**GM preparing for bankruptcy**

[R-Design]

This would threaten GM’s Holden subsidiary in Australia.... *dramatic music plays*

You wouldn't want to be in Mark Reuss' shoes.

[Sprint XR8]

Carpoint 2/6/09

Holden is GM's agent in the GM-DAT venture, with the Australian company understood to hold roughly a 50 per cent stake in the South Korean firm. By acting on behalf of GM, Holden would be the division most closely involved in negotiations with the KDB -- and that's possibly why the KDB is angling for V6 engine production to shift offshore from Australia. It's the necessary leverage for Holden to acquiesce in some other way.

During his presentation to local media today, Holden's MD Mark Reuss confirmed that the local manufacturer is liable for GM-DAT debt. When asked whether the announcement overnight of GM filing for Chapter 11 (more here) would impact on Holden's relationship with GM-DAT and its interest in the South Korean company, Reuss was quite succinct.

"There's no effect on that... on a debt basis" he said. Reuss did not elaborate however, on what Holden and/or GM had planned, in order to rein in GM-DAT's debt or how GM's move to what Reuss called "bridging loan activities" would play out for the South Korean firm.

http://www.carpoint.com.au/news/2009...n-gambit-15347

[R-Design]

Originally Posted by Forbes

Out of bankruptcy in record time, GM Chief Fritz Henderson vows to pay back U.S. loans sooner than required.

http://www.forbes.com/2009/07/10/gen...-autos-gm.html

[banarcus]

So what I'm reading here is that buck stops at Holden when it comes to GM Daewoo's debt?

[vztrt]

‘New GM’ exits bankruptcy – prepares for future

http://www.caradvice.com.au/34829/ne...es-for-future/

‘New GM’ exits bankruptcy – prepares for future

Leaner, meaner and a with a whole lot less debt than it had 40 days ago, a new General Motors Company has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States.

GM’s chief executive officer, Fritz Henderson, has described the new company as the “most public private company in the world” a reference to the fact that GM is now owned 60 per cent by the Treasury Department of the US administration of President Barack Obama.

“The bottom line is that business as usual, and as we have had it until today, is over,” Mr Henderson told reporters at GM’s Detroit headquarters. “Everyone associated with GM must be prepared to change, and fast.”

Bankruptcy slashed GM’s debt and healthcare obligations and brought down labour costs to be on par with Japanese competitors such as Toyota, it’s also cut its workforce by almost 25,000.

The new GM will have slashed its debt and healthcare obligations by US$48 billion, dropped almost 40 per cent of the dealers from an unprofitable network and moved to sell loss-making brands such as Saab, Saturn and Hummer.

The new GM emerged from bankruptcy protection on Friday, New York time, far more quickly than most industry watchers had expected.

Reuters newsagency described it as a leaner company, pledging to win back American consumers and pay back taxpayers.

Mr Henderson said the new company would shed layers of management, make decisions faster and shed the bureaucracy that critics say contributed to the failure of the 100-year-old carmaker.

The company’s white-collar workforce will be cut by more than 20 per cent by eliminating 6000 jobs, while there will be a 35 per cent cut in executive ranks.

The whirlwind 40-day bankruptcy for GM concluded with the closing of a deal that sold key operations to the new company.

While key assets and the Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC brands were sold out of bankruptcy to form the new General Motors Company, other assets, including closed factories, remain in bankruptcy for a liquidation process.

Mr Henderson said that in the next 18 months, GM plans to launch 10 vehicles in the US and 17 outside the US.

That old GM, which will become Motors Liquidation Company, is expected to stay in bankruptcy for years, and bondholders, who had been owed US$27 billion, could eventually receive a 10 per cent stake in GM Company.

The development, which follows a similar fast-track reorganisation of Chrysler, represented a victory for the Obama administration and its commitment to save jobs and prevent a liquidation of the largest US carmaker.

At the same time, the US government has taken on substantial new risks as a 60 per cent owner of GM Company with a $50 billion equity investment and $10 billion in debt and perpetual preferred shares.

“We take these loans very personally, and we view paying them off as a very key goal,” Mr Henderson said. “It’s about creating value so the sacrifices that are being made are worth it.”

Mr Henderson, who took over as CEO when predecessor Rick Wagoner was ousted by the Obama administration at the end of March, said the company would be run by a single executive committee, cutting the number of top decision-makers in half.

He also said key decision-makers would meet weekly, a practice adopted by Ford CEO Alan Mulally that he has credited with speeding that carmaker’s turnaround.

