GM
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The future of General Motors’ European division Opel will soon be a lot clearer as a buyer for the brand is expected to be announced within the next week. Up until now, one of the leading bidders for the brand was Fiat but today it has been revealed that the Italian auto giant has walked away from negotiations due to the “extravagant risks” such a deal would pose to it. At the same time, rival bidder Magna International has also voiced reservations about the bidding process. Fiat skipped talks in Germany today where it was meant to meet with GM and the local government. The...
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GM engineer drops Corvette ZR1 supercharged LS9 into '69 Chevrolet CamaroFor many auto enthusiasts, the golden age of automotive styling was during 1960s, when designers had virtual free reign on their designs and didn't have to worry about aerodynamics, pedestrian crumple zones and other such ‘nuisances’. At the same time, the ‘60s could hardly be...
Ralph Hanson -
Bob Lutz: GM won't abandon sports cars, pickups and SUVsGeneral Motors' vice-chairman Bob Lutz has revealed what the future holds for the struggling carmaker, reassuring the press that despite an impending bankruptcy the firm will emerge as a "powerhouse" in the auto industry and that it will still produce the types of vehicles that are largely blamed...
James Martinez -
GM bondholders agree to take 25% of new company, U.S. Treasury gets 72.5% ownershipAs General Motors prepares for a bankruptcy announcement on June 1, the U.S. Treasury is helping to pave the way by releasing a new deal that leaves GM's bondholders with 25% of the restructured company, and the government as a 72.5% 'inactive' stakeholder. Winning the support of the bondholders...
Nelson Ireson -
Telesto Ventures forms new advisory team as bidding for Saturn intensifiesWe’ve heard a lot about Roger Penske and his plans to acquire the Saturn brand from General Motors and use it to start selling vehicles sourced from carmakers overseas. Last week Penske announced that his company hired ex-Chrysler president Tom LaSorda to advise on the bidding process, and...
James Martinez -
Cadillac SRX goes on sale this summer, priced from $34,155Cadillac’s North American model lineup is about to expand with the addition of two exciting new models: the 2010 model year SRX crossover and CTS Sport Wagon. The first model to go on sale will be the SRX, which Cadillac has confirmed today will be priced from $34,155 when it arrives in...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
In a hugely positive step for General Motors, the carmaker, together with the U.S. Treasury and United Auto Workers (UAW), reached a tentative bargain on how they'll deal with changes to the current agreement in the face of the industry's problems and GM's increasingly probably bankruptcy. The details of the deal are being kept quiet until local unions ratify it later this week but a new report claims the outcome will see GM swap some equity with the UAW for its debts. The Wall Street Journal reported today that the UAW's trust fund for retiree health care would get a 17.5% stake in a...
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March 2011 launch for Chevrolet Camaro ConvertibleFollowing a lrecent report that GM’s plans for a high-performance Camaro Z28 had been canceled and the Camaro Convertible was on hold, comes a little good news but also some bad. The good news is that the Convertible is back on track for a March 2011 launch, while the bad news – you...
Ralph Hanson -
GM receives additional $4 billion in Treasury loansGeneral Motors received an additional $4 billion in loans from the U.S. Treasury late on Friday, while also reaching a cost-cutting agreement with the Canadian Auto Workers union ahead of a rumored Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing expected next week. This is in addition to the $19.4 billion already...
Ralph Hanson -
German governor says Magna is best choice for OpelThe contents of the bids for purchase of Opel submitted by Fiat, Magna and Ripplewood Holdings on Wednesday - and BAIC on Thursday - haven't yet been disclosed, but today the governor of the German state where Opel is headquartered said he thinks Magna's plan is the best for Opel. Though Hesse...
Alex Kaufmann -
U.S. Treasury invests $7.5 billion in GMACAs the economy and car market continue to stagnate, it's becoming increasingly obvious that the bailout funds already paid to industry players like General Motors, Chrysler, and their financing arm GMAC, were just the tip of the iceberg. Today the Obama administration proved that point by handing...
Ralph Hanson -
Report: Mitsubishi could become new Saturn supplierWith confirmation Saturn is up for sale coming from General Motors earlier this month, a number of potential investors and buyers have come out of the woodwork recently and confirmed interest in the struggling brand. Two main groups include investment firm Telesto Ventures and Roger Penske’s...
