General Motors Corporation

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{{Infobox_Company| company_name = General Motors Corporation | company_logo = ] | company_type = Public ({{NYSE|GM-->| | company_slogan = | foundation = 1908 | location_city = {{flagicon|USA--> [Detroit, [Michigan | location_country = [USA | location =
manufacturing facilities in 30 U.S. states and 33 countries | key_people = [Rick Wagoner, Chairman & [CEO
[Robert A. Lutz, Vice Chairman
[Frederick Henderson, [Chief Financial Officer
| num_employees = 284,000 (2007) {{cite web|url=http://www.gm.com/corporate/about/company.jsp|title=General Motors Company Profile|accessdate=Oct 2|accessyear=2007--> | industry = [Automotive | products = [Automobiles
[Engines
[Financial Services | revenue = {{profit-->$207.349 billion U.S. dollar (2006)[http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/40730/000095012407001502/k11916e10vk.htm#111 General Motors Corporation Annual Report | net_income = {{loss-->$1.978 billion U.S. dollar (2006)[http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/40730/000095012407001502/k11916e10vk.htm#111 General Motors Corporation Annual Report | homepage = http://www.gm.com/ www.gm.com -->

General Motors Corporation, also known as GM, an United States multinational corporation, is the world's largest auto company by annual production volume for 2006, and the second largest by sales volume as of the first half of 2007, behind Toyota Motor Corporation. Founded in 1908, in Flint, Michigan, GM employs approximately 284,000 people around the world. With global headquarters at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan, Michigan, United States, GM manufactures its cars and trucks in 33 countries. Their European headquarters are based in Zurich, Switzerland.Their Holden headquarters are in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Australia. In 2006, 9.18 million GM cars and trucks were produced globally under the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC (General Motors division), Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saab Automobile, Saturn Corporation and Vauxhall Motors. GM is the majority shareholder in GM Daewoo of South Korea and has had collaborative ventures in technology and manufacturing with several of the world's automakers.

GM Parts and accessories are sold under GM Performance Division, GM Goodwrench and Delco Electronics brands through GM Service and Parts Operations which supplies GM dealerships and distributors worldwide. GM engines and transmissions are marketed through GM Powertrain. GM's largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany. GM half owns a finance company, General Motors Acceptance Corporation, which offers automotive, residential and commercial financing and insurance. GM's OnStar subsidiary is a vehicle safety, security and information service provider.

History in Detroit, Michigan, is General Motors' world headquarters

General Motors (GM) was founded on September 16, 1908 in Flint, Michigan, as a holding company for Buick, then controlled by William C. Durant, and acquired Oldsmobile later that year. The next year, Durant brought in Cadillac, Elmore (automobile), Oakland automobile (later known as Pontiac) and several others. In 1909, General Motors acquired the Reliance Motor Truck Company of Owosso, Michigan, and the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company of Pontiac, Michigan, the predecessors of GMC Truck. Durant lost control of GM in 1910 to a bankers' trust, because of the large amount of debt taken on in its acquisitions coupled with a collapse in new vehicle sales. A few years later, Durant would start the Chevrolet Motor car company and through this he secretly purchased a controlling interest in GM. Durant took back control of the company after one of the most dramatic proxy wars in American business history. Shortly after, he again lost control for good after the new vehicle market collapsed. Alfred Sloan was picked to take charge of the corporation and led it to its post war global dominance. This unprecedented growth of GM would last through the late 70's and into the early 80's.

Corporate governance Current members of the board of directors of General Motors are: Percy Barnevik, Erskine Bowles, John Bryan, Armando Codina, Erroll Davis, George Fisher, Karen Katen, Kent Kresa, Ellen Kullman, Philip Laskawy, Kathryn V. Marinello, Eckhard Pfeiffer, and G. Richard Wagoner Jr. who also serves as Chairman of the board.

