General Motors

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General Motors

Type Public
Traded as NYSE: GM
TSX: GMM.U
Industry Automotive
Founded 16 September 1908(104 years ago)
[1]

Founder(s) William C. Durant
Headquarters Renaissance Center
Detroit, Michigan
United States
Number of locations 156 facilities on six continents
[2]

Area served Worldwide
Key people Daniel Akerson, Chairman andCEO
Products Automobiles
Financial Services
Revenue US$ 150.28 billion (2011)
[3]

Operating income US$ 9.287 billion (2011)
[3]

Net income US$ 7.585 billion (2011)
[3]

Total assets US$ 144.60 billion (2011)
[3]

Total equity US$ 38.99 billion (2011)
[3]

Employees 202,000 (2012)
[2]

Divisions Chevrolet
Buick
Cadillac
GMC
Subsidiaries List[show]
Website www.gm.com
General Motors Company (NYSE: GM, TSX: GMM.U), commonly known as GM(General Motors Corporation
before 2009), is an American multinational automotivecorporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, and the
world's largest automaker, by vehicle unit sales, in 2011,
[4]
employing 202,000 people
[2]
and doing business in
some 157 countries. General Motors produces cars and trucks in 31 countries, and sells and services these
vehicles through the following four regional segments, which are GM North America (GMNA), GM
Europe (GME), GM International Operations (GMIO), and GM South America (GMSA), through which
development, production, marketing and sales are organised in their respective world regions, plus as fifth
segment GM Financial.
[5]:p.12/13

General Motors (GM) automobile marques
are Alpheon, Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet,GMC, Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall, Holden, and Wuling.
[6]

GM acts in most countries outside the USA via direct subsidiaries, but in China through 10 joint ventures,
among them Shanghai GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile.
[5]:p.18
GM owns (per 31 December 2011) 77.0%
of its joint venture in South Korea, GM Korea.
[5]:p.96
GM's OnStar subsidiary provides vehicle safety, security and
information services.
In 2009, the company shed several brands, closing Saturn and Pontiac, and emerged from a government
backed Chapter 11 reorganization. In 2010, GM made an initial public offering that was one of the world's top 5
largest IPOs to date. GM returned to profitability in 2010.
[7]

Contents
[hide]
1 Corporate governance
o 1.1 Financial results
2 World presence
o 2.1 North America
o 2.2 South America
o 2.3 Europe
o 2.4 Asia
o 2.5 Africa
o 2.6 Oceania
3 Motorsport
4 Research and development
5 Small car sales
6 Environmental initiatives
o 6.1 Hybrid electric vehicles
o 6.2 All-electric vehicles
o 6.3 Battery packs for electric vehicles
o 6.4 Hydrogen initiative
o 6.5 Flexible-fuel vehicles
7 History
o 7.1 Chapter 11 reorganization
8 Brand reorganization
o 8.1 Discontinued brands
o 8.2 Former subsidiaries
o 8.3 Former affiliates
o 8.4 Spin-offs
9 Philanthropy
10 Logos
11 See also
12 References
13 Further reading
14 External links
[edit]Corporate governance


GM World Headquarters in Detroit
Based on global sales, General Motors is currently the world's no. 1 automaker. Headquartered at
the Renaissance Center in Detroit, GM employs approximately 202,000 people around the world. In 2009,
General Motors sold 6.5 million cars and trucks globally; in 2010, it sold 8.4 million.
On July 23, 2009, GM announced its new Board of Directors: Dan Akerson, David Bonderman, Robert D.
Krebs, Patricia F. Russo and Ed Whitacre (GM Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer).
[8]
Board
members who are not GM employees will be paid US$200,000 annually.
[9]

Executive management:
[10]

Daniel Akerson Chief Executive Officer & Chairman of the Board of Directors
Daniel Ammann Chief Financial Officer
Stephen J. Girsky GM Vice Chairman, Corporate Strategy, Business Development, Global Product
Planning and Global Purchasing and Supply Chain
Mark Reuss President, GM North America
Stephen J. Girsky
[11]
President, GM Europe; CEO, Adam Opel AG
Timothy E. Lee President, GM International Operations (Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Africa, and Middle
East)
Mary Barra Senior Vice President of Global Product Development
[12]

Michael Milliken Senior Vice President and General Counsel
[13]

Cynthia J. Brinkley Vice President, Global Human Resources
[14]

Selim Bingol Vice President, Global Communications
[15]

Edward T. Welburn Vice President of Global Design for GM
[16]

As part of the company's advertising, Ed Whitacre announced the company's 60-day money-back guarantee
and repayment of $6.7 billion loan from government ahead of schedule.
[17]
On August 12, 2010 GM announced
that Whitacre would relinquish the CEO position effective September 1, 2010 and that of Chairman of the
Board at the end of the year, to be replaced in those functions by current board member Dan Akerson.
[18]
From
June 2009 to March 2011, the company had three chief executive officers and three chief financial officers.
[19]

