General Motors is preparing to announce that the Pontiac car brand, once marketed as GM's "Excitement division," will be killed off, according to a source familiar with the decision.
The U.S. Treasury has given General Motors Corp another $2 billion loan for working capital but has not provided new working capital funds to Chrysler LLC, a transaction report for the Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program showed Friday.
For most Americans, Topic A in the auto industry right now is the fate of GM. Mike Jackson, 60, the outspoken CEO of the nation's largest auto retailer, AutoNation, has some definite opinions about that subject--and we'll spell them out below. But his own Topic A today is the level of gas prices, which he thinks intolerably low. Here is the conversation that he and FORTUNE senior editor at large Carol Loomis had a few days ago.
It was an odd collection of vehicles on display on Capitol Hill, ranging from a bucket truck used for repairing power lines to something resembling an enclosed golf cart to a pair of hot-looking, two-seater sports cars.
Harley VanDeloo, a 69-year old retiree in Thousand Oaks, Calif., has resigned himself to losing an important piece of his retirement income: interest payments from $25,000 worth of General Motors bonds.
General Motors won't be making a June 1 debt payment of $1 billion, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday.
With three bidders in the running, General Motors says it is weeks away from deciding what will become of the controversial Hummer SUV brand, but as a bankruptcy looms, one expert wonders why bidders don't just hold out for a bargain in a court-ordered sell-off.
The Obama administration will make about $500 million available to Chrysler LLC through the end of this month as it seeks to reach an alliance with Fiat, and up to $5 billion through May to help General Motors Corp. restructure outside of bankruptcy, an independent oversight report on the Treasury Department's corporate rescue fund said on Tuesday.
The Obama administration has directed General Motors Corp to prepare a new debt restructuring plan that would convert all of the $48 billion the automaker owes bondholders and its major union into equity, people briefed on the plan said Friday.
Italian automaker Fiat SpA may form an alliance with General Motors Corp's core operations in Europe and Latin America, Automotive News said on Friday, citing an unnamed source.
General Motors is preparing to announce that the Pontiac car brand, once marketed as GM's "Excitement division," will be killed off, according to a source familiar with the decision.
The U.S. Treasury has given General Motors Corp another $2 billion loan for working capital but has not provided new working capital funds to Chrysler LLC, a transaction report for the Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program showed Friday.
For most Americans, Topic A in the auto industry right now is the fate of GM. Mike Jackson, 60, the outspoken CEO of the nation's largest auto retailer, AutoNation, has some definite opinions about that subject--and we'll spell them out below. But his own Topic A today is the level of gas prices, which he thinks intolerably low. Here is the conversation that he and FORTUNE senior editor at large Carol Loomis had a few days ago.
It was an odd collection of vehicles on display on Capitol Hill, ranging from a bucket truck used for repairing power lines to something resembling an enclosed golf cart to a pair of hot-looking, two-seater sports cars.
Harley VanDeloo, a 69-year old retiree in Thousand Oaks, Calif., has resigned himself to losing an important piece of his retirement income: interest payments from $25,000 worth of General Motors bonds.
General Motors won't be making a June 1 debt payment of $1 billion, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday.
With three bidders in the running, General Motors says it is weeks away from deciding what will become of the controversial Hummer SUV brand, but as a bankruptcy looms, one expert wonders why bidders don't just hold out for a bargain in a court-ordered sell-off.
The Obama administration will make about $500 million available to Chrysler LLC through the end of this month as it seeks to reach an alliance with Fiat, and up to $5 billion through May to help General Motors Corp. restructure outside of bankruptcy, an independent oversight report on the Treasury Department's corporate rescue fund said on Tuesday.
The Obama administration has directed General Motors Corp to prepare a new debt restructuring plan that would convert all of the $48 billion the automaker owes bondholders and its major union into equity, people briefed on the plan said Friday.
Italian automaker Fiat SpA may form an alliance with General Motors Corp's core operations in Europe and Latin America, Automotive News said on Friday, citing an unnamed source.
General Motors will announce more job cuts and plant closing plans in the coming weeks, CEO Fritz Henderson said Friday.
Did a battery bring down General Motors?
