General Motors

valid question.

http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidate...E48N97V20080924

article i found on the wall street journal about what chevy, ford, and chrysler plan to do when the forcast is down... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1205932520...p_us_whats_news "Most auto makers have been forecasting industry sales of 15.5 million to 15.7 million cars and light trucks this year, down from nearly 17 million two years ago. But turmoil on Wall Street has raised concerns that vehicle sales could come in even lower. A new forecast by J.D. Power & Associates earlier this week put industry-wide sales of light-duty cars and trucks this year at 14.95 million, the lowest level since 1994." be sure to watch the video clip to for some "advice" on what th…

BY JUSTIN HYDE, DET. FREE PRESS WASHINGTON BUREAU Link- On table: Health care, trade Sought: Help, not a bailout WASHINGTON - The meeting should "enhance the president's understanding of the importance of the domestic auto industry to the economic health of the United States," General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said in a recent interview, emphasizing the word "domestic." Foreign automakers that build cars in the United States help the economy, "but it's not the same as a fully integrated American auto company that retains the intellectual property in the United States, has primarily American shareholders," he said, so "the wealth gets reinvested in the U.S." For…

Detroit's carmakers are raising discounts again to steer consumers back to showrooms after paring incentives in October and watching sales tumble. General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. added rebates of $500 to $1,000 on select 2005 and 2006 models. DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group added $1,000 cash rebates on most Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products earlier this week. The latest moves reflect a softening market after a blockbuster summer, as well as consumer concerns over higher gas prices and rising energy costs. "Don't count on much of a rebound for November or December," Merrill Lynch analyst John Casesa said in a report th…

http://www.cnn.com/2006/AUTOS/04/25/big_en...reut/index.html

There is going to be a news conference at 2:30 regarding the auto makers bailout.

By SHARON TERLEP and NEAL E. BOUDETTE The Wall Street Journal A few months ago, General Motors flooded the prime-time airwaves with commercials introducing the G8, a big, powerful sedan that is supposed to re-energize GM’s Pontiac brand. But the ad blitz hasn’t had much effect. In August, GM’s 2,712 U.S. Pontiac dealers sold only 1,915 G8s — not even one per dealer. GM has problems on many fronts, including high gasoline prices, falling truck sales and billions in losses. The G8 illustrates one problem that’s often overlooked: The automaker’s lineup contains many vehicles that deliver barely any bang for the buck. Consider the Saab 9-5 sedan. GM promotes its Swe…

HYUNDAI, HONDA

Sorry, no linky. This is in the paper edition of the Sun today and I couldn't find it online anywhere, but felt it was relevant to one of my main arguments, which is the amount of intellectual property that could be lost if GM or Ford went under "An excerpt on why the Big3 are worth saving by James E. Malackowski, an expert in intellectual property: 'General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are collectively one of the world's primary sources for the research and development of green and fuel-efficent technologies. As Washington decides on aid to the industry, top consideration should be given to the significant potential of these Big 3 technologies for stimulating econo…

CADILLAC TOP BRAND, GM HAS 11 CATEGORY WINNERS IN AUTOPACIFIC AWARDS .... Cadillac was named the top brand among all sold in the U.S., and eleven GM vehicles were the top in their categories in AutoPacific's 2008 Vehicle Satisfaction Awards (VSA). The awards were based on the results of AutoPacific's 2008 model year vehicle satisfaction research that measures how satisfied an owner is with their new passenger car or light truck. The brand with the highest satisfaction rating is Cadillac. The vehicle - car or truck - registering highest overall satisfaction in 2008 is the new Toyota Sequoia Large Sport Utility Vehicle. The passenger car with the highest overall satisfa…

I've seen reporters from Forbes, WSJ, CNN, etc. claim GM's situation is their own to blame, even my father said that Corperate america should have known that pensions, healthcare and other large benifits companies promised their workers were as unsustainable as the governments version, social security. The Unions has worked for the last century to provide the hard working laborers of america a decent wage, keeping the gap close between poor and wealthy. Within the last 20 years, globalism has taken a foot hold on America's ecconomy, and while bolstering the ecconomy of places like the Philipines, China, Japan, Korea, & etc. where workers are willing to work for mu…

