GM

[HarleyEarl]

November 24, 2005 GM promises product benefits from business cuts by Alex Law , Auto123 Fate may play a card or two that will change things for everyone concerned, but it looks like future General Motors' consumers will benefit from the company's recent decision to close a bunch of plants and damage the lives of thousands and thousands of its workers and their families. This is apparently the accepted modus operandi in today's global auto society. GM CEO Rick Wagoner (Photo: General Motors of Canada) For consumers, it will mean more money for GM to spend on new and improved products and technologies, or so says Rick Wagoner, the company's CEO and chairman. "I want to emphasize that besides the cost-cutting aspects of our turnaround plan," Wagoner said in making the announcement on Monday morning, adding that "we remain equally committed to the revenue drivers -- introducing great cars and trucks, and executing our revitalized sales and marketing strategy." GM North America (GMNA) in particular will "continue with its aggressive product assault on all vehicle segments," he said. "To target key growth segments with the right products, GM earlier this year increased capital expenditures, with the vast majority of that increase going toward future car and truck programs. This increased investment will allow GM to average 15 all-new entries a year in the North American market for the foreseeable future." Saturn VUE Green Line (Photo: General Motors of Canada) Wagoner said GM remains "committed to a diversified portfolio of hybrid cars and trucks, including hybrid versions of the Saturn VUE, Chevrolet Malibu, and the next generation of GM full-size pickups and SUVs." On top of that, he said, GM will also "continue to lead in the implementation of other fuel savings technologies," such as Displacement on Demand and six-speed transmissions. GMNA also will expand its offerings of ethanol-capable vehicles using E85 fuel. "To help drive additional sales in the future," said Wagoner, "the product plan includes a heavy emphasis on high-growth segments, such as crossovers, compact and luxury SUVs, large pickups and entry-level luxury cars." GM 6-speed transmission (Photo: General Motors of Canada) Wagoner said there were already signs that GM's product offensive was getting traction with consumers in Canada and the U.S., highlighting such vehicles as the Chevrolet Cobalt, HHR and Impala, Cadillac DTS, Pontiac Solstice, and Buick Lucerne, among others. He also said that the new full-sized SUVs due to start arriving in January are already being "well received by customers and the media alike." About a year after the new SUVs from Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac start to arrive in dealerships, GM will start to show off an entire new lineup of full-size pickups, and the first applications of its two-mode hybrid powertrain. Wagoner also laid out a strategy "designed to improve significantly the company's performance in the retail marketplace." GM Hybrid pickups (Photo: General Motors of Canada) This means "strengthening GM's automotive brands, marketing that emphasizes the inherent value of GM cars and trucks, completing GM's distribution channel strategy, and aggressively targeting markets where GM has underperformed against the competition."

[aaaantoine]

I don't like this guy's tone in the beginning of the article. Listen, do you want great cars, or do you want an overabundance of legacy costs? Because you can't have both in today's economy.

[knightfan26917]

November 24, 2005
GM promises product benefits from business cuts
by Alex Law , Auto123 

Fate may play a card or two that will change things for everyone concerned, but it looks like future General Motors' consumers will benefit from the company's recent decision to close a bunch of plants and damage the lives of thousands and thousands of its workers and their families.

This is apparently the accepted modus operandi in today's global auto society.

Um. It isn't just the auto society that utilizes this "modus operandi". Look around ... there are other companies/industries doing the exact same thing....

*shakes head*


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"How much longer will they be around?" ... Don Williams ... 'Old Coyote Town'

[Sixty8panther]

It's simple Knightfan, if Toyota & Honda are God's gift to the Automotive World then someone has to be the bad guy.... who do you suppose they've been villifying for the past 30 years. Nothing personal, it's just 'modus operandi' for the media since they're too stupid and lazy to report the truth. Mean time every Toyota you buy means a Baby Seal gets saved from clubbing.