Defunct Brand Owners Shun GM and Ford

There are some three million former Saturn, Pontiac and Hummer customers in the United States, all of whom will unlikely ever have the pleasure of buying a newer model of their current make again. These are some of America’s defunct brands, all gone the same way as Plymouth, DeSoto, Packard and many others. These latest additions were culled following General Motors bankruptcy reorganisation in 2009. And Mercury owners are in the same boat.

Now, Ford and GM are desperately trying to hold onto these “brand-less” customers. Accoriding to a report from the Wall Street Journal, in this year alone, 70% Pontiac owners, 71% of Saturn owners and 65% of Mercury owners who traded in their vehicles left with something other than a Ford or GM product.

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Saturn Vue Comes Back to Life as the Chevrolet Captiva Sport for Rental Fleets

Meet General Motor’s newest offering in the world of rental vehicles; the Chevrolet Captiva Sport. Even though GM makes no word of the Saturn brand in the press release, most of you will probably see the Vue hiding behind the Chevy bow-tie on the grille. And that’s about the only difference between the Vue and the 2012MY Captiva Sport, which is also sold under various nameplates in more than 50 markets across Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, the Middle East and South America.

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GM Recalling Over 1.5 Million Vehicles Worldwide for Fire Danger

A massive recall is underway for numerous General Motors cars and trucks sold globally over a glitch in the wind shield wiper fluid heating system that could ignite a fire. The recall concerns a total of 1.53 million Buick, Hummer, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC and Saturn models, with 1.36 million of those sold in the U.S.

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GM Slashes Prices of Remaining Pontiacs and Saturns by up to 46%

If you ever wanted to buy a Pontiac or a Saturn and you don't mind that both brands will soon pass into the books of history, now's the time as General Motors is offering dealers huge incentives to move a few thousand leftover vehicles from the two discontinued marques, the Wall Street Journal reported today.

According to the paper, the Detroit automaker sent a letter to dealers on December 23 stating that it would pay them around $7,000 for every new Pontiac or Saturn on their lot that is moved to their rental-vehicle or service-vehicle fleets.

With this move, the leftover vehicles will be classified as used (even though they're new, the dealers will technically be the vehicles' first owner) thus allowing dealers to sell them at a huge discount which is said to be as much as 46% off the sticker price.

The daily newspaper said that the offer will expire on January 4 which is the last day of the December car-sales month with GM booking the sales to dealers as fleet deliveries.

Saturn's leftover portfolio includes the Vue compact crossover, Sky Roadster, Aura Sedan, Astra compact hatch and Outlook crossover, while Pontiac's range comprises of the Solstice Roadster and Coupe, G6 Sedan, Coupe and Convertible, and the G8 sports sedan.

However, you'll have to check with your local dealer to see which models are available. And if you do, don't hesitate to leave us a comment here telling us what kind of an offer they made you.

Via: WSJ (Sub. Required)

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Opel Insignia Gets Two New Turbo Engines and ecoFLEX Variant

At next month’s Paris motorshow Opel will debut two new engines for the Insignia range that comprises a 4door sedan, a 5door fastback and the Sports Tourer which also makes its world premiere at the French capitol. The new powertrain options for Opel’s mid-size model are a 2.0-liter twin-turbocharged diesel with clean tech combustion system delivering an output of 190 HP and the downsized 1.6-liter gasoline turbo engine that generates 180 HP. The new additions complement the range of seven motors – all Euro 5-certified – that are already on offer for the Insignia. -Continued

In addition, Opel will unveil the new Insignia ecoFLEX that promises to offer lower CO2 emissions and reduced fuel consumption without compromising on performance. Although the German automaker hasn’t given out any further details, expect to see the same kind of modifications on the Insignia as with other ecoFLEX variants in Opel’s range, including improved aerodynamics, the addition of low rolling resistant tires, a longer axel ratio and reduced weight.

GM Recalling 275,936 Cadillac CTS, SRX, STS, Pontiac Solstice & Saturn Sky Models

General Motors has announced a recall on MY 2005-2007 Cadillac CTS, SRX, STS, MY 2006-2007 Pontiac Solstice, and MY 2007 Saturn Sky models. A total of 275,936 vehicles are involved in the recall over a faulty rear axle pinion seal that does not meet all of the specifications and may experience a fluid leak. A rear differential failure may cause loss of motive power and possibly loss of vehicle control increasing the risk of a crash. The recall is expected to begin during February 2008 with GM dealers replacing the pinion seal at no extra cost.