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...&refer=home Nov. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Rick Wagoner's 31-year career may fall victim to the mistakes of the industry and his own, even if General Motors Corp. survives. The GM chief executive officer unleashed scrutiny of his record after 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 thi…

This made me smile. Without a doubt, the coolest business card I've ever seen, even if it doesn't mention GM. http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=110163

When Lutz talks, people seem to listen. So here's what he told a roundtable of journalists about the future of each of GM's brands. MICHAEL BETTENCOURT From Thursday's Globe and Mail January 22, 2009 at 12:00 AM EST DETROIT — Robert A. Lutz, GM's charismatic vice-chairman of product development, doesn't know the meaning of "no comment" — one of the reasons he's so popular with auto journalists, who are fed everything the companies want them to say about the positive aspects of their cars, but often get stonewalled when questions turn to less-flattering subjects. This is not the Lutz way: very few companies have as blunt a corporate leader willing to provide …

Bob Lutz Once Considered A Run For Michigan Governor William Maley - Editor/Reporter - CheersandGears.com July 7, 2011 Bob Lutz, GM's former Vice Chairman and demigod actually considered a run for Governor of Michigan. Talking with the Detroit Free Press, Lutz said he considered running in 2010 election for Governor of Michigan once he left GM. However, Lutz would pass on the idea. "The endless meetings and events around the state. And then he told me how much I would have to raise and how much I would personally have to spend on it. I said, No way," Lutz told the Detroit Free Press. It's understandable why Lutz decided not to run, but it would have be…

http://www.leftlanenews.com/bob-lutz-to-st...nd-of-2009.html

[source: Wall Street Journal] GM's Lutz to Oversee Opel To be Installed as Head of Opel GmbH Supervisory Board By JOHN STOLL And VANESSA FUHRMANS NOVEMBER 6, 2009, 12:44 P.M. ET General Motors Co.'s marketing chief, Robert A. Lutz, will be installed to head the Opel GmbH supervisory board as the auto maker looks to implement a new restructuring plan and find a new leader for the European after its board of directors decided earlier this week to retain control of it, according to two people familiar with the matter. Mr. Lutz's role isn't expected to be a direct management post as much as it is an oversight role. Th…

Nov. 17 (Bloomberg) -- The time may have arrived for General Motors Corp. to try a bold stroke to do something to reverse a slide that has some investors speculating not whether the world's No. 1 automaker will seek bankruptcy, but when. If GM does something out of character, that man behind it may be none other than Kirk Kerkorian, the octogenarian casino mogul and GM's biggest individual investor. Yesterday GM stock fell another 5.8 percent, bringing the decline since mid-September to a roughly 37 percent. The stock's slide reflects growing apprehension in equity and credit markets that GM is on its way to becoming the most iconic failure in American…

Starting Tuesday 8-29 through Labor Day, cars get $500, $1,000 on P/Us and Full Size Suvs, and $1,500 on Mid Size SUVs. GM just doesn't get it. They let the month slip away, then blast the market with overkill and meanwhile ruin the Holidays once again for those in retail. We'll go nuts for a few days and then return to the excitement of funeral procession. How will people feel who purchase this weekend only to discover they got screwed for want of a couple days. Once again I'll profess that until GM changes their marketing once and for all, the decades of decline will continue, Wagoner will continue to chop and cut, and GM will be extremely lucky to stay in business desp…

Arlington = C3XX full-size truck replacement beginning 2013. The Ham Bone = Global Delta MPV ('09), CHEVROLET VOLT 2010. Epsilon 2012. Fairfax = Buick 2009 (likely LaCrosse). Fort Wayne, Flint = C3XX. LGR = CTS Coupe & Wagon. Lordstown = Gamma and Alpha! Spring Hill = TE in 2011. ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY!

