gamby
SuperDork
6/3/08 9:11 a.m.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a_HL22tswTWE&refer=home
The four plant closings will save $1 billion annually and cut North American truck capacity by 700,000 vehicles, he said. At Hummer, ``we're considering all options from a complete revamp to a partial or complete sale of the brand,'' Wagoner said.
A doubling of U.S. gasoline prices since 2004, including a 31 percent surge this year, is forcing Wagoner to accelerate production of more fuel-efficient vehicles as he tries to end three years of losses. He said cars will account for 60 percent of GM's North American production in three years, up from about 50 percent now.
...and nothing of value was lost.
GlennS
Reader
6/3/08 10:32 a.m.
Hummer needs to get back to its roots of building hard core off-road vehicles and being a niche brand. They should be the lambo of the desert. They should have some sort of road legal trophy truck inspired 4wd truck thing. They should ditch their glorified minivans they make now.
jrw1621
New Reader
6/3/08 10:38 a.m.
GlennS wrote: They should be the lambo of the desert.
I thought Lambo was the Lambo of the desert?
JoeyM
New Reader
6/3/08 11:53 a.m.
They should be the lambo of the desert.
I thought that was the bowler wildcat....
jrw1621
New Reader
6/3/08 12:28 p.m.
Another atricle with some interesting quips...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080603/ap_on_bi_ge/gm_shareholders
...the plants to be idled are in Oshawa, Ontario; Moraine, Ohio; Janesville, Wis.; and Toluca, Mexico.
The Oshawa truck plant, which builds the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups, likely will be shuttered next year. The Moraine plant near Dayton, will stop making Chevy TrailBlazer and other mid-size SUVs in 2010 "or sooner if demand dictates," Wagoner said. In Janesville, the plant that builds medium-duty trucks and big SUVs like the Chevrolet Tahoe, will cease production starting at the end of 2009, finishing in 2010 or sooner if demand stays weak. In Toluca, production of medium-duty trucks will end by the end of 2008, Wagoner said.
I did not know that GM made Medium Duty Trucks in Mexico.
Also of interest...
GM President and Chief Operating Officer Fritz Henderson said the new small car to be built in Lordstown would get 9 miles per gallon better fuel economy than the company's current small cars, the Chevrolet Cobalt and Pontiac G5 when equipped with a manual transmission. The most efficient Cobalt now gets 36 miles per gallon on the highway, although Henderson would not give a total mileage number.
It would be powered by a 1- to 1.4-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine that could be turbocharged for additional power,
A tiny turbo 4cyl in the works. Could this be the Beat, Groove, Trax prototypes?
Used truck prices will go through the roof in 2011 or so No matter how high gas gets some people will need work trucks