Nick Reilly, who has headed Asian operations including GM Holden in Australia, will take control of GM’s international operations based in Shanghai, a recognition of the growing importance of China at a time when GMC is also selling its majority interest in GM Europe, which operates the Opel and Vauxhall brands.

Bob Lutz, 77, GM’s outspoken and high-profile former product chief, has agreed to stay with GMC in a new position with responsibility for marketing, communications and a continued role in vehicle design.

Analysts said the government intervention had given GM a new chance and sharply lower operating costs, but left management facing deep challenges given the weak economy and GM’s long-running slide in market share.

Analysts said that gives GM a chance to deliver on its commitment to launch more fuel-efficient cars and to focus its resources on fewer brands, models and dealerships.

[vztrt]

More news.

http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-n...0711-dggs.html

Reborn GM vows to rev up as new company
July 11, 2009 - 11:49AM

A reborn General Motors pledged to drive itself to renewed profitability as the new firm emerged from bankruptcy under a government-backed plan.

The automaker transferred its main assets to a new government-financed company under a plan supported by the administration of President Barack Obama and the Canadian government.

The fast-track plan is similar to the one used to rescue Chrysler, which came out of bankruptcy last month.

"Today marks a new beginning for General Motors, one that will allow every employee, including me, to get back to the business of designing, building and selling great cars and trucks and serving the needs of our customers," said Fritz Henderson, who remains GM president and chief executive.

"Starting today we want to take that intensity, the decisiveness and the speed of these last several weeks and then transfer it from the battlefield triage of the bankruptcy process to the day-to-day operation of the new company."

The "new GM" will be a leaner, smaller company after having shed tens of thousands of workers, eliminated or sold storied brands, shuttered scores of factories and rewritten its labor contracts to slash costs.

GM will keep four key brands -- Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC -- and will have a total of just 34 US nameplates by 2010. Several brands owned by the old GM, including Saturn, Hummer, Opel and Pontiac, have been shed or are being sold.

The chairman of the new GM is Edward Whitacre, who headed telecommunications giant AT&T.

"I intend to play an active role," Whitacre told reporters after the announcement.

"I'll be more active than most chairmen," said Whitacre, who has no experience in the automobile industry but spent 18 years at the telecom giant.

"I need to make sure value is created ... We have to pay the government back."

GM is also removing layers of management -- reducing the number of US executives by 35 percent and overall US salaried employment by 20 percent by the end of this year.

"GM is fortunate to get another shot, most likely its last one," said Michelle Krebs, an analyst with the research firm Edmunds.com.

"Its biggest challenge remains the same one it has faced of late; that is, convincing consumers -- now also GM's reluctant shareholders -- that the company truly is changing and understands what type of vehicles the marketplace demands."

Sean Maher at Moody's Economy.com said GM "still faces a difficult year."

"The company does not expect to turn a profit in 2009 and is unlikely to do so until US new vehicle sales rise substantially above their current depressed pace below 10 million per year," he added.

Once the world's largest corporation, General Motors sold more vehicles than any other automaker from 1931 through 2007, after which it lost the crown to Japan's Toyota.

The new GM emerges just weeks after a similar government-backed effort to rescue number-three US automaker Chrysler under a plan that gave Italian automaker Fiat a large stake and operational control.

For GM, the new firm will be unencumbered by the bulk of the massive debt load it racked up during years of bleeding balance sheets.

GM entered bankruptcy protection on June 1 with liabilities of 172.8 billion US dollars and emerged with 48.4 billion in debt.

The US government -- which has provided some 50 billion US dollars in financing -- received a 60.8 percent stake in the new firm called General Motors Company.

Canada, which provided 9.1 billion US dollars in loans, has an 11.7 percent stake and a United Auto Workers union retiree healthcare trust fund holds 17.5 percent.

Canadian Industry Minister Tony Clement said officials are "confident that the company will now be in a position to operate a sustainable and viable business that will keep production, innovation and jobs in Canada."

Creditors holding about 54 percent of GM bonds agreed to a plan that would swap 27.1 billion US dollars in debt for a 10 percent stake and warrants allowing them to buy an additional 15 percent stake.

Obama, whose auto taskforce spearheaded the GM restructuring plan, has said his administration has no intention of nationalizing the automaker over the long term and will not be participating in its day-to-day operations.

© 2009 AFP

[vztrt]

G8 may live on.

http://www.caradvice.com.au/34865/bo...good-to-waste/

Bob Lutz: Pontiac G8 “too good to waste”

The tug of war ensuing over the fate of the Australian-developed Pontiac G8 sedan following the demise of the Pontiac brand continues with a new report suggesting it will live on under the Chevrolet brand.

