DETROIT - Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano has had little trouble appealing to voters and is hoping his skills of persuasion extend to Congress.

Ficano, along with Detroit area business and union leaders, a number of Michigan mayors and Gov. Jennifer Granholm are supporting General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC in the Detroit automakers' quest for a $25 billion federal bailout.

Continue reading "Local leaders jump to Detroit automakers' defense" »

WASHINGTON - Humbled and fighting for survival, Detroit's once-mighty automakers appealed to Congress on Tuesday with a retooled case for a bailout as large as $34 billion, pledging to slash work forces, car lines and executive pay in return for a federal lifeline. General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC said they needed immediate cash infusions to last until New Year's, and warned they could drag the entire industry down if they should fail.

Chrysler said it needed $7 billion by year's end, and General Motors asked for a quick $4 billion as the first installment of as much as $18 billion to stay afloat and weather even worse economic storms.

Continue reading "Big Three survival bailout requests rise to $34B" »

WASHINGTON - General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it needs $12 billion in government loans to keep operating, telling Congress in a bluntly worded report that its collapse could have "severe, long-term consequences to the U.S. economy."

GM said it would seek up to $18 billion from the government: $12 billion in loans, including $4 billion by the end of December, and a separate $6 billion line of credit in case market conditions worsen.

Continue reading "GM says it needs $12 billion loans by late March" »

NEW YORK - November U.S. vehicle sales at General Motors and Chrysler plunged more than 40 percent, while Ford's sales dropped 31 percent, crushing hopes that the industrywide drop in vehicle demand might be easing as the U.S. automakers prepare to state their second case for a federal bailout.

GM's sales fell 41 percent, while Chrysler's dropped 47 percent. Their overseas rivals posted abysmal results Tuesday as well. Toyota's November U.S. sales tumbled 34 percent, and Honda's fell 32 percent.

Continue reading "Chrysler Nov. US sales drop 47 pct; GM down 41 pct" »

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. is asking Congress for a $9 billion "stand-by line of credit" to stabilize its business, but says it doesn't expect to tap it.

Unless one of Detroit's other Big Three auto companies goes bust, Ford expects to have enough money to make it through next year, it said in a plan that projected the firm will break even or turn a pretax profit in 2011.

Continue reading "Ford tells Congress it may be able to go it alone" »

DEARBORN -- Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally says he'll work for $1 per year if the automaker has to take any government loan money.

The plan Ford is presenting to Congress this week also says it will cancel all management employees' 2009 bonuses and will not pay any merit increases for its North American salaried employees next year.

Continue reading "Ford says CEO will work for $1 to get govt loans" »

Ford Motor Co.'s request for a federal loan climbed to $9 billion, according to its business plan submitted to Congress, up from $7 billion.

The 32-page report, released today, underscores that Ford started its restructuring before the current economic downturn.

Continue reading "Ford's report to Congress calls for $9 billion - and forecasts breakeven in 2011" »

DETROIT -- This time, GM Chief Rick Wagoner will drive a company car to Washington instead of flying by corporate jet as he seeks a government bailout, a spokesman says.

Wagoner will drive in a Chevrolet Malibu hybrid sedan when he makes the 520-mile trek from Detroit to Capitol Hill, General Motors Corp. spokesman Tony Cervone said Tuesday.

Continue reading "General Motors says CEO will drive hybrid to Washington" »

WASHINGTON — Detroit's automakers, making a second bid for $25 billion in funding, are presenting Congress with plans Tuesday to restructure their ailing companies and provide assurances that the funding will help them survive and thrive.

General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., and Chrysler LLC would refinance their companies' debt, cut executive pay, seek concessions from workers and find other ways of reviving their staggering companies.

U.S. automakers are struggling to stay afloat heading into 2009 under the weight of an economic meltdown, the worst auto sales in decades and a tight credit market. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler went through nearly $18 billion in cash reserves during the last quarter, and GM and Chrysler have said they could collapse in weeks.