Executives

CEO and Chairman: G. Richard Wagoner Jr.
Vice Chairman: Robert A. Lutz
VP Global Design: Ed Welburn
CFO: Frederick "Fritz" Henderson
President GMNA: Troy Clarke

Corporate structure General Motors is structured into the following groups:

GMAP - Asia-Pacific
GME - Europe
GM LAAM - Latin America, Africa and the Middle East
GMNA - North America
GMAC Finance and insurance services
SPO Service, Parts and Operations
Other Operations

Social policies General Motors was named one of the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers" in 2004 by Working Mothers magazine. GM has also given millions of dollars in computers to colleges of Engineering through its PACE Awards program. $116 million PACE gift puts Purdue students in drivers' seat (September 26, 2006) Purdue News. Retrieved on May 8, 2007. Together with the United Auto Workers, GM created a joint venture dedicated to the quality of life needs of employees in 1985. The UAW-GM Center for Human Resources in Detroit is dedicated to providing GM salaried employees and GM UAW members programs and services related to medical care, diversity issues, education, training and tuition assistance, as well as programs related to work and family concerns, in addition to the traditional union-employer health and safety partnership.[https://www.uawgmjas.org/j/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 "Welcome to the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources". UAW-GM Joint Activity System. Retrieved on June 19, 2007.

Marketing At one time, each of GM's automotive divisions were targeted to specific market segments and despite some shared components, each distinguished itself from its stablemates with unique styling and technology. The shared components and common corporate management created substantial economy of scale, while the distinctions between the divisions created an orderly upgrade path, with an entry-level buyer starting out with a practical and economical Chevrolet and moving through offerings of the different divisions until the purchase of a Cadillac. The divisions were not competition with each other as much as passing along the same customer who would thus always be buying a GM product.

The postwar automobile industry became enamored with the concept of "planned obsolescence", implemented by both technical and styling innovations with a typical 3-year product cycle. In this cycle, a new basic body shell is introduced and then modified for the next two years with minor styling changes. GM, Ford Motor Company, and Chrysler Corporation competed vigorously in this new restyling environment.

Distinguishing the brands By 1958, the divisional distinctions within GM began to blur with the availability of high-performance engines in Chevrolets and Pontiacs. The introduction of higher trim models such as the Chevrolet Impala and Pontiac Bonneville priced in line with some Oldsmobile and Buick offerings was also confusing to consumers. By the time Pontiac, Oldsmobile and Buick introduced similarly styled and priced compact models in 1961, the old "step-up" structure between the divisions was nearly over.

Compacts arrive The 1960s saw the creation of compact and intermediate classes. The Chevrolet Corvair was a 6-cylinder answer to the Volkswagen Beetle, the Chevy II was created to match Ford's conventional Ford Falcon (North America) and the Chevrolet Camaro/Pontiac Firebird was GMs counter measure to the Ford Mustang. Among intermediates, the Oldsmobile Cutlass nameplate became so popular during the 1970s that Oldsmobile applied the Cutlass name to most of its products in the 1980s. By the mid 1960s, most of GM's vehicles were built on a few common platforms and in the 1970s GM began to use nearly identical body panel stampings, differing only in internal and external trim items.

The 1971 Chevrolet Vega was GMs launch into the new subcompact class. Problems associated with its innovative aluminum engines would damage GMs reputation more than perhaps any other vehicle in its history. During the late 1970s, GM would initiate a wave of downsizing starting with the Chevrolet Caprice which was reborn into what was the size of the Chevrolet Chevelle, the Malibu would be the size of the Nova, and the Nova was replaced by the troubled front-wheel drive Citation.

Rebadging era By the 1980s, GM frequently "rebadged" one division's successful vehicle into several models across the divisions, all positioned close to one another in the market place. Thus a new GM model's main competition might be another model spawned off the same platform. This led to market "Cannibal#Other uses of the word" with the divisions spending time stealing sales from one another. Even today, the company's GMT360 mid-sized light truck platform has spawned the basic Chevrolet Trailblazer, Oldsmobile Bravada, GMC Envoy, Isuzu Ascender, Buick Rainier and Saab 9-7X. Though each model had a more or less unique mission, the trucks can hardly be discerned from one another.

