Big Three

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Ford Courts GM, Chrysler Customers

Helps pay off their loans, trains dealers in 'conquests'

(Newser) - With General Motors and Chrysler struggling, Ford is moving to pick off some of its rivals’ customers, the Detroit News reports. The firm is passing cash to its dealers to ease Chrysler owners’ loan payments—so they can pick up Fords. Ford may soon do the same for GM owners....

Are Americans Falling Out of Love With Cars?
Are Americans Falling Out of Love With Cars?
ANALYSIS

Are Americans Falling Out of Love With Cars?

Drop in driving could be delayed reaction to gas prices—or not: Silver

(Newser) - Is the fact that Americans are driving less even after the cost of gas has come down a sign that US attitudes are changing, Nate Silver asks in Esquire—or is it just another example of how slowly they respond to changes in fuel prices? “The real test,”...

Chrysler Halts Production to Lower Inventory

Automaker also appears in court to lay out bankruptcy plan

(Newser) - Chrysler idled its plants today for 30 to 60 days to reduce inventory as the company’s lawyers appeared in a New York bankruptcy court, the Washington Post reports. The attorneys outlined a plan to emerge from bankruptcy within 2 months. “We are quite mindful of the view of...

Chrysler's Honeymoon With Fiat Won't Last Long
Chrysler's Honeymoon With Fiat Won't Last Long
Analysis

Chrysler's Honeymoon With Fiat Won't Last Long

(Newser) - Chrysler is rushing into the arms of Fiat now, but it may be sorry later, writes Dan Neil for the Los Angeles Times. Fiat "pays next to nothing and now has instant access to US markets," which it’s been lusting after. "But in this new Italian...

Chrysler to Declare Bankruptcy: White House

(Newser) - Having failed to make a deal with the creditors to which it owes some $7 billion, Chrysler will declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy later today, a White House official tells CNN. The filing does not mean the company will cease operations—rather, it represents an opportunity to execute a merger with...

Fiat Exec Would Gut Chrysler to Save It

Marchionne has succeeded in fighting corporate bloat before

(Newser) - It may seem awfully cocky of Fiat chief Sergio Marchionne to assume that he can save Chrysler, generally written off in the industry as a lost cause. But there’s a reason Marchionne is optimistic, notes the Economist: He’s done it before. When he took over Fiat in 2004,...

Obama Snaps Up 17,600 Fuel-Efficient US Cars

Government will buy thousands of fuel-efficient cars

(Newser) - President Obama announced yesterday that the government plans to buy up 17,600 American-made hybrid and fuel-efficient cars for the federal fleet, reports the Washington Post. In addition to being a way to get some more money to the automakers, the plan will boost the efficiency of the government fleet...

GM in 'Intense' Planning for Bankruptcy

Firm could be split into 'old' and 'new' companies: insiders

(Newser) - General Motors is making “intense” and “earnest” preparations for the possibility of bankruptcy, a source tells Reuters today. The firm could be divided into a “new” and “old” GM, another insider said: The new company would be home to the firm’s healthiest units and take...

More Big Auto Sales Drops: GM Off 45%, Ford 41%

(Newser) - Automakers got hammered again last month, with Detroit’s Big Three all reporting big sales drops today. Ford’s light-vehicle numbers were down 41%, the AP reports; General Motors’ fell 44.7% and Chrysler’s 39.3%, the Wall Street Journal adds. Foreign manufacturers weren’t immune, either, with Toyota’...

Auto Plan Drives GOP in Different Directions

Parochial concerns results in a less-than-unified response

(Newser) - Republicans were caught off guard by Obama’s auto moves yesterday, and they responded in wildly different ways, Politico reports. Some complained the president hadn’t been hard enough on GM and Chrysler, while others groused that he’d been harder on them than he’d been on Wall Street....

Obama's Auto Crackdown Worries Bailed-Out Banks

After Wagoner ousting, financials fear similar fate

(Newser) - After the Obama administration kicked out GM’s boss and said two of the Big Three automakers may benefit from bankruptcy, CEOs of banks bailed out by the government are wondering if there's a bull's-eye on their backs, the Washington Post reports. The risk of such a crackdown has been...

Obama to Give Automakers More Aid

(Newser) - President Obama will likely approve billions of dollars more in loans to General Motors and Chrysler on Monday, but attach a deadline for union and bondholder concessions to help the automakers survive, insiders tell the New York Times. Obama's auto task force will also keep government-managed bankruptcy as an option...

7,500 Hourly UAW Workers Take GM Buyouts

The total is now 60,500 buyouts since '06

(Newser) - General Motors has convinced 7,500 unionized, hourly workers to accept buyouts and exit the company as early as next week, the Wall Street Journal reports. The automaker offered $20,000 in cash and $25,000 car vouchers—far less than previous offers—in this latest round of cuts to...

Detroit Bailout Proposals: Disappointing, Incomplete

Chrysler, GM offer no plans to get people to buy their cars

(Newser) - GM and Chrysler now want another $22 billion from Washington—and propose to use dramatic job cuts to help right their respective ships. What both companies avoid, writes economist Susan Helper for the New Republic, is an appraisal of the real problem: Nobody wants to buy their cars. Rather than...

GM Hacks 14% of Salaried Jobs
 GM Hacks 14% of Salaried Jobs 

GM Hacks 14% of Salaried Jobs

(Newser) - GM will cut 10,000 jobs this year, including 3,400 in the US, the Wall Street Journal reports. The cuts represent 14% of GM’s salaried workforce overall, and 12% in the US. Most of those lucky enough to survive the axe will get a 3%-7% pay cut, while...

Chinese Sell More Cars Than US Automakers

In January, for the first time ever, more vehicles were sold in China than the US

(Newser) - China’s domestic auto industry managed to sell more cars last month than US automakers for the first time ever, reports the Wall Street Journal. GM said 790,000 vehicles were sold there in January, eclipsing the 657,000 sold in the US. But, experts say, the economic slump may...

Just What Is an 'American' Car?
 Just What Is an 'American' Car? 
Analysis

Just What Is an 'American' Car?

As automakers expand globally, just what helps US economy most?

(Newser) - Lawmakers hoping to give a boost to the American economy by investing in the auto industry might get as much bang for their buck by sinking money into Honda or Toyota as they would Ford, Chrysler, or General Motors, the Wall Street Journal notes. The auto industry has become too...

Ford to Offer Self-Park Cars; Kerkorian Sells Stake

New Lincoln MKS models will park themselves in effort to woo car buyers

(Newser) - Ford plans to offer two models with a self-parking function at the Detroit auto show next month, the Wall Street Journal reports, in the continuing effort to woo buyers with new technology. But  the company's image among investors remains tarnished, as billionaire Kirk Kerkorian confirmed yesterday that he sold his...

Like the Big 3, Detroit Is Dying
 Like the 
 Big 3, 
 Detroit 
 Is Dying 
analysis

Like the Big 3, Detroit Is Dying

(Newser) - The Big Three automakers are broke and begging for cash, but that's typical when you're from Detroit, Matt Labash writes in The Weekly Standard. He prepped for his visit to Dysfunction Junction by reading nightmarish stats: The city has 10,000 unsolved murders; its deficit is as high as...

This Ain't Charity: Detroit Must Win Consumers Back

Americans will get back on board if auto giants prove they can make good cars again

(Newser) - With a $17.4 billion bailout in hand, Detroit must now turn toward restructuring and making the cars America needs, Mark Phelan writes in the Detroit Free Press. “To win back American buyers’ respect,” Phelan continues, “the automakers must show the aid package was a sound investment,...

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