[edit]Financial results
The company has reported annual profits since 2010. It can carry forward previous losses to reduce tax liability
on future earnings. It earned $4.7 billion in 2010. The Wall Street Journal estimated the tax break, including
credits for costs related to pensions and other expenses can be worth as much as $45 billion over the next 20
years.
[20]

In 2010, General Motors ranked second on the list with 8.5 million units produced globally.
[21]
In 2011, GM
returned to the first place with 9.025 million units sold worldwide, corresponding to 11.9% market share of the
global motor vehicle industry. The top two markets in 2011 were the United States, with 2,503,820 vehicles
sold, and China, with 2,547,203 units. The Chevrolet brand was the main contributor to GM performance, with
4.76 million vehicles sold around the world in 2011, a global sales record.
[22]

[edit]World presence
[edit]North America
GM products focus primarily on its four core divisions Chevrolet, Cadillac,
Buick, and GMC. The GM restructuring has resulted in a lower break even
point for annual sales.
[32]
The restructuring of GM has allowed the company to
continue to produce high-quality, safe, and fuel-efficient cars.
[33]

In the mid 2005, GM announced that its corporate chrome power emblem
"Mark of Excellence" would begin appearing on all recently introduced and
all-new 2006 model vehicles produced and sold in North America. However,
in 2009 the "New GM" reversed this, saying that emphasis on its four core
divisions would downplay the GM logo.
[34]

GM is now the largest car manufacturer in the US with a market share of
18.4% in May 2012.
[35]

[edit]South America
In 2008 the third largest individual country by sales was Brazil with some 550
Calendar Year
U.S. sales
(vehicles)
Chg/yr.
1998
[23]
4,603,991

1999 5,017,150 9.0%
2000
[24]
4,953,163 1.3%
2001 4,904,015 1.0%
2002 4,858,705 0.9%
2003 4,756,403 2.1%
2004
[25]
4,707,416 1.0%
2005 4,517,730 4.0%
2006
[26]
4,124,645 8.7%
2007
[27]
3,866,620 6.3%
2008
[28]
2,980,688 22.9%
2009
[29]
2,084,492 30.1%
2010
[30]
2,215,227 6.3%
2011
[31]
2,503,820 13.7%
thousand GM vehicles sold. In that year the other South American countries Argentina, Columbia, and
Venezuela sold another 300 thousand GM vehicles, suggesting that the total GM sales in South America
(including sales in other South American countries such as Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, etc.) in that year were
at a similar level to sales in China.
[edit]Europe
Opel is the main GM brand name in Europe except in the UK, where GM's other European subsidiary, Vauxhall
Motors, still uses its own "Vauxhall" brand name.
[edit]Asia
The company manufactures most of its China market vehicles
locally throughShanghai GM, a joint venture with the Chinese
company SAIC Motor, which was created on March 25, 1997.
The Shanghai GM plant was officially opened on December 15,
1998, when the first Chinese-built Buick came off the assembly
line. The SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile joint-venture is also
successfully selling microvans under the Wuling marque (34
percent owned by GM). Much of General Motors' recent growth
has been in the People's Republic of China, where its sales rose
66.9 percent in 2009, selling 1,830,000 vehicles and accounting
for 13.4 percent of the market.
[37]

The Buick is strong in China, led by the Buick
Excelle subcompact. The last emperor of China owned a
Buick.
[38]
The Cadillac brand was introduced in China in 2004,
starting with exports to China. GM pushed the marketing of
the Chevrolet brand in China in 2005 as well, transferring Buick
Sail to that marque. GM maintains a dealership presence in
Japan, called GM Chevrolet Shop, previously known as GM Auto
World Shop. The GM Japan website can be accessed here. Current GM Japan dealerships were either
former Saturn dealerships or Isuzu dealership locations. GM products are also currently sold by the
company Yanase Co., Ltd. since 1915.
In August 2009 the joint venture of FAW GM Light Duty Commercial Vehicle Co Ltd was formed that mainly
produces Jiefang light-duty trucks.
[39]

General Motors vehicle sales in China rose 28.8 percent to a record 2,351,610 units in 2010.
[40]
GM set up an
auto research center as part of a USD250 million corporate campus in Shanghai to develop 'gasoline-hybrid
GM worldwide 2008 vehicle sales
[36]

