General Motors

http://business.theglobeandmail.com/servle...y/Business/home

From The Wall Street Journal

The last few days Bob Lutz has been on many people's minds. But here's a new interview with Rick Wagoner, from an article by Sharon Silke Carty for USA Today. here

As forcast last week by GeneralWatch and reported in today's Automotive News, GM once again proves why management has no credibility. Wait until the folks who recently took delivery find out that they missed the boat as GM gives another example of why LaNeve and Company are not to be believed and should be immediately shown the door. How about the hard working retail personnel who had planned family vacations with the kids before school? In other words, thanks folks for working so hard, now choose between making dough and spending quality time with loved ones. Remember how GM lowered prices a few months back? The charade of "value pricing" was truly…

[source: Autoblog] Vauxhall sans Opel could realign with GM Daewoo, Holden Eyebrows raised at reports that General Motors could hold on to its British subsidiary Vauxhall even if – or, more likely, when – its German counterpart Opel would leave the family. With the model ranges of the two European GM divisions intertwined, a Vauxhall without Opel would seem like an empty shell. New reports suggest, however, that instead of re-plastering Opels with the griffin badge, the British marque could instead continue operations under GM ownership by importing products made by GM Daewoo Auto & Technology. The restructuring of Vauxhall would also lik…

UPDATE: Pontiac has told us that the new Vibe will be appearing at the Los Angeles Auto Show in the fall instead of the New York show. The word on the web is that GM won't be taking the Pontiac Vibe behind the tool shed just yet. The Vibe nameplate, however, may be gone in favor of a "G" designation to follow with Pontiac's current naming scheme. While there is no official confirmation, the second-generation Vibe is expected to continue to be a joint product between GM and Toyota. The Matrix, Toyota's version of the car, is set to be replaced next spring by a car designed after the Mazda3 and similar to the European-market Auris.

The dire situation in which the U.S. auto industry finds itself has created a lot of national discussion, but for many the consequences are much more personal. It's one thing to see a panel of experts discuss the ramifications of bailing out an ailing auto industry on a cable news shows, but as we see in this video after the jump, it's something altogether different when you're the mayor of a town caught in the crossfire. Virg Bernero is the mayor of Lansing, MI and it's quite apparent that he's not content to let pundits shape the discussion about who needs to sacrifice more to save the auto industry. The Fox News anchor conducting the interview can't do much in the face…

VW may overtake GM in China: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/20...icle_356353.htm

http://www.smartmoney.com/bn/ON/index.cfm?...109-000270-0950 http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/busin...ng/13570760.htm

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,232598,00.html WASHINGTON — Edwin Black is on a mission. He wants to go head-to-head with the head of General Motors in a showdown at Starbucks. The best-selling author has nothing against the coffee chain, but says he wants a public venue to confront the nation's largest car industry with his charges that GM has addicted the U.S. to the internal combustion engine — and hence oil — and is spelling doom for America. "These are the cigarettes of individual movements. These are the cigarettes of technology. These are eight-cylinder cigarettes. They are killing us," Black said recently in a one-on-one interview. "Stop allowing these he…

Rick Wagoner's 31-year career may fall victim to the mistakes of the industry and of his own making, even if General Motors Corp. survives. The GM chief executive officer prompted scrutiny of his record by asking for a government bailout to keep the Detroit automaker in business. Now, his departure may be a necessary condition of any federal rescue, business leaders and lawmakers say. "Management needs to be replaced," said Robert Crandall, former chairman and CEO of American Airlines parent AMR Corp. "The fact is that the management as a whole has had lots of opportunities to fix this. They haven't." Mr. Wagoner has run the world's largest automaker for the past…

For the first time in its history, General Motors Corp. is now selling more cars and trucks in other countries than it does in the United States, GM Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner told the Free Press. This historic shift reflects both GM's dwindling share of the mature U.S. market and its promising position in China and other fast-growing Asian economies. But despite strong sales growth overseas, Wagoner stressed that GM's future still depends largely on whether he can reverse huge losses in the North American auto market, where GM has lost $4.8 billion so far this year, triggering a plunge in its stock price and downgrades of its deb…

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.../607110345/1014 looks like busy few days for RW. hope nobody wet themselves.

