2014 Buick Lacrosse Premium Ii on 2040-cars

Auto blog

It's official: GM selling Opel-Vauxhall to Peugeot-Citroen group for $2.3B

It's a Brexit for General Motors. GM is selling off its Opel and Vauxhall unit, it confirmed today, ending 90 years of automobile production in Europe, and nearly two decades of losses from that division. The deal was announced on the eve of the Geneva Motor Show. The focus for GM now becomes North America and China. "This was a difficult decision for General Motors," CEO Mary Barra said. "But we are unified in our belief that it is the right one." "For GM, this represents another major step in the ongoing work that is driving our improved performance and accelerating our momentum. We are reshaping our company and delivering consistent, record results for our owners through disciplined capital allocation to our higher-return investments in our core automotive business and in new technologies that are enabling us to lead the future of personal mobility." The buyer is French automaker PSA Groupe, maker of Peugeot and Citroen as well as its DS luxury sub-brand. The $2.3 billion deal will make PSA the second-biggest European manufacturer after Volkswagen, with 17 percent of the market share. "We want to create a European automotive champion," said PSA Groupe Chairman Carlos Tavares. "We will totally unleash the potential of the Opel and Vauxhall brands." Tavares gave assurances that jobs would not be lost in the deal. "We respect all that Opel/Vauxhall's talented people have achieved as well as the company's fine brands and strong heritage. We intend to manage PSA and Opel/Vauxhall capitalizing on their respective brand identities." The two companies have agreements for PSA to continue to supply some Holden and Buick models; it's not yet clear exactly how this will work, as Opel models form the basis for several of Buick's core products, including the Encore small crossover and Regal sedan. PSA also is purchasing GM's financing operations in Europe as part of the deal. GM may invest in PSA shares in the future, and the two companies may collaborate on electric and fuel-cell vehicles as part of GM's joint venture with Honda. The sale of Opel and Vauxhall brings GM's global brand total down to eight, including three that are specific to the Chinese market. Buick GM Citroen Opel Peugeot Vauxhall 2017 Geneva Motor Show

GM to offer 2 years free maintance on most 2014 models

A day after Ford announced it was scaling back the complimentary maintenance program for its Lincoln brand, General Motors has gone in the completely opposite direction, offering most of its 2014 lineup with free maintenance. Since 2011, Cadillac models have all come with a four-year/50,000-mile complimentary maintenance program, but Chevrolet, Buick and GMC vehicles will now come standard with free maintenance for two years or 24,000 miles for the 2014 model year.
The program will give vehicle owners and lessees free oil changes, tire rotations and 27-point inspections following the recommended maintenance schedule laid out in each vehicle's owner's manual. We contacted GM to see which vehicles were eligible for the program, and a spokesperson got back to us with the following comment:
"All 2014 models are eligible, it's just that the included services vary by model, e.g., Spark EV would not need oil changes, Corvettes don't recommend tire rotations."

Is this GM's next electric crossover?

GM made headlines this week when CEO Mary Barra presented the company's electrification and automation plans at the Barclays Global Automotive Conference in New York. "We are committed to a future electric vehicle portfolio that will be profitable," Barra said, which could be taken as a jab at Tesla. In the presentation ( PDF here), though, we see a new vehicle in a slide titled "Leveraging existing BEV platform to expand in near term." The vehicle, seen above, accompanied the captions "New CUV entries" and "two entries by 2020." Is this a sneak preview of an upcoming electric crossover from GM? The image seems too realistic and intentional to be a random placeholder. If this is, indeed, an upcoming battery-electric CUV based on the Bolt, the question remains: Will it be a Chevy or a Buick? It has no visible badging, but it shares DNA from both brands. As Inside EVs points out, though, it does bear a resemblance to the Chevrolet FNR-X concept unveiled in Shanghai earlier this year. With two CUVs on the way, it's not unthinkable that there could be a version for each brand. In addition to this slide, the presentation includes plans for an "All new multi-brand, multi-segment platform" launching in 2021. The all-new modular battery system will cost less than $100 per kWh, providing higher energy density and faster charging. The platform will host at least nine different vehicles, including a compact crossover, seven-seat luxury SUV and a large commercial van. GM has said it will launch 20 new EVs by 2023, and that it targets 1 million EV sales per year by 2026. Many of those sales will be in China. Related Video: