ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Walter McManus, an expert on alternative drive powertrains and automotive forecasting, has been named director of the Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation (OSAT) at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI). His appointment was effective March 9.

McManus is the former executive director of global forecasting for J.D. Power and Associates and also worked at General Motors Corp. for nearly a decade. While at J.D. Power and General Motors, he conducted research on new automotive technologies and their impact on society and the environment, the market potential of hybrids and diesel-powered vehicles, and automotive product and brand portfolio strategies.

"OSAT gives UMTRI an important window on the automotive world and Walter's GM and J.D. Power experience and fine reputation with automakers and suppliers will help UMTRI," said UMTRI Director Peter Sweatman. "We need to focus our research on tomorrow's auto industry issues, such as hybrid drivetrains, alternative energy, and vehicle-vehicle and vehicle-highway communication. Walter will continue the OSAT tradition of providing topical and insightful studies on the state of the auto industry."

McManus, who has doctoral and master's degrees in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a bachelor's degree from Louisiana State University, initiated J.D. Power's research program on the market potential of alternative powertrains. His research showed that the auto industry has underestimated consumer demand for diesel-powered vehicles.

In addition, McManus created a model to evaluate policy choices to encourage the adoption of hybrids and clean-diesel vehicles for an industry group of automobile manufacturers, suppliers, the United Auto Workers and other organizations. Another model he developed is used by manufacturers to study options for hybrid and clean-diesel product portfolios and by the Department of Energy to assess the impact of different policies on overall fuel economy.

Other research he led at J.D. Power included forecasting auto sales in most markets worldwide, Generation Y's future influence on the auto market, the growing importance of Hispanics in the demand for autos, and creating models to forecast sales of telematics and advanced safety features.

His work at General Motors throughout the 1990s focused on developing new product and brand portfolio strategies that are credited for sustaining the company's profitability since that time and for helping to launch some of GM's most successful new models in the last five years.

"Walter is a first-rate econometrician and microeconomist who has published in leading academic journals," said Mustafa Mohatarem, GM's chief economist. "His innovative work on General Motors' economics staff left a powerful and lasting imprint on the way we analyze the industry and market our passenger cars and trucks. His work at J.D. Power has also contributed significantly to our understanding of the business and public policy climate."

McManus replaces the retiring Michael Flynn, who has been with OSAT since 1988. Flynn was named associate director in 1989 and director in 2000.