Free Republic

Ron DeSantis has signed a law banning automakers from selling cars direct to consumers in Florida – but it contains a carve-out that will benefit his political backer Elon Musk and his Tesla company.House Bill 637 requires most automakers to sell to Floridians through third-party car dealers, who sometimes add exorbitant markups to vehicles’ sales tags.Drafted by lobbyists for dealers, who have made substantial donations to DeSantis, the law could have been a big blow to Tesla owner Elon Musk, who hosted his glitchy presidential campaign launch on Twitter.Tesla cuts out the middleman by operating its own dealerships. Forcing it...

General Motors and Ford both have their feet firmly on the gas pedal. Even as they commit tens of billions of dollars toward future electric vehicle development, they’ve been making major investments in internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles that they plan to build into the next decade. So far this year, GM has announced more than $2 billion in spending to build new full-size trucks and SUVs and a new generation of V8 engines that will power them. "The ICE age is not over," GM President Mark Reuss told FOX Business at GM’s most recent investor day event. "We’re not...

Tesla got a carve-out. It’s a good day for auto dealers in the Sunshine State, and not so great for motorists who’d prefer a more direct route for buying a new coupe, sedan or SUV. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a measure (HB 637) banning most direct-to-consumer vehicle sales, solidifying the future viability of car-selling operations across the Sunshine State. The measure, championed and authored by lobbyists representing the Florida Automobile Dealers Association (FADA), prohibits automakers from selling vehicles directly to buyers.That restriction, which goes into effect July 1, was considered a direct threat to the business model of Tesla, an...

FLINT, Michigan (AP) — General Motors plans to invest more than $1 billion in two Flint, Michigan, manufacturing plants for the production of the next-generation internal combustion engine heavy-duty trucks. Gerald Johnson, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing and Sustainability, said Monday that the company will build internal combustion vehicles throughout this decade, in addition to making electric vehicles. GM has a goal of building only electric passenger vehicles in the United States by 2035.

– General Motors plans to stop production of its electric Chevrolet Bolt models by the end of this year, CEO Mary Barra told investors Tuesday when discussing the company’s first-quarter earnings. The Chevy Bolt EV and EUV, a larger version of the car, make up the vast majority of the company’s electric vehicle sales to date. However, the battery cells in the cars are an older design and chemistry than the automaker’s newer electric vehicles such as the GMC Hummer and Cadillac Lyriq, which utilize GM’s Ultium architecture.

I once believed that GM had everything needed for a successful EV program. The Detroit carmaker invested billions in overhauling its factories and building new ones. Its EV plans looked rock solid, with more than a dozen EV models planned, some in the mass-market segments. GM even started partnerships with battery makers and raw material suppliers to ensure it has everything in place for a successful execution of its EV plan. I smiled when Mary Barra vowed to surpass Tesla by 2025, although I thought if anyone were to challenge the EV leader, it would be GM. With all the...

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is offering buyouts to most of its U.S. salaried workforce and some global executives in an effort to trim costs as it makes the transition to electric vehicles. The Detroit automaker wouldn’t say how many workers it is targeting, but confirmed that the move is aimed at accelerating attrition to meet a previously announced goal of $2 billion in cost cuts by the end of next year. GM has about 58,000 salaried workers in the U.S. The company says the offers also are designed to avoid any possible firings at a later date. Offers will...

From streaming platform for half-baked reality dating shows to normalizing electric vehicles. When Netflix engages in shameless product placement, you can be sure it will at least be extra woke. The left-wing steamer has entered a deal to feature General Motors’ electric vehicles in its original movies and TV series, providing the company with a new revenue stream while also burnishing its questionable credentials as a corporate climate crusader. The campaign is also intended to serve as what one GM executive called a “blueprint” for Hollywood’s big push to normalize electric vehicles in the minds of consumers and to “accelerate...

Jan. 31 (UPI) -- General Motors announced Tuesday it will make a $650 million equity investment into Lithium Americas to develop the Thacker Pass mine in Nevada to produce material needed for its electric vehicles. GM is touting the news as the largest-ever investment by a carmaker to produce domestic lithium to make EV batteries. Lithium Americas, which is based in Vancouver, Canada, said it believes there is enough lithium in the mine to produce batteries for 1 million EVs annually. As the market for electric cars grows, so have supply chain worries for lithium, the critical raw material needed...

