GM to Take on Nano

Some blue ocean thinking from General Motors? Or a quick way to make a quick buck?

So GM has finally declared bankruptcy and, with the help of the US government, is aiming to rebuild. While they are restructuring their brands, GM is also looking into increasing its hold on the non-US market that makes up two-thirds of its sales last year.

Their plan – to tap into emerging markets by focusing on low-budget cars. And that means taking on the “people’s car” – the Tata Nano. The Nano has been making a killing since being released in India. With its $2,500 price tag, it’s also bound to make a killing in other markets in emerging economies as well.

GM wants a big piece of that market. However, GM isn’t intent on matching the Nano on pricing but it will be developing cars based on different emission standards and specifications that are oftentimes different from markets in the first world.

Given the status of the world’s economy, it’s most likely that GM penetrates the Asian market. With cheap plastic Chinese cars also flooding the market, a low-priced quality car with an American badge would be a welcome addition to the market.

Source: Automotive News (subscription required)

Ed Whitacre Takes Over as GM Chairman

Edward E. Whitacre, Jr. has been called upon to be one of the leaders of General Motors at a critical time of the company’s existence. Whitacre was named the new GM chairman, replacing interim chairman Kent Kresa.

A herculean task looms in front of Whitacre as he will be trying to turn around a struggling company. Still, the former AT&T chairman is excited about the new post. “I am honored to be able to serve GM at this critical juncture and take part in its reinvention, said Whitacre.

“The appointment of Ed Whitacre as chairman represents a very auspicious beginning for the New GM Kresa stated. He added that he is looking forward to the reinvention of GM and maximize the enormous potential of this new enterprise� under Whitacre.

At least Whitacre won’t be here while GM is embroiled in the brunt of its bankruptcy. Whitacre isn’t scheduled to take the position until GM emerges from bankruptcy proceedings. Whitacre will have a pivotal role in the New GM company, along with Fritz Henderson and other board members.

GM Planning New Small Car

General Motors revealed plans to build a new small car model at an as-of-yet unnamed idle plant in the United States. The new model should complement a formidable small-car lineup bannered by the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze and the 2011 Volt.

GM President and CEO Fritz Henderson once again confirmed GM’s plans to focus on smaller cars in the announcement. “Small cars represent one of the fastest growing segments in both the U.S. and around the world. We believe this car will be a winner with our current and future customers in the U.S.

“This vehicle segment, while important today and expected to be more so in the future, is extremely challenging. It takes a special effort by everyone to bring a domestically produced small car to market in a cost-competitive and profitable way – but that is what we are going to do together [with the UAW].”

With the Volt and Cruze already in tow, we could be looking at a new Spark model or something rebadged from the Opel and Saturn brands. It’s hard to guess at the moment as GM is expected to file for bankruptcy by June 1 and will be deep in brand reshuffling.

GM to Cut 4 More Models

General Motors will be canning four more vehicle models, according to an announcement released by the struggling US car manufacturer. The latest models to be canned are the Cadillac STS-V, Chevrolet Cobalt SS sedan, Chevrolet Impala SS, and the Pontiac G6 GXP coupe.

The GXP coupe has already been a candidate for getting the axe even before GM decided to discontinue the Pontiac brand. The Chevrolet models will be cut because of low demand. “Demand was pretty light for both models,” said Terry Rhadigan, a spokesman for Chevrolet. “And so it was a business decision that we made based on the demand.”

This was also the case for the Cadillac STS-V high-performing executive car, but was compounded by the strong sales of the CTS-V performance sedan. It was a no-brainer: there were more CTS-Vs sold in its first four months than the STS-V sales for a whole year.

It is evident that GM is keen on cutting slow-selling models. Expect other underperforming models to get canned in order to make GM’s product line more solid and reflexive of market demand.

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Obama Sees Hard Times Ahead, But GM Should Become Stronger

President Barack Obama sees harder times ahead for General Motors and its workers in America, but says that the ailing car manufacturer should eventually come out of bankruptcy a stronger company.

The hard times will start as some 20,000 GM workers in the States stand to lose their jobs as part of GM’s continued efforts at restructuring and streamlining operations. Obama called on the workers to make this sacrifice “so that (their) children and all of our children can grow up in an America that still makes things.”

Obama described the GM recovery plan as “full of promise,” adding that he is fully confident that the old GM that disappointed many Americans is a thing of the past and be “an integral part of America’s economic future.”

The US government will be infusing another $60 billion in GM, which will be exchanged for an ownership stake in the company worth 60 percent. Despite the big stake in the company, Obama refutes claims that the government wants to run GM. “What I am not doing, what I have no interest in doing, is running GM,” said the president.get rich or die tryin divx download shutter dvd download

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Lord Mandelson Affirms GM’s Commitment to Vauxhall

Britain’s Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Lord Mandelson is hard at work, trying to keep Vauxhall in the mind of parent company General Motors—even more so now that Magna has signed a deal with GM that will spin the Opel and Vauxhall brands off into a new company.

In an interview with the BBC, Mandelson elaborated on his efforts to reaffirm GM’s commitments. Mandelson added that the Magna proposals were vague when it came to business and jobs in the UK, unlike failed bidder Fiat’s proposals. “Frankly, in contrast to Fiat, Magna’s business plans were vaguer. At least Fiat was clear.”

It’s no secret that Magna wants to cut some jobs in the UK. Then again, Magna will have to keep those cuts to the minimum. Mandelson had already said that any funding or aid the UK government gives hinges on Magna’s level of commitment.

“If they want British government to help underwrite this new company going forward, they are going to have to demonstrate what’s in this new arrangement for Britain, for British production and British workers.”download texas chainsaw massacre the divx bloodrayne dvd