NEW CONTRACT BETWEEN BIG 3 AND UAW STUNS AUTOMOTIVE WORLD Innovative agreement cinched by Wal-Mart inclusion By BT Justice April 1, 2007 The winds of change blew like a hurricane though Detroit this morning. Just after midnight, a surprise announcement was made that a new three-year labor agreement had been hammered out between the United Auto Workers Union and the Big Three automakers. The new contract with General Motors, Ford Motor Company and Chrysler Group contains unprecedented elements, including an alliance with Wal-Mart that gives UAW members a 50 percent discount on all purchases at the giant retailer. The current contract expires September 14, so…

March 2007 sales figures for the United States: Hummer H1 = 15 units Pontiac Grand Am = 12 units Buick LeSabre = 11 units Maybach = 10 units Pontiac Sunfire = 5 units Pontiac Aztek = 2 units Chevy Astro = 2 units GMC Safari = 0 units (not kidding!)

Toronto Star David Olive Business Columnist As recently as 1980, when General Motors Corp. commanded about half of the North American market, it was unthinkable that the century-old company might someday face the prospect of bankruptcy. Yet it's the complacency that came with GM's sustained market dominance through most of the 20th century that accounts for the automaker's perilous condition today. Last Monday, the Wall Street Journal shook up the auto world with a front-page report on GM's woes, and the radical steps the firm is contemplating to ensure its survival. Little in the report was new. Wall Street long ago factored into GM's share price its litany o…

Eegads! Could Buick have picked a more overexposed, less interesting person to promote the new Lucerne? Shoot. They should've just bought more billboards with Tiger in the darn thing. http://www.mph-online.com/web/prtranslated/00271 Dave

Buick and Opel to Share Design Buick Could Get Opel Design: Latest Strategy is Fluid, like GM's Future By Todd Lassa "Just before the Detroit Three presented their loan guarantee/bailout proposals to Congress, Motor Trend learned that General Motors would shift Opel's design language from Saturn to Buick. Now we know why." I suppose this would indeed be why we are getting the new Buick Regal in the U.S. instead of a new Saturn Aura. At anyrate, for Saturn, why were the names changed to begin with? Why was the Aura a G6 in drag and not the genuine German Opel? Will the Regal be dumbed down compared to the German engineered car it appears to be identical to? This …

http://64.65.63.61/forums/showthread.php?t=467420

I have seen photoshop pics of the gnx, but i wonder if there is any substance to the idea!!!! I dont know if it will help the security of Buick but it is a kick a$$ idea!!!!!

Is this actually on the market yet? It's based on the Holden. Buick Royaum (China):

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060809/law079.html?.v=66

Less than a week after matching Lexus for the top spot in J.D. Power's Long-Term Dependability survey, Buick has finished #2 overall in the University of Michigan's Consumer Satisfaction Index rankings. With 86 points, Buick finished 1 point below Lexus, and four points above the industry average. Cadillac, too, scored 86 points. Link: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artic.../708140387/1148 Quotes: "Detroit is finally clawing its way out of the bottom," said study author Claes Fornell, director of the National Quality Research Center at U-M's Ross School of Business. Several brands owned by Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. sharply improved their ranking…

http://www.businessweek.com/autos/carswelove/ Lots of GM cars in the survey. See how your favorite rates.

After weeks of listening to analysts and pundits beat the drum about the possibility of a General Motors Corp. bankruptcy, Chairman and Chief Executive G. Richard Wagoner Jr. decided he had heard enough. On Nov. 16 he declared in an internal memo to his 325,000 employees that bankruptcy is "unnecessary." There is no plan to file for Chapter 11 protection, Wagoner said flatly, calling such an action "contrary to the interests of our employees, stock- and bondholders, dealers, and our suppliers and customers." In other words, Wagoner was calling bankruptcy unthinkable. And for a long time, that's exactly the way it seemed. GM has $34 billion…

Would scare tactics work for GM in marketing...? If GM had a commerical that really depicted the premium reasons to purchase an american vehicle. If they, in a comercial, analized the affects of a detriotless america... could they score peoples purchasing? Could they really hit people by saying, "In efforts to compete, with the competition, we had to lay off 30,000 americans." "Toyota says they want to help General Motors by raising their profits and making themselves less competive." "if the next vehicle you purchase isnt a General Motors vehicle, your tax dollars will goto the person that built it anyway. Because you purchased a Camry, you…

Sources within General Motors have signaled that the GM Board of Directors today, met in an emergency meeting after the additional $2 Billion loss announced yesterday is in addition to the $8.6 Billion loss previously announced. We've also received word that the Board of Directors will hold another emergency meeting early next week. The Board is clearly not happy with the latest turn of events and this latest news of an additional $2 Billion loss. Most of the costs are seen coming from a Delphi bail-out which is expected to be announced early next week as well. As always, we'll have more details as we get them.