Continue reading "Automakers to submit plans to Congress" »

WASHINGTON — Walloped by the recession, automakers' U.S. sales are plummeting as hard-to-get credit, job losses and other stresses make many Americans wary of taking on big-ticket financial commitments.

Auto sales for November, released Tuesday, are expected to show a drop of 36 percent from a year ago to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 10.2 million vehicles, according to Joseph Amaturo, analyst at Buckingham Research. Those sales figures would include the Big Three Detroit car makers as well as foreign companies that sell vehicles in this country.

Later Tuesday, General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC will provide a skeptical Congress with details about their long-term viability plans. The U.S. auto companies are desperately trying to secure $25 billion in fresh government loans to help them survive the economic carnage. They insist that bankruptcy isn't an option, even as companies burn through cash and bleed jobs.

Continue reading "Recession-hit automakers brace for grim US sales" »

DETROIT - When the men who run Ford Motor Co., Chrysler LLC and General Motors Corp. return to Washington later this week to seek government loans, they'll make sure traveling by corporate jet doesn't become ammunition for their critics again.

Ford says CEO Alan Mulally will make the 520-mile trek from Dearborn, Mich., to Washington by car, and GM CEO Rick Wagoner also is considering ground travel, although the company won't say for certain how he'll get there for security reasons.

Continue reading "Ford CEO will return to Washington by car" »

DETROIT - They'll park some corporate jets, cut executive pay and serve up concessions from the United Auto Workers, but Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and perhaps Chrysler LLC also will have to address massive debts to persuade a skeptical Congress to loan them money.

As the CEOs of all three companies prepare for a return trip to Washington this week seeking $25 billion in government loans to help them survive a worldwide economic slump, their debt likely will be scrutinized as Congress decides if they can once again become viable with help from the government.

Continue reading "Automakers' debt may be obstacle to federal loans" »

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The chief executives of the nation's Big Three automakers should give up their jobs, not just their lavish executive pay packages as a condition of $25 billion in proposed federal help to keep the companies operating, U.S. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said Monday.

"If I had my way, all three of those guys would be in the unemployment line and I think that ought to be one of the conditions for us doing this," Clyburn, D-S.C., told reporters at a news conference. "They need to be giving up their jobs, not just their packages."

Continue reading "House leader: Oust CEOs of Big Three automakers" »

DEARBORN -- Ford Motor Co. is considering selling Volvo Car Corp. as the struggling U.S. automaker seeks to raise cash and weather a global automotive sales crisis.

Ford said Monday it expects its strategic review of the Swedish luxury automaker will take several months. The move is one of several actions Ford is taking to strengthen its balance sheet amid what it called "severe economic instability worldwide."

Continue reading "Ford weighs selling Volvo amid industry downturn" »

Turns out, Tiger Woods wouldn't really rather have a Buick. At least not anymore.

When Woods ended his nine-year relationship with General Motors Corp. on Monday -- a mutual decision between a megawatt celebrity who doesn't need the work and a teetering corporation that needs every penny -- it offered yet another snapshot of how badly the American economy has deteriorated.

Continue reading "Fore! Woods' split with GM a warning for athletes" »

GRAND RAPIDS -- If Michigan fans of Nissan are bemoaning the Japanese automaker's decision to pull out of the renowned Detroit auto show this year, they can take heart.

Nissan is coming to Michigan. West Michigan, that is.

This week, representatives of the automaker assured local dealers the brand will be out in force at the Michigan International Auto Show, the event that fills DeVos Place for four days each winter.

Continue reading "No dropouts for Grand Rapids' Michigan International Auto Show" »

DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. said Friday it would sell and lease back some of its non-manufacturing operations in Europe as part of its efforts to raise cash quickly.

The company's European division has retained real estate agent Jones Lang LaSalle to help identify potential buyers. The company has the potential to raise about $257 million.

