Scoopful of GM news – April 22, 2009: GM shocks Ford, Loan default & hedging a big bet, Chevy Mystery, Buick Business, Dominator in China, How to Rescue?, Lobbying while dying, etc
(Source: AutoBlog, New York Times, Jalopnik)
REPORT: Bill Ford, Jr. “shocked” at Wagoner’s ousting…Some say GM taking government loans (as opposed to private sector loans) changed the rules, and the government needed to protect its investment; others say it was government interference. Regardless, the way things are going, we would be surprised if that were the last “shocking” development in the car industry saga.[Source: The Detroit Free Pre…
…GM, Earnings/FinancialsThe familiar expression goes “Better the devil you know,” meaning it’s preferable to deal with the nasty things you don’t like but are at least familiar with. General Motors, however, doesn’t seem to think so. The troubled automaker appears more ready to take its chances with bankruptcy than continue to fight the weight of…
…GM has not answered to the confusion yet, but the leading theory is they were place on the caliper as a quick and dirty fix to alleviate brake squeal. From a physics perspective, this explanation is plausible, as resonant frequency is in large part determined by mass, and by changing the vibrating mass of the caliper with the weights, a troubles…
…GM took the wraps off of the Buick Business MPV concept in Shanghai. The hybrid concept vehicle fits into the class of executive transport vehicles in China, hence the Business name. GM partnered with the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC) on the vehicle, which uses li-ion batteries and an improved electric motor to get fuel economy th…
… Ford may be standing taller than General Motors in Detroit these days — flush with cash while its rival is forced to go repeatedly to Washington, hat in hand, seeking government bailouts. But in China the tables are turned.G.M. is a powerful presence here with 8 to 10 percent of the market for cars, minivans and sport utility vehicles, making it the second-largest automaker in China for such vehicles, passed only by Volkswagen. One of G.M.’s local joint ventures, Wuling, dominates the sale of bare-bones pickups and vans, hugely popular in rural areas, with nearly half the market…
General Motors Corp., contending with a 49 percent decline in US sales this year, will idle 15 North American assembly …
How U.S. Will Save GM and Chrysler
… My guess is that when it’s all over, both companies will have been run through a quickie bankruptcy process and will emerge smaller, with less debt, a lower cost structure and Uncle Sam as the majority owner….
