General Electric-General Motors

[paulg]

Ok, there was another thread regarding GE's potential "sale" of the appliance division to LG, Haier etc. I commented my vehemence against it.
I'm changing my mind.. In my own (perhaps silly) way, I will permit GE to sell its appliance division to whomever they want provided....
...They team up with General Motors to make ecologically friendly electric cars in the USA. I think it should be called General Electric Motors. (Here you have General Electric and General Motors all in one name). Heck! If GE can make jet engines and locomotives, why not cars?
One more requirement (I hope GE people read this)...
If GE makes cars, they MUST continue to name the car features in the GE style we've come to know and love.
Examples:
Touch N' Turn power steering
Porta-Color removable dash-mounted GPS unit.
Hotpoint heated seats.
Dial-Defrost windshields
Filter-Flo filters.
Customline trim.
You get the idea.
Of course you all think I've lost my mind. So be it. But if I want to put my confidence in progress and important products -I'd bet a GE car would bring good things to our lives.
Discuss...

 

[maytagbear]

GE already makes

aircraft engines and locomotives, so why not?

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[oldhouseman]

Please share your powers with us

Paul.....

you said.. "I will permit GM to sell their appliance division to whomever they want provided"...

Point taken.

But in the real world.

We are living in a republican ...low life, money grab that is typical of the gop Bastar***.

If you want to find the dirt look for the money.

That is always the bottom line in business and government.

 

[oldhouseman]

And Paul...

do you really have the power to "permit" them to do such a thing?

 

[launderess]

Nice Idea, But Not Bloody Likely

Closest GE has been and ever will likely get to General Motors, or indeed any automobile makers is via their financing unit.

Dealing with aerospace has more money making potential then getting into bed with car making.

Major appliance producing has very small margins, which are increasingly getting smaller, one of the reasons you see really only a handful of appliance makers left, each owning tens if not more brand names. Note carefully when the federal government approved Whirlpool purchasing Maytag, it cited significant competition from European and Asian appliance makers to keep the market varied. The near total silence regarding domestic production speaks volumes.

Sadly the heyday of appliances may well be behind us. GE's heart really hasn't been into their major appliance division in quite some time, and don't expect any purchaser of the brand to pump more money in, with the hopes of turning GE into say Miele. What probably will happen is the brand being used as an entry into the US market production wise, without having to build new plants and such.

 

[turquoisedude]

Or just maybe...

With the ever-increasing price of oil driving up the cost of getting those imports shipped from everywhere someone might come up with a smaller US-based appliance company. Marketing might be a challenge, but I know that I would prefer to buy a quality appliance that was made 'locally', even if the price was a little higher.
Question: where are those high-end Viking appliances made? How about the retro-style Northstar appliances? Are they made in North America?