GM & Ford Merger Talks??

BlueCrush · Post by **BlueCrush** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 4:24 am

Quote Â»Execs of GM, Ford have discussed possibility of merger, report saysAssociated PressLast update: September 18, 2006 – 8:12 AMDETROIT — Executives of General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. have discussed a possible merger or alliance, the trade journal Automotive News reported today. Both companies declined comment on the report. Automotive News quoted what it said were several people familiar with the talks as saying that discussions involving senior executives began in July and are not taking place now.The report comes as GM and Ford have been slashing their work forces and closing plants in efforts to reverse multibillion dollar losses. Their sales have been hurt by competition from more fuel-efficient models from Asian automakers.As the two biggest U.S. automakers, any deal would presumably face scrutiny by U.S. antitrust regulators.In July, GM, Renault SA of France and Nissan Motor Co. of Japan announced a 90-day review of an alliance among them."As we've often said, GM officials routinely discuss issues of mutual interest with other automakers,'' GM spokesman Brian Akre said before business hours Monday. "As a policy, we do not confirm or comment publicly on those private discussions, which in many cases do not lead anywhere.''Ford Oscar Suris, also speaking before business hours, said: "We're not commenting on speculation.''Talk of alliances involving GM came after GM shareholder Kirk Kerkorian, who owns a 9.9 percent stake in the company, called for GM, Renault and Nissan to pursue an alliance.Carlos Ghosn, the chief executive of Renault and Nissan, has said the benefits from an alliance would be similar to the gains from the Renault-Nissan alliance, which have included cost savings from joint purchases of auto parts.Ford earlier declined to comment on an August Wall Street Journal report that then-Chief Executive Bill Ford approached Ghosn about a Ford alliance with Renault and Nissan.In pre-market trading, GM shares rose 4 cents to $31.70 while Ford shares rose 2 cents to $8.04.

Mavrik · Post by **Mavrik** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 4:29 am

no they can't! lol I'm not a ford fan... I can't see GM holding their hand at all... thats... um sick and wrong.

ToolGuy · Post by **ToolGuy** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 4:31 am

Nah all a bunch of talk I say! The news was talking about it here this morning and said the talks were from the beginning of summer and ended the news clip by saying chances were slim to none. I do not buy it, just something for the press to run with...

silver_vibe · Post by **silver_vibe** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:00 am

2008 Chevy Mustang? Why not

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:01 am

ford and gm were supposed to be working on some car stuff together anyway or a CVT tranny. why wouldnt this be a good thing? the american manf's need to work together to get their butts in gear. an alliance doesnt mean merger, its just working together on a project i say do it and i hope it works.

ToolGuy · Post by **ToolGuy** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:10 am

Quote, originally posted by silver_vibe Â»2008 Chevy Mustang? Why not How about the Mustang SS!

drunkenmaxx · Post by **drunkenmaxx** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:16 am

Quote, originally posted by MiVibe-ToolGuy Â»How about the Mustang SS! look around enough, i'm sure you can find a V6 ricer with just that sticker.

Mrizzle05 · Post by **Mrizzle05** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:40 am

pontiac focus GTford G6

ramenboy... · Post by **ramenboy...** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:54 am

pontiac thunderbird?ford firebird?

BLAQJAQ · Post by **BLAQJAQ** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 8:29 am

ah hell no...i am definatley a ford fan in any shape form or fashion....damn damn damn!

jimincalif · Post by **jimincalif** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 8:34 am

Well, I guess it never hurts to brainstorm and explore options, but....Two companies with similar problems, lagging SUV/truck sales, unprofitable car lines, etc. Where is the synergy in such a merger? Just end up with one bigger company (at least temporarily bigger) facing the same issues.

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 8:44 am

half of the problem is they have good cars outside the US, both companies do, they just wont bring them here! Maybe when the low sulfur disiel is here next year they will bring more UK cars over.

SeattleJeremy · Post by **SeattleJeremy** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 10:05 am

Hmmm, one big Detroit Parts bin. Lets see what the two have to bring to the plate. GM has theEcotec60degreev6LS series engines (LS1, LS2, LS6, LS7)RWD 6speed manual and Automatic (vette)Ford has Duratec 3.5L 6speed automatic Everything else is kinda redundant, isn't it? Lets just take the 6speed auto, drop it in the G6, Malibu, and other midsize/large cars, and GM's set.

zionzr2 · Post by **zionzr2** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 12:55 pm

If GM and FORD merege then it truly is the End of the American Car Company.Though I dont think either company would truly do this anyway.