(thousands)
Rank
in GM
Location
Vehicle
sales
Market
share (%)
1 United States 2,981 22.1%
2
China
1,095 12.0%
3
Brazil
549 19.5%
4 United Kingdom 384 15.4%
5 Canada 359 21.4%
6
Russia
338 11.1%
7 Germany 300 8.8%
8 Mexico 212 19.8%
9 Australia 133 13.1%
10
South Korea
117 9.7%
11
France
114 4.4%
12
Spain
107 7.8%
13 Argentina
95 15.5%
14
Venezuela
91 33.3%
15
Colombia
80 36.3%
16
India
66 4.4%
cars, electric vehicles and alternative fuels, engines and new technologies'.
[41]
The company plans to double its
sales from 2010 to about 5 million units in China by 2015.
[42]

SAIC-GM-Wuling established the low-cost Baojun brand to better compete with domestic
rivals, Chery, Geely and BYD for first-time buyers of cars priced around USD10,000. It is estimated that such
market in China is about 5 million vehicles a year, larger than the auto market in France and Britain combined.
However, some are worried that 'local brands like Baojun could eventually become threats to their parent
brands if they compete more against established models over time'. Shanghai-GM-Wuling sold 1.23 million
vehicles in 2010, mainly commercial vans and trucks, of which about 700,000 units were a van called
Sunshine.
[43]

In August 2011, GM announced plans to build a plant in Bekasi, West Java, Indonesia,which would produce
40,000 passenger cars per year for the Southeast Asian market. It is the third plant in Southeast Asia, after
the Rayong plant, Thailand and the Hanoi plant,Vietnam.
[44]

In October 2011, the South Korea Free Trade Agreement opened up the South Korean auto market to
American made cars.
[45]

[edit]Africa
General Motors has a long history in Egypt which began in the 1920s with the assembling of cars and light
pickup trucks for the local market. In the mid of the 1950s, GM withdrew from the Egyptian market. Some year
later, the Ghabbour Brothers began to assembleCadillac, Chevrolet and Buick models up to the 1990s.
Since 1983 GM and Al-Monsour Automotive Company has founded the General Motors Egypt which is
currently the only manufacturer of traditional GM branded vehicles in Egypt. The Speranza Motors is a big
company which started in the 1990s with the SKD assembling of Daewoo cars. Today the main products of
Speranza are from the Chinese Chery concern.
GM began operating in South Africa in 1913 through its wholly owned subsidiary, General Motors South Africa.
Following the passage of the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act in 1986, GM was forced to divest from South
Africa, and GMSA became the independent Delta Motor Corporation. GM purchased a 49% stake in Delta in
1997 following the end of apartheid, and acquired the remaining 51% in 2004, reverting the company to its
original name.
Another manufacturing base of the GM for the African markets is the Industries Mcaniques
Maghrbines headquartered in Kairouan, Tunisia which assembles Isuzu and Mazda models for the Maghreb
region. General Motors East Africa (GMEA) located in Nairobi, Kenya assembles a wide range of Isuzu trucks
and buses including the popular Isuzu N-Series versatile light commercial vehicle, TF Series pick-ups and
Isuzu bus chassis. Formed in 1975, GMEA's facility is the largest assembler of commercial vehicles in the
region exporting to East and Central African countries including Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Rwanda
and Burundi. In addition to assembly, GMEA also markets the Chevrolet products Spark and Optra.
In the 1920s Miller Brothers Nigeria was founded as an importer of commercial vehicles of the Bedford brand
into the country. In 1949, the company opened its own assembly plant and operated under the
name Niger/Nigeria Motors. In 1965 the plant and its distribution network was split into different companies and
renamed as Federated Motors Industries. In 1991 the company was taken in by a joint venture
between General Motors and UACN of Nigeria.
[edit]Oceania
In Australia and New Zealand GM is represented by the Holden and Opel
[46]
brands.
[edit]Motorsport
GM has participated over the years in the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC), 24 Hours of Le
Mans, NASCAR, SCCA, V8 Supercars, and many other world venues.


