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 Motors' 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; moreover, 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.

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 Daimler AG 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, 2006, a private equity consortium including Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Goldman Sachs Capital, and Five Mile Capital purchased $8.8 billion, or 78% of GMAC'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 three 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 remaining 8% stake in Isuzu (which had peaked at 49% just a few years earlier) on April 11, 2006, to raise an additional $300 million. 12,600 workers from Delphi, 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.

On February 12, 2008 GM announced its loss of $39 billion, the biggest loss of any U.S. automaker. GM has offered buyouts to all its UAW members.

In March 24, 2008, GM reported a cash position of $24 billion, or $6 billion less than what was on hand September 31, 2007, which is a loss of $1 billion a month. A further quarterly loss of $15.5 billion, the third-biggest in the company's history, was announced on August 1, 2008.

On November 17, 2008, GM announced it would sell its stake in Suzuki Motor Corp. (3.02%) for 22.37 billion yen ($230 million) in order to raise much needed cash to get through the 2008 US economic crisis.

Flexible-fuel vehicles in Brazilian market

GM's largest overseas subsidiary is General Motors do Brasil, which started producing flexible-fuel vehicles since its inception in the Brazilian market in 2003. Like other Brazilian flex-fuel vehicles, GM's flex fuel cars and light-duty trucks are optimized to run on any mix of E20-E25 gasoline and up to 100% hydrous ethanol fuel (E100). GM launched its first flex fuel in June 2003, the Chevrolet Corsa 1.8 FlexPower, just two months after the first flex car was launched by another Brazilian carmaker

GM do Brasil also introduced the MultiPower engine in August 2004 which was capable of using natural gas (CNG), ethanol and gasoline (E20-E25 blend) as fuel, and it was used in the multifuel Chevrolet Astra 2.0 model 2005, aimed at the local taxi cab market. The Brazilian GM Powertrain unit also developed the EconoFlex technology, used for the first time in the Chevrolet Prisma 1.4, which allows the flex fuel engine to maximize fuel economy and power.

Due to the success and rapid consumer acceptance of the flex versions, GM sold 192,613 flex vehicles and 135,636 gasoline-powered automobiles in 2005, jumping to 501,681 flex-fuel vehicles while only 949 cars and 6,834 light trucks powered by gasoline were sold in 2007, and reaching new car sales of 535.454 flex fuels in 2008, representing 97 percent of all cars and light duty trucks sold in that year.

Flexible-fuel vehicles in North American market

GM produces several flexible-fuel vehicles that can operate on E85 ethanol fuel or gasoline, or any blend of both. Since 2006 GM started featuring a bright yellow gas cap to remind drivers of the E85 capabilities, and also using badging with the text "Flexfuel/E85 Ethanol" to clearly mark the car as an E85 FFV.

GM is the North American leader in E85 flex fuel vehicles, with over 3 million FlexFuel vehicles on the road in the U.S. As of 2009, GM offers 18 ethanol-enabled FlexFuel cars and trucks in the US, and produce more than one million new FlexFuel vehicles. GM's goal is to have half of their annual vehicle production be E85 or biodiesel capable by 2012.

Despite the significant amount of flex fuel vehicles sold in the US and Canada, the percentage of users actually using ethanol has been very low as many owners are not aware they owned an E85 flex or not enough E85 fueling stations are available nearby, except for the Corn Belt states, where there is a great concentration of E85 stations, as most corn ethanol is produced there. A 2005 survey found that 68% of American flex-fuel car owners were not aware they owned an E85 flex. Several critics have argued that GM and the other American automakers have been producing E85 flex models motivated by a loophole in the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) requirements, that allows for a fuel economy credit for every flex-fuel vehicle sold, whether or not in practice these vehicles are fueled with E85. This loophole might have allowed the car industry to meet the CAFE targets in fuel economy just by spending between USD 100 to USD 200 that it cost to turn a conventional vehicle into a flex-fuel, without investing in new technology to improve fuel economy, and saving them the potential fines for not achieving that standard in a given model year.

All-electric vehicles

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.

In June 2006 the documentary Who Killed the Electric Car? was released, criticizing among others, GM for being responsible for the demise of the EV1. 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 blog FastLane 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.

GM responded to allegations made in the film through a blog post by Dave Barthmuss, who said "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 closed area of the tech center.

On September 16, 2008, as part of its 100th anniversary celebration, GM unveiled the "production" version of the Chevrolet Volt at the GM headquarters in Detroit.

General Motors has announced that it is building a prototype two-seat electric vehicle with Segway. An early prototype of the Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility vehicle—dubbed Project P.U.M.A. -- will be shown off in New York a day ahead of the press previews for the 2009 New York International Auto Show.

Alternative fuels and electric vehicles

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 ethanol burning flexible-fuel vehicles that can run on either E85 (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, 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 V8-6-4 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 EV1.

