We first saw this car when it made an appearance as Sideswipe in the hit movie Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and while we had an inkling as to what car would eventually be, it wasn’t until a few days ago when GM officially lifted the covers off to introduce its real name: the 50th Anniversary Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Concept.
Developed mainly to infuse and combine design elements from iconic Stingrays of the past to create a more cutting-edge version for the future, the 50th Anniversary Corvette Stingray Concept is an eye-catcher in every sense of the word.
According to General Motors, the Corvette Stingray Concept was a project undertaken with the sole objective of taking the brand to newer heights, all while retaining its iconic legacy. So in an effort to puts some weight behind their goal, GM left no stones unturned in developing a concept that its predecessors can be proud of. Among the features found in the Corvette Stingray Concept is a clamshell hood, scissor doors, rear-view cameras with night vision enhancement, ergonomic seats, and of course, a high-performance hybrid. In addition to that, the car also comes with a state-of-the-art inertactive touch control system that allows drivers to manipulate the cars power and efficiency depending on their liking as well as use their settings to share with other people via the cars advanced telemetrics and in-car system.
With a brand that’s as esteemed as the Stingray, it would’ve been foolish for GM to not exert any and all efforts in creating a car that can live up to the legend of the iconic brand. Fortunately, GM knows better than most of us that preserving the status held by the Stingray in the annals of automotive lore is something that should never be taken lightly, and the 50th Anniversary Corvette Stingray Concept is proof of that.
General Motors is the only automotive manufacturer to offer OnStar, a service that provides a variety of subscription based communications like: in vehicle security, hands free calling, turn by turn navigation and remote diagnostics systems. However as one lucky California resident learned, the little blue button in his Chevrolet Tahoe can do so much more. Thanks to the advent of Stolen Vehicle Slowdown, only 16 minutes after Jose Ruiz and his cousin were accosted by a carjacker wielding a firearm, The satellite service was able to bring his 2009 Tahoe to a halt, bringing what could have been an exhausting and endangering car chase to a halt.
This occasion marks the first time that the OnStar SVS technology has been activated to help in a carjacking situation. SVS helps take high speed pursuits out of the equation, and reduces the chance that a stolen vehicle will be crashed during a chase. Once a subscriber has reported a stolen vehicle they can call and request the service. The advisor will then use advanced GPS technology to pinpoint the location of the vehicle and notify law enforcement. When police have the vehicle in sight, they can request the advisor send a signal that interacts with the vehicle’s engine, gradually slowing it down, aiding in a safe recovery. So the next time that any carjacker thinks about boosting a new car, they ought to think twice about stealing a GM vehicle.
After months of negotiations and a few bumps in the road along the way, General Motors has finally reached an agreement with China’s Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery to sell an 80% stake of Hummer to the China-based company.
News of the impending sale have been floating around for months now but for a time, the deal was met with some strong resistance from the Chinese government especially since the proposed purchase of a gas-guzzling vehicle like Hummer goes against the country’s new protocol of becoming more eco-friendly out on the roads.
But now it seems that the road to the sale has been smoothened out and while the deal still needs approval from a number of regulatory agencies in the US and China, it’s looking like it’s only a matter of time before Hummer finds a new home out on the Far East.
For its part, Tengzhong’s foray into the world of consumer vehicles is a step away from its comfort zone of only producing commercial trucks and industrial equipment. Nevertheless, the company is optimistic that it can make a seamless transition into producing fuel-efficient vehicles down the road.
According to Tengzhong’s CEO, Yang Yi: "We are excited about some of the initiatives already underway at HUMMER that we believe our investment will be able to accelerate, particularly related to the creation of the next generation of more fuel-efficient vehicles to meet not only future regulations but also customer expectations."
As part of the deal, GM will continue producing Hummer vehicles in its plants until June of 2011 with a possible one-year extension until 2012.
Less than two months after General Motors launched a partnership with eBay to sell their vehicles in California, the automakers have decided against renewing the contract with eBay that was supposed to be set up for extension after September.
While the program generated mixed results across the board, GM eventually decided to scrap it after officially launching its ‘may the best car win’ nationwide marketing and advertising campaign . GM spokesman John McDonald made it clear to Automotive News that while the eBay program was an exciting initiative in the beginning; it eventually had to be scrapped to give way to GM’s turn to a new direction.
The GM-eBay program didn’t fare very well as far as online purchases were concerned. But, according to McDonald, the program did generate a ton of attention from prospective buyers, most of which used the eBay program as a stepping stone to eventually buying a car from their local dealerships.
