Facing mounting political pressure, GM’s new masters have agreed to allow new liability cases against products made by old (pre- and intra-bankruptcy) GM to proceed against New (post-pre-bankruptcy). According to the New York Times, the deal went down in federal bankruptcy court on Friday. “G.M. and the administration’s [hands-off] auto task force have been negotiating with more than a dozen state attorneys general who have objected to the company’s plan to sell its desirable assets to a new, government-financed entity. A hearing to approve the plan is scheduled for Tuesday in federal bankruptcy court in Manhattan.” So, that’s that then. The Ad Hoc Committee of Consumer Victims of GM and Chrysler can relax. Comcast can kick back. Rep. Andre Carson can chill. Or can they?
A week ago, we predicted that Volkswagen, buoyed by stellar numbers, would soon swat nuisance Wiedeking once and for all. It didn’t take long. Ferdinand Piech, chairman of the supervisory board of Volkswagen and co-owner of Porsche, pulled out a big gun and put it to the head of Wendelin Wiedeking, CEO of Porsche (and theoretically Piech’s employee). Piech said (we are paraphrasing in the interest of brevity): “Say uncle by Monday. Or you’re dead.” Nice family.
Check out the site: 2010lacrosse.com. Does Buick know that the song they’re planning to use to launch the new LaCrosse ends:
So now I’m praying for the end of time
To hurry up and arrive
Cause if I gotta spend another minute with you
I don’t think that I can really survive
I’ll never break my promise or forget my vow
But God only knows what I can do right now
I’m praying for the end of time
It’s all that I can do
Praying for the end of time, so I can end my time with you
This week’s YSE (Your Shitty Economy) Car of the Week comes to us via Lexus (and Autotrader): the Land Cruiser-with-wood-trim LX470.The low-volume sales of these SUVs proves Americans are not real keen on a tree branch scraping down the side of their $80,000 vehicle.Even though the second gen LX470 is supremely capable off-road, most rock climber-kayaking types are more likely to own a Jeep or an old Tacoma.Never mind. This pre-loved 2004 LX470 with 49k on the clock is yours for just $29,499.This price may seem high for a car almost old enough to qualify for the cash for clunkers, and 13 mpg is a bit scarifying, but the Land Cruiser/LX duo maintains some of the best re-sale values in the biz.Sure you can pick up a used Range Rover for a little less, but why would you? There’s no competing with the Japanese-built LX for reliability and longevity.So saddle up, strap down the antique furniture, and take the no-road option home.
Revving your engine will soon be a crime punishable by a fine of up to $500 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Mayor Martin Chavez (D) proposed adding a blip of the throttle to the city ordinance listing “nuisances” that the city uses as a justification to seize automobiles. The city council is expected to vote on the idea next month. “It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in exhibition driving in the Downtown Quiet Zone by operating a vehicle in a manner that willfully creates excessive engine noise because of revving the engine to magnify the engine noise,” the proposed ordinance states.
“This weekend we’ll be choosing which Chrysler [factory] we’ll be using to produce the Fiat 500 aimed at the US market” said the CEO of Fiat Group, Sergio Marchionne. “We shall probably produce the full Alfa Romeo range. The reason why we’ve slowed on the brand’s development was to follow the US situation. Now that we’ve clarified the Chrysler dossier, we know what to do in order to link up to their distribution network and we can actually offer the full range of products. The new 147 will be coming out next year and will go into production in Cassino this year, so we’ll be seeing it at the Geneva Show in 2010. A whole series of vehicle developments will follow on from this. We shall probably also be making the so-called crossover, the new 69, when the Alfa flagship comes out, but on a platform shared with Chrysler. The whole range will be re-designed.”
For those who would make the unwise decision to roll the old car’s debt into the new car, yet another reason not to. Policy wonks may recall how during the Bush administration the banking industry got its fondest (pre-bailout) wishes granted. The bankruptcy rules were re-written to make it substantially more difficult for a normal person to discharge debt. (Interestingly, mansion owners in Texas and Florida somehow survived unscathed while the vast majority of bankrupts are still done in by medical bills.) The upshot is that fewer qualify for a full Chapter 7 discharge and more must file a Chapter 13 repayment plan. Here’s what that means for the “typical” car buyer.
We were given the heads-up on the cashforclunkersheadquarters.com website by the Department of Transportation (DOT). The DOT was not well pleased with the site’s assumption of governmental authority re: Uncle Sam’s Cash for Clunkers or CARS program (as we reported). This email arrived just arrived from Mrs. Name Redacted, reprinted here without editing. I’ve emailed Mrs. NR to request the suggested interview.
GM is walking away from its Saturn Vue and Pontiac Torrent Theta-based CUVs, bringing its Thetan, uh, Theta CUV levels to just the Equinox and the SRX. And the just released GMC Terrain. And the forthcoming Saab 9-4X. And now a clay model of a Buick Theta CUV has surfaced on CBS’s Early Show, along with rumors of a 2012 launch (and dual-mode hybrid version). Assuming the Saturn Vue is sold for a few more years by the Penske boyz, and the Suzuki XL7 soldiers on a bit longer, we’re looking at the prospect of seven versions of the same platform in one market. Re:invention or déjà vu?
And I’m inclined to agree. Hyundai had some of the best sales numbers of 2008, and they rolled out some killer products like the Genesis and Kia Soul. Too bad Forbes based their whole article off of the JD Power Initial Quality Survey.
The truth is, as I’ve said all along, I have no ambition to run an auto company. I’m not the salesman-in-chief. And GM will rise or fall on the quality of its products — like the taut, athletic design of the new Buick Enclave. Its French-seamed leather and warm wood tones make the Enclave more than transportation. It’s a modern driver’s retreat.
—President Barack Obama at the Television and Radio Correspondents Dinner shortly after unveiling his Oprah-inspired “car company giveaway.”
Political interference in New GM? As Mass. Rep. Barney Frank’s Norton constituents will tell you, it’s not who you know—no, wait, it is. The Ad Hoc Committee of Consumer Victims of GM and Chrysler—the consortium of lawyers trying to make New GM liable for Old GM’s vehicles—must not know any pols senior enough to bend GM to their will. Oh wait! They do! Indiana Representative Andre Carson, who’s just introduced an as-yet-unnumbered bill to do what GM’s suits and a federal bankruptcy judge won’t. It’s not unnamed though: “The Jeremy Warriner Consumer Protection Act of 2009.” Warriner is an Indiana resident who lost both legs in an accident in his Jeep; his product liability lawsuit fell afoul of Chrysler’s “transformation” in bankruptcy. The odds of the bill’s passage may not be high, but its existence proves that the fate of Government Motors lies in the hands of elected officials, rather than the US consumer. As if you didn’t know.
Jaguar lost Tata $463 million during its first ten months as part of the Indian firm, reports Automotive News [sub]. That loss stings twice as bad considering it makes up the bulk of Tata Motors’ $520 million consolidated loss in the fiscal year ending March 31. “There has already been 2,000 job losses. We may be looking at more job losses, more plant shutdowns,” says Tata VP Ravi Khant. Will that kill the crazy Extended-Range EV plans for the forthcoming XE? Tata recently refinanced $3 billion in debt, according to AN, but with a hybrid LRX reportedly approved as well, Tata’s staring at some hefty development costs. Best of luck to ’em.
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