GM supported a compromise version of the CAFE standard increase from 27 mpg to 35 mpg, the first such increase in over 20 years.

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 equipments.

GM's Oldsmobile Aurora engine platform was successful in the Indy Racing League (IRL) throughout the 1990s, winning many races in the small V-8 class. GM has also done much work in the development of electronics for GM auto racing. 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 Impala is the only entry in the series but in the past the Pontiac Grand Prix, Buick Regal, Oldsmobile Cutlass, Chevrolet Lumina, Chevrolet Malibu, and the Chevrolet Monte Carlo were also used.

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 Vectra in Super 2000 spec, although have announced plans to withdraw at the end of 2009. Opel used to participate in the DTM series and also in the 1980s in the World Rally Championship and other Rally Series with Group B Spec Opel Manta's before this category of Rallying was banned. Chevrolet competes with a Chevrolet Cruze in the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC). Tempus Sport and RML also complete with a privately run Lacetti in the BTCC.

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 635+ BHP (approx 467 kW Power). These cars have a top speed of 294 km/h (182 mph) and run 0-100 km/h in 3.8 seconds. The Holden Racing Team is Australia's most successful team in Australian Touring Car History. In 2007 the Drivers championship was won by the very closely linked HSV Dealer Team.

Timeline of 2008/2009 decline

• October 10, 2008: GM considered exchanging its remaining 49% stake in GMAC to Cerberus Capital Management for Chrysler LLC, potentially merging two of Detroit's "Big Three" automakers. Acquisition talks involving Chrysler were cancelled, however, before November 7, 2008, as part of a broader response to the increasing urgency of GM's own cash flow problems. That was a result of Chrysler's senior bank debt currently trading at less than 50 cents on the dollar and because Chrysler's other owner – Daimler, formerly DaimlerChrysler – recently revalued its 19.9% Chrysler stake down to zero, which may or may not reflect its value in a potential sale.

• December 12, 2008: General Motors stated that it was nearly out of cash, and may not survive past 2009. The U.S. Senate voted and strongly opposed any source of government assistance through a bailout bridge loan (originally worth $14 billion in emergency aid) which was aimed toward helping the struggling Big Three automakers financially, despite strong support from President George W. Bush and President-elect Barack Obama, along with some mild support from the Democratic and Republican political parties.

Prior to the U.S. Senate's announcement, General Motors announced that it had hired several lawyers to discuss the possibility of filing for bankruptcy, with Chapter 11 bankruptcy being one of the options discussed. GM stated that "all options are on the table" for the company. Chrysler LLC, which is owned by Cerberus Capital Management, in a similar financial situation, warned that it, too, was nearly out of cash and might not survive much longer.

• December 18, 2008: President Bush announced that an "orderly" bankruptcy was one option being considered for both General Motors and Cerberus-owned Chrysler LLC. Sources said that setting up this type of "orderly" bankruptcy would be complicated because it would not only involve talks with the automakers, but also the unions and other stakeholders would have to be involved.

• December 19, 2008: President Bush approved a bailout plan and gave General Motors and Chrysler $13.4 billion in financing from TARP (Troubled Assets Relief Program) funds, as well as $4 billion to be "withdrawn later."

• As of February 14, 2009: General Motors was considering filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy under a plan that would assemble all of their viable assets, including some U.S. brands and international operations, into a new company. Less than a week later, its Saab subsidiary filed for bankruptcy protection in Sweden.

• March 5, 2009: GM's independent public accounting firm (Deloitte & Touche) issued a qualified opinion as part of GM's 2008 annual report that stated "[these conditions] raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern." A qualified going concern audit letter like this is only issued by the auditors when the company is in extreme financial distress and it is likely that it may file for bankruptcy protection.

• March 12, 2009: GM's CFO Ray Young said that it would not need the requested $2B in March noting that the cost-cutting measures are starting to take hold.

• March 29, 2009: GM's Chairman and CEO, Rick Wagoner, agreed to immediately resign his position as part of an Obama administration automotive restructuring plan. Wagoner was replaced by Fritz Henderson. In announcing that plan, on March 30, 2009, President Obama stated that both GM and Chrysler may need to use "our bankruptcy code as a mechanism to help them restructure quickly and emerge stronger. He also announced that the warranties on cars made by these companies would be guaranteed by the U.S. Government.

• March 31, 2009: President Barack Obama announced that he would give GM 60 additional days to try and restructure their company and prove their viability. If they succeeded, Washington would provide General Motors with additional bridge loans. However, if GM could meet the requirements set by the White House, a prepackaged bankruptcy is probable. President Obama reiterated that GM will be part of the future even if bankruptcy is necessary.

• April 22, 2009: GM stated that it will not be able to make their June 1, 2009 debt payment.

• April 24, 2009: GM announced that they will be scrapping the Pontiac brand in an effort to invest more money into their major brands (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC).

• May 4, 2009: German Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg said Fiat (among others) might be interested in the GM European unit.