Having postponed his retirement to oversee the new GM’s brands, marketing, advertising and communications, Bob Lutz has supported the idea of a brand swap during an interview with Automobile Magazine.

Current GM CEO, Fritz Henderson, has been rather blunt in regards to the fate of the flagship Pontiac G8 GXP sedan with the idea of rebadging met with a resounding “no” during a recent webchat.

This may still be the case, with GM cautious about cannibalising sales from its high-performance Chevrolet line-up by introducing an even lower price point into the LS3 V8 range.

Although the standard G8 sedan’s future is now looking more promising with Bob Lutz having only positive comments for the Australian car.

“The last time we looked at [the G8], we decided that we would continue to import it as a Chevrolet,” Mr Lutz said. “It is kind of too good to waste.”

Citing export agreements with Australia and the fact that the local Holden Commodore is already sold in other parts of the world as a Chevrolet, Mr Lutz has assured fans that GM would not let the car perish in the US.

The Pontiac G8 is scheduled to end production later this year regardless, a move that could coincide with the introduction of the next generation Holden Commodore here in Australia, meaning US buyers could see a very different G8 if it arrives in the US as the Chevrolet Caprice.

Source: Automobile Magazine

[Paxton]

Is Lutz still in control?

I thought it was Henderson. We all know Lutz is Commodore's biggest proponent.

[vztrt]

Commodore in US comeback

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...2575F200013D12

Commodore in US comeback

Export G8 back on the agenda as a Chev as Lutz makes GM comeback

By MARTON PETTENDY 13 July 2009

HOLDEN’S pivotal North American export program appears to have been resurrected by General Motors, according to a US report.

GM product guru Bob Lutz, who at 77 has reversed his decision to retire at the end of this year, has been quoted by automobilemag.com as confirming a version of the Commodore-based Pontiac G8 will return to the US as the Chevrolet Caprice.

“The last time we looked at (the G8), we decided that we would continue to import it as a Chevrolet,” Mr Lutz told the US website just hours after ‘New GM’ emerged from 39 days of Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Friday (June 10).

Mr Lutz told automobilemag.com that exports of the Stateside Commodore, production of which had already ceased when GM announced it would axe the historic Pontiac brand in late April, would recommence because of export agreements with GM Holden and the fact the Commodore is already sold in the Middle East as a Chevrolet, alongside the long-wheelbase, Holden-made Chevrolet Caprice.

“It is kind of too good to waste,” he said.

The news is likely to be greeted with relief inside Holden, which as we’ve previously reported has continued to “actively discuss” US Commodore exports since the shelving of the Pontiac G8, which after a slow start had attracted about 3000 sales per month in the lead-up to its demise.

Mr Lutz’s comments appear to about-face on G8 statements made by GM CEO Fritz Henderson, who poured cold water on the chances of US Commodore exports being revived under another brand when he said he was “not a fan of rebadging”.

As we reported in April, Holden has backed a plan that could see up to 40,000 Commodores exported to the US annually as law enforcement vehicles, alongside other similar potential deals in Canada, the UK and Middle East.

GM vice-chairman of global product development Tom Stephens, who replaced Mr Lutz in April, last month confirmed that discussions are taking place about continuing Commodore exports to the US under a badge other than the current Pontiac G8.

Mr Stephens backed comments from Holden management indicating that rebranding the performance sedan remained an option when he told US industry journal Automotive News: “I know there’s still discussions on it”.

Mr Lutz, who has described the alliance forged between the US and Australia as his “proudest accomplishment”, moved to an advisory role at GM on April 1 and will now continue on in that capacity within the new GM management structure announced last week.

He will extend his career as vice-chairman in charge of all “creative elements of products and customer relationships", with the marketing, advertising and communications chiefs of GM’s four continuing brands reporting to “for consistent messaging and results”.

“I am pleased to announce that we are 'unretiring' Bob Lutz so he can fill this important position in the new GM,” Henderson said in Friday’s news conference.

“He has a proven track record of unleashing creativity in the design and development of GM cars and trucks. This new role allows him to take that passion a step further, applying it to other parts of GM that connect directly with customers.”

Described by former GM chief Rick Wagoner as “a legendary automotive product guy” when he the ex-BMW, Ford and Chrysler executive in 2001, Mr Lutz has long been a champion of Holden’s global engineering and design role within the GM, which began with the MY2004 Pontiac GTO.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by Paxton

Is Lutz still in control?

I thought it was Henderson. We all know Lutz is Commodore's biggest proponent.

Luts is Vice chairman, but is meant to retire soon. But who knows what's going on.