Continue reading "GM to sell real estate assets in England" »

NEW YORK -- As the humbled captains of the U.S. auto industry spend the weekend preparing their second case for a federal bailout, their best argument may come in November's auto sales figures.

Industry watchers and car dealers say they expect this month's vehicle sales to come out slightly better than October's historic lows, but increased incentives haven't been enough to overcome tight credit, the crumbling economy and weak consumer confidence that are keeping consumers away from showrooms.

Continue reading "November auto sales dreary, but likely up from October" »

CHICAGO — Nissan Motor Co. has reversed its decision not to take part in the Chicago Auto Show because of the lack of new vehicles to unveil. But the company is sticking to its decision not to attend the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Nissan spokesman Alan J. Buddendeck said late Wednesday the company found a way to maintain a presence at the Chicago show after talking with dealers in the Chicago area.

Nissan made a splash last week at the Los Angeles Auto Show, where it unveiled the Nissan Cube, an updated 370Z roadster and a low-priced Versa.

Buddendeck said Nissan paid for the exhibition space at the Chicago show, so it will supply the cars and local dealers will staff it.

MORAINE, Ohio - The closing of General Motors Corp.'s last local plant is not just a business story. It's a family story.

The assembly plant's history crosses decades, so there should be no surprise that generations have crossed the plant floor.

Like the Marlow family. Or three generations of them, to be exact.

Continue reading "GM jobs became family tradition for many workers" »

DEARBORN, Mich. - Ford Motor Co.'s Michigan Truck Plant isn't making trucks anymore.

The last sport utility vehicle rolled off the assembly line at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Ford said. The factory in Wayne, just west of Detroit, will be renamed and retooled to make smaller, more fuel-efficient cars from the same global platform as the European Ford Focus starting in 2010.

Continue reading "Work halts at Mich. Ford plant to retool for cars" »

DETROIT - Relations between Chrysler's current and former owners turned ugly Wednesday when private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP accused Daimler AG of "intentionally and materially" misleading Cerberus before the German automaker sold Chrysler last year.

Cerberus alleged that Daimler breached its obligations in the sale contract, including misrepresenting changes in underwriting practices for vehicle financing and leases.

Continue reading "Cerberus claims it was misled in deal for Chrysler" »

Detroit's auto chiefs recently took a lot of heat from Congress for traveling to Washington to beg for money in corporate jets, accepting outsized pay packages and not building a 1998 Jeep to one lawmaker's standards.

Depending on your point of view, members of the House and Senate showed an alarming lack of understanding about the auto industry or gave the Detroit automaker CEOs the tongue-lashing they deserved. Or both.

But here's the real question Congress is grappling with: If the federal government lends automakers $25 billion, will the emergency aid be a bridge to a revitalized industry or a dead-end road to bankruptcy?

Continue reading "Avoiding calamity may be reason enough to help automakers" »

DETROIT -- Daimler AG says talks to sell its remaining stake in struggling Detroit automaker Chrysler Holding LLC have stalled because of exaggerated demands from Chrysler owner Cerberus Capital Management LP.

Daimler says Cerberus is making demands that exceed the value of the private equity firm's investment. It also says Cerberus is claiming Daimler provided incomplete information about Chrysler.

Daimler sold 80.1 percent of Chrysler to Cerberus last year in a $7.4 billion deal. Cerberus is trying to buy the remaining 19.9 percent stake.

A message left for a Cerberus spokesman wasn't immediately returned.
Chrysler, along with other U.S. automakers, is seeking federal loans to stave off running out of cash. Cash-starved GM reportedly had been in talks last month to buy Chrysler.

TOKYO -- Fitch Ratings cut Toyota's top-notch credit rating on Wednesday, blaming the world auto market slump and surging yen &ndash the latest sign that even Japan's top automaker is suffering from the global slowdown.

Fitch also cited high material costs as another challenge as it lowered its rating on Toyota Motor Corp. two notches to "AA" from "AAA," with a negative outlook, meaning the rating could be lowered again in the next year or two.

