My News Today » GM

Chevy Volt to get 230mpg in much the same way that your mom can say she’s ‘lost weight’ and Obama can say 45 million are uninsured: by fudging the numbers

Kyle — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:51:17 +0000

CNN Money – Ultra-high mileage for GM’s electric-drive Volt could give it a marketing boost.

he Chevrolet Volt, GM’s electric car that’s expected to go on sale in late 2010, is projected to get an estimated 230 miles per gallon, the automaker announced Tuesday.

That exceptionally high government mileage rating could give the Volt a major boost. For the first time, car buyers will easily be able to compare electric cars with ordinary gas-powered cars.

“Having a car that gets triple-digit fuel economy can and will be a game changer for us,” said GM CEO Fritz Henderson.

Determining fuel economy for an electric car is a tricky matter. While General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) has been working with the Environmental Protection Agency for years on the issue, the agency says it has not tested a Chevy Volt and therefore cannot confirm the fuel economy values claimed by GM.

Automaker Unions Willing To Give Big Three Concessions

Steve — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:39:07 +0000

United Auto Workers union head Ron Gettelfinger announced that the union’s workers could approve some concessions to the Big Three U.S. automakers if the right situation arises. UAW entered into new labor contracts with GM, Ford and Chrysler in 2007. Gettelfinger indicated that if the government authorized loans to the Big Three automakers, it would be willing to reopen the 2007 labor contracts and make concessions in order to keep the companies afloat.

How much are the unions willing to concede? No one knows and Gettelfinger is keeping his cards close to his vest. It’s a definite Catch-22. The government wants to make sure that the Big Three have a plan in place and are willing to make significant expense cuts (including employment expense cuts) before it will authorize the loans to the floundering companies. On the other hand, the Big Three cannot guarantee employment expense cuts until they get commitments from UAW that they are willing to do so. It’s a vicious cycle.

For the latest on the Big Three Predicament check out this Fox Business exclusive.

Automakers CEO’s To Accept $1 Salaries?

Steve — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:21:23 +0000

You heard it right. Ford Motor Company and General Motors, 2 of the Big Three U.S. automakers, have confirmed that each of their CEO’s will accept a $1 salary in 2009 if their company accepts bailout money from the federal government. Ford also released a turnaround plan to Congress, the 1st of the Big Three U.S. automakers to do so, but critics contend that the details of the plan are not much different from what Ford told representatives of Congress less than a month ago.

Will it work? Taking a closer look at the details, accepting a $1 salary does not seem like that big of a deal. Ford’s CEO Alan Mulally had a base salary of $2 million in 2007 (but his total compensation was a whopping $21.7 million with stock incentives and other bonuses). GM’s CEO Rick Waggoner had a base salary of $1.6 million in 2007 (but his total compensation was a whopping $14.4 million with stock incentives and other bonuses). Even if these CEO’s get a fraction of their 2007 total compensation package, they should be just fine.

Ford and GM also announced plans to sell of their corporate jets in order to raise some capital for the struggling giants (last month the 3 heads were criticized for taking 3 separate private jets to Washington to testify in front of Congress). For meetings in Washington later this week, Mulally and Waggoner will drive in hybrid cars manufactured by each CEO’s company. Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli will also refrain from using a corporate jet to get to Washington later this week.

Check out CNN Money’s Big Three Automaker Update for more details on the latest from Detroit and Washington.