General Motors Co. said yesterday that it would shut down its Saturn division after an agreement to sell it to Penske Automotive Group Inc. fell apart. “This is a major disappointment. It’s discouraging,“ said Haywood “Huddy” Hyman Jr., owner of Saturn of Richmond on Midlothian Turnpike in Chesterfield County. Hyman was one of about 400 Saturn dealers notified yesterday afternoon that his dealership would close after the Bloomfield, Mich., dealership group headed by auto-racing magnate Roger Penske was unable to find a manufacturer to supply vehicles to it after a contract with GM runs out in 2011.

Looking to regain consumers’ trust, General Motors Co. said yesterday that new-car buyers will be able to return their vehicles within two months of purchase for a full refund, part of a long-awaited new marketing campaign for the biggest American automaker. The effort is part of a campaign that will start next week seeking to make connections again with American consumers who may be leery of the company since it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year.

As you plot your future, consider Richmond a partner. Our city and region are perfect locations for pilot programs experimenting with alternative transportation solutions that pollute less. A special tip of the innovator’s hat to Ford and General Motors. Ford, we think your electric vehicle and Urban Mobility Network would find a nice home in Richmond. We know that you have visited here—thanks to your manager of sustainable business development, David Berdish, who graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University—and we are excited that Richmond could be a part of the company’s return to glory.

Toyota Motor Corp. plans to end production in March 2010 at a California joint venture where it has built vehicles with General Motors, the company said Thursday.

Shoppers are snapping up cars and trucks so quickly that General Motors Co. is boosting production for the rest of the year to keep up with demand driven by “cash for clunkers.“ It’s another sign that automakers believe consumers are returning to showrooms after a yearlong slump. Ford Motor Co. last week moved to increase its output, and other automakers took similar action earlier this month. GM said yesterday that it would add 60,000 vehicles to its production schedule in the third and fourth quarters and bring back 1,350 laid-off workers. The company now plans to make 535,000 cars and trucks in July-September.

The Chevy Volt will pack a powerful sticker shock of $40,000. GM promises 230 mpg in city driving in its bid to offer the first mainstream car with plug-in technology.

Hundreds of General Motors’ California dealers will let consumers haggle over the prices of new cars and trucks through the eBay online marketplace under a trial that begins today. About 225 of California’s 250 GM dealers are set to take part in the program. They will be selling Buick, Chevrolet, GMC and Pontiac vehicles on co-branded Web sites through eBay Inc.‘s online auto marketplace, eBay Motors, until Sept. 8. The cars will also be searchable through eBay Motors and eBay’s main site.

General Motors Co.‘s product development chief says the company will introduce a plug-in rechargeable midsize sport utility vehicle sometime in late 2010 or in 2011.

General Motors Co. will end its half-century run as sponsor of the Buick Open golf tournament as it tries to focus scarce marketing dollars on its cars and trucks, a person briefed on the decision said Tuesday.

General Motors completed an unusually quick exit from bankruptcy protection yesterday with ambitions of making money and building cars people are eager to buy. Once the world’s largest and most powerful automaker, the new GM is now leaner, cleansed of massive debt and burdensome contracts that would have sunk it without federal loans.

General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson says the new GM will focus more on its customers, and will even partner with eBay to sell vehicles by auction online.

A bankruptcy judge has ruled that General Motors Corp. can sell the bulk of its assets to a new company, potentially clearing the way for the automaker to quickly emerge from bankruptcy protection. U.S. Judge Robert Gerber said in a 95-page ruling late Sunday that the sale was in the best interests of both GM and its creditors, whom he said would otherwise get nothing.

Which brands are slated to go? Pontiac, Hummer, Saab and Saturn.
  Where do they stand? GM said it would stop making Pontiac-brand cars. GM is selling Hummer, Saab and its Saturn dealer network.
  What’s next? Pontiac production is scheduled to wind down by the end of the year as the company discontinues the brand.

A bankruptcy judge has ruled that General Motors Corp. can sell the bulk of its assets to a new company, potentially clearing the way for the automaker to quickly emerge from bankruptcy protection.

A bright spot has surfaced in a sea of negative auto-sales statistics for General Motors Corp. The company said yesterday it will recall 900 workers and restore the second shift at a factory near Lansing, Mich., because of increased sales of its Buick Enclave, Saturn Outlook and GMC Acadia large crossover vehicles. Spokeswoman Sherrie Childers Arb said the laid-off workers will come back to the plant starting Aug. 24, with the second shift continuing indefinitely.