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Members of a Senate subcommittee accused General Motors of trying to cover up problems with an ignition switch that is now tied to 13 deaths, and pressed CEO Mary Barra to commit to punishing anyone involved. Panel members also told Barra that GM should tell owners to stop driving all the 2.6 million cars being recalled for the faulty switch until they are repaired. GM is currently telling owners the cars, mainly Chevrolet Cobalts and Saturn Ions, are fine to drive as long as nothing is placed on the key chain.

Government Motors. Remember that one? That's a huge, overlooked detail in this whole GM recall crisis - the federal government's oversight of a company they bought out of bankruptcy four years ago and, under their nose, that same company is hiding its deadly, dirty laundry. Charlie LeDuff caught up with California Democrat Henry Waxman, who was head of the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform at the time of that purchase.

April 1, 2014 3:54 PM Democratic Senator Tells GM Car Owners to Stop Driving Immediately By Jim Geraghty A reader sends this in and quips, “Blumenthal to Michigan: Drop Dead!” CBS Connecticut: “Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal is among those calling for GM to make a stronger statement and tell owners to stop driving their cars immediately. Blumenthal believes GM made a decision to hide the defect of ignition switches.” Considering the risk from the switches, Blumenthal’s advice isn’t the most outlandish conclusion in the world. If an owner of one of the recalled cars wants to drive it at all,...

As lawmakers press General Motors and regulators over their decade-long failure to correct a defective ignition switch, a new review of federal crash data shows that 303 people died after the air bags failed to deploy on two of the models that were recalled last month. The review of the air bag failures from 2003 to 2012, by the Friedman Research Corporation, adds to the mounting reports of problems that went unheeded before General Motors announced last month that it was recalling more than 1.6 million cars worldwide because of the defective switch.

The Justice Department has begun a criminal investigation into the decade-long failure by General Motors to address deadly safety problems in its some of its cars before announcing a massive recall last month, according to a person briefed on the matter. The preliminary inquiry by federal prosecutors in New York is expected to center on whether G.M., the nation’s largest automaker, failed to comply with laws requiring timely disclosure of vehicle defects. The probe is the latest in a widening series of investigations of G.M.'s handling of faulty ignition switches in its Chevrolet Cobalt sedan and other cars that the...

The recall now affects 1.37 million vehicles built between 2003 and 2007. In addition to 778,000 Chevrolet Cobalts and Pontiac G5 cars recalled earlier this month, GM is also recalling Saturn Ions, Chevrolet HHRs, Pontiac Solstices and Saturn Sky models for the same issue. GM says the ignition on the vehicles recalled can accidentally switch out of the “Run” position while the car is being driven. When that happens, the car’s engine shuts off, rendering power brakes, power steering and airbags not operational. Originally, GM said there had been six fatalities among front-seat passengers as a result of this problem....

New evidence is surfacing that General Motors has known for years about the deadly defects in its vehicles ( as I suggested here last week) that are just now being recalled. The defects have led to the deaths of at least six people and are the basis of an ongoing lawsuit against GM. The deadly recall delay by GM has garnered the attention of Mainstream Media as usually GM-friendly sources like USA Today, The New York Times, CNN Money and even CBS Evening News have rightfully decided that the accusations of deplorable behavior by GM deserve to be shared...

DETROIT, Feb 10 (Reuters) - General Motors Co's Mary Barra, the auto industry's first female chief executive officer, will be paid $14.4 million in cash and stock this year, 60 percent more than her predecessor, the automaker disclosed on Monday. GM had previously said Barra, 52, would receive up to $4.4 million in cash and stock compensation this year, but that amount did not include what she would receive under the company's long-term compensation plan, which totals $10 million.

Coming just a week after Coke made waves when it aired the first Super Bowl ad to showcase a set of same-sex parents, the car-maker's new campaign is called "The New Us" and portrays a series of wide-ranging families. "And while what it means to be a family hasn't changed," intones the Chevrolet narration over clips that include nuclear families, mixed race couples, adoptive parents, gay and lesbian parents, combinations of the above, and others, "what a family looks like, has. This is the new us." The games have been criticized for taking place in Russia, which has made "gay...

General Motors announced disappointing earnings results today and issued a warning that first quarter results will underwhelm as well. The reasons behind the earnings' miss are surely going to be explained away by pundits and proponents of the company still known as Government Motors to many. Sorting through the smoke and mirrors can lead to some important and simple explanations as to what is going on at GM. Before looking at the reasons why GM has drastically underperformed the broader markets since the Obama-orchestrated bankruptcy process of 2009, let's take a look at one of the most critical takeaways from...