James Martinez -
As General Motors peers over the brink of the abyss into a future that very likely holds a bankruptcy, the hits just keep coming. Today industry forecasters revealed that Toyota will pass GM in U.S. market share by 2010 at current rates, while Ford will push past the General in North American production by the end of 2009. The double whammy means GM will have to struggle even harder not just to recover what it's lost but to maintain what it has. As things sit, IHS Global Insight puts GM's U.S. market share at 19.2%, down 2.7%, while Toyota's is down just 0.3% to 16.1%, according to an...
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Holden engineering lighter and more fuel-efficient RWD Zeta platformGeneral Motors’ RWD Zeta platform was pioneered in Australia for the locally built Holden Commodore sedan but right from the start Detroit had global intentions for the design. Today, Zeta running gear can be found in models sold in China, South Korea, the UK, and in North America, but GM has...
Jeremy Weber -
Report: GM planning ‘Bumblebee’ Camaro to coincide with Transformers 2 movie launchWith the sequel to last year’s Transformers hit – Revenge of the Fallen - set to open across cinemas in the U.S. on June 24, Chevrolet is reportedly planning to start production of a new special edition Camaro based on the ‘Bumblebee’ version that very same day. Expected to...
James Martinez -
GM ties with Saab will remain in future modelsThe future of Saab is starting to look much brighter, thanks in part to important concessions from General Motors to help it build and design its own range of cars in the future, as well as a likely extension from Swedish courts for its restructuring deadline. For a while it looked as though Saab...
Alex Kaufmann -
Cadillac tops brand satisfaction survey for the second year runningIn today's competitive market building reliable cars that customers are satisfied with is the key to improving sales and maintaining market share. A number of companies conduct vehicle satisfaction surveys to offer consumers a comparison between brands and specific models, and one of the most...
Jeremy Weber -
Report: Magna considers using Opel to build cars for other brandsBidding for General Motors’ Opel division has intensified recently, with the German government revealing late last week that only two parties remain in the bidding war – Fiat and Magna International (together with Russia’s GAZ Group). While it’s been speculated that Fiat is...
Jeremy Weber -
Less than 24 hours after GM CEO Fritz Henderson announced that a new buyer for Opel would be picked by the end of this month, Russia’s GAZ Group has confirmed that it would be interested in creating a joint venture with Magna International and Opel. Magna, as previously reported, is competing with Fiat for GM’s European operations but is only seeking a minority share of about 20%. Unlike Fiat and Magna, however, GAZ has substantial debts so its role in any takeover of Opel would be limited. In an official statement, GAZ said it would be responsible for manufacturing Opel passenger...
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GM's OnStar will automatically give 911 services your location in emergency situationGeneral Motors' OnStar in-car information service can already automatically slow down a stolen vehicle, as well as monitor traffic situations in real time. Now, GM has upgraded the functionality of OnStar to electronically transmit a vehicle’s precise longitude and latitude co-ordinates...
James Martinez -
Preview: Opel Insignia 'GTC' CoupeWe’ve already seen Opel expand its Insignia lineup with the Hatchback and Sports Tourer, as well as the more recent OPC performance variant, but there’s one more model in the works that’s destined to be the most exciting and extreme. The model in question is a new coupe variant...
Ralph Hanson -
Chrysler resale values down 6% in a week as uncertainty rules the dayIt's simple math: carmaker plus bankruptcy equals uncertainty and lower resale values. But Chrysler owners are feeling the bite of that equation as the value of their vehicles dropped 6% on average in a single week. In the week after Chrysler filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, owners of...
Ralph Hanson -
As GM rebuilds itself, it will build more cars overseasIt's an old story, one that's been told with increasing regularity since the end of World War II. Jobs are moving overseas. Today, it's General Motors that will be shifting more of its production elsewhere as part of its restructuring plan. Lower wages, lower production costs, cheaper plant...
Ralph Hanson -
Cadillac STS-V and Pontiac G6 GXP absent from 2010 GM lineupGeneral Motors is trimming its model lineup to get rid of its underperforming sport models across all its brands. Just yesterday, it was revealed that Chevrolet will no longer offer the Impala SS variant for 2010, nor will it offer the 2010 Cobalt SS sedan. Following in the footsteps of these two...
James Martinez