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)]