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GM won't really kill off the Chevy Volt and Cadillac CT6, will it?

General Motors is apparently considering killing off six slow-selling models by 2020, according to Reuters. But is that really likely? The news is mentioned in a story where UAW president Dennis Williams notes that slumping US car sales could threaten jobs at low-volume factories. Still, we're skeptical that GM is really serious about killing those cars. Reuters specifically calls out the Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac CT6, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Impala, Chevrolet Sonic, and the Chevrolet Volt. Most of these have been redesigned or refreshed within the past few model years. Four - the LaCrosse, Impala, CT6, and Volt - are built in the Hamtramck factory in Detroit. That plant has made only 35,000 cars this year - down 32 percent from 2016. A typical GM plant builds 200,000-300,000 vehicles a year. Of all the cars Williams listed, killing the XTS, Impala, and Sonic make the most sense. They're older and don't sell particularly well. On the other hand, axing the other three seems like an odd move. It would leave Buick and Cadillac without flagship sedans, at least until the rumored Cadillac CT8 arrives. The CT6 was a big investment for GM and backing out after just a few years would be a huge loss. It also uses GM's latest and best materials and technology, making us even more skeptical. The Volt is a hugely important car for Chevrolet, and supplementing it with a crossover makes more sense than replacing it with one. Offering one model with a range of powertrain variants like the Hyundai Ioniq and Toyota Prius might be another route GM could take. All six of these vehicles are sedans, Yes, crossover sales are booming, but there's still a huge market for cars. Backing away from these would be essentially giving up sales to competitors from around the globe. The UAW might simply be publicly pushing GM to move crossover production to Hamtramck to avoid closing the plant and laying off workers. Sales of passenger cars are down across both GM and the industry. Consolidating production in other plants and closing Hamtramck rather than having a single facility focus on sedans might make more sense from a business perspective. GM is also trying to reduce its unsold inventory, meaning current production may be slowed or halted while current cars move into customer hands. There's a lot of politics that goes into building a car. GM wants to do what makes the most sense from a business perspective, while the UAW doesn't workers to lose their jobs when a factory closes.

Chevy Bolt meets 2016 Nissan Leaf at LA NEDW event [UPDATE]

The 2015 National Drive Electric Week kicked off this past weekend with events happening all around the world. Our friends from Plug In America (PIA) send us some notes and pictures from one of the larger events in Los Angeles, CA. This event was special because it saw the debut of the 2016 Nissan Leaf and the west coast debut of the Chevy Bolt concept. The two electric vehicles were in the same place at the same time for the first time ever. Besides that little bit of electric vehicle history, the organizers helped facilitate 800 test drives, PIA co-founder Zan Dubin Scott told AutoblogGreen. The city of Los Angeles also gave proclamations to movie director Chris Paine (Who Killed The Electric Car? and Revenge Of The Electric Car) and the three national organizers of Drive Electric Week: PIA, the Sierra Club and the Electric Auto Association. Speakers at the event included names that should be familiar to AutoblogGreen readers: California state senator Kevin de Leon, race car driver Leilani Munter, and Dave Barthmuss of General Motors, among others. Joel Levin, the executive director of Plug In America, said during his speech that, "Electric cars are changing the world. Every time one of these vehicles gets sold, our air gets a little cleaner. We will take a big bite out of climate change. Our economy will not be subject to wild swings in gas prices. And we will not be involved in foreign wars over oil." Tell us about your own NEDW events (that happened already or are about to happen) in the Comments below. UPDATE: We received the text of Andrew Speaker's comments at the event. Speaker is Nissan's director of Electric Vehicle (EV) Sales & Marketing. We've included them below. Thank you, and good afternoon! On behalf of Nissan, we are proud to sponsor National Drive Electric Week, and we're excited to be able to celebrate it here in Los Angeles with all of you. This is actually my first National Drive Electric Week event, and I am inspired by the level of enthusiasm here today, and seeing everyone's passion for electric vehicles first hand. Nissan has had some big news in the last few days with the introduction of the 2016 Nissan LEAF, which is the world's first affordable electric car to get more than 100 miles of range on a single charge. The 2016 LEAF offers a new 30 kWh battery with an EPA-rated 107 miles of range... and its making its global debut here in Los Angeles.

How long will the 'golden age' of performance last?

High-powered sports and luxury cars were everywhere at the New York Auto Show, prompting the obvious question for enthusiasts: How long will this golden age of performance last? Industry leaders have some time before regulations elevate the Corporate Average Fuel Economy level in 2025. Even then, they expect cars rippling with power to survive in some form. "Is it the end of an era," I don't think so," said Ola Kallenius, Daimler AG board member for Mercedes-Benz cars marketing and sales. "That performance element of individual mobility I don't think will ever go away." Kallenius, who oversaw the company's AMG division from 2010-2013, expects it to continue to grow. Last year, AMG sold a record 68,875 units around the world, an increase of 44.6 percent over 2014, with strong growth in the US, China, and Germany. Still, there's always the potential for gas to spike, and pending fuel economy regulations are looming. That could lead AMG to add electrification to its products, Kallenius said, pointing to the electric SLS as a test case. Chevy is also thinking ahead, said Al Oppenheiser, chief engineer of the Camaro. He wouldn't bite when asked about electrification for the Camaro (he did say "never say never"), but admitted in 2025 "it's going to be pretty tough to sell V8s." For now, things are rosy for muscle cars, and Chevy confidently showcased the 640-hp Camaro ZL1 in coupe and convertible form in New York. "I think that this is truly the golden age of performance," Oppenheiser said. It's hard to disagree. News & Analysis News: The 2017 Mazda MX-5 Miata RF was a show-stopper in New York. Analysis: There was a palpable energy when this RF — for Retractable Fastback — was revealed the night before the show at a trendy off-site venue near the Hudson River. Even as a parade of SUVs and flashy luxury cars rolled out the rest of the week, the Miata remained a hot topic. The Retractable Fastback is really a clever targa top, with part of the roof stowing behind the seats, adding about 100 pounds compared to the standard convertible. It makes the car more practical and arguably more attractive. The RF continues Mazda's tradition of selling the Miata with a hardtop variant. The first and second generations offered a detachable one, and a power retractable hardtop (a $1,700 option) was available on third-gen models. Judging by its reception in New York, the RF could prove to be even more popular than its predecessors.