General Motors to Sponsor Championship Off-Road Racing

FOR RELEASE: May 9, 2001

General Motors to Sponsor Championship Off-Road Racing

Hydra-Matic Transmissions Showcased in Series Race

DETROIT – GM today announces its associate sponsorship of the Championship Off-Road Racing (CORR) series. The sponsorship will showcase its Hydra-Matic transmissions which are featured in many of the trucks in the series including two GM officially sponsored Chevrolet trucks. An anticipated 250,000 plus spectators will attend the eight off road events this year.

Hydra-Matic transmission: the choice for a smooth, carefree driving experience
For drivers of light duty trucks, vans and passenger cars, around the world seeking a fun and carefree driving experience, Hydra-Matic is the foremost global brand of automatic transmissions delivering smooth shifts, reliable technology and trouble-free performance.

GM's sponsorship package includes event coverage in 46 hours of annual exposure on ESPN2, and 30 or more hours on Speedvision as well as exposure to the thousands of CORR race enthusiasts at the eight race events.

"CORR offers an excellent opportunity for GM to promote Hydra-Matic transmissions because it is the premier off road series showing tremendous growth opportunities," said Brian Shipman, GM Powertrain Hydra-Matic brand manager. "This opportunity will spotlight General Motors as a world leader of automatic transmissions, and the exceptional durability of our Hydra-Matic transmissions to withstand the intense stresses of off road racing."

CORR: a growing series with 200,000 spectators and over 7 million television viewers
Over the past few years, CORR has shown tremendous growth in participants, events, spectators, media coverage, and television airings. The series is the only off road competition to have such a strong television package, and over 1.5 million dollars in sponsor support. ESPN2 boasts an annual average of 7.7 million viewers for CORR series events.

In addition to the CORR broad all-division sponsorship, Hydra-Matic officially sponsors two CORR Pro II teams, both who drive Chevrolet trucks equipped with Hydra-Matic transmissions: Evan Evans Racing, and Kevin Probst Racing. Hydra-Matic transmissions also sponsors Dave Westhem Racing and Collins Motorsports in the SCORE series, and 1999 Pro-4 Class Champion Walker Evans Racing in American Rock Crawling Association.

"Hydra-Matic provides smooth shifting, reliable, and fun to drive automatic transmissions for all types of vehicles and driving needs," said Shipman. "This product is a world class decathalete, able to smoothly shift from one demanding sport to the next and go the distance."

Introduced in 1940, Hydra-Matic was the first brand of mass-produced automatic transmission
Hydra-Matic transmissions draw on a rich tradition of engineering and manufacturing excellence. The first Hydra-Matic automatic transmission, which debuted on the 1940-model Oldsmobile, had four-speeds. This product provided a decided advantage over the competition, as General Motors entered the post WWII years as the only domestic auto manufacturer offering a fully automatic transmission.

GM Powertrain provides transmissions for vehicles and other original equipment manufactures globally. Longitudinal-mount rear-wheel drive and transverse-mount front-wheel drive transmissions are both available. Nearly all GM transmissions are electronically controlled. As the world's largest supplier of automatic transmissions, GM Powertrain is able to offer a wide range of smooth-shifting, reliable and efficient rear-wheel and front-wheel drive transmissions.

The undisputed global leader in vehicle manufacturing: GM
General Motors , the world’s largest vehicle manufacturer, designs, builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide. In 2000, GM earned $5 billion on sales of $183.3 billion. The manufacturer employs about 386,000 people globally.