A History of General Motors

Table of contents :
Front Cover
Front Flap
Half Title Page
ISBN 0-8317-4480-4
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
CONTENTS
BUICK DIVISION
FROM CARTS TO CARS
THE PLUMBER AND THE ENGINEERS
ENTER DURANT
ONWARD AND UPWARD
LIFE WITH GM
MEMORABLE BUICKS
WALTER CHRYSLER
BUICKS A FAR
THE CREATION OF GENERAL MOTORS
THE CONSPIRATORS
THE ALTERNATE ROUTE
GENERAL MOTORS COMPANY
OLDSMOBILE DIVISION
A RUNABOUT AND SPEED
AN ERA OF CHANGE
THE NEW DECADE
READY TO GO
CADILLAC DIVISION
LELAND THE MAKER
OF GREAT PRECISION
THE ERA OF AWARDS
DOLLARS AND DESIGNS
IN WITH THE NEW
TOWARD THE FUTURE
LASALLE
SLIPPING AND SLIDING
BUY, BUY AGAIN
THE TRUST THAT NEVER WAS
A SINKING FEELING
DURANT'S OUSTER
THE INTERREGNUM
A POINT OF BALANCE
GMC TRUCK DIVISION
THE FIRST GMC TRUCK
GM BUSES
YELLOW CAB
BRUTE POWER
BUS DESIGNS
CHEVROLET DIVISION
EXPANSION
THE 490 ERA
GAINING GROUND
TAKING ON FORD
HURRY UP KNUDSEN
AHEAD IN VALUE
NUMBER ONE
A COUNTER-COUP
THE MAIN CHANCE
BACK IN THE SADDLE
SLOAN AND KETTERING
GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION
THE MIRE
FRIGIDAIRE
BEHIND THE PLOW
CHEVROLET COMES IN
GM OF CANADA
MCLAUGHLIN-BUICKS
CHEVROLETS
GM OF CANADA
MARK OF QUALITY
NEW HORIZONS
GM OF CANADA, LTD
THE ADVENT OF C-P-C
AT THE EDGE OF THE CENTURY
GROWING PAINS
GM WORLD HEADQUARTERS
BODY BY FISHER
BOOM TIME
THE ONE-MAN SHOW
STOCK TO THE SLAUGHTER
A TENTATIVE PLAN
RECESSION AND RUIN
DURANT'S DEPARTURE
A NEW ERA
SLOAN'S PLAN
CARS, NO CASH
PRICE CUTS
PRICING POLICY
THE AIR-COOLED NIGHTMARE
SLOAN TAKES OVER
GOLDEN HANDCUFFS
SLOAN IN COMMAND
STANDARD VOLUME
THE MODERN CORPORATION
BATTLE PLANS
PONTIAC DIVISION
THE PONTIAC
OAKLAND
THE COMING THING
PONTIAC MOTOR COMPANY
THE FORTIES
NUMBER ONE IN THE WORLD
RINGING CHANGES
HARLEY EARL
MARKET SUCCESS
DECADE'S END
GM OVERSEAS
GM- HOLDEN'S AUTOMOTIVE LTD
AUSTRALIA'S OWN
GM-HOLDEN'S EXPORT
MARKET DOMINANCE
THE SIXTIES
THE NEW DECADE
INTO THE EIGHTIES
BATTLE RENEWED
WITHIN GM
VAUXHALL MOTORS LTD
OFF AND RUNNING
A GM DEAL
A NEW CAR
BEDFORD TRUCK AND BUS
EVER AHEAD
WORLD WAR II
POST-WAR
DESIGN PROBLEMS
VICTOR, VISCOUNT, VIVA
UPS AND DOWNS
THE EIGHTIES
ADAM OPEL AG
A MARKET LEADER
MASS PRODUCTION
EUROPEAN LEADER
WORLD WAR II
NEW BEGINNING
BACK ON TOP
THE EIGHTIES
GM'S UNSTABLE THIRTIES
SIZE AND SURVIVAL
AIRCRAFT AND AIRLINES
DIESELS
THE MAIN BUSINESS
GM BANKING
THE NEW DEAL
THE ANNUAL MODEL CHANGE
CHEVROLET
HARLOW CURTICE
A RISING ECONOMY
LABOR UNREST
GM AND UAW
A NEW ORDER
HYDRA-MATIC
RECESSION
ON TRIAL
DECADE'S END
ELECTRO-MOTIVE DIVISION
ELECTRO-MOTIVE
IN THE BUSINESS
THAT FAMOUS FACE
DIESEL SUPERIORITY
NEW MODELS
DIESELS TRIUMPHANT
GPS AND SDS
THE DASH-2S
A NEWER BREED
ELECTRICS
EMD ON TOP
THE WORLD WAR II ERA
GATHERING CLOUDS
DARK HOURS
EMPIRE BUILDER
WAR PRODUCTION
POSTWAR GM
TO SAVE FORD
WILSON RISES
CHANGING TIMES
THE AGE OF HIGHWAYS
CAR DEALER SYNDROME
THE FINS AND CHROME FIFTIES
GMAC
ANTITRUST
THE HIGHWAYS ARE COMING
GM HEAVY EQUIPMENT
THE DEFENSE BUSINESS
CURTICE COMES IN
FINS AND CHROME
BUICK
OLDSMOBILE
CADILLAC
GMC
CHEVROLET
PONTIAC
FEDERAL HEARINGS
MOTORAMA
SITTING PRETTY
SENATE HEARINGS
THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD
CARMEN, ACCOUNTANTS
GM SNEEZES
A NEW REGIME
SAFETY, HOT RODS AND REGULATION
PUBLIC OUTCRY
NADER RAIDS GM
SAFETY WINS THE DAY
MUSCLE CARS
BUICK
OLDSMOBILE
CADILLAC
GMC
CHEVROLET
PONTIAC
POLLUTION CONTROL
GMAD
SMALL CARS
RACIAL ISSUES
THE SEVENTIES
VEGA BLUES
ACCOUNTANTS WIN
THE IMPORTS
RECORD PROFITS
OPEC OIL EMBARGO
DOWNSIZING
X-CARS
BUICK
OLDSMOBILE
CADILLAC
GMC
CHEVROLET
PONTIAC
BIG CARS, SMALL CARS
THE PITS
GM RESURGENT
FUEL ECONOMY
QUALIFIED RECOVERY
THROUGH A CLASS, DARKLY
LAST HURRAH
THE REAGANOMIC EIGHTIES
ROGER SMITH
VINTAGE SMITH
HIGH TECHNOLOGY
BUICK
OLDSMOBILE
CADILLAC
GMC
CHEVROLET
PONTIAC
REAGANOMICS
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
EXPENDITURES AND EXPERIMENTS
SATURN CORPORATION
SATURN CORPORATION
READY TO ROLL
SATURN CARS
REORGANIZATION AND BEYOND
EDS AND H ROSS PEROT
ASSIGNMENTS, INVESTMENTS
BUYING HUGHES
GMAC AND MORTGAGES
NEW BUSINESS
LOTUS
THE RECKONING
TURNABOUT
GM TODAY
LOOKING AHEAD
INDEX
PHOTO CREDITS
BACK FLAP