• June 1, 2009: GM filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, the fourth largest filing in the United States history after Lehman Brothers, Washington Mutual, and Worldcom.

GM in the 21st 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.

In 2004, GM redirected resources from the development of new sedans to an accelerated refurbishment of their light trucks and SUVs 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 is to tout these revised vehicles extensively 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 middle 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.

The electric car

In 1990, GM debuted the revolutionary "Impact" concept car at the Los Angeles Auto Show. It was the first car with zero-emissions marketed in the US in over three decades. The Impact was eventually produced as the EV1 for the 1996 model year. It was available through dealers located in only a few regions (e.g., California, Arizona, Georgia). Vehicles were leased, rather than sold, to individuals. In 2003 GM decided to cease production of the vehicles. All EV1's were either destroyed or donated to museums or universities.^{[citation needed]}

Compacts arrive

The decade of the 1960s saw the creation of compact and intermediate classes. The Chevrolet Corvair was a flat 6-cylinder (air cooled) answer to the Volkswagen Beetle, the Chevy II was created to match Ford's conventional Falcon, after sales of the Corvair failed to match its Ford rival, 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.^{[citation needed]}

The 1971 Chevrolet Vega was GM's launch into the new subcompact class to compete against the import's increasing market share. Problems associated with its innovative aluminum engine led to the model's discontinuation after seven model years in 1977. 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 Chevrolet Citation. In 1976 Chevrolet came out with the rear-wheel drive sub compact Chevette. It was a well built car but couldn't compete with the Japanese imports in overall quality and standard features.^{[citation needed]}

Company overview

General Motors currently employs approximately 266,000 people around the world. General Motor's global headquarters is the Renaissance Center located in Detroit, Michigan, United States. In 2007, 9.35 million GM cars and trucks were produced in 19 different countries. GM is the majority shareholder in GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co. of South Korea and has had many collaborations with the world's various automakers. This includes product, powertrain and purchasing collaborations with Suzuki Motor Corp. and Isuzu Motors Ltd. of Japan, advanced technology collaborations with Toyota Corporation and BMW AG of Germany and vehicle manufacturing ventures with several of the world's automakers including Toyota, Suzuki, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation. of China, AvtoVAZ of Russia, Renault SA of France, and most recently, UzAvtosanoa of Uzbekistan. GM also had collaborations with Fiat S.p.A (see GM/Fiat Premium platform) and Ford Motor Company. To this day, GM retains various stakes in many different automakers.

According to at least one automotive columnist, as GM seeks aid from European governments in 2009 while acknowledging it has no alternative plan, and admits it is willing to surrender control of its operations in Europe to enable an infusion of cash, the "de facto deglobalization" of GM is in progress.

The domain name gm.com attracted at least 7 million visitors annually by 2008.

General Motors Corporation (GM)

(OTCBB: GMGMQ/Pink Sheets: GMGMQ) is a U.S. automaker based in Detroit, Michigan. It is the world's second-largest after Toyota, ranked by 2008 global unit sales. GM was the global sales leader for 77 consecutive calendar years from 1931 to 2007. It manufactures cars and trucks in 34 countries. GM employs 244,500 people around the world, and sells and services vehicles in some 140 countries. In 2008, 8.35 million GM cars and trucks were sold globally under the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Opel, Vauxhall, Holden, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn and Wuling.

In late 2008 GM, along with Chrysler, received loans from the United States, Canada, and Ontario governments to avoid bankruptcy resulting from the late-2000s recession, record oil prices, mismanagement, and fierce competition (see also automotive industry crisis of 2008–2009). On February 20, 2009, GM's Saab division filed for reorganization in a Swedish court after being denied loans from the Swedish government. On April 27, 2009, amid ongoing financial problems and restructuring efforts, GM announced that it would phase out the Pontiac brand by the end of 2010 and focus on four brands in North America: Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, and GMC. It also announced that the resolution (sale) of its Hummer, Saab, and Saturn brands would take place by the end of 2009. GM had previously eliminated the Oldsmobile brand earlier in the decade for similar reasons.

As of April 24, 2009 (2009 -04-24)^[update], GM has received US$15.4 billion in loans from the US Treasury Department under the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). GMAC, a financing company held 49% by GM, has received US$5 billion in loans under the same program, while GM has received an additional US$1 billion loan to buy more equity in GMAC. General Motors Canada, 100% owned by GM, has received a combined loan commitment of C$3 billion from the Canadian and Ontario governments.

General Motors filed for a government-assisted Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on June 1, 2009, with a plan to re-emerge as a smaller and less debt-burdened organization in several months. The chapter 11 petition was filed in the federal court in Manhattan, New York. The filing reported US$82.29 billion in assets and US$172.81 billion in debt. As ranked by total assets, the bankruptcy is the fourth-largest in U.S. history, following Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., Washington Mutual and WorldCom Inc.