2008 Chevrolet Impala driven by NASCAR's Jimmie Johnson


Chevrolet Cruze in the WTCC


Corvette Racing Team in the American Le Mans Series


The Holden VE Commodore of James Courtney (Holden Racing Team) at the 2012 Clipsal 500 Adelaide
GM's engines were highy successful in the Indy Racing League (IRL) throughout the 1990s, winning many
races in the small V-8 class. GM has also done much work in the development of electronics for GM auto
racing. An unmodified Aurora V-8 in the Aerotech, captured 47 world records, including the record for speed
endurance in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. Recently, the Cadillac V-Serieshas entered motorsports
racing.
GM has also used many cars in the American racing series NASCAR. Currently the Chevrolet Impalais the only
entry in the series but in the past thePontiac Grand Prix, Buick Regal, Oldsmobile Cutlass, Chevrolet
Lumina, Chevrolet Malibu, and the Chevrolet Monte Carlo were also used. GM has won a total of 40
NASCAR Sprint Cup Seriesmanufacturer's championships, including 34 with Chevrolet, the most of any make
in NASCAR history, 3 with Oldsmobile, 2 with Buick, and 1 with Pontiac. GM leads all other automobile
manufacturers in races won in NASCAR's premier series at 1,011. Chevrolet leads individual makes with 677
wins.
In Australia, there is the V8 Supercar Championship which is battled out by the two main rivals of
(GM) Holden and Ford. The currentHolden Racing Team cars are based on the Holden Commodore and run a
5.0-litre V8-cylinder engine producing 635 bhp (474 kW). These cars have a top speed of 298 km/h (185 mph)
and run 0100 km/h in 3.8 seconds. The Holden Racing Team is Australia's most successful team in Australian
Touring Car History. In 2006 & 2007, the Drivers championship was won by the very closely linked (now
defunct) HSV Dealer Team.
[edit]Research and development
See also: General Motors Technical Center and General Motors Proving Grounds
Research and development (R&D) at General Motors began organically as the continuation of such R&D as the
various divisions (e.g., Cadillac, Buick, Olds, Oakland) were already doing for themselves before the merger.
Its character was entirely empirical; it was whatever key people in each company had been competent enough
to organize and pursue.
Charles F. Kettering's Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company (Delco), at Dayton, Ohio, was still an
independent firm at this time. Its work was well known to GM central management through its relationship as a
supplier and consultancy to Cadillac and Buick.
In 1916, Durant organized the United Motors Corporation as an amalgamation of parts suppliers, supplying GM
and other OEMs but independent of GM.
[47]
Alfred P. Sloan, head of the newly acquired Hyatt Roller Bearing
Corporation, became United Motors' CEO. United Motors acquired Delco, and Kettering began his association
with Sloan. United Motors also acquired at this time the original Remy corporation
[47]
(called the Remy Electric
Company), a competitor of Delco. In 1918 General Motors bought United Motors.
[47]
Various entities grew out of
the original Delco and Remy, including the Dayton Metal Products Corporation, the General Motors Research
Corporation, the Delco Division and Remy Electric Division of GM, Delco Remy (now Remy International,
Inc.), ACDelco,Delco Electronics, and others. Today's main successor corporation is Delphi Automotive, which
nowadays is an independent parent corporation.
The General Motors Research Corporation, at Dayton under Kettering, became a true automotive research
center. During the next few decades it led the development of:
many electrical-appliance features for cars and trucks
tetraethyllead and its widespread use as a gasoline additive (recognized today as a bad idea
environmentally, but a technological wonder of its day)
dichlorodifluoromethane refrigerant for HVAC and refrigeration applications (Freon, R-12; recognized
today as a bad idea environmentally [being a chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)], but a technological wonder of its
day)
commercially practical two-stroke diesel engines
better transmissions for track-laying vehicles
many other advancements
Although GM R&D (as it is known in colloquial shorthand) began as an organization largely built around one
extraordinary man (Kettering), it eventually evolved into a more modern organization whose path is shaped by
individuals but not dominated entirely by any of them. World War II was a turning point wherein military affairs,
after mingling with the technologies of applied science for some 80 years, first started to become fundamentally
reinvented by them. Civilian life, too, changed in this direction. By the 1950s, corporations such as GM and
many others were facing a new era of R&D, different from earlier ones. Less about genius inventors and
individual inventions, and more about organizational progress and integrated systems, it raised new questions
about where the capital for R&D would come from in an era of limitless demand for R&D (although not
necessarily for production). Alfred Sloan, longtime CEO of GM (1920s to 1960s), discussed in his memoir (also
considered a seminal management treatise) the relationships between government, academia, and private
industry in the areas of basic science and applied science, in light of this new era.
[48]
The views he laid out
reflected (and influenced) wide consensus on these relationships that persists largely to today.
Today, GM R&D, headquartered in Warren, Michigan, is a network of six laboratories, six science offices, and
collaborative relationships in over twelve countries including working relationships with universities, government
groups, suppliers, and other partners from across the globe.
[edit]Small car sales


Chevrolet Aveo Concept, later went into production as the Chevy Sonic
From the 1920s onward, General Motors always maintained an internal dialog about what its economy-car and
small-car policies should be.
[49][50]
The economy and size considerations often naturally overlapped, although a
strong distinction was always drawn in the 20th century between policies for the U.S. market and policies for
other markets. Economy (in some form) always had good demand anywhere, but its definition in the U.S. was
long considered different from that in other markets. In this view, "economy" in the U.S. did not mean "small" in
the sense of what qualified as "small" outside the U.S. The policy discussion often focused on topics like the
higher demand for truly small cars in non-U.S. markets than in the U.S., and whether it made more sense to
import a car into a certain country or to build it domestically within that country, either as some variant
of knockdown or with truly extensive domestic sourcing.
[49]
GM's acquisitions of Vauxhall Motors Ltd (UK,
1925)
[49]
and Adam Opel AG (Germany, 1929),
[49]
rather than starting new domestic companies to compete
against them, were based on analyses that convinced GM managers that acquiring an existing domestic
manufacturer was a better business decision.
[49]