Anybody read the interview that Motor Trend published on p.90 of their June 2006 issue? They spell it out in no uncertain terms. He is throwing in the towel on the US market, hoping to just tread water, and pinning all his future hopes on GM salvation in China! That's why we are getting 2nd-class, ho-hum models, 'cause he wants to push the brand in China and make lotsa moolah! Although he cut his pay in half, it still is $1.1 MILLION dollars! And what about the rest of the management tier? The burden of 2.5 retirees per each US employee, with full benefits won't go away with a switch to a different money market. If the thinking is that China is their star…

DETROIT, Jan. 6 - General Motors expects to reduce the billion-dollar losses at its struggling North American operations this quarter, as its cost-cutting efforts take effect, G.M.'s chief executive, Rick Wagoner, said today. Speaking in a rare interview with a small group of journalists at G.M.'s headquarters here, Mr. Wagoner declined to say when the automaker's North American operations would return to profitability. But he did emphasize that G.M. had no plans to file for bankruptcy protection. And Mr. Wagoner said he anticipated that stronger sales of new vehicles, including a restyled group of sport utility vehicles, combined with the company's restructuring should…

http://www.autonet.ca/News/story.cfm?story...06/2253409.html

Wagoner: GM needs federal help before Obama takes office Jamie LaReau Automotive News November 10, 2008 - 4:40 pm ET DETROIT -- General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner says GM's financial distress is so dire that it must line up financial assistance from Washington before President-elect Barack Obama takes office in January. "This is an issue that needs to be addressed urgently," Wagoner said during an exclusive interview today with Automotive News. Now is the time to "overshoot, not undershoot" when it comes to assistance for the auto industry, he added. In return for financial aid, General Motors is willing to offer the government preferred stock, set limits on e…

Wagoner Rumors Start to Swirl Will GM lose its CEO to financial churn? by Joseph Szczesny (2006-03-06) For General Motors' Rick Wagoner, March ought to be a good if not a great month. His beloved Duke Blue Devils are an odds-on favorite to sweep through the NCAA Tournament, and GM's retail sales are showing signs of moving in a positive direction after two years of enormous difficulty. However, while no one is predicting that GM's board of directors has asked Wagoner to prepare a resignation letter, the gossip around Detroit is that he could be reaching the end of his tenure as GM's chairman and chief executive officer. Until recently, Wagoner had been viewed as GM…

It has been revealed that Rick Wagoner was ready to resign, if the GM Board of Directors hadn't given him their vote of confidence. Click here for the report on msnbc.com.

Wagoner Wins A Round Financial results buoy CEO’s assertion that turnaround is working.by Joseph Szczesny (2006-07-31) Link to original article @ TheCarConnection.com Richard Wagoner, GM's embattled chairman, appears to have shored up his position thanks to a stronger than expected showing by GM during the second quarter. The second-quarter results, despite the $3.2 billion loss the company posted, showed that the company's turnaround efforts are paying dividends. The second-quarter results were widely seen as a vindication of turnaround effort GM has mounted despite some criticism from Jerry York, who is now a member of GM's board and is the chief lieutenant o…

By Jamie LaReau Automotive News / October 24, 2005 General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner doubtless sighed with relief last week after announcing a deal with the UAW to reduce GM's health care costs. The UAW's rank and file is expected to ratify the plan to shift some health insurance and prescription drug costs onto retirees and active workers. If so, GM's after-tax savings would total $1 billion a year. That's not chump change, but it won't be enough to restore GM's profits. Last week, the automaker announced that its North American automotive operation lost $1.6 billion in the third quarter. Restive investors (read: Kirk Kerko…

http://money.netscape.cnn.com/story.jsp?id...0051017MIDTF501

The Detroit News this afternoon contacted Rick Wagoner after it was announced that automakers must return to Washington by December 2nd with a restructuring plan. To read the story with Wagoner's comments, click here.

