GM Prepping to Announce Closure of Pontiac

Okay, the economic situation was already pretty serious. Now it is really hitting big companies like General Motors, very hard.

General Motors is preparing to announce the closure of the Pontiac brand. Yes, that is right; there will be no more Pontiac. The announcement will be made as part of an updated viability plan to the U.S. auto task force.

Other automotive news sources have said that GM was considering to phase out the brand instead of sticking with the current plan to have it continue as a niche brand or marquee.

GM is barely holding on to its cash even with the $15.4 billion in U.S. government loans as part of the bailout. Original plans for GM included keeping the brands Buick, Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac while selling off Hummer, Saturn and Saab.

[source: autonews]

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe: New Images Introduced

The new Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe is sure to be a car that gets a second look after the demise of the CLK. Some people have been begging for an E-Class coupe while others rather could care less about yet another Mercedes-Benz model added to the already flooded linup.

Of course the new E-Class Coupe will offer virtually the same flavors as the E-Class sedan starting with the E250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY (Diesel) up to the E500 Coupe with a 388 horsepower powerplant. Wonder if they will have an actual AMG version instead of just an “AMG package”?

The E-Class coupe will be introduced at the Geneva Auto Show which Mercedes-Benz plans on being one of the FEW entrants (who didn’t drop out) in this year’s show.

Below is the press release for the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe

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Chris Bangle Leaves BMW – Good or Bad Thing?

So maybe all of the BMW fan boys have something to celebrate today. Chris Bangle, Chief of Design at BMW Group, is leaving as he has announced that he will quit his position at BMW and leaving the automotive industry altogether to seek his own design endeavors. Chris Bangle has been BMW’s Chief of Design since 1992 and worked for Fiat and Opel before then.

Chris Bangle will be replaced by Adrian van Hooydonk as BMW’s head of design.

With the many controversial designs over the years at BMW Chris leaves behind a legacy that is liked by many and hated by some. The face of BMW was completely changed and those who did not like IT pointed the finger at Bangles direction. The future of BMW will no longer be influenced by Bangles ideas or designs and we do not know if this a good thing or bad one. What do you think? Will BMW be better off without him or do you love what Bangle had to offer BMW in some of his latest designs such as from the BMW Z4, 7-series to the 1-series and so on?

Vote on the Poll below and express your opinion!

[poll id="4"]

Audi Q5 Hybrid Coming Next Year

The hybrid bandwagon is filling up fast as just about every car maker has plans to release a new hybrid model in the next year or two. Audi is one of them where they plan on introducing a small SUV dubbed the Audi Q5 Hybrid. It is slated to be ready for the showroom in 2010.

Previously Automotive News reported that Audi axed the Q7 hybrid along with the Q5 but now they have confirmed through head of the powertrain development for the Volkswagen Group,, Wolfgan Hatz, that they will be offering the Audi Q5 hybrid in the USA in late 2010. In addition to this good news the Audi Q5 Hybrid will be first introduced in the USA first and then a possibility of it being sold in Europe depending on the success in the States.

[source: Automotive News]

President Obama sets out to act on Fuel Efficiency Standards

In our economic downturn you start to see several actions taken by President Obama and that includes the Emissions/fuel economy standards that are placed on automakers. Should it be left to the state to decide and draw the line for their own emissions standards?

Earlier it seemed President Obama would be giving states the right to set their own emissions/fuel economy standards. This has sparked a massive discussion. Today President Obama reaffirmed that he is putting in place the California emissions Clean Air act to tighten the air quality standards related to the emissions that cars produce. Regardless of what California does, it was said by President Obama that by the year 2020 all vehicles produced will meet or exceed 35 miles per gallon for cars and 22 mpg for trucks. He went on to say that this will equal a savings of about 2 million barrels of oil a day which is the amount that the USA imports from the Persian Gulf.

I guess that talk about Change was not a lie. He is really CHANGING stuff for the better right?
Do you think this will be devastating to the already struggling Automotive Industry?

The extensive details on the plan can be read at cnn.com’s money site.

World’s Largest Automaker is Now Toyota Not GM

Who would have thought Toyota would be considered the world’s largest automaker? Probably never in your parents or grandparents lifetime would you think this could happen. Well, it is true! Just like the USA has an African American for President, the world’s largest automaker is now Toyota.

Over the past few years including last year, General Motors and Toyota were almost in a dead heat in being the worlds largest automaker. So what does that really mean to be the world’s largest automaker? Sales sales sales, that is what it really means. Toyota has managed to outsell GM. But of course, look at what just took place in the past few months with THE BAILOUT and GM just about to fall off of the face of the planet. No surprise here when all you read about is GM hurting, cutting jobs, hauling production and asking for billions of dollars to keep afloat.

Mind you, Toyota only has a few “make” divisions including Toyota, Lexus and Scion. GM has ahhh, Saturn, Chevy, Pontiac, Saab, Buick, GMC, Cadillac, Hummer and ahhh, I lost count. Granted Toyota is hurting along with all of the other auto companies, it still stands out as one that will survive and has a positive and stable outlook into the near future.

Let’s see what plays out in the next few months, you may be driving a new Toyota Malibu and I want one!