The Obama Administration may have sold the last of the taxpayers' shares in General Motors, but it appears that politics will continue to play a powerful role in the management of the company. New GM CEO Mary Barra did not seem too concerned about appearances when she attended the State of the Union as Obama's guest. Her predecessor Dan Akerson in previous months had gone to great lengths to distance GM from the federal government. With President Obama praising Ms. Barra in front of the nation, the field is once again set for GM to take the stage during upcoming...

I made these remarks today at the National Press Club in Washington, DC before the luncheon speech of outgoing General Motors CEO Dan Akerson: President Obama justified the auto bailout by predicting it would make money for the taxpayer. With Treasury now selling its remaining shares, the direct loss is about $10 billion. So on its most fundamental level, the auto bailout is a failure. But that $10 billion figure dramatically understates the true cost. There were separate multibillion dollar bailouts of Ally Financial, formerly know as GMAC, and Delphi and other suppliers. There was cash for clunkers, the government...

Peter Flaherty, president of the National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC), today posed key questions to the General Motors leadership at a National Press Club press conference, including whether the company will repay to taxpayers the $10 billion direct cost of the GM bailout. News that the U.S. Treasury Department has sold its remaining stake and that Mary Barra will take over as GM's new CEO have put the spotlight on the company and its future. GM executives have pointed to GM's $26.8 billion in cash as evidence of its improved financial position. Analysts have raised the possibility that the...

<p>With final losses from the auto industry bailout near $15 billion, President Obama is using fuzzy math to claim that taxpayers lost no money on his administration’s portion of the rescue program, analysts say.</p> <p>On the heels of the Treasury Department’s announcement Monday that it was selling its final shares of General Motors Co. acquired during the 2008-09 bailout, Mr. Obama seems more intent on claiming credit and avoiding blame than providing taxpayers with a final accounting of the bailout that also included Chrysler LLC and GM’s financing arm, Ally Financial.</p>

General Motors Co. said Wednesday it will stop making cars and engines in Australia by the end of 2017, with nearly 2,900 jobs to be lost, because of high production costs and competition. The decision could spell the end of car manufacturing in Australia as the industry will be too small for supporting businesses such as parts makers to remain economic. Toyota Motor Corp. announced it is reassessing its future in Australia. A union said 50,000 jobs in the auto industry are in jeopardy. GM’s Australian subsidiary Holden once dominated Australian auto sales, but lost market share to imported cars....

General Motors (GM) tapped products chief Mary Barra to become the auto maker's first female CEO, taking the keys from current chief Dan Akerson who will step down ahead of schedule in January. The promotion of Barra instantly makes her the most powerful woman in Detroit and one of the most influential in corporate America. The move comes just hours after the Treasury Department exited its ownership of GM following the auto bailouts of 2008 and 2009.

One of the major architects of the General Motors bankruptcy process, Harry Wilson, recently gave a very optimistic outlook for GM future share price. Mr. Wilson was a member of President Obama's Auto Task Force, and was an instrumental player in seeing that UAW interests were put ahead of other creditors, like old GM bondholders. Automotive News now reports that Mr. Wilson feels that GM may be a target for activists because of their "huge" cash hoard. According to the piece: "Any company that isn't efficient about capital allocation is a target for activists," said Wilson, who is now a...

Washington’s $49.5 billion bailout of General Motors saved at least 1.2 million jobs, protected hundreds of thousands of pensions and earned about $40 billion in tax collections, turning what some have dubbed a poor investment into a whopping bang for Uncle Sam, according to a new report. The bottom line, according to the Center for Automotive Research study heralded by GM: When the full picture of what was at stake is considered, including the potential for millions to be put out of work, the government actually made out big time. And when bailed-out Chrysler is included, the study found that...

The Chevy Malibu, which first appeared in 1964, has grown and improved immensely throughout its lifetime. Now, in its 50th year, it is offered with a standard 2.5L four-cylinder engine and also features stop/start technology, numerous safety features, and plenty of comfort and connectivity - a far cry from its predecessor. It has gained about 14 percent fuel economy in the city (25 mpg) and 6 percent highway (36 mph) since the 2013 model alone, and delivers 65 percent more horsepower than the '64 Malibu's 3.2L six-cylinder. When it debuted in 1964, dubbed Chevy's first "intermediate" car, it was one...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department said it expected to sell its remaining shares of General Motors Co by the end of the year, a plan that may leave taxpayers with a shortfall of about $10 billion on the automaker's 2009 bailout. Treasury on Thursday said it had completed the sale of 70.2 million shares of GM stock and to date had recouped $38.4 billion from the $49.5 billion taxpayer-funded rescue of the Detroit company. At current prices, Treasury would recoup another $1.2 billion from its remaining stake, bringing its total recovery to $39.6 billion. "Our goal was never...