HOUSTON Jan 27, 2006 — American industry and the government will need to address how rising health care costs are hurting companies and the economy, General Motors Corp.'s chairman Rick Wagoner said on Friday. "I want to be clear I'm not saying we expect the government to pick these expenses up," Wagoner said at the Houston Auto Show a day after the world's No. 1 carmaker reported it lost $4.8 billion in the fourth quarter, one of the its most dismal showings ever, and $8.6 billion for 2005. "I think they've made it very clear they don't intend to do that, at least the current administration." The "health care burden" affects every business as well as government and a…

Wagoner's grades: Some A's, some nays Jamie LaReau | Automotive News / March 27, 2006 http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti...t=newsletter07#

United States Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Rick Wagoner General Motors Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Washington, D.C. • Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman. • I’m Rick Wagoner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today about the future of America’s domestic auto industry. • I’d like to acknowledge for the Committee the constituents that I represent: • General Motors directly employs approximately 96,000 people in the United States. • We have 6,500 dealers across the country, who employ another 340,000. • Last year, we purchased more than $30 billion of goods and services …

On the very top of this weekend's WSJ, there's a Chrysler Pacific dashboard with a red slash through the steering wheel. It reads... BAIL OUT DETROIT? WRONG WAY, DO NOT ENTER Just Say No to Detroit Given the abysmal performance by Detroit's Big Three, it would be better to send each employee a check than to waste it on a bailout, says David Yermack. Before Michael Moore became famous for documentaries like "Fahrenheit 9/11" and "Sicko," his first big success came in 1989 with "Roger and Me." In that film, Mr. Moore followed General Motors chairman and chief executive Roger Smith with a camera crew, asking him why the company was closing plants and producin…

http://www.capitolconnect.com/gmfactsandfi...ze/default.aspx

[source: Motor Authority] Warren encouraging GM to move corporate HQ with tax breaks Detroit has long been the heart of America's automotive industry, but 2009 has been a major period of upheaval for the city, with further shocks expected to come - including the possibility that General Motors will move its corporate headquarters out of Detroit downtown area and into a neighboring city. Moving away from Detroit could make sense for a newly restructured GM, especially considering that a bankruptcy proceeding appears to be all but inevitable at this point and relocating the new company could do much for its public image. One of …

I think CPF is wearing that purple tie just for me. http://www.gmeurope.tv/webcast/index.php?a...channel=webcast

The far right has Rush but the far left has theirs too with the Huffington Post. A writer Gerald Sindell trashes GM styling in a story he wrote on the far left post an open letter to new GM CEO Fritz Henderson suggesting that a new design direction should be Job 1 for the reinvention of GM, Welburn felt compelled to respond. As you might imagine, the response is a rather passionate one. Check out the story on Autoblog.com. There are leads to the original story and reply. It's as if everyone is doing the look at me thing on the hot topic of GM. I am waiting for GM to turn a profit in 2 years and the Far Left will say we did it all and the Far Right will say will …

Automotive News September 1, 2008 - 12:01 am ET This year's Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance celebrated General Motors' centennial with the display of 20 of the automaker's Motorama cars. Today they're called concept cars, but in the '50s they generally were called "cars of the future." One Motorama car in particular made a lasting impression on a young Ed Welburn, now GM's design vice president. "What was the first Motorama car I saw? I was 8 years old. It was the Philadelphia auto show. I was crazy about cars, and the Cadillac Cyclone was there," Welburn said in California at the Pebble Beach event. "It was an incredible experience for me. It is just like I …

I've been thinking about GM becoming more global and whatnot, and how platforms will now be engineered for use around the world as well as other vehicle componets. But, what about engines? Are the HV V6s used anywhere other than North America? Wouldn't it be easier (and save costs) to produce millions of HF V6s globally and use them in everything that needs a V6? I'm not starting this thread to necessarily put down the HV V6s, but the HF V6s are clearly better and it seems the only reason for GM not putting them in more cars is cost. If they were produced in huge numbers, wouldn't it bring the cost down significantly and bring the price-per-unit down to …