Although GM since the 1920s has always offered economy models in the U.S. market (relative to that market's
definition in any given decade), and had done research and development in the 1940s and 1950s in
preparation for any potential rise of strong demand for truly small cars in the U.S. market,
[50]
it has also been
criticized over the decades for not doing enough to promote fuel efficiency in the U.S. market in the 1970s
through 1990s. GM's response has been that it has always responded to market demands, and that most
Americans, despite anything they said to the contrary, did not actually demand (at purchasing-decision time)
small size or fuel efficiency in their vehicles to any great or lasting extent. Although some U.S. consumers
flocked temporarily to the ideal of fuel economy whenever fuel supply crises arose (such as 1973 and 1979),
they flocked equally enthusiastically to SUVs when cheap fuel of the 1980s and 1990s temporarily shielded
them from any downside to these choices.
Since the return of high fuel prices in the 2000s and 2010s, GM's interest in [truly-]small-car programs for the
U.S. market has been renewed. As part of General Motors Company development, it plans to revive one of its
idled U.S. factories for the production of a small car in Orion, Michigan, with the creation of 1,200 American
jobs. This will be the first time ever that a large manufacturer produces asupermini vehicle in the United States.
The new small car will add to a group of small and fuel-efficient vehicles that the company is planning to roll out
in the near future. This retooled plant will be capable of building 160,000 cars annually, including both small
and compact vehicles.
[51]

[edit]Environmental initiatives


The 2011 Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in electric vehicle.
General Motors is one of the leading users in renewable energy. The company has published principles
regarding the environment and maintains an extensive website to inform the public. In 2008, General Motors
committed to engineering half of its manufacturing plants to be landfill-free. In order to achieve its landfill-free
status, production waste is recycled or reused in the manufacturing process.
The world's largest rooftop solar power installation was installed at General Motors Spanish Zaragoza
Manufacturing Plant in fall 2008. The Zaragoza solar installation has about 2,000,000 square feet (190,000 m
2
)
of roof at the plant and contains about 85,000 solar panels. The installation was created, owned and operated
by Veolia Environment and Clairvoyant Energy, who lease the rooftop area from General Motors.
[52][53][54]
In
2011, the company also invested $7.5 million in solar-panel provider Sunlogics, which will install solar panels
on GM facilities.
[55]

The company has long worked on alternative-technology vehicles, and has led the industry with ethanol-
burning flexible-fuel vehicles that can run on either E85 (ethanol) or gasoline. The company was the first to
use turbochargers and was an early proponent of V6 enginesin the 1960s, but quickly lost interest as
the muscle car race took hold. They demonstrated
[56]
gas turbine vehicles powered bykerosene, an area of
interest throughout the industry, but abandoned the alternative engine configuration in view of the 1973 oil
crisis. In the 1970s and 1980s, GM pushed the benefits of diesel engines and cylinder
deactivation technologies with disastrous results due to poor durability in the Oldsmobile diesels and drivability
issues in the Cadillac V8-6-4 variable-cylinder engines. In 1987, GM, in conjunction with AeroVironment, built
the Sunraycer, which won the inaugural World Solar Challenge and was a showcase of advanced technology.
Much of the technology from Sunraycer found its way into the Impact prototype electric vehicle (also built by
Aerovironment) and was the predecessor to the General Motors EV1.
GM supported a compromise version of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standard increase from
27 mpg-US (8.7 L/100 km; 32 mpg-imp) to 35 mpg-US (6.7 L/100 km; 42 mpg-imp), the first such increase in over 20
years.
[57]
GM announced they will introduce more Volt-based plug-in hybrids.
[edit]Hybrid electric vehicles


Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid
In May 2004, GM delivered the world's first full-sized hybrid pickups, the 1/2-ton Silverado/Sierra. These mild
hybrids did not use electrical energy for propulsion, like GM's later designs. In 2005, the Opel
Astra diesel Hybrid concept vehicle was introduced. The 2006 Saturn Vue Green Line was the first hybrid
passenger vehicle from GM and is also a mild design. GM has hinted at new hybrid technologies to be
employed that will be optimized for higher speeds in freeway driving.
GM currently offers the 2-mode hybrid system used by the Chevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon/Cadillac Escalade,
and GM 1/2 half-ton pickups and will later be used on other vehicles.
[58]