SuperSpeedWagon · Post by **SuperSpeedWagon** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 1:36 pm

i hate ford and thats all i have to say about that lol

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 1:47 pm

the ford focus ST from the UK could save the US focus and so could fords AU cars. the uk focus ST is a duratec 2.5 5 cylinder Turbo. and fords new 3.5l should dominate gm's 3500. Ford also has a new truck with tri fuel and hydralic hybrid system to get 60mpg. if ford and gm merge they just have to be careful not to just make trucks...

kostby · Post by **kostby** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 2:14 pm

I. Leave the minivans to Daimler Chrysler.Leave the large rwd wagons to Daimler Chrysler.Leave the fwd compact cars to ToyotaLeave the turbodiesels to VW and AudiII. Jettison all the A) overlapping models, B) overlapping brands, and C) dealerships that are not customer-orientedII. Assume that neither partner can afford to bring any significant new models to the fray before 2010 (sorry, no 2008 GTO or 2009 Camaro) you end up with about 100 multimegagigantosuperdealers (average of 2 per state), selling cars, primarily over the internet:Another 500 or so former dealerships (average of 10 per state) could vie for 'service center status' to handle warranty and maintenance, and sell used and 'program cars' but wouldn't be allowed to sell new products.III. What to sell? Fusion, Mustang, (Ford GT is out of production, I believe), Cadillac (RWD V-models only), Corvette, Aveo(you've just got to have an entry-level basic transportation POS), Cobalt, Impala V6 & V8, GMT900 (trucks & SUV's), Solstice/Sky, and theuh, theeeuh, theeeeuh, That's all, folks!

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 2:22 pm

kostby you forgot about the vibe

ColonelPanic · Post by **ColonelPanic** » Mon Sep 18, 2006 4:32 pm

This would be a cluster* if such a thing ever took place...Can you imagine the social ramifications that such a merger would cause, particularly in rural America where blood is routinely spilled over the Chevy vs. Ford rivalry as it is? We'd have suicide, pure and simple. Lots of pissed off people, down in the dumps, only way to get away from a Ford (or Chevy) is to go buy a Dodge, and they've been trashing the Dodges thier whole lives... They have no choice other than to take their own life! (removed)!Working together for key projects would be sorta ok as long as the trucks don't get involved, see above. I think before they try to make two large disasters into one fricken ginormous disaster, they need to get off their 10 MPG gettin' SUV and truck kick and try to produce CARS again. The downfall of Ford and GM coincided with the bright idea to put leather and (removed) warmers into trucks and their derivatives, I swear! Hey look at this, we're making all this money!! Oh wait, nobody is buying these things at $3 a gallon gas prices! Why? Screw it, that's what rebates are for, and we know we're buried deep in inventory but let's keep BUILDING!!! And with GM and Ford, it seems they're really keen on the constant improvement of these behemoths - how many times do we have to hear "new from the ground up" about some innefficient, bloated, unnecessary (for a good chunk of the population) vehicle? Sadly, it is a disappointment that at least some of that fat R&D budget they used there couldn't be applied to vehicles with higher efficiency, lower prices, and albeit lower profits for the company. They're more than capable of producing quality products, they have some great facilities and even better people employed to run them. The products are about as good as they've been in a long time, at least that I've seen. They just need to do themselves a favor and use what resources they may have left towards products that people will want to buy. I'm not saying they should dump their trucks and SUV's outright, many of the trucks (but probably fewer of the SUV's) serve a purpose. There are people who need them - keep building them at a slower pace and don't put all your eggs in that one basket anymore...

kostby · Post by **kostby** » Tue Sep 19, 2006 1:01 am

Quote, originally posted by northvibe Â»kostby you forgot about the vibe Not really. Quote, originally posted by kostby Â»Leave the fwd compact cars to ToyotaUnder my grand de-industrialization, all US-market Mercury, Lincoln, Pontiac, Buick, Saab, Hummer, and GMC truck consumer models would go by the wayside.Our beloved Vibes would indeed disappear, and be available only in 'Matrix' trim from your friendly TSLJVAPNRBKHS dealer (pronounced TISSEL-JAVA-PINNER-BUCKUS)(Toyota-Scion-Lexus-Jaguar-Volvo-Audi-Volkswagen-Porsche-Nissan-Renault-BMW-Kia-Hyundai-Subaru)

GM & Ford Merger Talks??

GM & Ford Merger Talks??

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (BlueCrush)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (BlueCrush)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (BlueCrush)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (silver_vibe)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (MiVibe-ToolGuy)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (drunkenmaxx)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (Mrizzle05)

Re: (zionzr2)

Re: GM & Ford Merger Talks?? (BlueCrush)

Re: (northvibe)