Plunging market share, huge layoffs and a copycat filing by Ford. Those are just a few of the likely outcomes if GM can't avoid bankruptcy court. By Robert Walberg Rick Wagoner, chief executive of General Motors, has tried to comfort investors by saying GM has no plans to file for bankruptcy protection. Cold comfort, I'd say. The company's deeds, if not the CEO's words, point to an acute need for some sort of bankruptcy plan, even if just as a contingency. Consider: GM (GM, news, msgs) lost nearly $4 billion over the last year; its credit rating dropped to junk status; car sales plunged as GM built bigger cars and trucks just as gas prices s…

Simple question, simple answer. I'm sorry I had to put the Corvette as an aside, but since it's, imo, there only class-leading product, I had to list the caveat. And, it is after all, the flagship, GM has to get it right. So share some opinions, give me your best, we're all fans, and we're all interested in the best for this company. EDIT: Sorry I wasn't more specific. This question should be, "In general do you think GM makes class-leading or competitive products." This should not include just a few entrants, consider the number of segments GM competes in, and consider how many are actually class-leading or very near the top of that seg…

What happened to the thread about GM's C.O.O. getting to the bottom of unacceptable losses. I tried to locate it via search but could not. Then I clicked on it in my browsers history but find that the board returns an error message that files may be missing. What gives?

Simple question: What would happen if Delphi strikes and sends GM into Chapter 11? Things I think can happen: 1. Immediate renegotiation of UAW contract. 2. Immediate renegotiation of plant contracts. 3. Immediate renegotiation of Delphi and other supplier contracts. 4. Ford declaring chapter 11 also, maybe Chrysler. 5. Court letting some assets be sold off (remainder of GMAC, Hughes). 6. Freeze in product development. Things I don't think will happen but possibly could: 1. Renegotiation of dealership contracts (hoping for this one). 2. Voiding of warrenties. Also how would the stock react? How would GM be better able (or less able) to fight Toyota a…

What is GM trying to accomplish? Chevrolet has 8 vehicles, Pontiac has 8, and cadilac has 5, and Buick 3 It makes no sense. It seems like they are purposely trying to kill the Buick division. I don't understand how they expect Buick to be a succesfull division with the Lucerne and Lacrosse whose platform and engine have been around for years. Buick needs new vehicles and they need it now. They should have RWD, a 2dr, a convertible, and a 3 series type. They should also offer more V8's. Come on GM get your head out of your ass

Congress is about to approve a loan that is nothing more than a firebreak, it does not extinguish the fire. The loan will give us the time we need as a nation to wet down the roof and call in the water bombers, but the fire still burns and the smoke and embers are still falling all around us. The good news is, that the situation has spurred a great flood of creative thinking (even amongst the small minds in DC). Ideas with real merit are floating through the air like snowflakes in a blizzard, from how to finance the balance of the loans our domestics will require, to the (overdue) notion that the US needs to adopt a rational industrial policy to avoid crises like the o…

What Ford Motor Co. needs is more top execs with nicknames. You know, like "Red" Poling. At least that's the theory of one Ford lifer who's been there since "Hank the Deuce" was CEO. Technically, "Hank the Deuce" isn't a nickname. It's the way some people refer to Henry Ford II, just as some call Jacques Nasser "Jac the Knife" because he was a cost-cutter. In addition to Harold "Red" Poling, there also was Charles B. "Tex" Thornton, the former army colonel who led the 10 "Whiz Kids" into Ford after World War II. But not all nicknames carry the same weight. Semon Knudsen's nickname, "Bunkie," seems a little trite when you compare it to the "Big Bill" moniker his fa…

One of the things I admire about the Toyota corporation is their clearcut brand identities. Unlike GM, who acquired all of these varying brands via buyouts, Toyota acquired brands by creating them to fill a void they saw in thier line-up. That puts Toyota at a distinct advantage over GM which has to balance the future of any brand identity with the brand's history. All Toyota has to do with its brands is deal with the future. For example, when Pontiac relaesed a Mini-van, people booed & hissed because THAT wasn't what Pontiac was supposed to be. Toyota makes Lexus whatever they want... there is no history to contend with. With that, they have a very well defin…

... of the current strike? Mine after I take Arkus for a walk.