GM in the new century In the late 1990s, the U.S. economy was on the rise and GM and Ford gained market share producing enormous profits primarily from the sale of light trucks and sport-utility vehicles. From 2000 to 2001, the Federal Reserve in a move to quell the stock market, made twelve successive interest rate increases. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, a severe stock market decline caused a pension and benefit fund underfunding crisis. GM began its Keep America Rolling campaign, which boosted sales, and other auto makers were forced to follow suit. The U.S. automakers saw sales increase to leverage costs as gross margins deteriorated. Although retiree health care costs remain a significant issue, General Motors' investment strategy has generated a $17.1 billion surplus in 2007 in its $101 billion U.S pension fund portfolio, a $35 billion reversal from its $17.8 billion of underfunding.Sloan, Allan (April 10, 2007). GM's High-Performance Pension Machine Washington Post, D02.

In 2004, GM redirected resources from the development of new sedans to an accelerated refurbishment of their light trucks and Sport utility vehicles for introduction as 2007 models in early 2006. Shortly after this decision, fuel prices increased by over 50% and this in turn affected both the trade-in value of used vehicles and the perceived desirability of new offerings in these market segments. The current marketing plan to extensively tout these revised vehicles as offering the best fuel economy in their class (of vehicle). GM claims its hybrid trucks will have gas-mileage improvements of 25%.

In the summer of 2005, GM announced that its corporate chrome emblem "Mark of Excellence" will begin appearing on all recently introduced and all-new 2006 model vehicles produced and sold in North America. The move is seen as an attempt by GM to link its name and vehicle brands more closely.

In 2005, GM promoted sales through an employee discount to all buyers. Marketed as the lowest possible price, GM cleared an inventory buildup of 2005 models to make way for its 2006 lineup. While the promotion was a temporary shot in the arm for sales, it did not help the company's bottom line. GM has since changed its marketing strategy to a no haggle sticker policy in which all vehicle prices are lowered, but incentives are reduced, if not eliminated.

GM in China General Motors is the best selling auto maker in China. The Buick brand is especially strong, led by the Buick Excelle subcompact. Cadillac initiated sales in China in 2004, starting with imports from the United States. GM pushed the marketing of the Chevrolet brand in China in 2005 as well, moving the former Buick Sail to that marque. The company manufactures most of its China-market vehicles locally, through its Shanghai GM joint venture. Shanghai GM, a joint venture between the Chinese company SAIC and General Motors, was created on March 25, 1997. The Shanghai GM plant was opened December 15, 1998 when the first Chinese-built Buick came off the assembly line. The SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile joint-venture is also successful selling trucks and vans under the SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile marque.

Subsidies In March 2005, the Government of Canada provided Canadian dollar200 million in incentives to General Motors for its Ontario plants, and last fall it provided C$100 million to Ford Motor Co. to expand production and provide jobs, according to Jim Harris (politician). Similar incentives were promised to non-North American auto companies like Toyota, Premier Dalton McGuinty said the money the province and Ottawa are pledging for the project is well-spent. His government has committed Canadian dollar400 million, including the latest Toyota package of Canadian dollar125 million, to the province's automobile sector, which helped finance $5 billion worth of industry projects. Health care in Canada has helped reduce health care costs for the U.S auto industry.Lindorff, Dave (April 19, 2005). Health Care Costs and the Jobs Flight to Canada Counterpunch. Retrieved on April 24, 2007.

For the first time, in 2004 the total number of cars produced by all makers in Ontario exceeded those produced in Michigan.

For the first time in 2004 GM sold more vehicles in other countries than inside the US.

Labor relations On September 24, 2007 General Motors workers represented by the United Auto Workers union went on the first nationwide strike against GM since 1970. The ripple effect of the strike reached into Canada the following day as two car assembly plants and a transmission facility were forced to close. However overnight a tentative agreement was reached and UAW officials declared the end of the strike in a news conference at 4 a.m. on September 26. By the following day, all GM workers in both countries were back to work.

