Latest Wikileaks Cables Reveal Some Of The Politics Involved In GM’s Business
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In a report from The Detroit News, the controversial information site Wikileaks has released some detailed cables between Washington D.C. and U.S. embassies from all over the world, and while several thousand of them have nothing to do with the automotive industry, there were still several cables that happen to shed some light on just how much politics play a part in the automotive world. These cables include several matters between GM and the Chinese, German, and U.S. governments.
For instance, back in November 2009, when Fritz Henderson briefly ran General Motors as CEO, Germany’s Prime Minister Angela Merkel was so enraged by The General’s decision to back the Opel sale after months of negotiations that she personally gave President Barack Obama a phone call to complain about i.
Another cable revealed that the failed sale of Hummer was indeed the work of China’s communist government obstructing the deal between GM and Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co, Hummer’s intended buyer. It further goes to say that the Chinese administration perceived Hummer as nothing more than “gas-guzzling junk.”
Then there’s GM’s Holden division. It turns out that the Australian division had to borrow cash from both GM’s Mexican and European divisions to pay for its operations back in 2009. It also revealed stillborn plans between GM and Ford Motor Company to build an eight-speed transmission.
Source: The Detroit News
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8 speed transmission sounds good!
We believe that there is still one coming, regardless if Ford didn’t want to be a part of it.
I’m waiting for the day an 8-speed comes in manual form! Can you imagine rowing through 8 gears?
Wow, I agree with the Chinese government. I’m not sure how I feel about that.
The way GM pursued the Hummer brand to me was the real problem, they went from being the ultimate 4×4 experience with the original to these glorified land yachts for rap artists.
You nailed it yaba, the H1 was a truly incredible machine.
True dat daugg 🙂