Pearl Harbor remains a useful analogy given Admiral Isokoru Yamamoto's statement on December 7, 1941 - "I fear we have woken a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve." Heres an old article, 2001 July... hrmm wanted to take this thread to another level, but... I really find it strange that all I seem to hear regaurding GM is that its waking up, that the General is finally starting to wake up. GM is learning Product matters. GM is asking for input on what direction their vehicles should take, I.E. front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, or all wheel drive. GM has hired Car Zcar, Robert Lutz, a old fighter pilot that has gasoline in his blood. GM is taki…

From www.thetruthaboutcars.com General Motors Death Wtach 65 10 April 2006 By Robert Farago I wonder what Billy Durant would have made of Rick Wagoner. GM's founder was a man of great honesty, intelligence and drive. He was also a high school drop out who started the company with a $1000 loan-- and ended-up penniless. Twice. Perhaps that's why historians tend to credit General Motors' epic growth to the man appointed president in 1923; about whom an observer wrote, "The manufacture of correct assessments, not physical products, is what most gratified Alfred Sloan." Billy was the “car guy.” Alfred was the “bean counter.” The history of GM is the history of the str…

Star Tribune Story Editorial: When General Motors sneezes ... Detroit's health-care costs are symptoms of a bigger problem. Last update: November 28, 2005 at 5:54 PM Like many Americans, Barack Obama was stunned last week when General Motors announced plans to lay off a quarter of its manufacturing workforce -- some 30,000 people -- and shutter a dozen North American factories by 2008. But Obama, a Democratic senator from Illinois, was in a position to do something about the latest sign of U.S. industrial meltdown. He has introduced legislation that would relieve American automakers of part of their retiree health-care costs if, in exchange, they promise …

Edmonton Sun Article When I bought my first car, a Toyota Tercel, in Winnipeg in 1985, they were so popular there was only one left in the city. It was red. I snapped it up. Two decades later, Japanese vehicles are even more popular. For the first time, Japanese automakers made more vehicles in North America last year than General Motors, according to a new Scotiabank report. Faced with ongoing losses in market share, GM reduced its vehicle production in North America to 4.6 million vehicles in 2005. In contrast, Japanese automakers boosted their vehicle assembly here by 12% to 4.8 million cars and light trucks. In 1985, when Japanese manufacturers were starting to…

I thought we were going to see the Hummer H4 at NAIAs, is it showing later today or tomorrow?

anyone know?

These are just for the full size SUV's that are set to be rolled out on this years auto show circuit. The General will release information on the Tahoe Tuesday, September 20th and C&G will have the information asap. We want to know which full size SUV you're most looking foward to seeing and why!

[source: Wall Street Journal] GM's China Sales Hit Monthly Record in April BEIJING -- General Motors Corp. said its sales in China hit a monthly record in April, rising 50% from a year earlier on strength in its Buick and Wuling brands. The strong performance in China by the U.S. auto maker, until recently the world's biggest by output, contrasts with its struggles in its home market. GM is racing to restructure outside of bankruptcy court in the U.S., and is expected this week to accelerate talks with the United Auto Workers union and move toward closing about 2,600 dealerships. GM, which posted record China sales of 151,084 unit…

U.S. casts shadow on GM global surge Sharon Terlep | Link to Original Article @ The Detroit News General Motors Corp. is shattering sales records, besting competitors and making money almost everywhere in the world. Those successes will amount to little, however, if the automaker can't resuscitate sales in its money-losing North American operation -- something GM says isn't likely until at least 2008. GM sold 2.4 million vehicles around the world in the second quarter, with 1.4 million of those cars and trucks going to consumers outside the United States, according to sales data released Thursday. GM reclaimed the No. 1 global rank for the second quarter after outse…

WHISPERS: Will the Russians Ditch General Motors? Date posted: 02-03-2006 TOGLIATTI, Russia — Russian automaker Avtovaz, which is now controlled by Moscow, said it will build a new factory near its existing facility here on the Volga River and is reviewing its joint venture with General Motors. Known outside Russia for its clunky Fiat-based Ladas, the company has been in the process of updating its model range for more than a decade while struggling with chronic cash-flow problems. Avtovaz had a dream of cracking the U.S. market back in the 1970s but never got any closer than Canada. The automaker builds more than 700,000 cars a year and is far and away Russia's larg…

