Bloomberg auto reporter leaving for PR job

Alan Ohnsman, a BloombergNews auto and green transportation reporter based in Los Angeles, has resigned to become senior vice president and chief communications officer of TrueCar Inc., a car buying and selling platform.

Ohnsman joined Bloomberg in Tokyo in 1999 and has served as the West Coast automotive correspondent for Bloomberg News since 2001. In that capacity, he led Bloomberg’s coverage of Tesla Motors Inc. since 2006. For more than a decade he’s documented auto industry successes and setbacks, with a particular focus on Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co., Nissan Motor Co. and Hyundai Motor Co.

Ohnsman is a well-known expert on advanced powertrain technology, California’s ZEV mandate, U.S. fuel-economy and emissions rules as well as auto-manufacturing advances.  He has also been a frequent contributor to Bloomberg’s Businessweek and Markets magazines, and made numerous appearances on Bloomberg TV and Radio, NPR and affiliates KPCC and KCRW.

“This young Santa Monica company is building a truly innovative service that harnesses data and technology to reduce car-buying stress and improve the process for dealers and automakers,” Ohnsman said in a statement. “The chance to work with its world-caliber team of automotive heavyweights, and TrueCar’s product, tech and dealer teams is a rare and exciting opportunity.”

Along with two decades in newsrooms, he spent five years in equity research departments for the former Lehman Brothers and Salomon Brothers in Tokyo in the 1990s.

Ohnsman has degrees from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and Ohio Wesleyan University. His auto-industry start dates back to the 1980s when, as a college student, he made Honda Accord and Civic seats at a factory in Marysville, Ohio, his hometown.