The possibility of engine fires has prompted General Motors to recall nearly 1.5 million passenger sedans manufactured between 1997 and 2003, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Monday.
The possibility of engine fires has prompted General Motors to recall nearly 1.5 million passenger sedans manufactured between 1997 and 2003, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Monday.
A rally in financial shares helped stocks cut losses Monday at the end of a choppy session following a five-week advance and ahead of a barrage of quarterly results.
General Motors' stock price has been stuck in reverse as investors seem to be betting that bankruptcy is inevitable.
If General Motors goes into bankruptcy, many of its most iconic brands, such as Buick and Pontiac, might not survive.
Americans are fed up with the Detroit drama.
There's been a lot of talk about the restructuring that needs to be done to make General Motors and Chrysler more competitive for the long haul.
Tumbling sales have forced every automaker to rethink strategies, and both General Motors and Ford have announced new incentive measures similar to the Hyundai Assurance Plus Program.
Stocks fell Tuesday, retreating for a second straight session after a four-week advance, on worries about banks and autos and the start of the quarterly reporting period.
Even as General Motors executives are seriously discussing a recently-unthinkable bankruptcy back in Detroit, others were unveiling an equally implausible prototype for a futuristic personal transportation vehicle in New York City.
So is this what President Obama had in mind?
Preparations for a possible bankruptcy filing at General Motors have become "intense and earnest", according to a source familiar with the company's plans.
The events of the past week have been unprecedented in the auto industry and in the annals of American business.
At his GM dealership in suburban Washington, Maury Wilkins exudes calm as he gears up for an enormous challenge: protecting his decades-old family business.
Ask newly retired autoworker Brenda Carter about President Obama and she cracks a broad, magnetic smile. "I love him," she says emphatically.
The Obama administration has made it clear: In order to get the billions of dollars of federal money that Chrysler and General Motors need to survive, they'll need to build and sell more fuel efficient vehicles.
The U.S.'s treatment of domestic car makers must leave Motown feeling hard done by.
In his first week as president and chief executive officer of General Motors, Fritz Henderson expressed optimism that he can steer the company out of the economic rut in which it has stalled.
U.S. auto sales tumbled sharply in March, although officials with some of the companies said they hope the worst of the downturn is behind them.
My writing assignment in the winter of 2005-06 was to give Fortune's readers my opinion as to whether General Motors would go bankrupt. I reported the article for about nine weeks, going to Detroit three times and talking there and in New York to GM executives, analysts and car people of all kinds. I tried many times over to set up an appointment with Ron Gettelfinger, head of the United Automobile Workers. But he wouldn't agree to an interview, perhaps because of a story I had written earlier about Bethlehem Steel that he thought was unfriendly to unions (I didn't agree).
Hoping to turn around plummeting sales in a faltering economy, Ford and General Motors announced new incentives Tuesday similar to a program introduced by Hyundai early in 2009.
GM and Chrysler are fighting for their lives. And that's hurting business. Almost 80% of people polled said they weren't likely to buy a new car from an automaker in bankruptcy according to a survey by Consumer Reports.
Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. introduced incentive programs Tuesday designed to lure car buyers worried about losing their jobs.
Stocks gained Tuesday as investors tiptoed back into equities after a two-session retreat, on the last trading day of a choppy quarter on Wall Street.
Oil fell below $49 a barrel on Monday after the U.S. government rejected restructuring plans from embattled automakers GM and Chrysler.
President Obama announced Monday that struggling automotive giants General Motors and Chrysler will be given a "limited" period of time to "restructure in a way that would justify an investment of additional taxpayer dollars."
Americans don't favor handing billions more dollars to U.S. automakers, polls show. To some, it's another example of government helping Wall Street instead of Main Street, but for others, it's simply bailout burnout.
General Motors' outgoing chief executive Rick Wagoner is eligible to receive more than $20 million in his retirement package, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Stocks slumped Monday, falling for a second straight session, as worries about the auto and bank industries sent investors running after the recent rally.
The Obama administration offered General Motors and Chrysler LLC a huge carrot Monday - the possibility of billions of dollars more in loans if they can win additional concessions from creditors and unions.