Kerkorian consultant Jerome York Jerome B. (Jerry) York Age: 67 Birthplace: Memphis, Tenn. Education: Bachelor's degree from the U.S. Military Academy, 1960; master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1961; MBA from the University of Michigan, 1966. Career: Chief executive officer of Harwinton Capital Corp., a private investment company he founded in 2000; chief executive officer of Micro Warehouse Inc., a reseller of computer products, 2000 to mid-2003; vice chairman of Tracinda Corp., billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian's private investment company, 1995 to 1999; senior vice president and chief financial officer of IBM Corp., 19…

Linkity What's difficult to understand is why Detroit's automakers lose billions of dollars making cars and trucks here, while competitors like Toyota, Honda, BMW and Mercedes, who build them here too, make a fortune at it. They're all building new plants or expanding production at the old ones while Detroit is shutting factories. General Motors, for example, reported a loss of $39 billion for last year, and my guess is that Toyota will have an operating profit approaching $20 billion for its March 31 fiscal year, with the North American operations the greatest contributor to that. Here's my explanation: Rebates. Detroit has to pay buyers t…

I thought about posting this article on the Ford forum but since GM is also mentioned prominently in the article I decided to post it in the GM forum. Much of the stuff said in the article I think we already know about http://money.cnn.com/2006/09/15/news/compa...rce=yahoo_quote Why Ford is in worse shape than GM General Motors' turnaround is now in motion, but don't count on Ford having made the same progress this time next year. By Alex Taylor III, Fortune senior editor September 15 2006: 10:10 AM EDT NEW YORK (Fortune) -- As he finishes his first full week as CEO of Ford, Alan Mulally may be wondering what he got himself into. The rumble of bad news never seem…

I have read part way though the new Book Why GM Matters. I must say in this age of misinformation and down right lies it is goods to see someone in the media have a fair look at GM. THe book cover where GM started, evolved under Sloan and failed to change as Sloans concpet of GM no longer worked. It explains and shows how GM was so large it failed to funtion sfficently when it needed to. It also addresses things on how some of the managment fail to understand how Toyota was working and how efficent they were in production when GM staffers visited with Toyota and brought back info that could have helped change their path. It also addressed how GM failed to focus on d…

Really, we need to ask this question -- why should GM obey the polticians' views and comply with CAFE standards? (1) GM and other car manufacturers should decide -- first and foremost -- what kind of cars they build by what the market demands. CAFE is not a ban, CAFE is a penalty law for not falling in line with the opinions of the political leadership. (2) What CAFE say is [if the average fuel economy of a manufacturer's annual fleet of car and/or truck production falls below the defined standard, the manufacturer must pay a penalty, currently $5.50 USD per 0.1 mpg under the standard, multiplied by the manufacturer's total production for the U.S. domestic market]. Th…

Normally I'm not a fan of John McElroy (Autoline Detroit), but his post on Autoblog sums it up nicely, IMO: http://www.autoblog.com/2009/03/30/autolin...h-john-mcelroy/ WHY OBAMA AXED WAGONER Rick Wagoner is no longer CEO of General Motors for two reasons. First, he failed to come up with a plan that satisfied the government that GM would be viable going forward. Two, President Obama needed political cover before he poured more money into the auto industry, a move which is strongly opposed by a majority of Americans. Obama needed to show he was decisive and in control to maintain support for his efforts to provide taxpayer money to GM and Chrysler. And firing the …

WI Couple Donates $1.3M to Corvette Museum A Wisconsin couple donated $1.3 million to the National Corvette Museum in south-central Kentucky, the largest gift in the museum’s history. The money, from Ivan and Mary Shrodt of Sherwood, Wis., will go toward a planned $14 million expansion, museum director Wendell Strode said. The project is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2009, Strode said. The Shrodts said they gave the money to the Bowling Green museum because they have no children and an affection for Corvettes. Detroit Free Press

