Good evening Netizens...

In this file photo taken Jan. 11, 2009, Chevrolet Beat concept car, which will be introduced as a production car Spark, is shown at at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. General Motors Corp. said Friday, May 29, 2009, that it plans to reopen a shuttered U.S. factory to build compact cars that will likely be the smallest vehicles GM has ever produced here. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

However, with only 8 inches of front ground clearance, the question remains unanswered how well this vehicle will fare among residents in the Northern United States snow zones where such ground clearances would probably make such a low-cut vehicle unable to get around in winter snow.

However, as of 7:00 PM tonight, the Associated Press has announced that General Motors will file for bankruptcy protection Monday morning, which perhaps comes as no surprise to most readers. The deal between GM and the Federal Government will give the American taxpayers more than a 70% ownership of the GM product lines. The Feds will pump another $30 billion dollars into GM as it weaves its way through the bankruptcy process, above and beyond the $20 billion they have already loaned them thus far. Even the bondholders have indicated they will give their blessings to the deal.

Still, when GM emerges from bankruptcy, it will not closely resemble the auto giant we have known for over 100 years. There will be four product lines left: Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. The Hummer brand, which at least could navigate through snow, will perhaps be sold to the highest bidder, and the venerable Oldsmobile will simply cease to exist.

I can easily recall over 40 years of American automobiles and trucks, including many technical specifications for various models I have either owned and/or driven in that time. Some of my favorites are the Oldsmobile Super 98 (which I hopped up to over 375 horsepower, good for more than a few tickets), my infamously long-lived 52 Chevrolet pickup truck which originally had a 6-cylinder engine with babbitted main and rod bearings, but eventually became a vintage 283 V-8 when I could no longer obtain the engine parts.

The 57 Chevy Bel-Air, the 50-something split-window GMC pickup, the 56 Pontiac straight-8 cylinder-- my goodness when I stop to think of all the various GM vehicles I have owned over the years, I realize I could be quite well-to-do today if I had kept them all. But I'll always have the memories.

Dave

---

---