Forget Beta, Here's Zeta! Yesterday, C&G brought you the very first spy shots of the Holden Commodore from Australia. That spy shot featured a front 3/4 view of the RWD architecture and also left a few readers in doubt that this was infact the Zeta architecture due to the massive padding and "roof rails" that were so blatantly obvious on these testers. As you can tell in the spy pic down below the RWD Holden Commodore will draw heavily from the Holden Torana concept shown just last year in Australia. The Torana wowed crowds with its athletic stance and it's aggressive styling prompting enthusiasts to beg "When will Beta be made?!" Holden has obviously styl…

Check out our 2nd spy pic. The REAR of Zeta featuring MASSIVE quad exhaust pipes and Holden Torana like styling! http://www.cheersandgears.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=659 To build on the excitement of General Motors worldwide products C&G has obtained the rights to publish this image of the 2007 Holden Commodore. What's so special about this vehicle? It is based upon the hottest of hot architectures General Motors currently has to offer. No, I'm not talking about in terms of sales, but rather speculation and rumors that have spread rampant around the 'net since C&G first broke the story some three years ago on the old boards of Zeta. There have been…

well yesterday, the C6R should have started the LeMans race... when someone finds the result please post it here...

Cadillac BRX Crossover: Cadillac, Saab Crossovers Coming in 2008 Date Posted 11-21-2005 DETROIT — The Cadillac BRX and the Saab 9-4X, as suppliers are calling the new vehicles, are expected to go into production in mid-to-late 2008. GM has indicated that it wants to assemble the vehicles at its Ramos Arizpe plant in Mexico. A third model, which may go to Buick, could join the Cadillac and Saab in production for model-year 2009. The 9-4X would be Saab's first crossover vehicle. It would fill the void left by the stillbirth of the 9-6X — Saab's proposed derivative of the Subaru B9 Tribeca. The 9-6X was scrapped at the eleventh hour when GM elected to sell its s…

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081015/gm_hummer.html?.v=1 Interesting move, naming a CEO for Hummer.

General Motors is including an iPad with the 2013 models of the Cadillac XTS, in the hopes of acclimating owners with the luxury vehicle's CUE infotainment system and other features. The company hopes that customers will find the interactive experience helpful in getting the most out of their vehicles. Cadillac's head of customer experience, Mark Harland, told Wired Magazine that Cadillac wants "to be the leader in customer experience." The luxury carmaker is rolling out online and dealership-based initiatives to help owners with their new gadgets. "We need to think about helping [owners] with the learning curve. Even if you get a walk-through at the d…

Lustful Leanings autoweek

Linkity Cadillac World Thorium Fuel Car Concept Here's another one from the world of unlimited conceptual design: the Cadillac World Thorium Fuel concept. Otherwise known as the Cadillac WTF. Created by Loren Kulesus, everything about the WTF has been created to last 100 years without maintenance. That's the reason for the element number ninety, thorium: to act as a nuclear fuel powering batteries that would power the car. Elsewhere, every major system is redundant in case of a failure. And the wheels don't have individual tires - in fact, what's located at each corner is one combined unit made up of six individual wheels. That gives you 24 wheels in to…

Cadillac, Chevrolet, HUMMER and Saab Brands Continue Global Growth <GM.N>DETROIT, Oct. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- General Motors reported calendar year-to-date sales (January - September) of 7,066,774 vehicles around the world -- a 3.7 percent increase over 2004, led by significant gains in sales for its three luxury and premium brands Cadillac (up 9.6 percent), HUMMER (up 84.1percent) and Saab (up 1.4 percent), as well as its foundation brand, Chevrolet (up 7.3 percent). Integrating GM's product development and marketing operations on a global scale is helping to further strengthen its brands. These efforts complement the global manufacturing of vehicles in the Ch…