[EgoFG]

I actually hope the Commo gets exports - but I dont trust anyone's comments on it - to many differing official opinions

[R-Design]

Originally Posted by vztrt

Luts is Vice chairman, but is meant to retire soon. But who knows what's going on.

New GM is starting to sound and look alot like Old GM. Funny isn't it!

[vztrt]

Brave new world for Holden

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...2575F200119FB9

Brave new world for Holden

GM looks east to Asia Pacific in new era of opportunity for Holden

By RON HAMMERTON 13 July 2009

GM HOLDEN will become part of a powerful new Asian-based global operation under the ‘New GM’ that emerged from General Motors’ Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Friday.

In a dramatic swing to the east, where GM operations have been smashing sales records in contrast to the company’s decline in the US and Europe, all of GM’s overseas operations will be managed from Shanghai under a new branch, GM International Operations.

It will be run by GM Asia Pacific president Nick Reilly, who has been promoted to GM vice president of international operations under the restructuring announced by GM CEO Fritz Henderson.

The decision reflects the rise of China and Korea in the GM orbit and the decline of GM Europe, where Opel, Vauxhall and Saab are all being sold off.

In China, GM and its local partners are on target to sell more than 1.6 millions vehicles this year, based on record first half sales of 814,441 units – up 38 per cent.

The move places Holden closer to the epicentre of GM’s overseas operations under Mr Reilly, who has overseen GM Holden as part of his Asia Pacific division.

Just last weekend, an Australian government delegation led by trade minister Simon Crean and industry minister Kim Carr visited China to push Holden’s case for stronger design and engineering links with GM affiliated car-makers, including Shanghai Auto and Wuling.

The decision by GM to put all of its overseas operations under one umbrella has the potential to break down borders between global regions and open up export opportunities for GM operations such as Holden, which a Holden insider said had a reputation within GM for quickly identifying opportunities and acting on them.

Such initiative is to be encouraged under the New GM – renamed General Motors Co – which has inherited the good parts of the old GM under the US government-sponsored and financed restructuring.

In the US, Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac and GMC have all been switched into the new company, along with 34 of the 47 factories in North America. Pontiac will be phased out and Saturn and Hummer sold.

The number of GM model nameplates will be slashed to 34 under the four “core brands”, according to Mr Henderson, who said: “Business as usual is over at GM.”

The dealer network is being cut from 6000 dealerships to 3600 by the end of next year, which still makes it the largest auto retail network in the US.

Mr Henderson, who will take personal responsibility for the North American market, has pledged to slash GM’s US executive workforce by 35 per cent to flatten the organisation and speed decision making. A single executive committee has been created to make decisions more quickly.

Mr Henderson said GM planned to hit the ground running with new models and 100 per cent plant production capacity by 2011.

“We expect to take the company public again as soon as practical, starting next year, and to repay our government loans as soon as possible,” he said. “We are required to pay off the loans by 2015, but our goal is to repay them much sooner.”

Mr Henderson confirmed the appointment of former AT&T phone company CEO Edward Whitacre Jr as the new GM chairman, and announced that Bob Lutz would reverse his retirement plans to take up a new role as vice-chairman “responsible for all creative elements of products and customer relations”.

The new GM begins life with US debt of $US11 billion ($A14.12b). The US treasury has become the biggest shareholder, holding 60.8 per cent, with the United Auto Workers union’s retiree medical benefits trust holding 17.5 per cent, the Canadian and Ontario governments 11.7 per cent and the “old GM” – mainly bondholders – 10 per cent.

The remnants of the 100-year-old GM will be liquidated.

Mr Henderson said GM had launched its new era with a clear and simple vision: “To design, build and sell the best vehicles in the world.”

“A successful auto company needs to focus on both the cost and revenues sides of the business,” he said.

“Success on the revenues side means building the stylish, high-quality, fuel-efficient vehicles that customers want – and getting them to market fast.”

[vztrt]

Holden motor exports rev up

http://business.theage.com.au/busine...0713-di9b.html

Holden motor exports rev up
Chris Zappone
July 13, 2009 - 1:53PM

Holden engine exports will more than triple in number in the next four years ''as a result of meetings'' between a Federal Government trade delegation and parent General Motors in Shanghai.

"We have met with General Motors and their joint venture partners, the largest automotive company in the People's Republic of China,'' Innovation Minister Kim Carr said in a statement over the weekend.

"We've seen part as a result of that conversation that engine exports from General Motors plants in Port Melbourne are likely to increase by 400 per cent over the next four years to move from a present 6000 volume through to a 20,000 (units) over a four-year period.''

