SHOCKER IF TRUE: Report Says GM and Chrysler are in Merger/Acquisition Talks

DETROIT - October 11, 2008: AP is saying that the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times are reporting today that General Motors and Chrysler have had preliminary talks regarding an acquisition of Chrysler's automotive operations.

The AP's report states that the WSJ report claims that Cerberus Capital Management would trade its 80.1 percent ownership of Chrysler in exchange for the 49 percent ownership that General Motors still has of its old GMAC lending business. Cerberus currently owns the other 51 percent of GMAC. The remaining portion of Chrysler would continue to be owned by Daimler, which of course owns Mercedes-Benz.

AP's coverage of the New York Times' version of the story does not provide the same deal-details.

Another source, my sister's next door neighbor's cousin, who once worked as a summer intern for a Chevy dealership in Allentown, PA, refused to make any comments about the deal. Admittedly, this person is not a very reliable source. However, if this deal happens it would certainly have a significant impact on the automotive landscape, and probably catapult GM back into the position of world's number one automaker.

For more on the general state of affairs at Chrysler and General Motors, watch the videos below.

Click to watch TACH's exclusive video of the Jim Press (Chrysler Vice Chairman & President)
presentation at the Western Automotive Journalist's meeting in September.


Click to watch Carl-Peter Forster (President of GM Europe) at the Paris Motor Show last week