surveyorjp
Missouri
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Here is a more detailed report discussing the intricacies and challenges presented when considering this type of merger. I would say the 50/50 odds of this happening reported earlier are optimistic.
Read about it HERE at www.allpar.com.
* This post was
edited 10/13/08 05:45am by surveyorjp *
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Justardnck
Loxahatchee, FL
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coolbreeze01 wrote:Doesn't MB still have a stake in Chrysler? What if Caterpillar approached GM? The stock symbol would be (getiton) I heard that Caterpillar is not going to offer it's engines in big rigs any longer, supposedly they'll be building their own big rig.
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coolbreeze01
Redding, Ca
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Justardnck wrote:coolbreeze01 wrote:Doesn't MB still have a stake in Chrysler? What if Caterpillar approached GM? The stock symbol would be (getiton) I heard that Caterpillar is not going to offer it's engines in big rigs any longer, supposedly they'll be building their own big rig.
I heard that also, but I can't remember which truck. Cat doesn't seem to be pursuing the light truck market.
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Justardnck
Loxahatchee, FL
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surveyorjp wrote:
I however like to focus on the reality of the fact that there is a market for both Dodge and GM trucks. Like I said before, you can market the GM line of trucks to the typical recreational user as a more upscale line of trucks with their softer ride and such, and market the Dodge line as the work/utility type pickup with the rugged Cummins engine and stouter suspensions. Throw the luxuries and fancy options on the GM trucks to compete against the Ford King Ranch type trucks, and beef up the Dodge even further to compete against Ford's Tow Boss type trucks. They could possibly eliminate the Dodge 1/2 ton, and take some of the excellent features of the current 09 Dodge Ram 1500 and apply them to the GM 1/2 tons. Have the Dodge brand focus on 3/4 ton and up, take the interiors and body panels off of the 09 Dodges and put them on those heavy duty Dodges, and offer a base Hemi and of course the optional Cummins. With that formula, GM/Chrysler would completely dominate the pickup truck market. Of that I am sure. While I agree with a lot of this I also disagree with some of it. The Cummins is strong the rest of the truck is less than appealing. What GM did was appeal to all the folks with a truck that's tough but not too tough and plush to appeal to the softer sex. Lets face it, he man wants a tough truck and the wife wants a comfortable truck, GM delivered what appears to have touched on the needs of all the masses. I almost pulled the trigger on a 2008 Cummins 4dr dually on thursday because Dodge was giving them away at a little over half price but in the end the crappy interior was the deal kill. Not only do I need to be happy and comfortable but so does the wife and if she's not happy all the heavy duty truck lines won't be enough to convince her it's the truck for us. Now the Laramie was nice but they only had those in the Mega-cab and I refuse to buy a truck with a tiny little bed like that.
My best advise for GM is that if they do buy the Chrysler line they need to just leave it alone and maybe just bolster Chrysler's financial areas. There will always be Dodge, Ford and GM lovers and that will never change. Some people just will not even give another brand the fair shake it needs to prove itself... myself included. I'm a GM man all the way, I was a Ford Master Tech for 10 years and I drove a GMC truck to the Ford shop everyday. The bottom line is that GM needs to leave Dodge engineers to them selves and only weed out the Dodge lines that are not making the grade, why reinvent the wheel. Some of the GM vehicles need to be purged as well because they have some less than par units too.
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rsh_757
Auburn, WA
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CTD2003 wrote:I hope they don’t turn the rugged Dodge trucks into the sissified GM/Chevy trucks!!
I am with him!! Keep that IFS off my 4WD truck!
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8.1 Van
Millstone NJ
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DETROIT - The U.S. automotive sales slump worked its way to Janesville, Wis., Monday when General Motors Corp. told workers that it would cease operations at a sport utility vehicle factory there in December.
GM spokesman Chris Lee said the plant, with 1,200 workers represented by the United Auto Workers, will be shuttered Dec. 23, earlier than GM had expected.
GM announced in June that it would close Janesville and three other factories as demand for pickup trucks and SUVs waned, but the only time frame that was given was by 2010. The company announced earlier this month that another of those plants - the Moraine, Ohio, SUV factory - will close Dec. 23.
On Friday, a person with knowledge of GM's plans said it could close more factories as early as this week to deal with slumping sales and the collapse in its stock price. The announcement was likely to include acceleration of the assembly plant closures, which also include factories in Oshawa, Ontario, and Toluca, Mexico.
Forbes
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abradf2519
Poughkeepsie N.Y.
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rsh_757 wrote:CTD2003 wrote:I hope they don’t turn the rugged Dodge trucks into the sissified GM/Chevy trucks!!
I am with him!! Keep that IFS off my 4WD truck!
You guys must be compensating for something....
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Burl Swift
West Valley City, UT
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The merger thing is very sensitve, its going to be hard for them not to alienate some part of the consumer base.
I just hope I get to keep my lifetime powertrain warrantee, if not then I'll be moving back to Ford myself. I love my Ram 1/2, and I love the Hemi, but I was on the fence between the 1500 and the F150 and the warrentee is what brought me over to Dodge.
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surveyorjp
Missouri
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Justardnck wrote: I almost pulled the trigger on a 2008 Cummins 4dr dually on thursday because Dodge was giving them away at a little over half price but in the end the crappy interior was the deal kill.
You need to take a look at the 2009 Dodge 1500 interior. That is the interior that will be in the HD Dodges in 2010. Much better interior than the GM offerings. Of course that's just my opinion. 
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Justardnck
Loxahatchee, FL
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surveyorjp wrote:Justardnck wrote: I almost pulled the trigger on a 2008 Cummins 4dr dually on thursday because Dodge was giving them away at a little over half price but in the end the crappy interior was the deal kill.
You need to take a look at the 2009 Dodge 1500 interior. That is the interior that will be in the HD Dodges in 2010. Much better interior than the GM offerings. Of course that's just my opinion. Why bother, I'm not gonna buy a 1500 and who knows what the future holds in 2010. I will say this though GM has completely screwed up their interior line on the mid-line option packages. If you're not getting leather your choices suck, the classic body trucks had the velour seats with optional leather which is much nicer than that crappy cloth that GM and Dodge are putting in their trucks today.
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