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Saturn alerts customers it is considering a spinoff

Saturn has begun alerting customers that it may be spun off by General Motors as an independent marketing and distribution company. In a letter sent to about 1.5 million Saturn owners Wednesday night, Saturn said it would have to line up products to sell--either from other manufacturers or from GM in the role of a vendor--after GM's current commitment to build Saturn products ends after the 2012 model year. "The Saturn Distribution Corporation already exists as an indirect subsidiary of GM," wrote Jill Lajdziak, general manager of Saturn, in the letter.

Future products: Leaf EV is just the start of Nissan lineup overhaul

The next 18 to 24 months will bring a major renewal of Nissan Division's lineup. In the coming weeks, the brand will see four new products released or revealed: the Juke crossover, electric Leaf sedan, redesigned Quest minivan and an ambitious but perhaps polarizing convertible Murano crossover. Late next year, Nissan will begin showing a string of restyled high-volume car lines, including the Altima and Versa.

GM grants Saab a reprieve, CEO Henderson resigns

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 02 December 2009 15:51 The board of General Motors has granted Saab a lifeline – by extending the deadline for bids on its stricken Swedish patient to 31 December 2009. GM has been trying to sell Saab for the past year, and the Swedish car maker has been under court bankruptcy protection since February 2009.GM chief executive officer Fritz Henderson also announced he was to stand down. His interim successor is hard-nosed GM chairman Ed Whitacre – meaning that GM Europe and the US mothership have both lost their bosses in a matter of weeks.