Young also said that the new GM will match with other automakers when it comes to costs. "Our labor costs will ultimately be in line with the transplants [foreign automakers]," Young said. "The new VEBA settlement [healthcare, pension costs] with the union goes a long way to reducing labor costs."
Other comments from Young:
On an IPO: "We'll do one as soon as we can. But I don't expect it to happen until the 2nd quarter of 2009. And we'll have to see how the market is doing then."
Product Launches: "Every car we make must be a winner. All new recent launches have been successful in terms of pricing."
Paying back government loans: "We'll pay back the money as soon as possible. The loans are six years in duration but I think we'll be paying them off before then."
On current VP Bob Lutz becoming head of marketing and communications: "We're going to be spending a lot of time on building up the revenue side of the business. That's why Bob has been appointed to his position."