Link So because US automakers make better large vehicles and therefore sell more they get penalized more? Was CAFE dreamed up by politicians that don't understand math? Seems like required mileage ratings should depend on the class of vehicle. I'm not opposed to gas mileage requirements but it's really not going to force construction companies to trade their 1-ton work truck for a Honda Civic. Trucks are still needed, and this penalizes companies who make good ones and therefore sell more. This is going to hurt US industry more in the process. Did I miss something?

Linkity At Witz' End: CAFE, the 0.2% Solution Why attack just five percent of it? by Gary Witzenburg http://www.thecarconnection.com/contact/in...p?AuthorID=3016 (2007-11-05) And consider that the U.S. vehicle fleet, currently about 250 million cars and trucks, is growing at the rate of six million a year. Even if those new ones get incrementally more fuel-efficient, their per-vehicle improvements will be overwhelmed by that explosive growth.Given that scenario, the demand for good used vehicles would skyrocket, and what may remain of the auto industry will have to survive on parts and service to keep them running. Is that far-fetched? Reso…

http://www.thecarconnection.com/Auto_News/...173.A11964.html Lutz: Camaro Gear Could Spawn Big Caddy A Cadillac with more than eight cylinders still possible, Lutz says. by Joseph Szczesny (2007-02-25) Could the same rear-wheel-drive platform General Motors Corp. plans to use for the new Chevrolet Camaro also be used for a new rear-wheel-drive and/or all-wheel-drive ultra-luxury Cadillac? GM vice chairman and product guru Robert Lutz recently acknowledged it was a possibility during a conversation with journalists earlier this month at theChicago auto show. Lutz noted that as part of global product strategy, GM would have fewer but more flexible platforms tha…

http://autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?...E/60116001/1041 DETROIT - For General Motors Vice Chairman Robert Lutz, the Chevrolet Camaro concept car tops the list of possible vehicles in the automaker's lineup of mid-priced to premium-priced, rear-drive cars for North America. GM will select vehicles for the program within six months. Production will begin in 2008 or 2009

EDWARD LAPHAM COMMENTARY 8/23/05: Can a U.S.-built car be the next great Euro roadster? By Edward Lapham Automotive News / August 23, 2005 General Motors execs expect big results from the low-volume Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky roadsters, which will be image-building halo vehicles for their brands. Initial Solstice sales make it popular, but production is being ramped up slowly, so Pontiac dealers are clamoring for more cars. Some Pontiac dealers are grumbling that GM shouldn't give Saturn dealers a version, even though it goes into production this year. What's less certain is how Europeans will accept the Opel roadster that is expected for 2007.…

Can General Motors come back? By Jim Jubak - Link to original article Jubak's Journal 7/18/2008 12:01 AM ET The future for automakers is so murky that even deeply wounded GM could enter the next decade in control. But the company will have to keep a close eye on its cash. The auto industry is in chaos -- fortunately for General Motors. Gasoline above $4 a gallon in the U.S. has sent sales of trucks and SUVs plunging as drivers look for more mileage for their dollars. Higher steel prices have savaged profit margins. New competitors from India and China are about to emerge in the global market. And nobody knows what the future will bring -- electric cars, …

Can GM make hip happen? From YouTube to Jay-Z to student stunts, the automaker works the cool factor. Sharon Terlep / The Detroit News Link to Original Article @ DetNews General Motors Corp. wants a hip replacement. So the automaker infiltrated YouTube and put pop star Gwen Stefani in an SUV. It let rapper Jay-Z create a paint color and got a bunch of college students to live for a week inside a compact car. It's all part of a campaign dreamed up by the marketing minds at GM to create an aura of cool around the vehicle lineup they're working to reinvent. But can a mega-company `like GM -- built on mass appeal and known more for trend-following than trend-setting …

