History of General Motors History of General Motors The history of General Motors (GM), one of the world's largest car and truck manufacturers, reaches back more than a century and involves a vast scope of industrial activity around the world, mostly focused on motorized transportation and the engineering and manufacturing that make it possible. Founded in 1908 as a holding company in Flint, Michigan, as of 2012 it employs approximately 209,000 people around the world. With global headquarters at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan, United States, General Motors manufactures cars and trucks in 35 countries. In 2008, 8.35 million GM cars and trucks
History of Chrysler "controversial." In 1998 Daimler-Benz and Chrysler had formed a 50–50 partnership. Chrysler Corporation then was legally renamed DaimlerChrysler Motors Company LLC, while its total operations began doing business as Chrysler Group. This was initially declared to be a "merger of equals", but it became evident that once Chrysler Chairman and CEO Bob Eaton retired, that Daimler would take majority control. Other executives like President Thomas T. Stallkamp, once considered the heir-apparent of Eaton, and Vice-Chairman Robert Lutz were soon forced out. Eaton, Stallkamp, and Lutz had been described as the "triumvirate" responsible for Chrysler's successes in the late 1990s, with