Senator Carr's comments to reporters were overshadowed by a diplomatic spat between Australia and China over the arrest of Australian Rio Tinto employee, Stern Hu. Mr Hu was arrested on July 5, along with three other Rio employees in Shanghai, and is accused of obtaining secret information that hurt China's national interests.

In an earlier statement, Senator Carr's office said he and Minister for Trade Simon Crean would be meeting the Shanghai Automotive Industry Cooperation, Geely, Chery, Dongfeng and Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Co on their five-day trip to China to talk up Australia's automotive sector.

Holden officials in Australia were unable to comment immediately to the announcement about engine export.

At the same press conference in Shanghai Minister Crean said Australia's trade relationship with China would likely remain intact despite the recent detention of the four Rio Tinto staff.

"I see no reason why our trade relationships will be damaged,'' Mr Crean said. "If what we can get is an expedition of the process in accordance with Chinese law and in the process that the welfare of the Australian citizen is being properly had regard to.''

Holden's US parent General Motors emerged from bankruptcy over the weekend, pledging to innovate, produce smaller, more efficient cars and focus on core sectors of the market.

[Wally]

Holden seem to be falling on their feet. I guess they have been agressively out there doing things and not telling the journos.

[vztrt]

Holden set to benefit from China car boom

http://business.theage.com.au/busine...0713-di9b.html

Holden set to benefit from China car boom
Chris Zappone
July 13, 2009 - 5:35PM

Innovation Minister Kim Carr has predicted a wave of opportunities for Australian car makers and parts designers as the local industry capitalises on the development of the domestic Chinese car market.

Speaking by telephone from Anhui province, Senator Carr described the Chinese government's plan to foster 10 major car makers as "an extraordinary expansion of capacity''.

Beijing wants 10 car makers to supply 90 per cent of the domestic market, with about 9 million cars a year.

"This is an opportunity here for Australia because of the strength of our own industry and the capacity we have that can be shared with others,'' he said. "And it doesn't mean you have to move everything offshore.''

Australia would likely benefit through China's "keen interest'' in forging deals with "research institutes, universities and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation'' in order to improve and refine their nascent industry.

Holden 'not for sale'

Senator Carr dismissed suggestions China could eventually take a stake in General Motors' subsidiary Holden.

"Holden is not for sale,'' he said. "Those assets are regarded as very valuable.''

The Senator also deferred questions about the fate of Rio Tinto sales executive Stern Hu to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The Innovation Minister trade's trip has been overshadowed by a diplomatic spat between Australia and China over the arrest of Australian Rio Tinto employee, Stern Hu.

Mr Hu was arrested on July 5, along with three other Rio employees in Shanghai, and is accused of obtaining secret information that hurt China's national interests.

Tripling of engine exports

Holden engine exports will more than triple in number in the next four years said Senator Carr said earlier during his trip after meeting with Holden parent General Motors in Shanghai.

In the meetings, Senator Carr said he learned engine exports from General Motors plants in Port Melbourne are likely to increase over the next four years to move from 6000 units to about 20,000.

The engines, ranging in size from the 2.8 litre up to 3.6 litre, will be used in cars in the expanding "upper end'' of the automotive market in China, he said.

He also raised the possibility of Holden "knock-down'' kits exported from Australia for use in China.

The Senator gave no number or time frame for future production levels of the kits, which entail pre-built components to be fully assembled upon arrival in their destination market.

A Holden spokesman said the company anticipated an increase in V6 engine exports, particularly to the key Chinese market in coming years. "That's obviously contingent on future model programs in China.

"We very much appreciate the Government's support in promoting our expertise to important overseas markets," he said. "It is a clear demonstration of their commitment to an Australian automotive industry.

Holden's US parent General Motors emerged from bankruptcy over the weekend, pledging to innovate, produce smaller, more efficient cars and focus on core sectors of the market.

[Wally]

Meanwhile bored journos are refilling their poison pens for their next victim:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...falls-on-ford/

[Dave_au]

Originally Posted by Wally

Meanwhile bored journos are refilling their poison pens for their next victim:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...falls-on-ford/

That is true though, the Chapter 11 restructure of Chrysler and GM will leave Ford in the worst debt position; it's sort of the reward for better fiscal (or at least) debt management.

But regardless, the reason why ford is in the position it's currently in has to do more with luck that sound financial planning; ford just happened to be in a position to re-negotiate it's debt funding before the lenders closed their doors. Ford will be in the same puddle that GM and Chrysler are in within a year or 2 if the global economy doesn't improve.