Can Jerry York Save GM? Ace cost-cutter ratchets up pressure for major changes Bill Vlasic / The Detroit News DETROIT -- In the 1980s, it was a feisty Texan named Ross Perot who rattled the board of General Motors Corp. by calling his fellow directors "pet rocks" in the pocket of management. A decade later, retired Procter & Gamble Co. Chairman John Smale led a board-room coup that toppled a GM chairman and set a new standard for corporate governance. But no outsider ever joined the GM board with the expectations attached to Jerry York. The appointment to the board last week of York, the ace cost-cutter employed by billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian, is a pivot…

FORTUNE Tuesday, September 6, 2005 By Alex Taylor III "Are we serious about a coupe and convertible?" demands the chairman of General Motors as he reviews proposed Cadillac body styles. "Or are we just going to talk about it for five years?" The mood at the 7 a.m. Friday product meeting at GM’s Design Center, north of Detroit, tenses up a few notches, which is just what Rick Wagoner intends. Everyone here knows that the company is in trouble. But as Wagoner studies the projected images of cars and trucks in development, he wants to be sure his team understands that each arm of GM has to get faster, smarter, sharper—now. Wagoner zeroes in on a …

SOMERSET, Pa. – The head of the nation's largest automaker took perhaps the most important car ride of his life Wednesday, traveling 500 miles, mostly over highway through four states, to Washington, D.C., where he will ask Congress for a second time to save his slumping company. Two weeks ago Rick Wagoner flew to Washington on a corporate jet. This time the chief executive of General Motors Corp. made the trip in one of his company's black hybrid Chevrolet Malibu, driving part of the way. He periodically made calls on his cell phone while in the passenger seat and wore sunglasses to protect from the glare of a sunny day. Wagoner will be back in the spotlight Thursday…

TORONTO (CP) - The highly regarded factories of General Motors of Canada are in danger of losing their long-standing labour cost advantage over GM's American operations, an executive of the world's largest automaker said Monday. GM Canada's new three-year agreement with the Canadian Auto Workers, ratified by union members during the weekend, "drove some cost where we'd rather it hadn't," said Al Green, vice-president for personnel of GM Canada. GM won non-wage "offsets" - notably a reduction of health-care costs - to the contract's annual pay increases of 1.5, one and one per cent, plus inflation protection, for its 19,000…

Continued at link. CBC -- Car Sales Hit 4-year high in April Also.... Continued at link. GM Canada April Sales Results

http://www6.autonet.ca/News/story.cfm?stor...4598633-ap.html

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/11471...nout-kings.html Cadillac XLR-V Under all those aggressive, creased body lines is a Corvette chassis married to a supercharged and intercooled 4.4-liter Northstar V-8 producing 443 horsepower to motivate the quickest Cadillac ever. That huge number connects with not-particularly-wide 255mm rear tires, making for rubber hazed more readily than a fat boy in boot camp. We suggest you torch the tires with the hardtop down. Chevrolet Corvette With the wimpiest example making 400 horsepower, any Corvette has little trouble incinerating the inevitable Goodyears strapped to the back. Coupe, convertible, automatic, standard, Z06, b…

I just started readng Bob Lutz's new Book Car Guys vs Bean Counters. This is one of the best books to show the modern workings or should I say non workings of GM in the last 20 year. Bob give a little past history and also addesses some of what got GM to where they are at today. He details his time there and what he found when he arrived. It goes on with the business think and how they over think many simple common sense things. I have not gotten all the way through yet but Bob is very candid and many GM people still with GM contributed to the book. I think this is his way to try to make sure things don't go back to what they once were again. In other words it may be d…

My floor jack won’t get high enough to lift my wife’s Tahoe. I was going to use a block of wood but then I found these jack extenders in a google search. Looks like a great idea. Anybody tried these? http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/champ-floor-jack-height-extenders-p-11539.aspx

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/01/business...fUvdvtEuVokkYBQ April 1, 2006 Car Parts Maker Moves to Break Its Union Deals By MICHELINE MAYNARD DETROIT, March 31 — Delphi, the nation's biggest auto parts maker, on Friday asked a federal judge for permission to throw out some of its labor agreements, a move that could cost 20,000 union workers their jobs and leave thousands of others with less than half their current wages. Delphi, which is operating in bankruptcy, wants the judge's permission to impose sharply lower wages and benefits on six unions, setting up a confrontation that its largest union, the United Automobile Workers, said could lead to a lengthy strike.…