The Obama administration gave General Motors and Chrysler LLC failing grades Monday for their turnaround efforts and promised a sweeping overhaul of the troubled companies. The government plans to give the automakers more money, but it is also holding out the threat of a "structured bankruptcy." The federal government will provide operating funds for both automakers for several weeks, during which time the companies will have to undergo significant restructuring, administration officials said late Sunday night.
Is it safe to buy a new car from General Motors or Chrysler right now? President Obama says it is and he is putting money up to guarantee it.
The phrases have become part of the national lexicon:
General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner announced his resignation early Monday as the Obama administration gave automakers failing grades for their turnaround efforts.
Asian shares slumped and were headed for their biggest daily fall in four weeks, while U.S. Treasuries gained after a U.S. task force rejected turnaround plans for automakers GM and Chrysler.
General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner announced his resignation early Monday -- the latest change for the troubled automaker.
The Obama administration is giving General Motors 60 days worth of financing for restructuring, according to senior administration officials.
Tough times call for tough measures. Nowhere is this truer than in Detroit's auto industry. News of General Motors -- once America's largest commercial enterprise -- possibly going out of business or eliminating divisions sends shudders through Wall Street and cities where GM employees work.
The resignation of General Motors chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner has been rumored for weeks, if not months.
President Barack Obama will announce the next steps to help General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC Monday, the White House said, amid signs of progress for GM in talks aimed at slashing its debt and cutting costs in response to slack demand.
General Motors announced that 7,500 factory workers had taken its latest buyout offer as the embattled automaker continues its efforts to cut costs as part of its request for additional federal help.
March 31st is the deadline for the Treasury Department's auto task force to announce how much more money it will extend to General Motors and Chrysler - and what the two tottering automakers will have to do to get it.
General Motors and Chrysler LLC have about a week or less before they find out if they'll get the additional help they need from taxpayers, creditors and unions to avoid bankruptcy.
The Treasury Department announced a $5 billion program to help embattled U.S. auto parts makers, the latest attempt to stabilize problems in the nation's troubled auto sector.
There are lots of different ways to measure automotive quality. But for my money, the best single indicator is J.D. Power and Associates' three-year study of vehicle dependability. More than 46,000 original owners of 2006-model year vehicles weighed in with their opinions this year
Abandoned and facing death as General Motors cuts brands in its own fight for survival, Saturn, the "different kind of car company," could soon become a very, very different kind of car company just to survive.
General Motors announced Thursday that cost-cutting efforts had improved its cash position enough to allow it to get by without $2 billion in additional federal loans later this month.
The Obama administration's top auto advisors were in the Detroit area Monday to meet with officials from General Motors and Chrysler, test drive a new electric car and try to chart a course for the industry's rescue.
For the past several weeks, I've been trying to put myself in the shoes of the Treasury Department's auto task force to figure out what its members should ask General Motors to do in order to become competitive again.
Not all that long ago, this author owned a car that had no working electronics.
General Motors Corp. said in a government filing Thursday that its accounting firm has found there is "substantial doubt" about the automaker's ability to survive.
U.S. auto sales plunged 41% in February, the latest sign of trouble for the battered industry.
Perhaps the best way to fix the troubled auto industry is to treat it like a financial firm and have the government take it over.
General Motors posted a $9.6 billion net loss in the fourth quarter, a period in which its sales plunged and it needed a federal bailout to avoid filing for bankruptcy.
General Motors will soon give more details about how close it came to running out of cash at the end of last year.
The Obama administration may quickly find there is no easy fix for Detroit's many woes.
Top executives from General Motors and Chrysler will meet with members of President Obama's auto team Thursday. To say the stakes couldn't be higher would be to understate the seriousness of the situation.
There was good news and bad news in the recent filings Chrysler and General Motors made with the federal officials overseeing their multibillion-dollar rescue.
Federal loans kept General Motors and Chrysler LLC out of bankruptcy in December.
Sherrill Freeborough has a disarming smile, an optimistic spirit and an uncertain future.