[vztrt]

Overseer resignes.

http://www.caradvice.com.au/34986/he...force-resigns/

[Bossxr8]

Originally Posted by Wally

Meanwhile bored journos are refilling their poison pens for their next victim:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...falls-on-ford/

I don't get this. Doesn't GM and Chryslers bailout money need to be paid back? I thought it was a loan, not a handout. Wouldn't that mean their debts are still bigger than Fords or is it a case of the loans being interest free.

[R-Design]

Originally Posted by CarPoint

Penny pinching begins with a round of sponsorship cuts

http://carpoint.com.au/news/2009/bui...spending-15860

[Bossxr8]

I wonder if Bob Lutz sees the irony of bagging the previous management for their failures when he was one of them.

[imugli]

Apologies in advance if this has been posted already - didn't catch it in this thread or the Caprice thread...

Quoted from The Age

China's eye on Holden denied
John Garnaut
July 16, 2009
AN EXECUTIVE at China's third-largest car maker says the company has made contact about buying the Holden brand from its distressed American parent, General Motors, prompting immediate denials from Holden and the Rudd Government.

Li Shaozhu, vice-president of Dongfeng Motor Corporation, revealed his interest in Holden after leading Trade Minister Simon Crean and Industry Minister Kim Carr through his vast factories at Wuhan.

Asked whether his company ever considered buying an Australian auto maker such as GM's Holden, Mr Li said: "We are paying close attention to the impact the financial crisis has had on the international automotive industry and we're keen about utilising such resources."

Asked again specifically about Holden, Mr Li said: "We've been paying attention and there have been contacts" — at which point Mr Li's translator intervened and offered her own explanation.

Mr Li told the translator, again in Chinese: "You don't say what I didn't say", and the interview, recorded by BusinessDay, abruptly ended.

A spokesman for Holden denied in the strongest possible terms that the Australian board of the company had had any discussions about a sale.

The spokesman, Scott Wiffen, said he had spoken with managing director Mark Reuss and every member of the Holden board, as well as GM's China group president Kevin Wale and Asia Pacific boss Nick Reilly. All denied any contact.

"The suggestion that something is under way is more than just a little bit absurd — it is absolutely false."

Industry Minister Kim Carr was equally emphatic.

"The Australian subsidiaries of Ford, General Motors and Toyota are not for sale," Mr Carr told BusinessDay.

Mr Carr rang back to say he had spoken to the entire Holden board, the Holden general manager and a senior spokesman for Dongfeng.

"General Motors Holden has had no contact with Dongfeng, the assets are not for sale, and there has been no change to that position," said Mr Carr.

"Dongfeng are interested in investments in Australia but the discussions we have had regarded components manufacturers and the possibility of other components from Australian producers which could include engines," he said.

"We discussed many, many options, and are in the process of establishing a working group to discuss."

A Department of Treasury spokesman said any overseas bid for Holden was likely to trigger the involvement of the Foreign Investment Review Board, but he warned that the board kept its discussions out of the public arena, so as not to prejudice the companies involved.

China made more than 1 million light vehicles in the month of June and JD Power forecasts that it will make 10.8 million this year.

The United States is forecast to produce just 10 million units and Australia 890,000.

With ANDREW HEASLEY

[vztrt]

Seems GM is cutting alternative fuel budget.

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...2575F5000294FA

GM fuel-cell champion calls it quits

Larry Burns set to retire as GM reshapes its post-bankruptcy R&D

By RON HAMMERTON 16 July 2009

ONE of the motor industry’s leading champions for alternative fuels, General Motors vice president for research and development Dr Larry Burns, will follow his one-time boss, Rick Wagoner, out the door as GM continues to reshape its management team in the wake of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

While former chairman and CEO Mr Wagoner will leave with a $10 million ($A12.5m) golden parachute on August 1, Dr Burns, 58, will retire in somewhat more modest circumstances at the end of September, handing over to his deputy, executive director of research and development Alan Taub, 54.

Industry speculation in Detroit suggests Dr Burns may be disillusioned by cuts to his budget for development of alternative-fuel cars, including hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles such as the Sequel concept car.

The confirmation of his impending retirement was accompanied by another GM announcement saying GM’s global research and development organisation would be rolled into its global product development department immediately.

GM said the move to combine the departments represented “another important step in GM's reinvention into a leaner, more efficient, more agile company”.

“It aligns GM's technology groups into an integrated team,” it said.

If Dr Burns was bitter about the changes, there was no hint of it in a statement attributed to him and passed on by GM public relations to US web site Inside Line: “Much of the technology developed during my tenure at R&D is ready for commercialisation. This is a good time for me to pass the baton to others who are very qualified to drive technology leadership.”