I got some bonus coupons in the mail this week, so I thought that I would take some time and investigate what the General had to offer as a suitable replacement for my '00 Astro LT AWD vehicle, since they have stopped making Astro's. Mind you, there is nothing wrong with mine now except 92,000 miles, but it is lacking in some state-of-the-art features that we would like to have. I spent time in depth at 3 dealerships. Looked at the HHR, Uplander, Equinox, Trailblazer, an Envoy XUV, and a PT Cruiser. My first, general overall impression ---- the General has forgotten that vehicles are primarily supposed to be people-movers and cargo-haulers, not rolling juke-box …

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/autos/...duct/index.html

Why It Is Time for Rick Wagoner to Go Peter Morici University of Maryland Last week we learned that mistakes in GM accounting raised its 2005 losses above $10 billion. That is well over $5000 per vehicle. With Toyota earning money on its cars, GM’s disadvantage vis-à-vis Toyota must be in the range of $7000 per vehicle. Quite simply, GM has higher costs than Toyota, and Toyota can fetch higher prices for its durable vehicles than Rick Wagoner can command for his more trouble ridden contraptions. On the cost side, all the propaganda Rick Wagoner has been flinging about, just like the company accounts, does not add up. Repeatedly, GM officials have pointed to health…

June 26, 2008 - 3:30 pm ET TORONTO (Reuters) -- Canadian autoworkers acknowledged that General Motors' decision to close a Oshawa, Ontario, truck plant next year was irrevocable, a union leader said on Thursday after a meeting with company officials. "Are we accepting it? Eventually, if someone keeps hitting you over the head with a sledgehammer, you're going to wake up," said Buzz Hargrove, president of the Canadian Auto Workers, said at the union's headquarters. Hargrove said GM told the union it may decide to build a new model in its Oshawa car plant, where the new Chevrolet Camaro muscle car is set to begin production, but he added the situation looked bleak. …

CAW Approves Camaro Changes Plant rules will enable Canadian factories to build Zetas, including Camaro. Members of Canadian Auto Workers Local 222 in Oshawa, Ont., have approved a series of work rule changes that could lead to General Motors announcing soon that it plans to move ahead with plans to build a new Chevrolet Camaro. The Camaro was one of the big favorites of journalists and car buffs at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January. GM's executives have promised they will decide quickly if they will turn the concept Camaro into a production car before end of the decade. With the feasibility study still in the works, GM negotiators rece…

Hargrove: Up to 100,000 Canadian workers could be idled by UAW strike 1 minute ago | Link to Original Article @ The Canadian Press TORONTO - Tens of thousands of workers at General Motors of Canada and in the Canadian auto parts industry are being immediately hit by the impact of the strike against GM in the United States, Canadian Auto Workers president Buzz Hargrove said Monday. "It's not inconceivable that by the end of this week we could have anywhere between 80,000 and 100,000 people unemployed - mostly in Ontario, some in Quebec - as a result of the dispute," Hargrove said. The walkout by 73,000 United Auto Workers members, with the UAW saying talks were hung u…

Rick Kranz Automotive News January 25, 2008 - 3:29 pm ET DETROIT -- The Canadian Auto Workers union local representing employees at General Motors' Oshawa, Ontario, assembly plant is threatening to strike this fall unless the automaker confirms additional products and jobs. CAW Local 222 warned GM on Thursday that the automaker is not living up to promises made in 2006 to build other models there besides the Chevrolet Camaro, the Toronto Star reported earlier today. The CAW's contract with GM expires Sept. 17. Camaro production begins in February 2009. Besides that car, the plant had been expected to assemble other new rear-wheel-drive models. The plant currentl…

http://www.businessinsider.com/2008/8/gene...pports-him-why-

Chrysler-Nissan talks halt No more discussions scheduled after Cerberus acknowledges preference for a sale of Chrysler to GM deal ,sources say. Talks between the Renault-Nissan alliance and Cerberus Capital Management LP have stopped as both sides acknowledged Cerberus's preference to conclude a deal for Chrysler LLC with General Motors Corporation; according to sources familiar with the situation. No more talks between Cerberus and Renault-Nissan negotiators have been scheduled, the sources said Friday , although the parties have not been ruled out discussions in the future Cerberus and Nissan declined to comment. But sources close to Cerberus have said …

