General Motors thru its SAIC GM Wuling joint venture rolls out the first vehicle under the Baojun brand to take advantage of the fast growing demand for compact vehicles in China. The carmaker’s Baojun 630 comes in three trims and will cost $9,750 to around $11,495.

The Baojun 630 aims to address the demand in the 2nd-tier and 3rd-tier cities in China. The sedanwas first unveiled during the 2011 auto show in Shanghai. The Baojun 630 was developed in the automatic center of SAIC-GM which will eventually be improved in order to produce SUVs and MPVs.

The SAIC GM Wuling team up is looking at around 20,000 units of the Baojun 630 this year. The join venture has a goal of adding a new car model each year to be marketed under the Baojun brand. Baojun means “treasure horse” in Chinese. It also aims to get a big chunk of the market for compact and subcompact vehicles through 2016.

The Baojun 630 is a well positioned vehicle in the market covering the segment of those who can afford cars priced between $10,00 to $12,000 which is considered with the largest potential in the booming economy of China.

Baojun dealerships have mushroomed in eight cities across China including those in Najing, Changsha, Zhengzhou, Jinan, and Shijazhuang. By end of 2011, the brand is expected to have 150 showrooms to cover more cities.

GM is among the car giants which formed a joint venture with local Chinese car manufacturers to take advantage of the demand for budget cars in the second tier metros of China which are dominated by local brands like Chery and Geely.

If you have been paying attention to the news lately, then you probably know that GM last year was down the toilet and they actually had to take out a loan from the U.S government.  Well, I can tell you for sure that, that loan was just that a … loan and the government is expecting payment and GM is coming through!

Payments are being made constantly and with the first quarter of the year coming to a close, GM is paying $192 million to Canada and of course one billion back to the United States.  Another installment should be given on March 31st as well.

Personally, I think that GM is doing something good right now. They are getting things done and making up for their debts.

Former United States Vice President recently disclosed that the GM bankruptcy has long been predicted and the Bush administration had to let it’s time pass before letting the car manufacturer declare a chapter 11.

General Motors has been staying afloat all this time because of financial backing from the federal government until it ultimately needed to file for a bankruptcy last week.

Cheney revealed the matter during an interview with Fox News and said that Bush just did not want to pull the plug on the automaker which has been one of the pillars of the U.S. car industry.

According to him the government knew about the struggle of GM and has foreseen that eventually the carmaker will need to go through bankruptcy and some restructuring and renegotiate their contracts in order to survive.

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Fritz Henderson, GM’s COO, foresees the future of the car manufacturer relying on four car brands: Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, and Buick. The statement was done after a strategic review of the Hummer and Saab brands.

He further discloses that Pontiac will experience significant production cuts while the Saturn line will have a different loom. GM is also collaborating with the Swedish government to help the Saab brand. Around 75% of the Saab sales is in Europe so the plan will not be a US approach.

The company will push with its plans of heavily investing on the Buick brand in China. This move will have a positive effect on the brand in the United States.

The four core brands of the auto maker comprise 83% of its sales in the United States in 2008.

The plan of the GM group revolves around the price of oil being around $130-$160 per barrel. The company forecasts oil prices to be at the level of $53 per barrel in 2009. The low oil price will be a big challenge for their plug-in vehicle, the Chevrolet Volt.

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When buying a new car, you can get rid of your old one with for the poor.