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May 2009 Entries

May29

GM prepares to terminate more dealerships…





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

GM prepares to terminate more dealerships


DETROIT -- General Motors plans to start telling more dealerships that they will be terminated when their franchise agreements expire in 17 months.
Two sources familiar with GM's strategy said the automaker planned to shutter as many as 450 additional stores beyond the 1,124 announced on May 15. In an interview late Thursday, GM sales chief Mark LaNeve said the figure is "less than half" that many.

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May29

Volkswagen Eos White Night special-edition





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

Volkswagen Eos White Night special-edition

Volkswagen Eos White Night special-edition
The new Volkswagen special-edition Eos White Night is big on contrast, with a Candy White body offset by a Deep Black Pearlescent roof, side mirrors, and radiator grille. The look is an interesting one,

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May29

US GOVERMENT will invest another $30 billion in GM





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

US GOVERMENT will invest another $30 billion in GM

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration plans to inject $30 billion into General Motors on top of the $19.4 billion it has already lent as part of a sweetened offer to bondholders, senior administration officials said today.

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May26

Audi pays $219.6 million to its employees





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

Audi pays 219.6 million to its employees

Audi AG is the only German premium automaker that has committed to giving its workers a profit-sharing bonus for 2008. The German automaker will pay 157 million euros ( 219.6 Million Dollars) in bonuses by the end of this month. That works out to be an average of 3,600 euros per person. Faced with the need to cut labor costs, Daimler AG's management and union decided last month not to pay out a

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May26

Volkswagen unit loans Porsche $980 million dollars





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

Volkswagen unit loans Porsche $980 million dollars

Volkswagen unit loans Porsche $980 million dollars
STUTTGART, Germany (Reuters) -- Porsche confirmed on Monday it got a 700 million euro ($980 million) loan from its Volkswagen unit but insisted it could cope with its debt woes."Porsche is not on the verge of insolvency even if that is alleged over and over," a company spokesman said, referring to media reports about the German group whose takeover of VW has stalled, forcing it instead to seek a merger with VW.

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May22

GM reaches deal with Canadian Auto Workers union





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

GM reaches deal with Canadian Auto Workers Union

GM reaches deal with Canadian Auto Workers unionAfter two weeks of intense negotiations, General Motors Canada and the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union have reached a deal that will help the automaker cut costs, allowing it to meet the terms for additional government loans. Ken Lewenza, head of the CAW,

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May22

2010 BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo





FEATURED Vehicle Road Test | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

2010 BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo

2010 BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo
Despite the departure of controversial lead designer Chris Bangle, BMW is showing no signs of returning to the "One sausage, three-sizes" styling brief that it once adhered to. The latest proof of this is the announcement of the

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May21

UAW has tentative contract with General Motors





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

UAW has tentative contract with General Motors

General Manager & Dealer Principal Information
The UAW says it has reached a tentative new contract with General Motors and the U.S. Treasury Department aimed at helping the automaker restructure.
The terms include reworking $20 billion in debt owed to a UAW-administered retiree health care trust known as a Voluntary Employees' Beneficiary Association, or VEBA, the union said in a statement today.

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May19

President Obama, fuel-economy proposal





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

President Obama, fuel-economy proposal

Government regulators will get their prize of higher fuel-economy standards, and automakers will get the certainty of a national emissions standard, under new rules to be proposed Tuesday by President Barack Obama. The fleet average fuel economy for automakers will rise to 35.5 mpg in 2016 under the president's proposal--10 mpg more than today's mandate. At the same time, the president's proposed rule will cut carbon emissions, thought to be a key factor in global warming.

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May19

Daimler takes 10 percent stake in Tesla Motors





FEATURED Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

Daimler takes 10 percent stake in Tesla Motors

Daimler takes 10 percent stake in Tesla Motors
Daimler AG has acquired an equity stake of nearly 10 percent of California electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc., During a press conference held at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart this morning. Daimler said its stake in Tesla will allow the companies to collaborate even more closely

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