America's Best- Selling Full-Sized SUV To Start At $33,990 DETROIT – Chevrolet today announced the all-new Tahoe will be priced at $33,990 for the LS model equipped with a standard 5.3L engine. This new vehicle is priced approximately $2,000 below its predecessor. The 2007 Tahoe goes on sale at Chevrolet dealers across the country today. “Tahoe has been the best-selling full-sized SUV since 2001. The 2007 model is the best Tahoe yet, and we are bringing it to the marketplace at a great value,” said Ed Peper, Chevrolet general manager. “This is very consistent with our recent pricing of other launch vehicles, making America's number one brand, Chevrolet, also America…

So cruzing through the media.gm.com web site, I saw this update on the Chevy AppShop story which shows that GM has now signed Apple and Google to make the connection so that GM auto's will have a touch screen and you can choose to have the Apple Interface with Apple App Store or an Andriod Interface with Google Play store for your in Auto Touch screen Navigation with constant updates and apps. I am very excited still and while sad that it has been delayed from this fall to next year, I think this will be a superior way for GM to go as the existing DVD nav system get outdated to fast. http://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2014…

Canadian Driver December 23, 2005 Mismatched couple win 2006 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx Montreal, Quebec – Six foot six inch (198 cm) Justin Boudrias and four foot four inch (131.5 cm) Jung Song of Montreal received the keys to a 2006 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx after winning the ‘Malibu Maxx Long and Short of It Contest', which sought out the Canadian driving twosome with the greatest height differential. "When it comes to people who share a vehicle, a height differential shouldn't mean discomfort in the vehicle compartment," said Janice Dickey of GM Canada. "The Chevrolet Malibu Maxx is a car designed for those who are truly tall or small, and Mr. Bo…

Chevrolet Returns to NYC as Timekeeper of Times Square DETROIT – Chevrolet will return to New York City with a permanent presence in Times Square. Representing Chevy’s first long-standing presence in Times Square since the 1950s, Chevrolet is installing an iconic clock on the One Times Square building, just below the “Ball Lowering” location on New Year’s Eve that will mark the time in the “crossroads of the world.” The timepiece will alternate between a series of animated clock faces…a signal of things to come. “ Times Square, like Chevrolet, holds an iconic place in American popular culture,” said Ed Peper, Chevrolet general manager. “It’s a global town square where…

http://www.motorauthority.com/wp-content/u...V_R8_main01.jpg Australia’s Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) is the successful performance arm of GM-Holden and has been modifying and building its own cars for the past 20 years. GM officials now hope to copy that success in other markets where Holden products are sold and the first of these will be the Middle Eastern market where an E-series HSV Commodore was recently spotted. In the Middle East the cars are sold as Chevrolets hence the name Chevrolet Special Vehicles (CSV). The guys over at DriveArabia managed to get their hands on a list of 2008 models from General Motors Middle East, and one of the cars mentioned was a “CSV…

This might be pretty hot...cars and a Hip-Hop group that are worthy...

GM Canada Partnership Key as Chevrolet Prepares to Launch the World's Largest Fuel Cell Vehicle Fleet OSHAWA, ON - There was a special Canadian connection today when General Motors Corp. committed to building the world's largest fuel cell vehicle fleet during the Company's reveal of its next generation fuel cell vehicle - the Chevrolet Equinox Fuel Cell. "General Motors is demonstrating its commitment to hydrogen fuel cells as the answer for taking the automobile out of the environmental debate and reducing our dependence on petroleum," said Arturo Elias, President, GM Canada. "We are especially proud that through partnerships with the Federal and Ontario governments,…