General Motors

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General Motors Unveils Electric Vehicle Volt, Will Debut As 2010 Model

“The Volt symbolizes GM’s commitment to the future,” said Rick Wagoner, GM’s chairman and CEO. General Motors did not announce pricing for the car, which will have the equivalent of about 150 horsepower and a top speed of 100 mph, accordin to GM. To charge the batteries, drivers will plug a cord into one of the ports just ahead of each of the side mirrors. The cord can then be attached to an ordinary home electrical outlet. The car, according to a GM release, will cost “less than purchasing a cup of your favorite coffee” to recharge. It will use less electricity annually than a refrigerator. The Volt should cost less than 2 cents per mile to drive on electricity,

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GM Plans To Invest $500 Million For New Economy Car, Cruze

The facility in Lordstown, Ohio, currently assembles the Chevy Cobalt and Pontiac G5 and is slated to begin building the Cruze in 2010. The compact car will be officially unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October. The Cruze will be launched in Europe and Asia Pacific in 2009 and will also be manufactured in those areas. “Our goal for the Chevrolet Cruze is to lead in fuel economy in this very competitive car segment,” Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner said in a written statement. The Cruze, expected to top 40 mpg, is another example of GM’s commitment to rearrange it lineup as drivers buy fewer trucks and SUVs. James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45

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GM Announces Education Partnership To Reduce Oil Consumption Via Less Frequent Oil Changes

And for millions of GM vehicles, that could be mean oil changes with much longer durations than decades-old standard of every 3,000 miles. General Motors will support public outreach efforts by the Cal/EPA and the CIWMB to help motorists understand how frequently they need to change their engine oil, and the proper methods of doing so. The traditional 3,000-mile oil change recommendation was based on past engine and oil technologies. Today’s engines are built to strict tolerances using advanced technology, reducing or eliminating contaminants that might enter the engine. In-vehicle technologies like the GM Oil Life System can also reduce the frequency between oil changes by determining each engine’s oil “life.” “Driving conditions vary from one driver to another,” said

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OnStar, MapQuest Union: Nirvana For Marriages And Directionally Challenged?

The new service, OnStar eNav, will enable subscribers to have directions sent from their computers to specially-equipped vehicles. Once the directions have been sent to the user’s car, they can then be accessed via voice-guided commands. In 2009, under the terms of the agreement, eNav users will be able to download directions directly to their vehicle’s screen-based navigation system. OnStar has also announced a new service, Destination Download, where subscribers with screen-based navigation systems can press a button and be connected to an advisor. This advisor will then find the driver’s location, send it to the system and an icon will pop up on the car’s screen prompting the driver to input where he/she wants to go. Once the system

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General Motors' latest shocker: $38 million loss in 2007

How’s it possible to loss $38.7 million in a year? Not even General Motors is like sure exactly how it happened. But the world’s largest automaker has annnounced that’s the amount it lost in 2007. As a result, GM will again offer a new round of buyback offers to 74,000 hourly workers, all of whom are represented by the United Auto Workers. GM said the loss largely was due to a third-quarter charge related to unused tax credits. The 2007 loss topped GM’s previous record in 1992, when the company lost $23.4 billion because of a change in health care accounting, according to Standard & Poor’s Compustat. Excluding the tax charge and other special items, GM lost $23 million, or

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The Future Is Near: GM Talks Driverless Cars

Have car, no driver required. General Motors Corp., has announced cars that drive and park themselves could be ready for sale within 10 years. According to an Associated Press article, much of the technology already exists that will allow the vehicles to operate using radar-based cruise control to lane-changing warning devices. Rick Wagoneer, GM’s chief executive, discussed driverless cars as part of his speech at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. In a recent interview with AP, Larry Burns, GM’s vice president for research and development, said “This is not science fiction.” The most significant obstacles facing the vehicles could be human rather than technical: government regulation, liability laws, privacy concerns and people’s passion for the automobile and the

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Car Gadgets: All I Want Is My OnStar And XM Radio

I’ve been reviewing cars for about five years. And if I’ve learned anything after driving more than 200 vehicles, it’s that every manufacturer has a terminology “spin” for what it believes is its revolutionary automotive technology. Some of the parlance is clever and represents great innovation; Other descriptions are shameless, meaningless hype. Regardless, with the admission that I’m a minimalist, I think it’s fair to say some manufacturers’ equipment offerings have reached critical mass or perhaps exceeded it. In short, some cars have too much stuff, some of which just doesn’t work well. Hypersensitive electronic sensors, rear view navigation systems with blurry visual quality and inefficient braking systems all come to mind. Yet, two items stand out among as the

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Mercury Milan, 2006: The Weekly Driver Car Review

With midsize monoliths like the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry dominating the market for years, what do other manufacturers view as success with their respective offerings in the same class? It’s a crowded segment of the car market, for sure. Fourteen manufacturers are represented in the midsize class and an additional 10 are featured in the premium midsize category. Mercury hasn’t been a serious major player in either category. But like the Hyundai Sonata‘s genesis a few years ago, the Milan and its close relative, the Ford Fusion, have a lot to offer against the dominating duo at a substantially lower price. The Milan replaced the Sable in 2006 and it gives Mercury its first modern stylish sedan. It’s a

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