GM introduced the Chevrolet Volt in 2010, an electric vehicle with back-up generators powered by gasoline.
The production Chevrolet Volt was available in late 2010 as a 2011 model with limited availability.
[59]
GM
delivered the first Volt during December 2010.
The GM Magic Bus is a hybrid-powered bus.
[60]

[edit]All-electric vehicles
Further information: Who Killed the Electric Car?#Batteries
General Motors was the first company (in the modern era) to release an all-electric automobile. In 1990, GM
debuted the "Impact" concept car at the Los Angeles Auto Show. It was the first car with zero-emissions
marketed in the US in over three decades. The Impact was eventually produced as the EV1 for the 1996 model
year. It was available through dealers located in only a few regions (e.g., California, Arizona, Georgia). Vehicles
were leased, rather than sold, to individuals. In 1999 GM decided to cease production of the vehicles. When
the individual leases had expired, they declined to renew the leases or allow the lessors to purchase them. All
of the EV1s were eventually returned to General Motors and, with the exception of a few which were donated to
museums, all were destroyed. The documentary film Who Killed the Electric Car? covered the EV1 story.
The EV1's cancellation had disappointed supporters of electric vehicles. In 2010, GM debuted the Chevrolet
Volt, an electric vehicle with back-up generators powered by gasoline. General Motors has announced that it is
building a prototype two-seat electric vehicle withSegway. An early prototype of the Personal Urban Mobility
and Accessibility vehicledubbed Project P.U.M.A. will be shown off in New York a day ahead of the press
previews for the 2009 New York International Auto Show.
[61][dated info]

[edit]Battery packs for electric vehicles
GM builds battery packs in southern Michigan.
[59]
GM also established an automotive battery laboratory in
Michigan.
[62]
GM will be responsible for battery management systems and power electronics, thermal
management, as well as the pack assembly. An existing GM facility at Brownstown Township was chosen to be
upgraded as battery pack plant.
[59]
LG Chem's U.S. subsidiary, Compact Power of Troy, Michigan, has been
building the prototype packs for the development vehicles and will continue to provide integration support and
act as a liaison for the program.
[edit]Hydrogen initiative


Sequel, a fuel cell-powered vehicle from GM
GM has prided its research and prototype development of hydrogen powered vehicles,
[59]
to be produced in
early 2010, using a support infrastructure still in a prototype state. The economic feasibility of the technically
challenging hydrogen car, and the low-cost production of hydrogen to fuel it, has also been discussed by other
automobile manufacturers such asFord and Chrysler.
In June 2007, Larry Burns, vice president of research and development, said he's not yet willing to say exactly
when hydrogen vehicles will be mass produced, but he said it should happen before 2020, the year many
experts have predicted. He said "I sure would be disappointed if we weren't there" before 2020.
[63]

[edit]Flexible-fuel vehicles
GM produces several flexible-fuel vehicles that can operate on E85 ethanol fuel or gasoline, or any blend of
both. Since 2006 GM started featuring a bright yellow gas cap to remind drivers of the E85
capabilities,
[64][65][66][67]
and also using badging with the text "Flexfuel/E85 Ethanol" to clearly mark the car as an
E85 FFV.
[68][69]

GM is the leader in E85 flex fuel vehicles, with over 3 million FlexFuel vehicles on the road in the U.S. As of
2009, GM offers 18 ethanol-enabled FlexFuel cars and trucks in the US, and produces more than one million
new FlexFuel vehicles. In 2010, GM pledged to have more than half of their annual vehicle production be E85
or biodiesel capable by 2012.
[70]

[edit]History
Main article: History of General Motors
The company was founded on September 16, 1908, in Flint, Michigan, as a holding company for Buick, then
controlled by William C. Durant.
[71]
At the turn of the 20th century there were fewer than 8,000 automobiles in
America and Durant had become a leading manufacturer of horse-drawn vehicles in Flint, MI, before making
his foray into the automotive industry.
[72]
GM's co-founder was Charles Stewart Mott, whose carriage company
was merged into Buick prior to GM's creation. Over the years Mott became the largest single stockholder in GM
and spent his life with his Mott Foundation which has benefited the city of Flint, his adopted home. It
acquiredOldsmobile later that year. In 1909, Durant brought in Cadillac, Elmore, Oakland and several others.
Also in 1909, GM acquired the Reliance Motor Truck Company of Owosso, Michigan, and the Rapid Motor
Vehicle Company of Pontiac, Michigan, the predecessors ofGMC Truck. Durant lost control of GM in 1910 to a
bankers' trust, because of the large amount of debt taken on in its acquisitions coupled with a collapse in new
vehicle sales.


