GM General Manager Martin Walsh has spoken out today to tamp down rumors about Hummer. Official word from Walsh is that GM has not yet asked anyone for offers or had any discussions with potential buyers.
Ever since CEO Rick Wagoner announced in June that GM was looking to either revamp or sell the struggling SUV maker, rumors have been flying about possible suitors. However, those rumors have been dropping like flies lately, as more and more rumored buyers have announced they're not actually interested. Today, Walsh put them all to rest in a video sent to US dealers.
"GM did receive expressions of interest from various entities," said Walsh, "But we have never solicited offers and we have not negotiated with any parties."
In the video, Walsh also dismissed rumors of sales to Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and Oleg Deripaska as "just speculation" and denied reports that GM is trying to buy out several Hummer dealerships.
So, the million dollar question now is: what will actually happen? Hummer sales are down 44 percent this year according to Autodata Corp. and Hummer dealerships had a larger supply than the industry average for trucks and SUVs as of August first. Given that GM has cancelled individual models with better sales than Hummer's current 18,035 through July, it's likely the end is getting very near, unless the H3 SUT can drastically turn things around for the brand long associated with excessive size and poor fuel economy.
Source: Bloomberg.com