Auto racing General Motors has an extensive history in numerous forms of racing. Vehicles of most, if not all, of GM's brands have been represented in competition, with perhaps Chevrolet being the most prominent. In particular, the Chevrolet Corvette has long been popular and successful in international road racing. GM also is a supplier of racing components, such as engines, transmissions, and electronics.

GM's Oldsmobile Aurora engine platform was successful in open-wheel Indy-style racing throughout the 1990s, winning many races in the small V8 engine class. An unmodified Aurora V-8 in the Aerotech, captured 47 world records, including the record for speed endurance in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. Recently, the Cadillac V-Series has entered motorsports racing. GM has also used many cars in the American racing series NASCAR. Currently the Chevrolet Monte Carlo is the only entry in the series but in the past the Pontiac Grand Prix, Buick Regal, Oldsmobile Cutlass, Chevrolet Lumina and Chevrolet Malibu were also used. Starting in March 2007, the Chevrolet Impala will be phased into the series.

In touring cars (mainly in Europe) Vauxhall is a key player and former champion in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) series and competes with a Vauxhall Astra in BTC spec. Opel is one of the three participants in the DTM series (along with Audi and Mercedes Benz) and is a former champion and competes with a unique 500 horse power vehicle that resembles the Opel Vectra. Chevrolet competes with a Chevrolet Lacetti in the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC).

In Australia, there is the prestigious V8 Supercar Championship which is battled out by the two main rivals of Holden& Ford. The current Holden Racing Team cars are based on the Holden Commodore and run a 5.0-litre V8-cylinder engine producing 650+BHP (approx 480 kW Power) @ 7500 rpm). These cars have a top speed of 300+km/h (185 mph) and run 0-100 km/h in less than 4 seconds. The Holden Racing Team is Australia's most successful team in Australian Touring Car History. In 2006 both the Teams and Drivers championship was won by the very closely linked Toll HSV Dealer Team

Environmental record General Motors is both active in environmental causes and, as a major industrial force, implicated in ecologically harmful activity. The company has long worked on alternative-technology vehicles, and has recently led the industry with clean burning Flexfuel vehicles that can run on either E-85 (ethanol) or gasoline. The company was the first to use turbochargers and was an early proponent of V6 engines in the 1960s, but quickly lost interest as the muscle car race took hold. They demonstrated gas turbine vehicles powered by kerosene, an area of interest throughout the industry in the late 1950s, but despite extensive thermal recycling (developed by Chrysler) the fuel consumption was too high and starting torque too low for everyday use. They were also an early licensee of Wankel engine technology, even developing the Chevrolet Monza around the powerplant, but abandoned the alternative engine configuration in view of the 1973 oil crisis. In the 1970s and 1980s, GM pushed the benefits of diesel engines and cylinder deactivation technologies with disastrous results due to poor durability in the Oldsmobile diesels and drivability issues in the Cadillac 4-6-8 variable cylinder engines. In 1987 GM, in conjunction with Aerovironment built the Sunraycer which won the inaugural World Solar Challenge and was a showcase of advanced technology. Much of the technology from Sunraycer found its way into the Impact prototype electric vehicle (also built by Aerovironment and was the predecessor to the General Motors EV1.

General Motors has been criticized for its membership of the anti-Kyoto Protocol Global Climate Coalition and for remaining in the group after other vehicle manufacturers had left , as well as for production of increasingly fuel inefficient and environmentally irresponsible vehicles such as the Hummer. GM recently opposed the new CAFE standard increase from 27 mpg to 35 mpg, the first such increase in over 20 years citing it will harm their business.http://www.kpcnews.com/articles/2007/07/27/greater_fort_wayne/news/doc46a9e1f76229a445366384.txt The company’s industrial record has also prompted criticism. Researchers at the University of Massachusetts recently listed General Motors as the 20th largest corporate producer of air pollution in the United States, with 12,771,830 pounds of toxic chemicals released annually into the air. Political Economy Research Institute The United States Environmental Protection Agency has linked the corporation to 75 Superfund toxic waste sites, ranking General Motors second only to General Electric and the U.S. Federal Government in the number of Superfund sites for which it is potentially responsible. EPA document archived by Center for Public Integrity Center for Public Integrity file on GM Electric vehicles

On June 30, 2006 a documentary about the demise of the General Motors EV1 and other electric vehicles entitled "Who Killed the Electric Car?" debuted in theatres across America, sparking criticism of the motivation behind the cancellation of their electric car program.