Continue reading "Toyota sees credit rating drop amid market slump" »

DETROIT - A list of job cuts, shuttered factories, canceled bonuses and commitments to fuel-efficient cars won't be enough next week when U.S. automakers get another shot to persuade Congress to give them $25 billion in loans.

Through the Thanksgiving weekend, teams will be tagging more meat to throw at skeptical lawmakers who vilified the automakers' top executives the last time they went to Washington. That means executive pay cuts, union concessions, and perhaps even higher fuel economy requirements and a glimpse at top-secret product plans.

Continue reading "Congress expecting more sacrifices from automakers" »

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Automakers cannot sue to block Rhode Island from enforcing tighter standards on tailpipe emissions first adopted by California because the industry has already lost similar lawsuits elsewhere, a federal judge has ruled.

U.S. District Judge Ernest Torres dismissed General Motors Corp., DaimlerChrysler Corp. and two automakers associations from the case, but his ruling permits several local car dealers to pursue the lawsuit for now. The automobile manufacturers have lost similar lawsuits in California and Vermont.

Continue reading "Judge: Automakers cannot block RI emission rules" »

DETROIT -- Chrysler LLC is unlikely to survive as an independent company, even if Congress approves $25 billion in aid to Michigan's automakers, a new study says.

Auto sales have fallen so sharply there's no longer enough business for three domestic automakers, according to a report released Tuesday by the Anderson Economic Group in East Lansing.

And several foreign nameplates with tiny market shares, possibly Mitsubishi and Saab, could exit the shrinking U.S. market, said Patrick Anderson, president of the Anderson Economic.

Continue reading "Study: Chrysler unlikely to survive as independent company even with federal bailout" »

STUTTGART, Germany -- Sports car maker Porsche SE says it is curbing production as a result of weaker sales amid the global economic crisis.

The company said Tuesday weaker demand prompted it to stop assembly lines for one day last Friday at its Zuffenhausen plant in Germany.

Continue reading "Germany's Porsche curbs production as sales dip" »

SEOUL, South Korea -- The South Korean unit of General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it will extend a planned production shutdown due to weakening demand for autos overseas.

Production at GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co.'s No. 2 plant in the city of Bupyeong, near Seoul, will cease from Dec. 1 until Jan. 4, said Park Hae-ho, a company spokesman.

Continue reading "GM's South Korea unit extends plant shutdown" »

WASHINGTON — The insurance industry designated dozens of new cars and trucks, led by Ford Motor Co. and its Volvo subsidiary, to its annual list of the safest vehicles Tuesday, helped by the increased use of anti-rollover technology.

Ford and Volvo had 16 vehicles in the 2009 model year on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's list of the safest new cars, followed by Honda Motor Co. with 13 vehicles.

Seventy-two cars, trucks and SUVs received the top safety pick designation for 2009, more than double the number of vehicles in the 2008 model year and three times the number in 2007.

"The sheer number of this year's winners indicates that automakers have made huge strides to improve crash protection," said Institute president Adrian Lund.

Continue reading "Ford, with help from Volvo, tops safe car list" »

FENTON, Mo. -- Autoworkers, suppliers, dealers and government and school leaders on Monday described the cascading effects of the auto industry's financial crisis and urged federal aid.

They said the auto industry's crippling slowdown is cutting work orders, forcing layoffs, depleting reserves for the state's fourth-largest school district -- Rockwood -- and hurting charities that depend on well-paid workers' largesse.

Continue reading "Bond: Auto industry needs to stay afloat" »

DETROIT — General Motors Corp. said Monday it is ending its nine-year endorsement deal with golf superstar Tiger Woods as the automaker continues to cut expenses and hoard cash while trying to survive the worst sales downturn in a quarter-century.

The cash-strapped company said in a statement that it is looking to reduce costs, and that Woods also wants more personal time as he expects his second child.

