DETROIT – Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne held a marathon eight-hour press briefing yesterday and made it very clear the company has the cash, the resources and the plan to turn itself around. Chrysler says it will break even on an operating basis next year. It will break even on a net basis in 2011. By 2014 the company projects it will earn $8 billion in profit on an EBITDA basis?before taxes, depreciation and amortization. And Marchionne says Chrysler will repay all the TARP money it got from the US government by 2014.
Just when you thought the GM/Opel saga was finally over, more drama flares up. The Detroit News reports that Opel workers in Germany have walked off the job to protest the General?s decision to keep Opel. Employees are worried about losing jobs as GM restructures the company. Its plan for Opel is similar to the one presented by Magna which called for the elimination of almost 11,000 European jobs, or 20 percent of the workforce.
Ok, you?ve got your front, side, side-curtain and knee air bags, but Ford will soon add another to the list ? inflatable seatbelts. The Detroit Free Press reports that the company plans to offer ?blow-up belts? as an option on the next-generation Explorer. The restraints are made out of a softer, more comfortable material than conventional belts. They inflate less forcefully than airbags and use ?cool gas? making them safer for even children. Ford is not the only automaker looking into this technology. Mercedes had a concept vehicle with this a while back. You know, I first reported on inflatable seatbelts about 20 years ago.
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