For the meantime, GM is now solely focused on their new ‘may the best car win’ campaign, as well as their new 60-day money back guarantee promotion.
Now that General Motors has survived the financial crisis, the company is setting its sights on reinventing itself after going through perhaps the most tenuous time in its history.
As part of its new marketing effort to get back on the good side of America, GM will be releasing a series of commercials showing that the company is back in the automotive ball game.
We’re pretty happy to see that GM has finally put its troubles behind them and is slowly but surely getting back on its feet. And while some folks would say ‘welcome back’, we’re reserving our return greetings because we don’t think that the company never left in the first place.
The commercials debuted last night during the Emmy Awards and on a number of other NFL games. In case you missed an of them, here are the ads for your viewing pleasure.
The Cadillac Converj has caused quite a stir amongst the head honchos of General Motors.
Ever since it made a successful debut at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this year, the fate of the Converj – which is based on the Chevy Volt – has been a hot topic of debate but now, it appears that GM’s big brass is finally on the verge – we say ‘on the verge’ because with GM, anything can still happen – of putting the Converj up for production.
But it’s not entirely the fault of the bosses at GM. The economic crisis and, to be more specific, GM’s filing for bankruptcy a few months ago all but spelled doom and gloom for the Converj. But now that GM has somehow regained its footing, a number of GM higher-ups, including vice chairman Bob Lutz, have steadily voiced their support to – finally – build the car.
While General Motors and Ford seem to be on the right track to re-establishing their brands in America, the same cannot be said for Chrysler.
In a recent survey highlighting vehicle quality, Chrysler seems to have fallen way short compared to its two other American competitors. It’s another blow to a company that, like GM and Ford, is trying to regain its foothold in America.
After a series of bad decisions, which was aggravated by the global economic crisis, it seems that Chrysler would – or should - have done something, especially in terms of producing high-quality vehicles, before the whole thing went into a tailspin.
The alarming figures for Chrysler begin with the fact that more than half of its cars were rated below Consumer Reports’ testing and subscriber survey. Compounding the situation even more is that this particular survey is one of the largest running surveys on vehicle quality. This year alone, the magazine has collected responses on 1.4 million vehicles.
After months of negotiations – including an almost deal-breaking episode – General Motors and Koenigsegg have finally reached an agreement over the transfer of the much-maligned Saab brand from the American auto giant to the Swedish supercar makers. GM confirmed that it had reached a stock purchase agreement, transferring Saab to its compatriot, Koenigsegg. While this is the latest significant step undertaken by both parties, the completion of the deal is still subject to a number of issues, not the least of which is how Koenigegg will go about financing this deal.
While the agreement certainly clears up a few potential stumbling blocks, Joran Hagglund, the Swedish government’s main liaison to the auto industry, remains cautious saying that, "The most decisive factor" is whether Koenigsegg can raise additional capital required.” One of the last remaining hurdles before the completion of this sale is finalized is Saab’s loan request, which is estimated at around 500 million Euros, and whether the Swedish government can commit to granting this loan without making any intention of providing state support to the beleaguered auto brand.
In any event, the final decision on whether Saab gets the loan will be handed out when the EIB reconvenes on September 22. In the mean time, the agreement of transfer between GM and Koenigsegg marks as the biggest step undertaken by both brands in completing this deal as soon as possible.
For those who know their American car history, they would know that the name ‘Pontiac’ is synonymous to ‘American original’.
For over 80 years, Pontiac has been responsible for producing some of the most iconic vehicles in the US, responsible for the likes of the Bonneville, the GTO, the Grand-Am, and the Firebird. But while Pontiac has enjoyed a remarkable run, spanning generations of Americans, the road has finally come to an end for Pontiac.
And as soon as the last production Pontiac vehicle - the Pontiac Solstice – rolls out of the plant, Pontiac’s doors will now forever be closed.
For the longest time, General Motors was the undisputed champion in car sales in Canada among American manufacturers. It seemed that GM’s invincibility north of the border would never go challenged, that is until Ford turned the tables on the perennial powerhouse in June.
Ford rose to the top of the June monthly sales in Canada with 27,408 cars sold in June, supplanting General Motors on the top of the list for the first time in 50 years. Ford’s total sales are a little over 5,000 more than GM, which sold 22,334 cars. Ford’s surprising surge to the top was in large part caused by the high demand for locally-manufactured Ford vehicles including the Crown Victoria, the Grand Marquis and the Lincoln Town Car. The Crown Victoria’s high demand among Canadians stems from the fact that these cars are widely used as fleets of taxi cabs and police cruisers all over the country.
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