November 27, 2012 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
The UAW Community Services committee still has Adopt-A-Child names available. Co-chairs Wanda Richard (1st shift) and Tina Hayes (2ndshift) will be in the cafeteria at breaks and lunch with the remaining names until they are gone.
The annual Pre-Trim bake sale will be Monday, Dec. 10. The sale will begin at first break on both shifts and continue until all items are sold. It will be held at the team center at column T-49. Proceeds will go to support the Adopt-A-Child program. Anyone wishing to donate bakery items can drop them off at the team center.
There will be a Red Cross Blood Drive Friday, Dec. 14 from 11:30 am to 7:30 pm in the tour holding room. Sign up will next Wednesday, Dec. 5 in the cafeteria at breaks and lunch on both 1st and 2ndshift.
This is the last day to submit an entry for the VAP (vehicle advocate program) overnight drive that will run from Dec. 5 through Dec. 31. Forms are available in the cafeteria next to the drop box. You have 2 days to buy your tickets for the 2 weekends and the Christmas shutdown week and support Make-A-Wish. Wanda and Tina will be selling these tickets and you can also get them at the benefits office and personnel.
There will be a GM employees and family event this Sunday, Dec. 2 at Shoe Carnival from 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm. Just show your employee ID and get an additional 30% off, including sale prices, at the O’Fallon (2209 Highway K) and St. Charles (3867 Mexico Rd, Cave Springs Crossing) stores.
Pop quiz: Which vehicle has the most torque coming from its powertrain: The The Porsche 911′s flat-six engine; The 5.0-liter V8 in the Ford F150 pickup; The Ferrari 458 Italia or the Chevy Spark EV micro car? The Porsche? A mere 325 lb. ft. F150? Better at 380. Ferrari, right? A hefty 398, but the winner is….the Spark, which generates an astounding 400 lb. ft. of torque, and being an electric vehicle, gives it all to you immediately. And with a price less than $25,000!
From Automotive News: With a re-engineered light-duty pickup now in dealerships this fall, the Ram brand team is turning its attention to two new commercial vans. The vans will be reskinned versions of European Fiat vans and are scheduled to arrive in 2013. They will be assembled in Mexico. Chrysler Group killed the Dakota in 2011, but don't be surprised if Ram re-enters the small-pickup market in the next few years with a new offering it can sell in both North and South America. Brand chief Fred Diaz said Chrysler continues to consider a "lifestyle truck" in the five-year product plan it presented in November 2009.
Small commercial van: Ram is putting a new nose and badge on the European version of the Fiat Doblo in its Saltillo, Mexico, assembly plant to give the brand a competitor to the Ford Transit Connect. It will appear for the 2014 model year. The name has not been revealed.
Rampage: No decision has been made on whether Chrysler will build a compact pickup to compete with the Chevrolet Colorado and Toyota Tacoma, Diaz said. Large commercial van: Fiat also is sending its full-sized front-wheel-drive European commercial van, the Ducato, to North America where it will get a new nose, nameplate and Ram badge. The Ducato will compete with such vans as the new full-sized Ford Transit van, or T series; the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter; and the Chevrolet Express. The 2014 model will be assembled in Saltillo.
From Wards Auto: Superstorm Sandy, which analysts estimate cost the U.S. auto industry 30,000-60,000 light-vehicle sales in October, likely will have a positive effect on November deliveries, according to a WardsAutoforecast. The outlook calls for auto makers to sell 1.12 million LVs this month, equating to a 15.2 million-unit seasonally adjusted annual rate, the highest since February 2008.

Tom Brune
UAW/GM Communications Coordinator
Wentzville Assembly
636-327-2119