Bye-Bye Hummer

GM is making some big cuts in response to $4 a gallon gas:

June 3 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp., struggling to return to profit after three annual losses, said it will close four plants, introduce new small cars and review whether to shed its Hummer brand of large sport-utility vehicles.

Gasoline prices exceeding $4 a gallon represent ``a structural change, not just a cyclical change,'' Chief Executive Rick Wagoner told reporters today before the Detroit automaker's annual shareholder's meeting in Wilmington, Delaware.

The four plant closings will save $1 billion and cut North American truck capacity by 700,000 vehicles, he said. At Hummer, ``we're considering all options from a complete revamp to a partial or complete sale of the brand,'' Wagoner said.

I'm not sure how many people will miss the Hummer if it goes away. It seems like it was usually driven by some guy overcompenating for the lack of something else, and they're nuisances in tight parking lots.

I just paid $4.21 a gallon at one of the cheaper stations in my area - $61 to fill my Explorer. Ridiculous. However, I'm not going to downsize to some Japanese skateboard just to save a few bucks. There are too many advantages to having a car with some storage capacity.