Just last year, Dr Burns visited GM Holden in Australia where he took time out from his official GM duties to visit Melbourne’s Bionic Ear Institute to pay tribute to the pioneers of the cochlear ear implant which helped him to hear again after he suddenly lost his hearing 16 years ago.

Dr Burns, who spent 40 years with GM, advocated a multi-pronged approach to solving the energy crisis, saying no single solution held the key. He nurtured research programs into ethanol, electric cars, hybrids and other alternatives within GM, while maintaining development programs to refine current internal combustion engines for greater fuel efficiency.

In Australia, he suggested that gas – LPG and CNG – was the ideal mid-term solution to a looming oil shortage in this country, because it was not only better for the environment but also plentiful.

In the US, his hopes to launch a hydrogen fuel-cell car by 2010 tripped up on a lack of hydrogen fuel infrastructure. These vehicles appear to be indefinitely on the back burner at GM, which cannot afford such R&D luxuries right now.

GM’s former chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner – forced out by the Obama administration as it rode to the financial rescue of the ailing company in March – will formally retire on August 1 with a pension and benefit package the automaker valued at more than $10 million.

Wagoner, 56, will get $1.64 million ($A2.05m) in annual benefits for each of the next five years, plus an annual pension of $74,030 for the rest of his life, according to company documents filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

The former CEO, who spent 32 years with the company, can also choose to cash out his company-provided life insurance policy at $2.6 million ($A3.2m), according to the filing.

In other GM moves, group vice president and general counsel, Bob Osborne, will return to private legal practice after guiding GM through its Chapter 11 legal problems.

He will be replaced by associate general counsel, Michael Millikin, 60.

[vztrt]

G8 project is offically dead.

http://www.caradvice.com.au/35327/bo...a-at-the-time/

Bob Lutz: Pontiac G8 “a good idea at the time”

GM Vice Chairman, Bob Lutz, has undeniably confirmed that the G8 sedan will indeed die with the Pontiac brand – full stop.

While standing by his previous comment that the Australian-developed sedan was “too good to waste”, from a marketing perspective the task of reassigning the G8 to another brand is just impossible to achieve.

Mr Lutz made the official announcement on GM’s FastLane Blog earlier today, mentioning that as a fan of the G8 he could sympathise with its supporters although simply could not justify the cost of rebranding.

“I know that we’ll get a lot of complaints from G8 lovers, because I’m one of them. And the product guy in me is complaining as loudly as anyone. But the marketing guy says there’s no case. With budgets being what they are for the time being, the resources must be allocated elsewhere.”

The Australian engineering team behind the Pontiac G8 was also given special mention in the announcement, with Mr Lutz confirming that GM would again turn to Holden for its expertise in the future, “just not right now”.

Here is the full statement from GM Vice Chairman, Bob Lutz.

It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time…

By Bob Lutz
GM Vice Chairman

OK, I have some late-breaking news for you from the world of GM, where things are indeed moving quickly, and what I’m about to say is proof.

In fact, we’re moving so fast, we’re going back in time to, oh, about four or five days ago, when the Pontiac G8 was going away and was not going to become a new Chevrolet Caprice.

And therein lies the news: The G8 will not be a Caprice after all. I’d mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste.

That’s all still true. But I have to say that, with my new “marketing” hat on, upon further review and careful study, we simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today’s market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be.

I know that we’ll get a lot of complaints from G8 lovers, because I’m one of them. And the product guy in me is complaining as loudly as anyone. But the marketing guy says there’s no case. With budgets being what they are for the time being, the resources must be allocated elsewhere.

In no way, and this is very important, in no way does this mean we are backing away from performance, or backing away from rear-wheel drive. Look no further for proof than the Corvette, the Camaro, the CTS or many other present and future Cadillacs. We have a strong lineup of RWD vehicles already and we will continue to have it.

And we have a tremendous RWD team in Australia that gave us the beloved G8, a team that we will tap into at some point again in the future for its expertise and sheet metal. Just not right now.

[z80]

"And we have a tremendous RWD team in Australia that gave us the beloved G8, a team that we will tap into at some point again in the future for its expertise and sheet metal. Just not right now. "


ROFL......yep....Holden are good at sheet metal expertise.

Forget engines,transmissions,ECU's,wheels,tyres,instrumen ts....etc
That just about sums up all Australian car makers now doesn't it?

With over 90% of components imported I can't see any long term future.

[vztrt]

GM kills Holden’s US Caprice dream

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...2575F9000A9092

GM kills Holden’s US Caprice dream

Caprice export hopes bites dust in Lutz about-face, but US police car program lives

By MARTON PETTENDY 20 July 2009

THE on-again, off-again plan to resurrect a high-volume export program for Holden’s ill-fated Pontiac G8 by rebadging the Commodore-based vehicle as a Chevrolet Caprice appears to finally have been cancelled for good.

