Americans always had the “bigger is better” attitude. At the end of the 20th century the mentality that was pervasive through all aspects of society seemed to grow by leaps and bounds. Super size meals, 4500 sq ft houses for a family of three, and massive vehicles served as constant reminders of how American citizens were following the excess lifestyle.

The perfect example of this unsustainable lifestyle was the Hummer brand.

As General Motors limped into government bankruptcy, the company looked to reduce their product line in the hopes of finding a way of surviving after bankruptcy came to an end. Pontiac got the axe. Saturn was almost sold off; however, the deal fell apart, leading GM to pull the plug on the brand. Saab was sold off to a small Swedish company, and General Motors pushed off Hummer to a Chinese based heavy equipment manufacturing firm.

On Friday, October 9th, 2009, the deal finally closed.

What has taken place with the Hummer brand is a perfect example what is happening to the United States in general. American excess lead to an unsustainable lifestyle and, as a result, others are picking up our former assets for pennies on the dollar because our economy can no longer support itself.

You knew it, I knew it… my hairless cat new it.   China was going to make major headway into the automotive industry by picking through the bones of Chrysler and GM.  The 1st bit to go is the Hummer line.

General Motors Corp. has struck a deal to sell its Hummer truck unit to a Chinese industrial business, the two companies confirmed Tuesday.

Privately owned Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Company Ltd., based in China, will acquire the truck brand, which has been part of GM since 1999. Tengzhong said it plans to keep Hummer’s management team.

“We plan to … allow Humer to innovate and grow in exciting new ways under the leadership and continuity of its current management team,” said Yang Yi, chief executive of Tengzhong.

Yang said the deal “will allow Hummer to better meet demand for new products such as more fuel-efficient vehicles in the U.S.”

The companies said the deal would likely close by the end of September.

This leaves other brands like – Pontiac, Saturn and Saab to be sold off or left to die.  One could easily see how a Eurpoean company could pick up Saab, but what values does Pontiac and Saturn hold for potential buyers?  Saturn has never turned a profit and Pontiac as a razor thing margin… The value – specifically for Saturn – is the dealer network.

If a Chinese company wanted to have a pre-establish dealer network this is the chance – buy Saturn and exploit the dealer network. As I believe Chinese manufactures have the ultimate aim to tap the U.S. market, such a development wouldn’t be a surprise to me.