The Demo Site

As expected, General Motors has announced it's entered "into a memorandum of understanding with a buyer for Hummer," but under the terms of the transaction, the purchaser hasn't been disclosed.
GM's brief release (posted after the break) scratches the surface of the plan, saying only that the deal is expected to close by the third quarter of this year, that the new investor is committed to funding future Hummer products - possibly including the H4 and a two-door H3T - and that 3,000 U.S. manufacturing, engineering and dealer jobs will be saved.
Those last two points caught the eye of PickupTrucks.com, which tapped one of its sources within GM to ask how manufacturing and dealer jobs have escaped the axe. On the manufacturing front, the H3 production facility in South Africa (which makes right-hand drive models for markets outside the States) will be shuttered and assembly will move back to the U.S. Additionally, the memorandum of understanding states that no Hummer dealers in the U.S. will closed.

That screen cap you see above? That's the first evidence that Gran Turismo 5 will finally have damage rendering. The image is courtesy of the new GT5 trailer (posted after the break) Polyphony Digital released today at the E3 gaming expo. Other bits to note: fully-licensed NASCAR and WRC racing have been added for the first time, and, in typical Gran Turismo fashion, PD hasn't released a firm date for the game's release.
However, even more compelling than GT5's imminent arrival is what joined the release of the PSP Go (right), a lighter, more compact version of Sony's Playstation Portable (priced at $249.99). When the new 16-gig PSP arrives on October 1, you'll be able to download the first portable version of Gran Turismo - aptly named Gran Turismo Mobile - to the device. According to Kazunori Yamauchi, the man behind the GT series, this won't be a stripped-down version of the game. It boasts 60 frames-per-second rendering, 800 cars, 35 tracks, career and arcades modes, and the ability to play against three friends over the PSP Go's wifi connection. We haven't been able to find out if Gran Turismo Mobile will work on the current PSP platform, but we might be willing to shell out the coin if it means we can practice running the Nurburgring on our next flight to Germany.

Make the jump to view the full GT5 and PSP Go trailers, and check the galleries below for plenty of brand new high-res screen shots

One of the reasons automakers build concept vehicles is to gauge the public's reaction to a new design. Apparently, the Kia Soul'ster garnered enough goodwill and interest after its debut at the Detroit Auto Show the Korean automaker is strongly considering putting the canvas-roofed Soul-amino into production. Previously, Kia's Alex Fedorak said the Tonka-mobile was created "in a fashion that was production-capable."
According to Kia-World, though the automaker isn't officially saying the Soul'ster will be mass produced, unnamed Korean magazines are reporting it's looking good and that a decision is on the way in short order. If there's any truth to the rumors, we can expect to see the little subcompact pick'em-up truck on American roads in the second half of 2010. Thanks for the tip, Mike!

GM of Europe announced today that it will continue to operate normally and is not included in the Chap. 11 bankruptcy filing made today by its U.S. parent. It said that it has secured approval for a €1.5 billion bridge financing agreement with the German government based on the partnership with Magna, which will allow for more time to finalize the partnership agreement.

“This has been a very intense and at times difficult negotiation over the past several days,” said GM Europe President, Carl-Peter Forster in a statement. “The process for a future partnership in Adam Opel GmbH has moved a critical step forward with the MOU reached with Magna International, whose leadership has shown strong commitment to this project. With the financing, even with the GM actions in the U.S., we can now confidently say to our employees, customers, suppliers and dealers that it’s business as usual as we go through the process of creating a new, more independent Opel/Vauxhall.”

Under the agreement, Opel/Vauxhall assets have been pooled under Adam Opel GmbH, with a majority of those shares being put into an independent trust.

Volvo announced today that it is teaming up with energy supplier Vattenfall to promote the production of plug-in hybrid Volvo vehicles by 2012.

“We are investing in an industrial joint venture to series-produce plug-in hybrid cars in Sweden in 2012, cars that can be powered by both electricity and diesel,” says Stephen Odell, President and CEO of the Volvo Car Corporation. ”This is an important business development for us and our partnership with Vattenfall allows us to take a giant step toward offering our customers cars with an even smaller environmental footprint.”

Volvo has built three V70 plug-in hybrid prototypes which it will study to gather information, driving habits and various ways for high-speed home charging. The Swedish automaker said that the cars that are planned to go into series production in 2012 will feature a somewhat different technology.

As you all know by now, when the ‘New GM’ comes out of bankruptcy court in 60 to 90 days the U.S. government will own 60 percent of the company. The Canadian governments will own 12 percent while the UAW will own 17.5 percent. GM bondholders will take a 10 percent stake.

Speaking earlier today to the media, President Barack Obama said: “We are acting as reluctant shareholders. What we are not doing - what I have no interest in doing - is running GM.”

He said that the New GM will be run by a private board of directors and management team. “They, and not the government, will call the shots and make decision about how to turn this company around. 

“The federal government will refrain from exercising its rights as a shareholder in all but the most fundamental corporate decisions. When a difficult decision has to be made on matters like on where to open a new plant or what type of new car to make; the New GM - not the United States government - will make that decision.

He said that the U.S. government’s main goal is to get GM back on its feet with a hands-off approach and get out quickly.

As a part of its bankruptcy filing GM will have to publish the list of more than 2,100 dealers it plans on ending its agreement with in October 2010. While that won’t take place until the end of this week, GM today published a details list of all its U.S. plants and facilities closures.

“The manufacturing plan reduces GM’s total number of assembly, powertrain and stamping facilities in the U.S. from 47 in 2008 to 34 by the end of 2010 and 33 by 2012,” GM said in a statement. “These totals reflect GM’s recently announced plans to build a future small car in the U.S. Under this plan, the New GM will achieve full capacity utilization of its assembly operations in 2011, two years ahead of what was scheduled in its Feb. 17 viability plan submission.”

GM’s Service and Parts Operations (SPO) announced today that it will cease operations at three Parts Distribution Centers in Boston; Columbus, Ohio; and Jacksonville, Fla. - by Dec. 31, 2009.