Consumer advocates, activists, commentators, journalists, and documentary makers claim GM had deliberately Sabotage their company's zero emission electric vehicle efforts through several methods: failing to market, failing to produce appropriate vehicles, failing to satisfy demand, and using lease-only programs with prohibitions against end of lease purchase.

The process of obtaining the EV1, GM's first electric vehicle, was difficult. The vehicle could not be purchased outright. Instead, General Motors offered a closed-end lease for three years, with no renewal or residual purchase options. The EV1 was only available from specialist Saturn dealerships, and only in California and Arizona. Before reviewing leasing options, a potential lessee would be taken through a 'pre-qualification' process in order to learn how the EV1 was different from other vehicles. Next came a waiting list with no scheduled delivery date.

Several weeks before the debut of the movie, the Smithsonian Institution announced that its EV1 display was being permanently removed and the EV1 car put into storage. GM is a major financial contributor to the museum, but both parties denied that this fact contributed to the removal of the display.

General Motors has responded to complaints about the scrapping of the EV1 program and they dispute the existence of any conspiracy surrounding its demise. An entry was posted on the GM FastLane Blog in 2006 in which GM defended its decision by saying that it was unable to guarantee the vehicles could continue to be maintained in a safe operating state.

GM alleges that during the four years available to the public, only 800 EV1's were released. Over $1 billion was spent on the EV1 program, with a great portion used for consumer incentives and marketing. With a waiting list of 5,000 applicants, only 50 individuals actually were willing to accept a lease on the EV1. Suppliers ceased production of replacement parts due to the low demand for the EV1. This made repairs and continued safety of the vehicles difficult. The EV1 was designed as a developmental vehicle and was never intended for serial production.

The limitations of storage technology and the expense of production would have made the cars impractical for the vast majority of consumers; a production EV1 would have met limited demand and would have been priced out of reach of most. Had sufficient demand existed to justify mass production and had costs and technologies been able to support mass production, GM would have been more receptive to the idea.

General Motors (GM) has responded to allegations made in the film through a blog post entitled Who Ignored the Facts About the Electric Car?. In it, Dave Barthmuss writes: "Sadly, despite the substantial investment of money and the enthusiastic fervor of a relatively small number of EV1 drivers — including the filmmaker — the EV1 proved far from a viable commercial success." Barthmuss notes investments in electric vehicle technology since the EV1: Two-Mode Hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and fuel cell vehicle programs. The filmmakers suggested that GM did not immediately channel its technological progress with the EV1 into these projects, and instead let the technology languish while focusing on more immediately profitable enterprises such as SUVs. Contrary to this suggestion, as Barthmuss points out, GM is bullish on hydrogen:

According to GM, not all of the EV1's were destroyed. Many were donated to research institutions and facilities, along with museums. Some are still owned by General Motors themselves, and are kept at their Technical Design center in Warren, Michigan, and can occasionally be seen on the road within a close area of the tech center.

There is no other major automaker on the road offering a fully electric vehicle designed for everyday use on public transportation routes, however Think_Nordic, at one time under the ownership of Ford, have produced a range of electric vehicles in limited numbers.