General Motors and Chrysler LLC asked the government Tuesday for $21.6 billion in additional loans, but the final cost of a bailout of the auto industry could be significantly higher.
Even if GM and Chrysler survive, they will be lesser players on the world stage
Why should U.S. taxpayers give General Motors another $16 billion in aid? After all, just two months ago the ailing carmaker claimed the first $13 billion would do the trick.
General Motors and Chrysler LLC said Tuesday they could need an additional $21.6 billion in federal loans between them because of worsening demand for their cars and trucks.
General Motors and Chrysler LLC will present their latest plans to the federal government Tuesday about how they will survive for the long-term.
Tuesday is D-day for the domestic auto industry. That's when General Motors and Chrysler must tell the government how they are going to successfully compete in the future as a condition of receiving federal aid.
On Tuesday, General Motors and Chrysler LLC have to submit plans to the government that show how they plan to turnaround their troubled companies. It won't be an easy task.
The Detroit automakers have to prove by next week that they can be financially viable, but they have another big problem that won't be addressed - the shattered relationship with their many suppliers.
General Motors announced Tuesday it is cutting 10,000 workers, or 14% of its salaried jobs worldwide. A third of those job losses will be in the United States.
Depression-era conditions in the auto industry means lots of assets for sale. More brands may change hands than at any time since the late 1980s. Trouble is, nobody seems to have the interest - or the equity - to make a deal.
Auto sales tumbled 38% in January, plunging even more than expected to their worst levels since 1982 as a pullback in purchases by rental car companies became the latest problem for the troubled industry.
General Motors is offering buyouts to virtually all of its remaining hourly workers, becoming the latest automaker to try to cut labor costs by giving nervous workers an incentive to leave the company.
Consumers may have had an easier time getting car loans last month, but don't look for that to fuel a rebound in battered auto sales when automakers report their January sales Tuesday.
General Motors has many woes, from weak sales and expensive labor contracts to a lineup of vehicles that includes more misses than hits.
General Motors and the United Auto Workers union have agreed to eliminate a controversial program that kept workers at near full pay even when there was no work for them, the company confirmed Wednesday.
General Motors lost the title of world's largest automaker to rival Toyota Motor in 2008, according to sales figures released Wednesday by the troubled U.S. automaker. It was the first time in nearly 80 years that GM did not sell the most cars in the world.
General Motors and Chrysler LLC have four weeks to win deep concessions from unions and creditors to prove they are viable, or they risk losing the $17.4 billion in government loans that are keeping them from bankruptcy.
General Motors cut its forecast for industrywide U.S. auto sales Thursday, a development that could lead the company to ask for additional loans from the federal government.
There's never been a better time to buy a car. On the other hand, there's never been a scarier or more confusing time, either.
Battered by tight credit and the worst recession in decades, industrywide U.S. auto sales plunged 36% from year-ago levels in December, a decline that hit all of the major automakers, both foreign and domestic, and capped the industry's worst year since 1992.
It looks like the annual Detroit auto show won't be the wake next week that everybody is expecting.
In yet another move to prop up the crumbling U.S. auto industry, the government announced Monday that it will pump $6 billion into GMAC Financial Services, a financing company critical to the survival of General Motors.
General Motors got the first $4 billion of a series of emergency loans from the U.S. Treasury Wednesday, but fellow struggling automaker Chrysler was still waiting as the new year rapidly approached.
Wall Street surged Tuesday in an end-of-the-year bargain buying spree as investors scooped up a variety of shares hit hard in the 2008 stock market battering.
Stocks gained Tuesday morning as investors welcomed the government's decision to pour $6 billion into GMAC, the financing arm of struggling automaker General Motors.
Emergency loans for two of the nation's top automakers didn't materialize Monday, but the Treasury Department said it would finalize the loans in time to meet the needs of the struggling companies.
We don't know whether to laugh or cry. Our annual list of the year's most laughable moves proves that, even in moments of crisis, stupidity lives on. See the full gallery.
Investors will return Monday for the final few trading days of the year, and with all three major indexes on track to suffer their worst declines in decades, it's easy to understand why the market is eager to close the books on 2008.
| Most Viewed | Most Emailed | Top Searches |