General Motors (GM) provided a grant to a pro-transgender organization that supplies kindergarten and elementary classrooms with children’s books that support its ideology.The Detroit-based automaker made a donation last year to the Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network’s (GLSEN) “Rainbow Library” Program, according to its 2021 Social Impact Report (pdf).The pro-transgender organization is known for lobbying school districts to allow boys who have undergone sex changes to play on girls’ sports teams and use female-specific restrooms, Breitbart reported.The GM report admitted to funding the “Rainbow Library’s” efforts to provide “supportive curriculum materials and book sets that are LGBTQ+ centered, racially...

President Joe Biden Made The Remarks During A Speech On The CHIPS & Science Act In San Diego, CA 11/4/22

Elon Musk has already had a volatile effect after taking control of Twitter, and at least one advertiser - one of Musk's Tesla competitors - has paused advertising on the social media giant to take stock of the situation. General Motors, which competes with Musk's car company, announced it has 'temporarily paused' it's paid advertising on Twitter. However, the company said in a statement that they will continue to interact with Twitter's customer care service.

Farmers across the world are desperate to grow genetically modified crops (GM) in their fields. So much so that in some countries farmers have bypassed existing bans on these crops and even made harvests from them. Why do farmers risk being prosecuted, and what compels them to grow GM food crops? The answer is straightforward: GM crops give higher yields, are resilient to deadly plant diseases, and can withstand tough environmental conditions. Optimum Environmental Conditions Meet Advancement in Science Conditions for food crops around the world are the best in all of human history. Elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration and warmer...

This just in: We have our first Woke corporation that can’t stand the idea of Americans having free speech on Twitter. GM has temporarily suspended ads on Twitter after the Elon Musk takeover, as reported by CNBC. So it begins.

It must be one of the more dramatic failures of an electric vehicle chronicled thus far. And it could have ended up much worse. In a video posted on YouTube on Tuesday, Roman Mica, publisher of the website The Fast Lane Truck, recounted how his website had purchased a brand new General Motors Hummer EV. Price: $115,000. After only a few days, and with fewer than 250 miles on the vehicle, the Hummer had problems in spectacular fashion. Alone on a busy highway, Mica found himself stranded. In true journalistic fashion, he pulled out his camera and documented what had...

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A YouTuber recently demonstrated that buyers of GMC’s new electric Hummer better clear their calendars if the truck is running low on battery charge. The video he produced demonstrated that when the $80,000+ electric vehicle (EV) is plugged in to a regular house outlet, it will take over four days to fully charge. A special 240-volt charger still takes a full day to charge the vehicle. A YouTuber with an electric GMC Hummer — an EV starting at $86,645 — plugged in his EV at home and found out that it would take, at best, one day to charge —...

General Motors pushed back the start of a return-to-office plan after facing fierce resistance from employees over its handling of the rollout. The Detroit-based auto giant rankled corporate employees by announcing in a memo last Friday afternoon that they would be required to work onsite at least three days per week beginning later this year. But GM executives reversed course in an update to staffers on Tuesday – saying the plan won’t be implemented until the first quarter of next year at the earliest. The company also apologized for the manner in which employees learned of the change. “We acknowledge...

California has moved to ban sales of carbon dioxide-emitting vehicles by 2035. That is fine in theory but it raises two questions: Can we? And should we? The answer from the tradition auto industry might surprise many investors. It’s a resounding yes to both. The auto industry’s relationship with the California Air Resources Board, or CARB, hasn’t always been, well, as agreeable. The relationship is littered with fines for noncompliant vehicles and litigation related to emissions standards. Back in 2001, General Motors challenged CARB emission regulations in court. These days, the auto industry and CARB appear to be in lockstep....

A joint venture between General Motors and South Korean battery company LG Energy Solution is set to receive a $2.5 billion loan from the Energy Department to build battery cell factories for electric vehicles in three states. TCredit: AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File A joint venture between General Motors and South Korean battery company LG Energy Solution is set to receive a $2.5 billion loan from the Energy Department to build battery cell factories for electric vehicles in three states. The Energy Department said it has made a conditional commitment to lend the money to Ultium Cells LLC, a joint venture...