Hybrid initiative In May 2004, GM delivered the world's first full sized hybrid pickups, and introduced a hybrid passenger car. In 2005, the Opel Astra diesel hybrid vehicle concept vehicle was introduced. The 2006 Saturn VUE#Green Line was the first hybrid passenger vehicle from GM and is also a mild design. GM has hinted at new hybrid technologies to be employed that will be optimized for higher speeds in freeway driving. Future hybrid vehicles should include the 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe, the Saturn Aura#Aura Green Line, and an updated Saturn VUE#Second Generation based an Opel design like the Saturn Aura. GM has recently introduced the concept Chevrolet Volt which is a plug-in hybrid. GM currently offers two types of hybrid systems. The first used in the Silverado Hybrid, Saturn VUE, Saturn Aura, and Chevrolet Malibu is what GM calls a "Mild Hybrid" or "BAS" system. The second hybrid drive was co-developed with DaimlerChrysler and BMW, is called a "two-mode hybrid." The two-mode is used by the Chevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon and will later be used on the Saturn VUE.

GM’s current hybrid models:

2006-2007 Saturn VUE#Green Line
2008 Saturn VUE#Second Generation
2008 Saturn Aura#Aura Green Line
2008 Chevrolet Tahoe
2008 Chevrolet Malibu#Sixth Generation 2008-future

GM Magic Bus is a hybrid powered bus.

Hydrogen initiative GM has prided its research and prototype development of hydrogen vehicle, to be produced in early 2010, using a support infrastructure still in a prototype state. The economic feasibility of the technically challenging hydrogen car, and the low-cost production of hydrogen to fuel it, has also been discussed by other automobile manufacturers such as Ford and Chrysler. In June 2007, Larry Burns, vice president of research and development, said he's not yet willing to say exactly when hydrogen vehicles will be mass produced, but he said it should happen before 2020, the year many experts have predicted. He said "I sure would be disappointed if we weren't there" before 2020. GM steps up work on hydrogen cars TOM KRISHER, June 15, 2007, Business Week

GM Flexfuel GM, more than any other automaker, is producing Flexfuel vehicles that can operate on ethanol gasoline, or E85. GM has over 2 million FlexFuel Vehicles on the road today in all 50 states. E85 is a mostly renewable fuel that can be made from U.S.-grown biomass (like corn or grain products) and helps reduce U.S. dependence on foreign petroleum. Although availability is currently limited, U.S.-made E85 is becoming more accessible each day to U.S. consumers.

Corporate restructuring After gaining market share in the late 1990s and making enormous profits General Motors stock soared to over $80 a share. However, in 2000, twelve successive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve led to a severe stock market decline following the September 11, 2001 attacks, caused a pension and benefit funds crisis at General Motors and many other American companies. General Motor's rising retiree health care costs and Other Post Employment Benefit (OPEB) fund deficit prompted the company to enact a broad restructuring plan. Although GM had already taken action to fully fund its pension plan, its OPEB fund became an issue for its corporate bond ratings. GM had expressed its disagreement with the bond ratings; moveover, GM's benefit funds were performing at higher than expected rates of return. Then, following a $10.6 billion loss in 2005, GM acted quickly to implement its restructuring plan. For the first quarter of 2006 GM earned $400 million, signaling a turnaround had already begun even though many aspects of the restructuring plan had not yet taken effect. Although retiree health care costs remain a significant issue, General Motors' investment strategy has generated a $17.1 billion surplus in 2007 in its $101 billion U.S pension fund portfolio, a $35 billion reversal from its $17.8 billion of underfunding.Sloan, Allan (April 10, 2007). GM's High-Performance Pension Machine Washington Post, D02.

In February 2005, GM successfully bought itself out of a put option with Fiat for $2 billion USD (€1.55 billion). In 2000, GM had sold a 6% stake to Fiat in return for a 20% share in the Italian automaker. As part of the deal, GM granted Fiat a put option which, if exercised between January 2004 and July 2009, could have forced GM to buy Fiat. GM had agreed to the put option at the time, perhaps to keep it from being acquired by another automaker such as DaimlerChrysler competing with GM's Opel and Vauxhall marques. The relationship suffered, and Fiat had failed to improve. In 2003, Fiat recapitalized, reducing GM's stake to 10%.

