customers to obtain.
   'You’ve got ongoing announcements of layoffs and financing is also hard to come by, so people aren’t going to be making any major purchases,' Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., told the Long Beach Press-Telegram. 'Unless they absolutely have to buy a new car, they’re not.'