[source: Wall Street Journal] Car Crazy Bankrupt companies making 39 mpg autos. Are we nuts? At the end of his Rose Garden explanation yesterday of the new U.S. fuel-efficiency standards, President Obama remarked on the good that can be accomplished when we are "working together." The President may be getting ahead of himself. Watching the unlikely coalition arrayed behind him as Mr. Obama committed the U.S. to an astonishing passenger-car mileage average of 39 miles per gallon by 2016, it looks truer to say we are merely standing together in this adventure, for better or worse. Mr. Obama's fleet-mileage partners yesterday incl…

Rick Wagoner pretty much hits the nail on the head, there’s nothing to gain and everything to lose if Delphi strikes next year. While no one can be happy with the 60% pay cut for Delphi workers (there must be a better salary/benefit combo) and “Steve” Miller comes off as a pretentious ass, only fueling the UAW anger, change in the unions pay and benefit packages are inevitable. A strike by workers would put Delphi down for the count and GM up against the ropes and not change much for the hourly workers. I am not as confident as Wagoner is in this Detroit News piece about Delphi workers not striking, he may be underestimating workers that will be dropped to near poverty…

Just thinking, all the good Malibu PR, and folks shopping for them, and not being able to get the car due to demand and low supply....will people learn that the Aura is almost the same car and maybe go get an Aura instead?

Please! It isn't even enough to save General Motors. By Alex Taylor III, senior editor (first paragraph) NEW YORK (Fortune) -- Given the prolonged drum roll of publicity that accompanied the unveiling of the Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle last week, it isn't surprising that any number of onlookers got caught up in the enthusiasm. When people begin referring to it as a "game changer" and a "paradigm shift," it's time to inject a bracing dose of reality... http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/22/news/compa...rce=yahoo_quote Volt is a lightning rod. I am definitely interested in acquiring one for myself when they are ready. I know that internally GM is attempting to price…

I only ask this question, if GM declares, only for the sole purposes of erasing their pensions debts and labor liabilities, will you ever buy a GM again? what do you think the general public will think? Will it hurt GM's long term sales to declare bankruptcy?

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/cgi-bin/artic...articleId=28180

WSJ - Saving Volvo and Saab One in every five cars sold in Sweden last year was a Volvo and Saab is the exclusive supplier to King Carl XVI Gustaf. So Sweden was never likely to abandon its two famous marques entirely to the mercies of parent companies Ford and General Motors. But while Thursday's promise of a 28 billion Swedish kronor ($3.44 billion) aid package offers Sweden's car-makers a lifeline, it may not be enough to ensure their long term survival. The Swedish car industry needs all the help it can get as the parent companies of Volvo and Saab look for a bailout. One in every five cars sold in Sweden last year was a Volvo. With the U.S. rescue plan for GM a…

Interesting to see that all those "GOD'S GIFT TO THE MODERN CAR" Toyota dealership began as Chevrolet dealers, thanks to the government doing their best to eliminate our industry. And to think... Those Japan Inc. guys are just ***SUCH** honest businessmen that their entire existance is founded on screwing over Detroit. REMEMBER: It's GM that buys off analysts and is a threat to our country, RIGHT?!?!?! BTW: I'm not sure how credible this source is, but it makes perfect sense to me. (i.e. Be prepared for an insider to deny all of this and call GM the devil while praising Toyota...yada, yada, yada, you know the Toyota Corporate PR spiel) Click the link

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124035637935940943.html Quote: So King Barck the Mild is finding as he tries to dictate the terms of what amounts to an out-of-court bankruptcy for Chrysler and GM. He wants Chrysler's secured lenders to give up their right to nearly full recovery in a bankruptcy in return for 15 cents on the dollar. They'd be crazy to do so, of course, except that these banks also happen to be beholden to the administration for TARP money. Wasn't TARP supposed to be about restoring a healthy banking system? Isn't that a tad inconsistent with banks just voluntarily relinquishing valuable claims on borrowers? Don't ask. Kingly prerogative also confli…

"Here's one of the most shocking numbers from GM's genuinely awful fourth-quarter financial report: 39% of the passenger cars GM sold in the U.S. during the quarter were sold to fleets, including rental-car agencies. When people say that GM makes too many cars that people don't want, this is what they are talking about."

Maybe Buickman is right about Rick Wagoner. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1212489913...hs&ru=yahoo