Drew Dowdell

US: Ghosn lays groundwork for today's GM talks 14 July 2006| Source: just-auto.com editorial team As the CEOs of General Motors and Renault -Nissan gear up for their much anticipated meeting today (14/7), speculation surrounding the structure of any possible alliance between the motoring giants continues to mount. The meeting between Rick Wagoner and Carlos Ghosn comes a week after the board of GM agreed to engage in exploratory discussions with Renault and Nissan regarding GM's potential participation in an alliance among the three companies. Neither side has so far commented on the schedule for today’s meeting. However, Ghosn appeared to use the media yesterday to diffuse potential opposition to the deal. In an interview with CNBC, the CEO of Nissan-Renault, ruled out the idea that he would also become head of GM through any deal struck. "I'm not going to run any other third company. That's not what is at stake here," Ghosn said. "What is at stake here is building an alliance with a third company and supporting this company.” He added: “I'm saying categorically it's out of the question that I'll add on top of my two present responsibilities, which is being CEO of Renault and Nissan, another one." Ghosn went on to hint that a tie-up between the three groups could also save jobs in the US. He explained that Nissan needed more production capacity in the US, and rather than invest in new plants, Nissan could use GM’s closed down plants to build its vehicles. ''I think if we agree on an alliance, well, you may stop some of the job losses and you may probably reduce some of the plant closings, for a very simple reason. Let me give you an example. Nissan needs more capacity in North America,'' he said. As reported in just-auto, earlier this week Ghosn said he had ruled out a hostile approach to GM if a tie-up does not result from talks between the companies. However he added that if an alliance does result, it would be necessary to take a stake in GM. He ruled out zero participation “because if an agreement seems informal, it won't last. Financial participation is a sort of obligation.” In his interview yesterday, Ghosn said he had not had talks with Ford about an expanded alliance of the kind being discussed with General Motors.

It occured to me this morning that the recent explorer upgrade looks more significant than the Altima refresh.... simply in appearance.

I dunno, these could be some pretty badassed mini-vans.

find the part at a junk yard I replaced a center console cover, shift nob, cupholder, and headlight switch in my '94 Cutlass from a parts car at a junkyard. Looked perfect when done.

The new Altima is going to turn their slump around? You can barely tell the difference between the old one and the new one. The Sentra is nice, but nothing to pin hopes on. Certainly not enough to get people to switch from their Corollas and Civics. Maxima's sales have dropped through the floor.

For Ford's entry, drop a S/C 5.4 litre under the hood of the Lincoln LS..... oh wait..

GE's divisions are all releated in some way. Lightbulbs, appliances, generators, electric motors, locomotives, jet engines What does building pre-fab houses have to do with building camrys?

To check the coil pack(s), take a wire off a sparkplug, stick a philips screwdriver in the end of it and hold on to the metal part while a friend tries to start the engine. You'll instantly know if the coil pack is good or not.

Some Toyota Companies Have No Automotive Connection Link Remember the days when GM owned ElectroMotive, air-conditioning and appliance companies, rental car companies, and probably many others? Are we seeing Toyota's 2006 that will roughly end up being GM's 1957...without the style? At least most of GM's endevors had some sort of tie in to the main business. What does building pre-fab houses have to do with building cars?

Of all of those, I'd go for the Phantom.

I thought we were moving *away* from jellybeans....

Wow it's a porker for not being BOF. hey, what'd you do with those spreadsheets!?

Toyota:Moving Forward...whether you want to or not... in 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th.... in random directions when the steering wheel falls off.... and shards of glass are raining down on your head while your baby is blown out the window by the airbag.

the cars will... the owners might not...

have sales started to drop? This news is all of a week old.... if it doesn't get much major press coverage, the general public won't even notice. That said, Hyundai and Honda will benefit most on the lower end. GM and BMW most on the high end.

my biggest overall complaint about the Civic is road noise road noise road noise..... having to absolutely flog the engine to get anywhere is annoying too a manual transmission civic is about the only manual I have difficulty with.... I'm always stalling them out because I"m not used to reving to 17 million RPM <yes an exageration> before letting out the clutch.

Toyota:Moving Forward...whether you want to or not... in 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th gear.... in random directions when the steering wheel falls off.... and shards of glass are raining down on your head while your baby is blown out the window by the airbag.

There had better decades of rust on the rotors for them to case a shake.

and do what exactly, hit the gas and that engine will rip itself out through the front end of the car taking the 4-speed with it.

I think he mentions it because the size of the glass is similar.

Link - Subscription req. 12 July 2006| Source: just-auto.com editorial team More recall trouble may be brewing for Toyota in the US where the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is eyeing Scion tC sunroofs. The safety agency opened an investigation following nine reports of shattered glass panels – seven involving the retractable glass panel section and two the stationary glass section. Some reports allege that breakage occurred while vehicles were being driven and one complainant reported cuts from the broken glass – all apparently ended up with an interior full of glass fragments. If the investigation turns up a safety-related defect, NHTSA could could order a full recall.

by "all" you mean 1 and 1/2 right? Vue = GMNA Aura = 1/2 GMNA 1/2 Opel Astra = all Opel Outlook = GMNA Sky = GMNA Relay = GMNA

your anti-virus needs to be updated....