The longest-lived continuous automobile nameplate still in production is the Chevrolet Suburban
The next year, Durant started the Chevrolet Motor Car Company and through this he secretly purchased a
controlling interest in GM. Durant took back control of the company after one of the most dramatic proxy
wars in American business history. Durant then reorganized General Motors Company into General Motors
Corporation in 1916. Shortly after, he again lost control, this time for good, after the new vehicle market
collapsed. Alfred P. Sloan was picked to take charge of the corporation and led it to its post-war global
dominance. This unprecedented growth of GM would last into the early 1980s when it employed 349,000
workers and operated 150 assembly plants.
GM led global sales for 77 consecutive years from 1931 through 2007, longer than any other automaker. In
2008, 2009, and 2010, GM has ranked as the second largest global automaker by sales. The company
regained its position as the world's largest automaker, by vehicle unit sales, in 2011.
[4]
Along the way, a failure
to obtain government loans caused GM to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2009, following the recession
of 2008, 2009.
[edit]Chapter 11 reorganization
Main article: General Motors Chapter 11 reorganization
On July 10, 2009, General Motors emerged from government backed Chapter 11 reorganization after an initial
filing on June 8, 2009.
[73][74]
Two brands, Hummer and Saab were sold, and two, Pontiac and Saturn were
closed.
[75]
Shareholders did not have access to assets from GM in Asia or Europe. The Company was relisted
on the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange again on November 18, 2010 following a
US$33-a-share initial public offering of US$23 billion, including preferred shares. The proportion of the
Company held by the U.S. Treasury department reduced from 61% to about 26%, including preferred shares
and accounting for stock options given to former GM bondholders.
[76][77]
Initial sale of such shares gave the
Treasury department about US$13.6 billion in proceeds. SAIC Motor, partner of GM in China and India,
acquired just less than 1 percent of the GM shares for about $500 million.
[77][78]
Following 2010 IPO, the U.S.
government retained a 26% stake in GM. In December 2012, the U.S. Government further reduced its holdings
to 19%. In 2010, GM returned to using its traditional ticker symbol on the New York Stock Exchange, and in
2010 is also traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
[79]

A Center for Automotive Research (CAR) study reported that in just a single year, 2010, the automotive
industry generated $91.5 billion in state and local tax revenue and $43 billion in federal tax revenue in the
United States.
[80]
The CAR studies have shown significant government tax revenues are generated by the auto
industry.
[81]

[edit]Brand reorganization
As part of the company reorganization, the content and the structure of its brand portfolio (its brand
architecture) was reorganized.
[82]
Some nameplates like Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Saturn, Hummer, and service
brands like Goodwrench were discontinued. Others, like SAAB, were sold.
[83]
The practice of putting the "GM
Mark of Excellence" on every car, no matter what the brand, was discontinued in August, 2009.
[84]
The
company has moved from a corporate-endorsed hybrid brand architecture structure, where GM underpinned
every brand to a multiple brand corporate invisible brand architecture structure.
[85]
The company's familiar
square blue "badge" has been removed from the Web site and advertising, in favor of a new, subtle all-text logo
treatment on its U.S. site;
[82]
the Canadian site still retaines the blue "badge".
[86]
In 2011, GM discontinued the
Daewoo brand in South Korea and replaced it with the Chevrolet brand.
[87]

GM describes their brand politics as having "two brands" which "will drive our global growth. They are
Chevrolet, which embodies the qualities of value, reliability, performance and expressive design; and Cadillac,
which creates luxury vehicles that are provocative and powerful. At the same time, the Holden, Buick, GMC,
Baojun, Opel and Vauxhall brands are being carefully cultivated to satisfy as many customers as possible in
select regions."
[5]:p.182[6]