Woods has endorsed GM products around the world and mainly has been seen in Buick commercials as the company tried to give the nameplate a more youthful image.

"I am very proud of the long standing partnership I've had with GM and have enjoyed being a part of the company's dramatic product evolution," Woods said in a statement.

Continue reading "GM ends 9-year endorsement deal with Tiger Woods" »

NEW YORK -- Cash-strapped General Motors insists declaring bankruptcy would be disastrous because it would scare away customers. It's unlikely Chevrolet and Cadillac owners would be left with worthless warranties and no replacement parts, but the headlines about the Detroit Three's dire situation may already be keeping buyers away.

"If GM is under the imminent threat of bankruptcy or actually declares bankruptcy, I would not consider a GM product," said Kevin Ketels, who might replace his family's 2004 Toyota RAV4 late next year. "I just don't know if the company will be around to fulfill their warranty obligations. Will they be there for me? There are too many unknowns and a car is my second biggest investment next to my house."

Continue reading "Consumers cautious about effect of auto bankruptcy" »

WASHINGTON -- Leading Democrats expect U.S. automakers will show Congress next month they are worth rescuing and are capable of returning to global pre-eminence. Skeptical Republicans said Sunday that Detroit's Big Three needed to convince taxpayers that they deserve an emergency $25 billion lifeline.

With the survival of a major manufacturing sector at stake, a top adviser to President-elect Barack Obama warned the companies that there is little the government can do without a viable plan to retool and restructure. One leading Democrat urged Obama to become more involved.

Continue reading "Dems expect Big 3 to show they're worth helping" »

INGERSOLL, Ontario -- Workers at the CAMI Automotive Inc. assembly plant have voted to share the pain.

Members of Canadian Auto Workers Local 88 voted 99 percent in favor Sunday of rotating layoffs between January and April 2009. That means members will work in alternating two-week shifts.

Rejection of the plan would have meant four-month layoffs for 600 workers at the plant, a joint venture between General Motors Corp. and Suzuki Motor Corp.

Continue reading "Workers at GM-Suzuki plant OK rotating layoffs" »

DETROIT -- While U.S. automakers wait for federal action on loans they say are key to their survival, former restaurant worker Richard Thomas is waiting on his own bailout -- odd jobs that barely pay the bills.

"Every single thing that goes on in my household, depends on what I make," Thomas says as he helps a friend fix the water pump on a rusting Dodge van. "If something doesn't happen for me for two or three weeks, then I'm in a hole."

Continue reading "Carmakers' crisis deepens Detroit's despair" »

DETROIT -- General Motors Corp.'s board of directors does not consider bankruptcy protection a viable option to solve the company's financial troubles, but it has discussed Chapter 11 because it has a legal duty to do so, a spokesman said Saturday.

Century-old GM, an icon of American manufacturing, has been battered by a plunge in car sales as American consumers tighten their belts and shift away from the big moneymaking pickup trucks and SUVS that have long the staples of GM's lineup.

GM, which has slashed jobs and closed plants since early in the decade, has warned that it could run low on cash by the end of the year unless it gets a taxpayer-funded rescue from the government.

Continue reading "GM says board doesn't see bankruptcy as option" »

DETROIT -- Embattled automakers might find some valuable ammunition to support their plea for federal aid in a University of Michigan forecast that paints a grim picture for Michigan and auto sales.

Michigan's jobless rate will jump above 10 percent next year and stay there through 2010 for the first time since the severe recession of the early 1980s, U-M economists George Fulton and Joan Crary said Friday in releasing their annual prediction for the state.

U.S. auto sales will fall from 13.3 million vehicles this year to 12.2 million next year, the lowest level since 1982, the economists said.

Continue reading "Michigan jobless rate expected to jump above 10 percent through 2010" »

DETROIT -- When Chrysler was near death and awaiting a government bailout in 1979, then-CEO Lee Iacocca ordered drastic spending cuts and required all checks above $1,000 to be approved by a senior vice president.

Chrysler LLC and General Motors Corp. need to follow the same playbook now, industry analysts and management professors say, as they try to outlast the debate in Washington over whether they will get billions in government loans.

Continue reading "GM, Chrysler making deep cuts to hold on for loans" »

DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. may sell its fleet of five corporate jets after top executives of the three Detroit automakers were harshly criticized by members of Congress this week for their travel expenses.

In a statement issued Friday, Ford said it is exploring all options for the fleet, which it said has been reduced from nine in 2005.

"Ford's top priority is to continue making progress on our transformation plan, and we do not want anything to distract us," spokesman Mark Truby said in a statement. "We are exploring all cost-effective solutions for our air travel."

Continue reading "Ford second-guesses corporate jets after criticism" »

OMAHA, Neb. -- Billionaire investor Warren Buffett says U.S. automakers need a new business model to better compete, whether it takes bankruptcy or a government bailout to achieve.

Buffett also says he would never serve as U.S. Treasury Secretary. The Berkshire Hathaway Inc. CEO is a member of President-elect Obama's Transition Economic Advisory Board.

Buffett says any automaker bailout package should include a business solution, and be negotiated by the president, not Congress. Buffett spoke to Fox Business News in an interview scheduled to air Friday afternoon.

Buffett says the government should insist top executives at Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC invest a significant percentage of their own net worths in the Detroit-based companies, ensuring both executives and taxpayers would share in any profits or losses.

DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. will extend its holiday shutdown or make other production cuts at five factories at as it deals with a continued U.S. auto sales slump and fights to stay solvent.

Also Friday, the company announced changes at five other factories that could increase production of some models, all based on a volatile U.S. auto market that has slumped to a 25-year low.

The changes won't be the last as cash-starved GM tries to conserve as much money as possible while awaiting Congressional action on a bailout loan package for Detroit's three automakers.

Continue reading "GM to extend holiday shutdown, will cut production" »

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Detroit's embattled automakers have two weeks to show a skeptical Congress how a multibillion-dollar lifeline will help them keep the industry from imploding.

A bailout-shy Congress punted a $25 billion auto industry rescue on Thursday, as Democratic leaders said they wouldn't help the beleaguered Big Three until the companies presented them with a plan showing how the federal funding would stabilize their faltering industry.

"The executives of the auto companies have not been able to convince Congress or the American people that this government bailout will be its last," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. He said General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., and Chrysler LLC will need to submit their plan to Congress by Dec. 2.

Continue reading "Automakers need to make case for government aid" »

WASHINGTON -- The $25 billion rescue plan for the auto industry, desperately sought by the beleaguered Detroit Three, collapsed Thursday as Congress drew the line at one more bailout and Democrats said they wouldn't even consider it until the companies produced a convincing plan for rebuilding their once-mighty industry.

The demise of the rescue -- at least for now -- left uncertain the fate of General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC, and sent Wall Street spiraling to its lowest level in years. The Dow Jones industrials dropped 445 points, the second straight plunge of more than 400, and hit the lowest point in nearly six years.

Continue reading "Auto aid effort collapses -- December reprieve?" »

Auto-parts supplier Visteon received a notice from the New York Stock Exchange Thursday afternoon that it could be delisted from the exchange.

According to a company statement, the NYSE said that its stock price has failed to meet the minimum average closing price of $1 per share for 30 consecutive trading days.

Continue reading "Visteon gets NYSE delisting notice" »

WASHINGTON — Democratic leaders in Congress sidetracked legislation to bail out the auto industry Thursday and demanded the Big Three develop a plan assuring the money would make them economically viable.

"Until they show us the plan, we cannot show them the money," Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said at a hastily called news conference in the Capitol.

She and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Congress would return to work in early December to vote on legislation if the General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC produce an acceptable plan.

Continue reading "Officials: Dems postponing crucial vote on auto bailout without business plan" »