State of the Union May 24, 2011

May 24, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com


Recently there have been several instances where eligible employees/retirees have been unable to get their employee discount for a new vehicle purchase. If that has happened to you or anyone you know, you can see Robyn Bohn in personnel or call her at x2124 to get reinstated. Also, a recent audit of the Bommarito South dealership has generated letters from GM to customers using the employee discount informing them they have violated the rules of the program and are subject to penalty and suspension from the program. These notices are not accurate and correction letters should be forthcoming. The misunderstanding was apparently due to a free service offered by the dealer. Here is what the rules state: “Participants shall not solicit or accept money or discounts from dealers, other persons or other business entities, except GM sponsored incentives, in connection with the sale of vehicles under The Programs. At no time should a Participant accept payment or other consideration from dealers for referrals. Participants may accept inducements of nominal value, up to $50, provided the inducements are offered to the general public and are noncash in nature, such as a free first oil change. This prohibition does not apply to a fuel fill if provided by the dealer at the time of delivery.” If you have any issues with new vehicle purchases you should always call 1-800-235-4646.

From TruckTrend: Cummins appears to be in the advanced stages of developing a four-cylinder diesel engine that could potentially be offered in trucks sold in the U.S. In January 2010, the DOE provided Cummins with $15 million to help fund development of an efficient diesel for light-truck use. Cummins began work last September with a goal to produce a diesel engine that would nearly double the efficiency of a Nissan Titan equipped with the current gasoline 5.6L V8 engine while not exceeding strict Tier 2 Bin 2 emissions standards. Cummins hopes to achieve 28 mpg combined with the new engine. A two-wheel drive Titan is currently rated at 15 mpg combined city and highway. The prototype engine – likely based on the European market Cummins ISF2.8 – produced 350 lb-feet of torque during a recent dyno test. Cummins has set the final target output at 220 hp and 380 lb-ft of torque. The Titan's V8 puts out a bit more (317 hp and 385 lb-ft of torque).