In February 2006, GM slashed its annual dividend from 2.00 to $1.00 per share. The reduction saved $565 million a year.

In March 2006, GM divested 92.36 million shares (reducing their stake from 20% to 3%) of Japanese manufacturer Suzuki, in order to raise $2.3 billion. GM originally invested in Suzuki in the early 1980s.

On March 23, a private equity consortium including KKR, Goldman Sachs Capital, and Five Mile Capital purchased $8.8 billion, or 78% of GMAC, GM's commercial mortgage arm.The new entity, in which GMAC will own a 21% stake, will be known as Capmark Financial Group.

On April 3, 2006, GM announced that it would sell 51% of GMAC as a whole to a consortium led by Cerberus Capital Management, raising $14 billion over 3 years. Investors also include Citigroup's private equity arm and Aozora Bank of Japan. The group will pay GM $7.4 billion in cash at closing. GM will retain approximately $20 billion in automobile financing worth an estimated $4 billion over three years.

GM sold its 8% stake in Isuzu on April 11, 2006, to raise an additional $300 million.12,600 workers from Delphi (auto parts), a key supplier to GM, agreed to buyouts and an early retirement plan offered by GM in order to avoid a strike, after a judge agreed to cancel Delphi's union contracts. 5,000 Delphi workers were allowed to flow to GM.

On June 28, 2007, GM agreed to sell its Allison Transmission division to private-equity firms Carlyle Group and Onex for $5.1 billion. The deal will increase GM's liquidity and echoes previous moves to shift its focus towards its core automotive business. The two firms will control seven factories around Indianapolis but GM will retain management of a factory in Baltimore. Former Allison Transmission president Lawrence E. Dewey will be the new CEO of the standalone company.

As GM opens new plants, those scheduled to close under the planned GM restructuring include (source: General Motors Corporation):{] (3rd shift) || Ohio || 2006 || Mid-size SUV assembly ] || Oklahoma || Early 2006 || Mid-size trucks and SUV assembly ] || Michigan || Mid-2006 || Chevrolet SSR roadster assembly] Line 1 || Tennessee || March 2007 || Saturn ION sedan and coupe assembly ] || Michigan || 2006 || Metal fabricating || 1,398|-| Portland Distribution Center ] || Missouri || 2006 || Parts distribution || 182|-| Pittsburgh Metal ] || Michigan || 2007 || Parts processing || 278|-| Flint North 3800 || Michigan || 2008 || Engines || 2,677|-|}

See also People

Alfred P. Sloan
William C. Durant
Richard Wagoner
Robert Lutz

Books and films

Final Offer (film) - A documentary film that shows the 1984 GM contract negotiations, that would result in the union split of the Canadian arm of the UAW. A very interesting inside look at union negotiations.
Roger & Me - the first documentary by filmmaker Michael Moore. The film criticizes General Motors for closing down its factories in Moore's hometown of Flint, Michigan, despite record profits. After Flint residents lose their many jobs at GM, Moore claims the town descends into economic chaos.
Who Killed the Electric Car? - A documentary film charting GM's launch, then alleged self-sabotage of the electric car EV1.

Active North American Brands

Buick
Cadillac
Chevrolet
GMC (automobile)
Hummer
Pontiac
Saab (automobile)
Saturn Corporation

Active Overseas Brands

Holden
Opel
Vauxhall Motors
GM Daewoo

Defunct Brands

Geo
LaSalle
Oldsmobile
Oakland (automobile)
GMC (automobile)
GMC (automobile)
Marquette (automobile)
Viking (automobile)

Subsidiaries

Fisher Body
General Motors Acceptance Corporation
Delta Motor Corporation
GM Daewoo (50.9%)
Shanghai GM (50%)
AC Delco
Allison Transmission
GM Performance Division
General Motors Assembly Division
Holden
SAAB Automobile
Opel
Vauxhall Motors

Umbrella organization

United States Council for Automotive Research
C.A.R. The Center for Automotive Research
Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers