GM Spokesperson Says Company May Object to Change of Saab Ownership

Buddhism preaches that karma passes from one life to another in reincarnation and that the outcome is based on what deeds are done in previous lives.

Now, Saab must have a really bad karma. There’s really no other explanation for the constant problem that arise, preventing the ailing Swedish carmaker from finding peace in securing its existence.

This time it’s not the Chinese government, the creditors, the suppliers, the workers’ unions, the Swedish debt office or the court-appointed administrator. All of the aforementioned parties have given their approval. Instead, in a surprising move, it's the company's former owner and current preference shareholder, General Motors, that’s may try to block the sale to Pang Da and Youngman.

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Oh, You Shouldn’t Have: One Millionth Cruze is Chevy’s Present for its 100th Birthday

What present do you bring to a 100-year old company for its birthday? It depends: in Chevrolet’s case, the fact that the Cruze reached 1 million sales this week, less than two years after its global launch, is perfectly adequate.

Chris Perry, vice president of Chevrolet global marketing and strategy, also believes that this is a happy coincidence for Chevy’s Centennial: “I can’t think of a better birthday present”, he said. “Cruze’s combination of style, comfort, fuel efficiency and safety is a hit across the globe. Our customers know a winner when they drive it.”

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Chevy Volt Sales Close to 50% up in October, Outsells Nissan Leaf for the First Time

So far, Nissan’s all-electric Leaf has been the winner in the battle with the Volt extended-range hybrid, clearly outselling Chevy’s offering for the first half of 2011.

But not anymore: for the first time since the two models went on sale, GM announced that it sold 1,108 units in October, an increase of almost 50% over September’s 723 sales.

This is the first time Chevy’s hybrid outsold its main rival in the U.S. market, the Nissan Leaf, which last month sold 849 units compared to September’s figure of 1,031 deliveries.

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GM to Build New Chevy Colorado at Wentzville Plant

Less than a month after confirming the new Chevrolet Colorado for the North American market, GM today announced that the midsize pickup truck will be produced at its Wentzville Assembly plant in Missouri.

The Detroit-based automaker said that it will invest around $380 million to the prepare the factory for the new line, and as a result, create or retain about 1,260 jobs hourly and salaried jobs.

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New GM Program Allows Customers to Help Build their Own LS7 or LS9 V8 Engine

GM’s Chevrolet Performance division is giving its customers the opportunity to gain some extra satisfaction by participating in the assembly of their own LS7 or LS9 crate engine.

Jim Campbell, GM U.S. vice president of Performance and Vehicles, says: “Building an engine is a time-honored tradition in hot rodding and this exciting new program allows enthusiasts to enjoy that magical do-it-yourself feeling, while still enjoying the value of a factory-engineered, warranted crate engine.”

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2011 SEMA: Chevy’s COPO Concept Previews NHRA Drag Racing Camaro

Among other offerings, Chevrolet brought to Las Vegas the COPO Camaro, a racing car concept built according to NHRA Stock Eliminator drag racing.

Designed to be fitted with more than one engine options, the SEMA Show COPO concept models is powered by a supercharged 327 engine but can accommodate both the naturally aspirated 7.0-liter 427 (the same capacity as the original 1969 COPO) and the supercharged 5.3-liter 327.

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Chevrolet Camaro Concept Harks Back to the 1968 Hot Wheels Toy Model

These are the first photos of the new Chevrolet Camaro Hot Wheels concept car that was revealed just a few hours before its public debut at the 2011 SEMA Show in Las Vegas later today.

The life-size concept model is inspired by the iconic “Custom Camaro” Spectraflame 1:64-scale toy that was part of the original 16 Hot Wheels car series released in 1968.

The Camaro Hot Wheels is the result of the joint collaboration between the GM Design studio in Michigan and the Hot Wheels Design studio in California.

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Chevrolet Camaro and Camaro ZL1 Dress Up for Vegas

Automakers are getting ready for some aftermarket fun at the annual SEMA Show that takes place in Las Vegas from November 1 through 4.

General Motors is heading down to the strip with a variety of concept and project cars including a number of prototypes based on the 2012MY Camaro coupe, convertible and of course, the upcoming ZL1.

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GM Invests US$275 Million in Ft. Wayne Plant to Build New Chevy and GMC Full-Size Pickup Trucks

General Motors announced on Wednesday that it plans to invest approximately US$275 million at its Fort Wayne assembly plant in Indiana to build the next generation of GMC and Chevrolet full size pickup trucks.

The latest investment is part of a US$2 billion plan that was announced back in May, which will create or retain around 4,000 jobs in 17 of GM’s U.S. factories over the next 18 months.

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Ford’s Reliability Suffers in Consumer Reports Survey, Japanese Brands Rule and Europeans are a Mixed Bag

Consumer Reports has published its 2011 annual auto survey in which the main point of interest, as the report states, is a sharp decline in Ford’s so far “solid reliability record”: the Detroit carmaker dropped 10 places in the overall reliability ranks.

According to CR's survey, which is based on responses from 1.3 million vehicles owners, Ford’s drop from 10th to 20th place among 28 carmakers can be attributed to two main factors. The first is that all three of Ford’s new models, i.e. the Explorer, Fiesta and Focus, scored below average in reliability in their first year on the market.

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2013 Cadillac ATS Sedan Development at the Nürburgring Track [Video]

It’s been roughly two weeks since Cadillac dropped the first teaser video of the 2013 ATS at the Nürburgring and now GM has the released the first full installment of its web series dedicated to the development of the premium compact sedan at the so-called "Green Hell".

The Detroit-based company's goal of course is to associate the ATS with its German competition, and specifically the new BMW 3-Series.

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Diesel-Powered Chevrolet Cruze to be Built in Lordstown, on Sale in Early 2013

Following the confirmation on the development of a diesel-powered version of the well-selling Chevrolet Cruze sedan for the American market earlier this year, General Motors revealed today that the car will be built at its plant in Lordstown, Ohio, with sales to begin in early 2013.

GM spokesman Tom Mock told The Detroit News that the company will invest $5.5 million to upgrade the plant's body shop and general assembly line. The same factory also produces the gasoline variants of the Cruze, which has proved a big success for GM outselling everything in its segment including the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla.

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Ad Watch: Chevrolet Remembers the Past in the Present

The festivities for the Chevrolet brand's 100th birthday on November 3 continue with a new 60-second spot titled "Then & Now". The advert fuses the past and the present by holding vintage pictures of numerous Chevrolet models over the same locations today.

The automaker notes that the commercial "depicts how we remain connected to the iconic moments, locations, and Chevy vehicles as if those moments were with us right here, right now".

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GM Sells More than 2 Million Vehicles in China for 2nd Year in a Row

General Motors has been the market leader in China for the past six years, selling cars under the Baojung, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Jiefang, Opel and Wuling brands.

On October 17, the Detroit maker it announced that it sold more than 2 million vehicles in the world’s largest car market since January 1st. This is the second consecutive year that GM manages to top the 2 million mark in China, only this time it achieved it a little earlier than 2010, when it happened on November 4.

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Weak USD Makes Small Car Imports Expensive, American Buyers Turn to Domestic Brands

Is a weak dollar a good thing? If you’re asking the U.S. car industry, it most definitely is. Imported car prices have reached their highest point in the last 12 years, thus driving some of their prospective buyers away.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, in August the average price of an imported car reached a record high of $31,536. That makes the price difference between a comparable domestic-made car $7,614, which is the largest since December 1999.

Add to that the severe supply issues faced by the Japanese manufacturers, who are only now starting to recover from the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake, and it’s easy to see why more and more American car buyers are choosing domestic brands instead.

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Federal Judge Approves $120 Million Legal Fees for “Old” GM Lawyers

The U.S. car industry bailout process was a troubled one but at least ended well as both General Motors and Chrysler are in much better shape than two years ago. In fact, GM has even regained its number one spot in world sales. All is well that ends well, then.

However, the matter of fees and expenses for the lawyers and consultants that were owed by the “Old”, i.e. bankrupt, GM, remained. These professionals worked for the company during the bailout, and then requested their fees.

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Rumors: New 2013 Cadillac XTS Sedan to Break Cover in Los Angeles

It looks like the all-new Cadillac XTS that will replace both the DTS and STS sedans will make its world premiere at next month's Los Angeles International Auto Show, or at least that's what is being reported by InsideLine.

It was anticipated that the XTS would debut either in LA in November or at the Detroit Show in January as General Motors has already revealed that sales will begin in the spring of next year.

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A Video Tour of the 2012 Chevrolet Caprice PPV with the Detective Package

The first batch of GM's Australian-built 2012 Chevrolet Caprice PPV [Police Patrol Vehicle] cruisers hit the streets across the States earlier this year with more to arrive in the following months.

Despite the fact that the police car launch has sparked some interest for a civilian version as well, the Detroit maker has not such plans on the table – at least not for now.

Today, we stumbled upon a detailed -if not a bit tiring and lengthy- video walkaround of the 2012 Caprice from a Youtube user who goes by the name "Saabkyle04". The unmarked police cruisers with the detective package were located at a GM dealership in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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GM PR Officially Refutes Rumors to Fund Remake of the Cannonball Run

Let’s face it: we live in a politically correct society where speeding, drinking, smoking and many other things are seen as anti-social. So when a rumor surfaces that General Motors -of all corporations- is talking about funding a remake of The Cannonball Run (well, sans the smoking probably), it comes as a bit of a surprise.

For those of you too young to remember, the 1981 original’s storyline involved an illegal cross-country race, with no law left unbroken. Nevertheless, NY Magazine reported today that GM is in talks with producer Al Ruddy (The Godfather, Million Dollar Baby) about participating in the project in a big way.

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Chevy Salesmen Head to Disneyland to Become More Prince Charming when it Comes to Customer Service

Chevrolet is facing a serious problem in California: it is under-performing on the sales front in the country's largest car market. To add insult to injury, it lags behind not only established rivals such as Toyota, Ford and Honda, but also the (relatively) new kid on the block, Hyundai.

Understandably, parent company General Motors is not happy. “We are really going to have a go at California”, said president of GM’s North American operations Mark Reuss. “This is not some half-baked plan. We will be putting a serious amount of money into this.”

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