Wild Ass Rumor of the Day: Nissan to "Buy" GM
Seems like our old pal Jerry York is back in play. You may remember Mr. York as the turnaround expert, ex-ChryCo exec, rep for aspiring GM owner Kirk “The Lion of Las Vegas” Kerorian and former activist member of GM’s Board of Directors. It’s the penultimate of these which applies here: Captain Kirk’s main man tried to broker a deal between GM and Renault back in the summer of ’06. The merger fell afoul of then-GM CEO “Red Ink” Rick Wagoner, who’s now shivering in hell (albeit without any financial worries). Our sources tell us that Nissan wants to be GM’s Fiat. In other words, it’s looking for the US government to give it a controlling share in GM for no-money-down, putting Carlos “I told you so” Ghosn at the head of the unencumbered GM. I mean GNR (GM – Nissan – Renault). This one makes a lot of sense. Uncle Sam doesn’t [really] want to run GM, and the Fiat deal will [they hope] provide a template for the GM – Nissan thingie. And, lest we forget, the maxim “everything either grows or dies” applies to both GM and Nissan. Hyundai-Kia just passed Nissan for sixth place in the US new car market.
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I think this will definitely happen. It makes too little sense not to. Imagine adding 2 more brands into the GM fold after they eliminate 4, rebadging GM's light duty trucks as Nissans to compete with themselves, selling tiny overpriced French cars instead of German ones, and putting an egomaniacal beancounter in charge of the whole thing!
Robert Farago: "Remember: Nissan and The Dodge Boys were headed for the altar at one point." http://www.allpar.com/news/index.php/2009/05/nissan-to-review-chrysler-agreement/ Nissan to review Chrysler agreement May 1st, 2009 by Bill Cawthon Nissan Motor Company has announced it will be reviewing its vehicle supply agreement with Chrysler LLC. The announcement comes a day after the American automaker filed for bankruptcy protection and finalized an alliance agreement with Fiat SpA. The 2008 agreement covered the production of a small car for Chrysler in exchange for a new full-size pickup to replace the slow-selling Nissan Titan. In February, Nissan said it was revisiting the benefits of the agreement after light vehicle sales plunged, requiring production and staffing cuts. Mitsubishi will also discontinue buying the Raider pickup from Chrysler after the 2010 model year. However, this decision was based on slow sales.
"Carlos 'I told you so' Ghosn at the head of the unencumbered GM. I mean GNR (GM - Nissan - Renault)" I'm sorry Robert, but anything called GNR can only be headed by Axl Rose. Now that he's finished "Chinese Democracy", I'm sure he's looking for a new project to start. Plus, Axl is a self deluded prima donna convinced of his own genius. Clearly, he's GM management material. The Treasury can help merge the two GNR (GM - Nissan - Renault and Guns N' Roses) by providing the money to sponsor a world tour. Sure, Slash will hold out for more money just like non-TARP debt holders, but I bet Timothy Geithner would totally be a roady for the new group. Think of it as a car show meets hair band concert tour paid for with your tax dollars! Just think of the tour decals on the special edition GNR Aveos! Sweet!
God I hope this happens if nothing else it will give the "where do the profits go" people coniption fits in twisting logic that buying a car made in the US by Toyota is somehow worse than buying a Mexican made GM vehicle.