At a time when the top United States automakers are seeking aid for survival, buying an American car that benefits the country's economy has become a challenge.   It may be noted that fewer than half of the parts on some big three vehicles are made in the United States. Ford Fusion is assembled in Mexico. The Chrysler 300C gets assembled in Canada but its transmission is from Indiana. Their V8 engine is manufactured in Mexico. Chevrolet's Equinox SUV's engines are from China. Most of Toyota vehicles' parts are made in the United States and 56 per cent of Toyota vehicles are sold here. That…  

GM's radical extended-range electric car, the Chevrolet Volt is a plug-in series-hybrid electric vehicle, built at the Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly in Detroit, Michigan. GM avoids the term "hybrid," and prefers to call it an electric vehicle with a "range extender" because of its design. The Volt can run on electricity from batteries for up to 40 miles. The Chevrolet Volt is currently in the final run up to its pre-production phase of integrating its fundamental components. The Volt concept vehicle which first made an appearance in the North American International Auto Show has four doors and a rear liftgate; it is capable of carrying four to five passengers. Once finished, the Chevy Volt is expected to have a top speed around 100 mph and make 0-60 mph in 9.0 seconds. A 1.4 liter four-cylinder "Family Zero" engine will kick in with more power, when its battery-charge tapers off. At around…  

Perhaps for the first time, visitors to the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show will not be able to witness the General Motors Corporation’s Press Conference, as the automajor has canceled all plans to hold one. Seen as a cost cutting move at a time when GM faces a very troubled and uncertain future, the auto giant also surrenders an opportunity to talk to visitors about its forthcoming vehicles at the Los Angeles Auto Show, an important platform for showcasing its new products and North America’s most hi-profile media event.

 

Scott Fosgard, spokesman for GM, said that currently the media and the industry’s attention was riveted on negotiations going on in Congress, which was likely to overshadow events at the LA Auto Show. General Motors Corp. lost $2.5 billion in the third quarter of 2008, and the automaker fears that it might be totally…  

GM’s Red Tag Sale gains momentum as the auto major offers some great deals on Cadillac, Saab and Hummer models for 2008 and 2009. GM customers will find strong incentives and bargains at the annual Red Tag sale which started three weeks earlier than usual, on November 6, and runs through January 5. GM’s Sale features some aggressive ad campaigning, and unlike previous years, the sale will encompass all GM brands, including Saab and Hummer. Not included in the sale are the new Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1, Cadillac CTS-V and medium duty trucks.

 

Some vehicles come…  

According to undisclosed but reliable sources, General Motors Corp., Chrysler LLC and Cerberus Capital Management LP are on the verge of considering a merger, or an acquisition of Chrysler by GM. Cerberus Capital Management LP which has an 80.1 per cent stake in Chrysler, and is already engaged in a joint venture with GM, has evidently been holding talks about a full merger or acquisition with GM.

Detroit’s automakers have often explored tie-ups, and in this case, a consolidation of the auto-majors would augur well for the American automotive industry, as well as establish GM as global sales leader, a position that has come under threat from Toyota in recent times.

According to sources cited by the Wall Street Journal, Cerberus, who owns 51 percent of GMAC Financial Services, is pitching for GM’s remaining 49 percent stake in GMAC, in a trade-off for…  

The Detroit Three got a major reprieve on September 24th, as the House of Representatives approved $25 billion in loans as part of a bail out plan for the beleaguered American auto industry. Following this decision, the Energy Department, is in the process of determining rules and regulations to govern the disbursement of these loans. The big trio of American automakers which include General Motors Corporation, Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Company, have been appealing to the federal government for assistance, in an effort to save their companies from collapsing. Saturday’s approval of $25 billion in low-interest loans will give the U.S. auto industry a much needed boost, to help rework its vehicles. For more than three years now, the American auto industry has been trying to stay afloat, even as foreign automakers have…  

Photos of GM’s Chevrolet Volt plug-in electric car posted on the Internet for just 12 minutes, made it to several automotive sites worldwide, causing a buzz in the online auto world. General Motors Corporation claimed that the short period of 12 minutes was long enough for the pictures to be distributed worldwide. GM unintentionally posted photos of GM executives with a Volt prototype, on a site run by Wieck Media, the company that posts electronic photos for GM. Never before has a car created such excitement among automakers and car buyers. The Volt concept vehicle was unveiled in Detroit, Michigan, at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) on January 7, 2007. The Chevrolet Volt is a plug-in series-hybrid electric vehicle with a “range extender” due to its design. GM expect to launch the Volt in American markets in 2010 and in Europe in 2011.