In my day job at CARFAX we keep up with what’s going on in the industry, and sometimes we get information before it hits the mainstream press. Well late this afternoon we found out that GM has announced it will be purchasing Ford for an undisclosed amount. Talk about an amazing development. I don’t know much as the details are still coming in (and keep in mind the stock market is already closed for the day), but here is what I’ve been able to pull together:
- GM will be buying Ford for an undisclosed amount.
- GM has announced that it plans to immediately bring the same “sound GM practices” to Ford.
- Fuel efficient Ford cars, such as the Fusion, will be discontinued as of April 2, 2009.
Rick Wagoner is back at the new GM-Ford
- In an amazing turn of events, Rick Wagoner, the CEO ouster from GM on Monday, will be returning as the CEO of the new company.
Apparently CNN had some exclusive coverage of this event and just had Rick Wagoner on television. He was quoted as saying “We figured if GM was going down, then Ford’s going down with us!” Talk about having a chip on your shoulder!
This of course now means the US could be left without any auto industry should Chrysler and the new GM-Ford company declare bankruptcy. What’s even scarier is one analyst who reported that GM may be in talks with Chrysler for a merger, leaving only one US auto manufacturer — GM. I guess they figure they will get people to buy their cars one way or another.
You can read the press release and CNN interview here.
More as I found out!