Brand
Year
founded
Year began making
autos
Year joined
GM
Markets served today
Alpheon
2010 2010 2010 South Korea
Baojun
2010 2010 2010 China
Buick 1899 1903 1908 North America, China
Cadillac 1902 1902 1909 North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East
Chevrolet 1911 1911 1911 Global, except Australia, New Zealand
GMC 1901 1901 1909 North America, Middle East
Holden 1856 1908 1931 Australia, New Zealand
Jiefang
2011 2011 2011 China
[edit]Discontinued brands
(Note on dates: the dates below are the years each brand existed, which are not always the same as the dates
they were part of GM.)
Welch (19031911)
Rainier (19051911)
Welch-Marquette (see Marquette)
Ewing (1908-1911)
Elmore (19091912)
Rapid Truck (19091912)
Reliance Truck (19091912)
Welch-Detroit (19101911)
Marquette (1912)
Peninsular (1912) (see Marquette)
Cartercar (19051915)
Samson Tractor (19171922)
Scripps-Booth (19121922)
Sheridan (19211922)
Marquette (1930)
Oakland (19071931)
Viking (19291931)
LaSalle (19271940)
McLaughlin (19181942)
Yellow Coach (19251943)
Beaumont (19661969)
Envoy (19601970)
Acadian (19621971)
Ranger (19681976)
Bedford (19271987)
General Motors Diesel Division (19381987)
Opel 1862 1899 1929
Global, except North America, United
Kingdom
Wuling
2002 2002 2002 China
Vauxhall 1857 1903 1925 United Kingdom
Passport (19881991)
Asna (19931995)
Geo (19891997)
Oldsmobile (18972004)
Pontiac (19262010)
Saturn (19902010)
Hummer (19922010)
Daewoo (19822011)
[edit]Former subsidiaries
Frigidaire (19191979), sold to Ohio-based White Consolidated Industries
Euclid (1953-1968), sold to White Consolidated Industries
Terex (1968-1980)(1983-1986), sold to IBH Holdings of Germany, bought back after IBH failed; sold
to Northwest Engineering Co.
General Motors Diesel Division (-1987) sold to Motor Coach Industries
Lotus (19861993), sold to Luxembourg-based A.C.B.N. Holdings S.A.
American Axle (-1994) - former axle division sold off
Allison Engine Company (1929-1995) sold to Rolls-Royce North America
Hughes Aircraft (1985-1999) - 1997 Hughes Defense sold to Raytheon, 1999 Hughes Satellite sold
to Boeing
Delphi Interior & Lighting (-1998) lighting plants sold to Palladium Equity Partners and renamed Guide
Corporation
Delphi Interior & Lighting (-1998) seating plants sold to Lear Corporation
[88]

Delphi Chassis - commercial truck & motor-home chassis (-1998) sold to United City Body (Union City
Body) of Indiana
[89]

Delphi Energy (filter factory)(-1998) - sold to Dana Corporation
[90]

Allison Transmission (1929-2007) sold to The Carlyle Group and Onex Corporation
New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. (NUMMI) (-2009) - j.v. sold to Toyota
Saab (19902010), sold to Dutch sports car manufacturer Spyker Cars N.V.,
[91]
now sold to National
Electric Vehicle SwedenAB on August 31, 2012.
[edit]Former affiliates
Fiat (20002005), GM owned 20 percent at one time with put option
[92]

Fuji Heavy Industries, manufacturer of Subaru (19992006), GM owned 20 percent at one time
[93]

Isuzu (19712006), GM owned 49 percent at one time
[94]

Suzuki (19812008), GM owned over 20 percent at one time
[95]

[edit]Spin-offs
GM Defense 19502003 was once part of General Motors Diesel Division and as General Dynamics
Land Systems division ofGeneral Dynamics
Electro Motive Division of General Motors was also once part of General Motors Diesel
Division and now known as Electro-Motive Diesel
Detroit Diesel sold to Penske Corporation; broken up and portion sold to the former Daimler-Chrysler
AG (now Daimler AG); now part of Daimler AG
Diesel Division of General Motors of Canada Limited spun off and later acquired by General
Motors Canada as Diesel Division of General Motors of Canada Limited
EDS Electronic Data Systems
Delco Remy (-1994) - spun off
Magnaquench (-1994) - spun off
Hughes Electronics sold to News Corporation in 2003
1999 GM spun off its parts making operations as Delphi
[edit]Philanthropy
See also: General Motors Foundation
General Motors has been a leading contributor to charity.
Since 1994, General Motors has donated over $23 million in cash and vehicles to the Nature Conservancy, and
funding from GM supports many conservation projects.
[96]

Through 2002, the PACE Awards program, led by GM, EDS, and SUN Microsystems, has given over
$1.2 billion of in-kind contributions which includes computers to over 18 universities to support engineering
education.
[97]
In 2009, the GM led group has helped the Pace Awards program worldwide.
[98]

In 2004, GM gave $51,200,000 in cash contributions and $17,200,000 in-kind donations to charitable
causes.
[99]

The General Motors Foundation (GM Foundation) receives philanthropic bequests from General Motors. It is a
501(c)(3) foundation incorporated in 1976.
[100]

Since 1996, the GM Foundation has been the exclusive source of funding for Safe Kids USA's "Safe Kids
Buckle Up" program, a national initiative to ensure child automobile safety through education and
inspection.
[101][102]

[edit]Logos

Cadillac

Buick

GMC

Chevrolet

GM Korea

Delphi Corporation
[edit]See also
Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
United States Council for Automotive Research
EcoCAR
List of GM engines
List of GM factories
List of GM platforms
List of GM transmissions
GM vehicles by brand
GM people