In the distant past, some of GM's (nyse: GM - news - people ) and Ford's (nyse: F - news - people ) biggest problems erupted, as one might expect, when car sales plummeted during economic slowdowns.
But consumers aren't clamoring for custom-built cars, says John (Brad) Ross, who runs GM's order-to-delivery program.
Last year GM 's (nyse: GM - news - people ) Chevrolet Corvette as well as new entries like BMW's Mini Cooper, the Lincoln Aviator and the Volvo XC90, were sold almost exclusively to individuals.
"The good thing is, we're not poles apart in brand imagery and there's no overlap between our vehicles, " points out Pawan Goenka, the ex-GM executive who heads Mahindra's auto and farm-equipment business and now chairs SsangYong.
There's a strong argument the torch has passed to Dan O'Dowd, the 10-year veteran GM who's quietly put the budget-conscious Colorado Rockies into the playoffs for the second time in three seasons.
In other cases, there are disagreements between various levels of government: Australia's federal government is pro-GM and backing America's drive to overturn the EU ban, but the state government of Victoria has just banned the growing of GM canola.
"It's basically a dynamically balanced skateboard, " said Chris Borroni-Bird, GM's director of advanced technology vehicle concepts.
That's because its bankruptcy was orchestrated by a union-friendly administration that changed the normal rules of the game that would have required GM's unsecured creditors--such as the United Auto Workers--to forgo most of their claims.
For Don Johnson, GM's vice-president for US sales, these vehicles offer the perfect solution.
But if it's too dire, he risks sending GM's BBB- credit rating into the junk pile.
"It opens up a whole new world for automotive safety, " says GM's advanced-technology chief, Larry D.
It has only been in recent years Toyota has challenged GM's seven-decade reign as top automaker.
By contrast, GM's 37-page submission seemed designed to instil fear rather than hope.
Investors also were spooked by GM's sales-incentive blitz in January and February, which could temper the auto maker's first-quarter earnings.
GM's collective-bargaining agreement with 125, 000 workers, or 63% of its North American employees organized by the United Auto Workers, expires in mid-September.
Members of the Obama administration's autos task force asked about getting rid of Buick in 2009, during GM's government-funded trip through bankruptcy court.
GM's plug-in electric hybrid, the Volt, won the coveted North American Car of the Year award, while Ford won the award for best truck.
One of GM's co-investors in Daewoo is Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp.
GM's all-new full-sized pickups will hit dealer lots early next year, along with a pair of large crossover SUVs for GMC and Saturn, called Acadia and Outlook.
The Outlook is a version of GM's full-size crossover family that includes the GMC Acadia, Buick Enclave, and Chevrolet Traverse, while the Sky is a rebodied Pontiac Solstice.
GM's e-business revolution will not be confined to them alone.
Toyota, with cash to burn (and nothing like GM's retired-worker liabilities), has a strong fuel-cell program but believes that 30 years from now all cars will run on hybrids-Toyota's technological strength.
Likewise, GM's small-car strategy is built around global volume.
Levy noted that GM's near-term challenges persist, particularly competitive challenges from Asian carmakers, higher gas prices and the shift to crossover utility vehicles , an area where GM and Ford Motor are trying to catch up.
This corporate cash hoard now becomes the carrot in GM's upcoming collective-bargaining negotiations, beginning in mid-July.
That focus group, however, underscored just how huge a hurdle Epsilon must leap--namely, GM's brand image.
One example: In 2005 OnStar detected and fixed a problem in the electronic ventilation system in GM's 2006 full-size SUVs.
But the future of GM's massively under-funded pension should control the talks.
And while tweaking its current engines to improve fuel economy, Ford has revived plans for a V-8 that can go head-to-head with GM's 400hp motor.
应用推荐