Citation preview

A HISTORY OF

GENERAL MOTORS Timothy Jacobs

Th-: cnrpora1c empire that ltiday is Gt:ntral Ml)lnrs hegan in I he first dccadt' ,,f thl! twen­ tieth cen1ury. when carriag,i: �nln:rreneur Wil­ lium C. .. Billy" Durant ime!iti.:d in the Huick au11m10hik. Though Our.lot had 11nly an ink­ lin!? 0f what i1 mi�h1 lead to. he entered the automnhilc busim..··ss b1:cau� he had a �amh­ kr's hunch that the autom0bile was "lht: com­ ing thing.� Even when h1: added Oldsmohik and Cadillac to his grnwint,! enterprise. Durant CL'llld n•Jt han: envisioned I he extent tu which his \'ludJini! empire w,luld �,nv. General �fotor,; would hect1me the large�\ and ffi1JSl pr,Jfitable industrial empi� the world hu� ever kn,.,wn. with 35 suhsidiari�s in 26 foreign countries. posting s:iks uf $127 billion in 1%9. 80�11::rin� an unsurpassed n:pul�11ion fllf invention, General �1oturs has kJ tht' W,ty in aut,)ffi1ltive t"ngim:cring for mL,st of this cen­ tury. When CaJillac \\'l•n the pre�ti!--riou� I >ewar Trophy in 190S for Jemnnslruting complete interchangeability uf rarts-and w,,n it :igain in 1911 with the fiN sucre.;sful �cJr-s1aning autom,Jbile-it was just a hcgin­ nin!! thn1 v.,mld t:ventually l�d 10 such ad\'ancci. :is computer-c,mtrnlled fuel-injl:c­ tion systems. In fact. the iir-st American wuti:r­ Cliolcd VS wa.s insrnlled lly General Motors and. in 191'I the corporation hrought out th1: rev,llutil'"nary V -�-(--t engine that runs 1Jn '-'" ly as many cylinders as conJitions rc4uire. Long the b1."Sl-sdling auhJ line in the world. Chc\'rokl set the standard with its "'Chevy Six .. '-'f the the 1920�. and Jµin �cored a hit with its ti�h1weigh1, small-blod; \'X'.'I ni the miJ-t950s.. Ruick. Old!im,,hile. and Pon­ tiac hdped l