Here's some more from a newsletter I get
GM To Shut Down Saturn Brand After Penske Ends Talks.
The New York Times (10/1, B1, Bunkley, Vlasic) reports on the front page of its Business Day section, "General Motors said Wednesday that it would shut down its Saturn division by next year after Roger Penske abruptly cut off talks to acquire the brand. The Penske Automotive Group said it could not proceed with the deal because another auto manufacturer, which it did not identify, said it would not build vehicles to be distributed under the Saturn brand name." The development is said to have "stunned G.M. and Saturn dealers, who had hailed Mr. Penske, who has built a track record of successful turnarounds, as the savior of the brand." Reporting the story on its front page, the Wall Street Journal (10/1, A1, Terlep, Stoll) identifies the auto manufacturer in question as Renault, and notes that the breakdown of the deal will jeopardize 13,000 additional auto industry jobs.
USA Today (10/1, Carty) reports, "A deal signed in June for GM to sell the brand to the dealer chain run by entrepreneur and ex-race driver Roger Penske called for GM to supply Saturn's current Aura, Outlook and Vue vehicles for two to three years. Penske was responsible for finding another supplier for vehicles after that." Paul Melville, a partner at Grant Thornton Corporate Advisory and Restructuring Services, said that "finding another automaker willing to make cars to sell as Saturns was always a long shot for Penske." Melville said, "It was always going to be a tough one to pull together in this time space. And it's a shame, because (General Motors) really poured a lot of money into the brand."
According to the Washington Post (10/1, A12, Whoriskey), "The Saturn closure reflects just how difficult the market remains." Jeremy Anwyl, CEO of Edmunds.com, described the deal to buy Saturn as "a unique opportunity for Penske." But, he explained, "the risk of not being able to acquire cars to sell 'proved to be too much to overcome to complete the deal.'" The Post notes that the Saturn brand was originally developed by GM "in hopes of better competing against small cars manufactured in Japan and Germany," and for a while was successful, thanks in part "to its unique dealer arrangement." Saturn also "prided itself on a collaborative culture in which dealers and workers regularly offered input." The AP (10/1) and Bloomberg News (10/1, Ramsey, Koenig) also report the story. Another AP (10/1, Poovey) article details the impact on Spring Hill, the "birthplace" of the Saturn brand.
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