Filed under: GM, Nissan, Earnings/Financials
Wagoner says we don't need a partner
Rick said it; General Motors does not need a partner to complete its recovery. According to an interview with Wagoner by Automotive News, the CEO of GM thinks 'It's not logical or responsible to say we must have a partner to recover.' GM is currently studying whether it will allow billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian to bring the General into a permanent alliance with Nissan and Renault. Wagoner's interest in any venture, simply put, is about selling more vehicles. As for any new deal with Ford, Wagoner says "who knows?
Let's face it, Nissan and Renault are small potatoes compared to GM. Wagoner is pretty confident that they can turn around their fortunes in North America. The past three months have seen an increase in sales over last year, and GM has introduced many new vehicles and there are still many more in the channel ready to hit the road next year. And Kerkorian is really just trying to make a buck. As for the GM-Ford deal, if Wagoner says something like 'who knows?,' you better believe it's not going to happen. He's never going to come out and say, 'heck no!' Why not stoke the fire of speculation even more?
Bottom line, Rick is pretty confident that his ship is turning around. The crew at GM knows that it won't be easy sailing for the next couple years, and they are hoping the new product will put the wind in their sails (sales). We're starting to think Tracinda should have taken aim at Ford, at least Kirk could've bought more share for his money.
[Source: Automotive New (subscription required)]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
UK-KID 8:47PM (9/28/2006)
Good Luck Mr Wagoner
( I really mean that )
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Road Rage 8:50PM (9/28/2006)
GM does not need Nissan! Nissan does not exactly have an exciting line up. What product do they have that is HOT? Nissan has a whole lot weighing on new product and the New Versa, Sentra, and Altima leave much to be desired! The G35 is a great product but Infiniti as a whole is struggling, they need new product. GM has Nissan hands down in the Large Truck and SUV segment. The only thing Nissan really has to offer is the best V6 engine in the world. Ghosn will be on the chopping block in 12 - 24 months unless, they have some great product somewhere that has not surfaced. GM so far is on the right track. They did not get in this situation quickly and they won't get out quickly but they will get out. This not the first time the General has been in a war.
I had my doubts about Rick and Company but I think they are turning the corner. At least, they had the balls to back up their powertrain with a 5 year / 100,000 mile warranty. If, GM and Ford owners maintained their vehicles like Mercedes, BMW, etc. owners do with scheduled maintenance they would cut down on a lot of problems. Domestic owners tend to think an oil change is major service.
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Richard Warren 8:56PM (9/28/2006)
Rick you just went up a couple of notches in my view of you. Good luck.
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Road Rage 9:05PM (9/28/2006)
Also, the best thing for GM would be for Kirk Kerkorian to get his cash and get the hell out of the way. His goal has been to merge GM with a foreign company and make a buck! He is the Taliban of democracy. This is why we have no loyalty from employees anymore because we have a bunch of whores like Kerkorian trying to run things.
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Stoneman 9:07PM (9/28/2006)
They need a miracle, not a partner. If GM keeps making crap like Cobalt, H3, and HHR, there's not much hope here for a substantial recovery. We need innovation and high quality product folks. It's not rocket science. Build a better car that has good fuel economy, excellent reliability, comfort, looks, and a better brand image, then you've got something. Hell, if Hyundai can come out of the toilet after 2001, why can't GM? It's no coincidence that Hyundai is starting to make better products.
It only took them 7 years. GM has been working at it for ten times that and still they lack in certain areas. Don't get me wrong, they do have good products: Corvette Z06, the Cadillac XLR, and of course, the Escalade brand - as products they are brilliant marketing pieces.
Stoneman
http://www.stonemanautoreview.com
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Road Rage 9:38PM (9/28/2006)
I guess Cobalt sales are up 10% this year because they are crap? Drive a Cobalt and an HHR and see for yourself. The quality is much improved.
http://www.autoblog.com/2006/09/03/chevy-cobalt-sales-on-the-rise/
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Rastus 9:56PM (9/28/2006)
Autoblog, you guys/gals need to get an updated photo of Rickypoo:
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060928/UPDATE/609280436
Rick has as much a chance of turning around GM as he has returning to Duke to play basketball.