The bad news was relayed on the official General Motors web blog late last week by GM product and marketing chief, Bob Lutz, who a week earlier had revealed the Chevrolet plan, along with confirming GM was investigating a potentially lucrative plan to employ the same vehicle for law enforcement work in the US.

That scenario was backed last week by GM CEO Fritz Henderson, who pre-empted the axing of the Chevrolet plan when he told US website Autoblog: “We've been looking at it for police applications. As for whether or not it’s broader than police applications, I am not a believer in re-branding and re-badging.

“We've been talking about in terms of potential police applications and we'll leave it at that.”

GM Holden would not directly comment on the failed Chevrolet export bid this week, and remained coy about the Commodore’s export potential as a law enforcement vehicle.

“I think when Bob floated the possibility of the G8 being rebadged as a Chevy Caprice we said we had nothing to add and, well, nothing's changed on that front,” said spokesman Scott Whiffin.

“There’s obviously plenty of balls in the air for GM in the US at the moment and they are understandably putting the resources where they are most needed.

“In terms of export opportunities, we've said all along we're active on that front but just now we have nothing to announce.”

Holden’s profitable export deal to export the Commodore as the Pontiac G8 in the US and Canada ended when GM pulled the pin on its historic Pontiac brand in April.

Mr Lutz put the final nail in the G8/Caprice coffin July 16, when he blamed current market conditions and future corporate fuel consumption requirements on the plan’s demise.

“Okay, I have some late-breaking news for you from the world of GM, where things are indeed moving quickly, and what I’m about to say is proof,” he said.

“In fact, we’re moving so fast, we’re going back in time to, oh, about four or five days ago, when the Pontiac G8 was going away and was not going to become a new Chevrolet Caprice.

“And therein lies the news: The G8 will not be a Caprice after all. I’d mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste.

“That’s all still true. But I have to say that, with my new ‘marketing’ hat on, upon further review and careful study, we simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today’s market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be.

“I know that we’ll get a lot of complaints from G8 lovers, because I’m one of them. And the product guy in me is complaining as loudly as anyone. But the marketing guy says there’s no case. With budgets being what they are for the time being, the resources must be allocated elsewhere.”

The newly-appointed GM vice-president stressed the still-born Commodore/Caprice deal did not spell the end of other current or future rear-drive models from GM – nor of future US export models from Holden.

“In no way, and this is very important, in no way does this mean we are backing away from performance, or backing away from rear-wheel drive,” he said.

“Look no further for proof than the Corvette, the Camaro, the CTS or many other present and future Cadillacs. We have a strong line-up of RWD vehicles already and we will continue to have it.

“And we have a tremendous RWD team in Australia that gave us the beloved G8, a team that we will tap into at some point again in the future for its expertise and sheet metal. Just not right now.”

[R-Design]

Originally Posted by imugli

AN EXECUTIVE at China's third-largest car maker says the company has made contact about buying the Holden brand from its distressed American parent, General Motors, prompting immediate denials from Holden and the Rudd Government.

I couldn't think of a more appropriate buyer. China's third-largest to buy Australia's (soon to be) third-largest...

[ltd]

Surely a chinese buyer would not want to buy into a company with a unionised (more expensive) workforce that what China has to offer? I can't see the faithful loving the "All Australian car with Chinese Parents" for too long can you?

"Mahjiong, dim sum, name like chen and holden cars".

What about their Korean sourced cars too (Epica, Astra, Barina, Viva, Craptiva, colorado, vectra)? I can't imagine the chinese wanting to deal with south korea on rebadging cars, they'll stick their own in.

When you think of it though, if it did come out that Holden was sold to the chinese I believe that Commodore would be dead within 2 years. They'll keep commodore yet import Geely or whatever to replace the Daewoos, then when the market finally accepts the rebranded chen holden, they'll kill off the commodore as it will not be profitable enough for the new management.

[R-Design]

Originally Posted by ltd

Surely a chinese buyer would not want to buy into a company with a unionised (more expensive) workforce that what China has to offer? I can't see the faithful loving the "All Australian car with Chinese Parents" for too long can you?

I doubt they'd be interested in any of GMH's Assets, instant brand credibility is what they're after. What GMH's done rebranding GM Daewoo's already show's what's possible when you've got the Holden name behind you.

GM could hold on to the plant and machinery and rebrand their range as Chevy's. I wonder what impact it'd have on their market share?