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GM May Launch Its Own Mini Car
WashingtonPost.com ^ | 7-4-08

Posted on 07/04/2008 7:50:09 AM PDT by Babu

General Motors is considering a new Chevrolet mini car for the United States as it reworks its product lineup to cope with a dramatic consumer shift to more fuel efficient vehicles, a spokesman said.

GM spokesman Dee Allen said bringing the Chevrolet Beat to the U.S. market is among the options the company is studying. About the size of a Honda Fit or Toyota Yaris, the Beat is a front-wheel-drive, three-door hatchback.

The Beat, to be built in South Korea, will be rolled out in other global markets faster than it would in the United States, Allen said. The car still must be engineered to meet U.S. safety and emissions standards, he said.

U.S. mini car sales are up nearly 31 percent for the first half of the year, even though the total U.S. auto market is down more than 18 percent.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: automakers; chevrolet; energy; generalmotors; minicar; transportation
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1 posted on 07/04/2008 7:50:09 AM PDT by Babu
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To: Babu

Chevy Chevette? Luv Truck? Been there done that.


2 posted on 07/04/2008 7:51:37 AM PDT by television is just wrong
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3 posted on 07/04/2008 7:52:17 AM PDT by Babu
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To: Babu

So how do they intend to launch it? With a catapult?


4 posted on 07/04/2008 7:52:19 AM PDT by Paleo Conservative (Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less.)
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To: Babu
Been there, etc., etc...
5 posted on 07/04/2008 7:53:26 AM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: Paleo Conservative

It’s small and light enough that they’ll use a slingshot wielded by a skinny 10 year-old kid.


6 posted on 07/04/2008 7:55:29 AM PDT by Dick Bachert
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Comment #7 Removed by Moderator

To: Paleo Conservative
So how do they intend to launch it? With a catapult?

... with a trebuchet driven by explodable rechargeable lithium-ion batteries

8 posted on 07/04/2008 7:56:39 AM PDT by Babu
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To: Babu

Yeah ! We got the beat, we got the beat! /Go Gos


9 posted on 07/04/2008 7:57:27 AM PDT by csvset
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To: ProtectOurFreedom

Bring back the VEGA,

VIVA LA VEGA!!!!!!


10 posted on 07/04/2008 7:57:29 AM PDT by cmsgop (How come they never made "6 Pack" II)
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To: ProtectOurFreedom

Ahhhh, the Vega. My first wife bought one of those things (1971, first production year) before we were married, and I should have taken that as a sign that the marriage would not work either.


11 posted on 07/04/2008 7:57:32 AM PDT by Bernard (If you always tell the truth, you never have to remember exactly what you said.)
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To: Babu

I think the goal of modern liberal car design is to make driving a totally unpalatable experience.


12 posted on 07/04/2008 7:57:35 AM PDT by Brian S. Fitzgerald
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To: Brian S. Fitzgerald

When Beat meets Hummer, it won’t be pretty ...


13 posted on 07/04/2008 7:59:29 AM PDT by Babu
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To: Babu
BUTT-UGLY!
14 posted on 07/04/2008 8:02:07 AM PDT by PSYCHO-FREEP (Juan McCain....The lesser of Three Liberals.")
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To: Babu

Two years into the Obamanation of Regulation, this will be considered a standard sized car.


15 posted on 07/04/2008 8:02:57 AM PDT by reg45
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To: Brian S. Fitzgerald

“I think the goal of modern liberal car design is to make driving a totally unpalatable experience.”

I’m not sure I even get your point. Demand exists for lighter vehicles that get better gas mileage. This decreases tax revenues from fuel surcharges, cuts costs at the pump, and means less money going into the Middle East. Further, these vehicles are economical. It’s about freaking time GM started getting in on this, even if they are producing cars in South Korea.

How are these liberal concepts?

And further, small cars can be a lot of fun to drive. They definitely have better turning radiuses than more obese vehicles. Gotta love a quick U-turn on a two-lane road.


16 posted on 07/04/2008 8:08:44 AM PDT by CaspersGh0sts
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To: Babu

Yeah, like i`m gonna sell my truck and buy one of those
sardine cans.

Have no plans to buy the GM Vot either. At 40 grand a pop who wants to sit in the middle of a strong electro-magnetic feild when they went hysterical over holding a tiny cell phone to your head for a few minutes.


17 posted on 07/04/2008 8:08:55 AM PDT by Para-Ord.45
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To: Brian S. Fitzgerald
" I think the goal of modern liberal car design is to make driving a totally unpalatable experience. "

They are just trying to help remind you of your childhood.


18 posted on 07/04/2008 8:09:16 AM PDT by ThomasThomas ( Tagline: (optional, printed after your name on post):)
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To: Babu
That's not a "Mini Car."

This is a Mini Car:

They are everywhere here in Germany.

And it does not deserve the title "car."

19 posted on 07/04/2008 8:11:09 AM PDT by tlj18 (Governor Sarah Palin for Vice President!)
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To: ProtectOurFreedom

LOL

..my first car was a Vega

20 posted on 07/04/2008 8:13:45 AM PDT by WalterSkinner ( In Memory of My Father--WWII Vet and Patriot 1926-2007)
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