Boy, sure as sh*t, there would be people who cheer for him!!!
Go TEAM!!! Give me a "G"!!! Give me an "M"....Ricky, RICKY, he's OUR MAN!!!
YAAAAAY!!!!
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mike 10:01PM (9/28/2006)
Tell captain to take a hike. GM dosen't need Nissan/ Renault (who likes the french anyway??). Nissan is crap. I know I drive one every day. GM is on the right track. Good luck!!
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Rastus 10:02PM (9/28/2006)
PS, that photo above (the "youthful" Rick) was taken back in the day when he was working overtime DESTROYING shareholder value!
See? Sell yourself to the Devil and you will pay the price. In his case, he's aging 3X as fast as a pure soul who doesn't commit to making deals with Satan himself.
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UK-KID 10:17PM (9/28/2006)
This reminds me of the days prior to the Chrysler// Daimler MergeOver (TakeOver as far as the Germans are concerned )
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Jason_801 10:20PM (9/28/2006)
I drive an excellent Nissan every day, and my previous ride was a Pontiac that earnestly tried to bankrupt me by falling apart before it was even paid for.
So obviously, your results may vary.
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Stanley Shih 11:19PM (9/28/2006)
GM has demonstrated a clear pattern of improvement in product strategy and product in the past 3 years. They still have a long way to go, but I think Rick and Bob are on the right track.
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Chivo 11:20PM (9/28/2006)
Stoneman, don't type anything else again, and don't review any more automobiles, since your reviews are worth shit.
The HHR and Cobalt are hits and are good cars. Heck, you mention that the Escalade are one of the few good automobiles that GM makes? ESCALADE? See, your opinion is crap, you mention an overpriced SUV as GM's best? GM has alot more cars that are GREAT, at reasonable prices, but seems like you like crap.
Heck, GM will make a comeback with cars like the G6, Solstice, Sky, Lucerne, CTS, DTS, XLR. Now, if only the pickups looked a little bit more like their new full size SUV's, that would be great!
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GrossMilk 1:29AM (9/29/2006)
Learnt in one of my MBA classes about Ross Perots role in GM and how the seemingly incompetent directors kicked him out of the company through compensation.
Here's what today's analysts think of GM and how it strays close to Perot's view of the GM management.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_levin&sid=aDUqF_0pLl8Y
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Finished Law School 2:16AM (9/29/2006)
GM does not need a partner, what GM needs is to get rid of the UAW, get some executives that know what they are doing, get some design people who design appealing cars and get some quality control people who actually perform their job.
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doglet 3:27AM (9/29/2006)
GM has rounded the corner, they dont need a partnership. i wonder if they are looking at a deal that simply sells some excess factory capacity for cash to nissan.
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Tiago do Vale 3:43AM (9/29/2006)
Don't underestimate Renault/Nissan.
Mercedes was small potatoes when compared to the Chrysler giant, right? But they were far more effective, and just took over the group.
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iQuack 6:11AM (9/29/2006)
Kerkorian wants Ghosn to lead GM and Wagoner will not be a co-president or other such redundant functionary unless GM's board rejects him which it won't.
There are enormous egos here who simply can't mix.
Expect these GM/Nissan-Renault talks to go absolutely nowhere. Any meeting in Paris will be more about dining in costly, French restaurants than combining any parts of auto companies. "Yes, I'd like another glass of Bordeaux, s.v.p."
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EGS 8:53AM (9/29/2006)
i have had the opportunity to drive a couple of GM's rentals, the Cobalt and the Malibu. as a previous pontiac and Chevy owner, i must sae that these vehicles are a much better than i had expected. i hope they keep pushing the quality and don't let it drop off like it did in the 80's and 90's.
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Andy, UK 9:35AM (9/29/2006)
Best of luck Rick. Keep fighting off that greedy, grotesque Kerkorian and GM's recovery will continue.
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