2013 Chevy Malibu Gets Fresh Makeover

As we shared in our First Look, the refreshed 2013 Chevy Malibu was officially revealed at the 2011 New York Auto Show as well as the 2011 Shanghai Auto Show last month. In addition to the unveiling of the new look, Chevy surprised crowds with the announcement of the 38 mile-per-gallon Malibu ECO model. Both models are planned to go on sale in over 100 countries on six continents in early 2012.

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Camaro Convertible Now Available at Pat McGrath Chevyland

In 2010, the all-new Chevy Camaro bolted to the sales lead in its segment, besting powerful competitors like the Ford Mustang and Dodge Challenger. To its credit, the Camaro achieved overall sales dominance without a drop-top model in the lineup. This year, Chevy fills that void and broadens the appeal of its best-selling muscle car by adding the 2011 Camaro convertible to the stable.

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Iowa Chevrolet Dealer Takes a Closer Look at Cruze ECO

With the introduction of the all-new Cruze compact sedan, Chevy’s aim wasn’t to simply dominate the segment, but to redefine it from the ground up. To achieve that goal, Chevy designed the Cruze to set new benchmarks for roominess, safety, performance, standard content and, in the case of the 2011 Chevy Cruze ECO model, fuel efficiency. Thanks to a host of design and engineering enhancements, the Cruze ECO boasts an EPA-estimated fuel economy rating of up to 42 highway mpg. That number is tops in the compact class, and Chevy got the job done without resorting to hybrid technology.

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All-new model excels under more rigorous government testing system

DETROIT, Dec. 23, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — The 2011 Chevrolet Cruze earned five-star crash test ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), further building on the vehicle’s safety record in markets around the world.

The 2011 Chevy Cruze was tested under NHTSA’s revised New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) implemented this fall for the 2011 model year. The rating is based on more rigorous frontal and side crash tests in addition to rollover resistance testing. Under the new system, the three test conditions are combined mathematically into an “Overall Vehicle Score.”

The Cruze is the first vehicle tested under the new rating system to achieve five stars in each of the individual crash impact conditions, leading to an overall vehicle score of five stars – the highest rating possible.
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The Electrifying 2011 Chevy Volt

IMakeNews Inc.

The 2011 Chevy Volt delivers a jolt of energy to the American auto industry, and soon, Cedar Rapids Chevrolet dealership Pat McGrath Chevyland!

Chevy’s all-new Volt is electric, in more ways than one. It’s the most groundbreaking vehicle to ever roll off the automaker’s assembly line.

As Chevy’s first ever mass produced extended range plug-in electric vehicle, the 2011 Volt (starting MSRP $40,280 with an available federal tax credit of up to $7,500 that drops that figure to as low as $32,780), delivers a smart, fun-to-drive, and practical-to-own car that’s neither perpetually tethered to a power outlet, nor limited by low maximum distance barriers (like Nissan’s Leaf).

Chevy’s newest spurns bland, predictable styling in favor of sleek, aerodynamic modernism (in fact, with a drag coefficient of just 0.287, it’s one of the most aerodynamic Chevys ever built). Sophistication reigns in the Volt’s well-sculpted hatchback design, infused with attractive chrome pieces, standard 17-inch aluminum wheels, heated side mirrors and a rear spoiler.
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On January 7, 2007, at the Detroit Auto Show, General Motors issued a press release entitled ‘GM’s Concept Electric Vehicle – Could Nearly Eliminate Trips to the Gas Station,’ marking the debut of the Chevrolet Volt Concept. Just over three years later, we had the opportunity to drive one of the very first Chevrolet Volt pre-production models before they hits the streets this November.

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Move is seen as important step for company to go public again

General Motors Co. is repaying its remaining $5.8 billion in bailout loans to U.S. and Canadian taxpayers two months ahead of schedule.

It’s another promising milestone for post-bankruptcy GM, which last month reported better-than-expected earnings for the last quarter of 2009.

GM Chairman and CEO Edward Whitacre Jr. will make the official announcement Wednesday at at the automaker’s Fairfax plant in Kansas City, Kan., two people briefed on the plans said Monday. The actual payment could be made as early as today.

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Reinstatements pull back from vision of Lexus-like network

General Motors Co. has scrapped a plan to reshape its Cadillac dealer network in the image of Lexus.

GM had said it wanted to cut the number of Cadillac franchises by two-thirds — from 1,422 on Jan. 1, 2009, to about 500 by the end of this year. That plan would have put it in line with import luxury brands, which typically use a few hundred dealerships and focus on coastal urban markets.

Now GM is using dealer reinstatements to rebuild its network of small-town Cadillac dealerships, interviews with dealer lawyers, consultants and advocates showed.

The dealer representatives interviewed by Automotive News said 55 of their 75 clients that are to be reinstated are rejected Cadillac showrooms. The vast majority of those Cadillac dealerships, which were being wound down for closure by October, are in rural areas or small towns, the interviews showed.

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General Motors Co. is looking to add capacity by bringing shuttered plants back on line using labor-intensive tooling, Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said.

“We are looking at taking an unutilized plant and putting in less-automated systems that you can put in quickly and at low investment,” Lutz said in an interview on Friday. “The downside is more labor cost. But we’ll gladly pay that labor cost to get an additional high-margin unit.”

Chrysler used this tactic in the 1990s when demand spiked unexpectedly. Using labor-intensive tooling may go against the grain of most manufacturers installing more-automated tooling. But GM does not want to spend “hundreds of millions of dollars for a new, highly automated body shop that comes on-stream 21/2 years from now. We need the stuff now.”

Currently, GM is running third shifts at several plants. But, Lutz said, “We are going to need some capacity beyond third-shifting the hot products.”

Mark Reuss, president of GM North America, and Diana Tremblay, vice president of manufacturing and labor relations, are investigating restarting shuttered plants. Off-line plants include Spring Hill, Tenn.; Janesville, Wis.; and Oshawa, Ontario.

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