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GM to cut production at 5 plants in North America, kill several models

DETROIT/WASHINGTON — General Motors Co said on Monday it will cut production of slow-selling models and slash its North American workforce in the face of a stagnant market for traditional gas-powered sedans, shifting more investment to electric and autonomous vehicles. The announcement is the biggest restructuring in North America for the U.S. No. 1 carmaker since its bankruptcy a decade ago. GM said it will take pre-tax charges of $3 billion to $3.8 billion to pay for the cutbacks, but expects the actions to improve annual free cash flow by $6 billion by the end of 2020. GM plans to halt production next year at three assembly plants: Lordstown, Ohio, Hamtramck, Michigan, and Oshawa, Ontario. The company also plans to stop building several models now assembled at those plants, including the Chevrolet Cruze, the Cadillac CT6 and the Buick LaCrosse, the sources said. Sources said the Chevrolet Volt, Impala and Cadillac XTS would also be discontinued. Signs of the demise of six passenger-car models have been swirling since July. Plants in Baltimore, Maryland, and Warren, Michigan, that assemble powertrain components have no products assigned to them after 2019 and thus are at risk of closure, the company said. It will also close two factories outside North America, but did not identify those plants. The AP reported that 14,700 jobs would be affected. Some 8,100 of those would be white-collar jobs reduced through buyouts or layoffs. The No. 1 U.S. automaker signaled the latest belt-tightening in late October when it offered buyouts to 50,000 salaried employees in North America. The company also said it will cut executive ranks by 25 per cent to "streamline decision making." Some 6,000 factory workers could lose their jobs or be transferred to other plants. Its shares were last up 6.2 percent at $38.16. Tariff 'headwinds' and cost-cutting GM Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra told reporters on Monday the company can reduce annual capital spending by $1.5 billion and increase investment in electric and autonomous vehicles and connected vehicle technology because it has largely completed investing in new generations of trucks and sport utility vehicles. Some 75 percent of its global sales will come from just five vehicle architectures by early in the 2020s. It plans to reduce annual capital spending to $7 billion by 2020 from an average of $8.5 billion a year during the 2017-2019 period.

Cadillac teases CT4 and CT5 V-Series Blackwing steering wheel

There's quite a bit that we know about the upcoming Cadillac V-Series Blackwing models. Thanks to spy shooters and prototypes, we've seen the CT4-V and CT5-V Blackwing out and about testing on public roads, which means we've seen the bronze wheels in staggered sizes. We've been told they will offer proper manual transmissions, and we know they will lap a race track quicker than the ATS-V and CTS-V they replace. And now we know what their steering wheels will look like. It's not much to base an entire teaser on, but there are a few interesting tidbits we can glean from Caddy's first official Blackwing tease. First, the wheel itself. It's leather wrapped (not Alcantra, at least on this example), it looks to have meaty bulges where you'll want to grip it, it has a red strip at the top to help locate straight ahead while driving aggressively, and it has a carbon fiber V-shaped spoke at the bottom. Finally, we see a prominent silver button labeled "V" on the left side that will allow drivers to quickly access V-Mode. To the right will be buttons for the Performance Traction Management system. Judging by the fuzzy background behind the wheel that shows some sort of digital gauge cluster, it seems that Cadillac may be aiming for a 200-mile-per-hour top speed for the CT5-V. That's not a stretch, as the last-generation CTS-V could hit that speed, too. Cadillac smartly took this shot in a way that blurs the center console, which means there's plenty more time to speculate on the transmission choices. Cadillac says the V-Series Blackwing models will be ready in time for the summer of 2021. Stay tuned. Related Video:  

Vintage photos: How presidential limos evolved from open convertibles to Biden's armored Cadillac

President Ronald Reagan waves from the back of his limousine in 1984.Ronald Reagan Library/Getty Images US presidents used to ride in unarmored convertibles with open roofs. After John F. Kennedy's assassination, presidential cars were customized with safety features. Today's presidential limousine is a 20,000-pound, $1.5 million Cadillac known as "The Beast." US presidents used to ride around in open convertibles. Today, President Joe Biden is driven in a 20,000-pound, $1.5 million armored Cadillac known as "The Beast." Take a look at how presidential limousines have changed through the years. Presidential cars replaced horses and carriages in the early 20th century. President William McKinley rides in an automobile in 1896.Photo12/Universal Images Group via Getty Images President William McKinley, who served from 1897 to 1901, was the first US president to ride in a car, according to the National Archives. The administration of President Theodore Roosevelt, who succeeded McKinley after his 1901 assassination, was the first to include a government-owned car. In 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt became the first president to ride in an armored vehicle — a limousine that previously belonged to gangster Al Capone. President Franklin D. Roosevelt rides in a car with bulletproof glass in 1942.Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images Roosevelt previously drove around in a 1936 Packard Touring Limousine. Then, in 1941, he upgraded to an automobile with bulletproof glass that the Treasury Department had seized from Capone in 1932, according to the US Secret Service. President Dwight Eisenhower's presidential limousine was a 1955 Chrysler Crown Imperial. President Dwight Eisenhower waves to cheering crowds in 1955.Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images The car featured a 250-horsepower V8 engine and a sunroof, according to the US Secret Service. President John F. Kennedy's assassination in the back of a 1961 Lincoln Continental changed presidential cars forever. President John F. Kennedy, and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy ride through Dallas in 1963. Minutes later, Kennedy was assassinated as his car passed through Dealey Plaza.Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images Kennedy's limousine included a hydraulic seat that could be raised 10.5 inches for a better view of the president, but no protective features. After Kennedy's assassination, presidential cars were customized to prioritize the safety of the commander-in-chief with thick layers of armor.