Tag Archives: general motors

Chevrolet Picks new JV for Global Advertising Agency

Chevrolet has selected Commonwealth as its new global advertising agency responsible for the development of creative campaigns for all types of Chevrolet ads. The latest marketing move at GM follows the announcement in January that the world’s largest automaker is consolidating all of its media buying under Carat, formerly its European agency of record in what was said to be a highly contested review of the $3 billion General Motors media account. Continue reading

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Anti Nuke Group Wants GM Peugeot to End Iran Business

If GM CEO Dan Akerson thought the Chevrolet Volt was a political football, one can only imagine what he thinks about Peugeot and the Iranian nuclear weapons controversy. GM only wants to share logistics, platforms and purchasing with the French company, but is now being told it is “unacceptable for GM to enter into a partnership with a company that so openly deals with a regime that is responsible for the deaths of U.S. and NATO servicemen and threatens U.S. and global security.” Continue reading

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Ex HP Exec to Head GM’s Global Information Technology

The latest senior executive change follows the appointment last week of insider Jon Lauckner, 54, as vice president and chief technology officer. Both appointments are crucial to GM’s ongoing recovery. Less obvious to automotive media, though, is the importance of IT in a global corporation of GM’s size and complexity. Continue reading

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Toyota Projects 20% 2012 Sales Rise. Ichiban Again?

Both General Motors Company and Volkswagen Group, at more than 8 million vehicles each, will outsell Toyota’s 2011 sales tally of fewer than 8 million in a record global market of 75 million vehicles. Continue reading

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GM Q3 Earnings of $1.7 Billion, Most from North America

Virtually all of the Q3 earnings came from North America – $2.2 billion, where Japanese competitors were largely out of the market during the period because of the Japan earthquake, which allowed GM to increase prices. GM Europe lost money; GM South America broke even; and International Operations – home of the booming China market – made $400 million. Continue reading

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Chevrolet and Nissan Succeed with Plug-in Hybrids and EVs as the Business of Plugging In Shows First Product Results

Success is the verdict about one year after the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid and Nissan Leaf EV (electric vehicle) both went on sale, it was revealed last week at the third annual Business of Plugging In Conference in Michigan. And with Cadillac, Ford, Toyota about to introduce the their own plug-in hybrids, and a pure EV version of the tiny Chevrolet Spark coming in 2013, the small niche of electric cars has the chance to grow some more. Continue reading

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Chevrolet to Produce Spark EV All-Electric Vehicle

Chevrolet today announced it will produce an all-electric version of the Chevrolet Spark mini-car – the Spark EV. It will be sold in limited quantities in some U.S. and global markets starting in 2013 in California. The company needs to the CAFE credits from an EV in order to meet impending fuel economy requirements in the U.S. Continue reading

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Ford and General Motors Now Exploring Car Sharing Deals

The two major social benefits of car sharing are said to be fewer vehicles on the road and lower emissions. Frost & Sullivan estimates that, on average, each shared vehicle replaced 15 personally owned vehicles in 2009, and car sharing members drove 31% less than when they owned a personal vehicle. Continue reading

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S&P Raises General Motors to Highest Junk Grade – BB+

The upgrade came one day after the GM’s 49,500 UAW employees ratified a new four-year contract that will not raise GM’s labor costs, and will provide bonuses based on profitability instead of automatic pay raises. GM at this time appears to have the lowest labor costs among the Detroit Three since both Ford Motor and Chrysler UAW contracts are unresolved. It’s ironic that it took a Democratic President to curb the union – in essence breaking it – under the forced bankruptcy reorganization of GM, which included a no strike clause. Continue reading

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General Motors and LG to Jointly Develop Electric Vehicles

The high cost of developing new technologies to meet increasingly stringent CO2 and fuel economy regulations prompted the deal. Earlier this week Ford Motor and Toyota announced a collaboration on new hybrid trucks. Continue reading

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Stanley Cup of Fuel Economy? Canada vs U.S. in EcoCar2

The competition employs Canadian engineering students, together with 13 U.S. university teams, to explore ways to reduce the environmental impact of vehicles without “compromising” performance, safety and consumer acceptability. Continue reading

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Ten Honda Plants in North America Achieve Zero Landfill Waste

While all automakers have environmental initiatives well under way, Honda and GM appear to have the most sweeping company-wide programs in place. Continue reading

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General Motors Invests in a Small Maker of Electric Buses

Fledgling Proterra makes prototype battery electric buses that are averaging up to 24 mpg (diesel equivalent) in service, in what’s claimed to be a more than 600% improvement over a typical diesel engine bus. Continue reading

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Chrysler Pays Back Taxpayers. Fiat Now Firmly in Control

The historic bailout differs this time around in what’s left and more importantly who owns it – along with the familiar, nagging question, can Chrysler make it? The new Chrysler Group is now firmly, irrevocably in the hands of Fiat, an Italian multinational firm, which has a global fight in front if it as it too competes to survive in an automobile business dominated by much stronger competitors. Continue reading

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GM to Invest $2 Billion in U.S. Plants, Depending on Tax Breaks

Critics, of course, say the cost per job – when you total all the loans and tax breaks – is exorbitant, especially since what is mostly going on these days is the retention of existing jobs long after jobs move South to non-union transplants. Continue reading

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