BREAKING! GM and Ford rumored alliance



Automotive News reported early this morning that senior executives within Ford and GM have explored the possibility of an alliance, even a merger, in the near future.

The supposed talks between the two Detroit titans began sometime in July, soon after Rick Wagoner and Carlos Ghosn began investigating the benefits of a GM/Renault/Nissan threesome. The sources cited by Automotive News have not been able to confirm who opened the door to the talks, with one insider saying that Wagoner was the instigator, while another source disputes that assertion. It is known that a possible merger was discussed between the General's CFO, Fritz Henderson and Don Leclair, Ford's own CFO sometime in August.

Although the idea of a Ford/GM alliance may seem odd at first glance, one only needs to look at the tremendous stake each company has in the other's continued existence. The most potentially catastrophic scenario would include GM or Ford declaring bankruptcy, leaving their mutual parts suppliers blowing in the financial winds and subsequently cutting off the other from much-needed materials. It could be argued that both would go down and quickly.

Although it's doubtful anything of this magnitude would come to fruition, the dependency each of the players share may warrant a second look at a union between what's left of the 'Big 3.' At this point however, spokespeople for both GM and Ford are relying on the "no comment" approach to get them through the next few days.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)

Add your comments

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.








Autoblog Podcast #156: Paukert comes back for more! 

Chris, Dan, and Editor Paukert chat and give each other grief. Merriment ensues.

 
 

Featured Galleries

  • Danica Patrick NASCAR
  • Tiger Woods GM-owned Cadillac Escalade
  • Forza 3 Hot Holidays DLC
  • Spy Shots: Baby Buick caught in Germany
  • 2011 Aston Martin Rapide
  • LA 2009: Allard J2X MkII
  • LA 2009: 2010 Spyker C8 Aileron Spyder
  • Cornell's SAE Baja buggy tour and test drive
  • 2010 Range Rover Sport Autobiography
  • 2010 Hyundai Tucson
  • LA 2009: 2010 Subaru Impreza WRX STI Special Edition
  • LA 2009: 2011 Ford Mustang V6

AOL Autos

Find Your Next Car

Autoblog Video


Autoblog Green

Daily Finance

Download Squad

Engadget

Joystiq

Autoblog Spanish

Switched.com

FanHouse

Asylum