Article: The $2 Billion Bargain.(Column)

Byline: Kevin A. Wilson

Boy, did General Motors dodge a bullet. For a meager $2 billion, it bought its way out of a deal that could have forced it to assume control of Fiat Auto, with all its debts and other encumbrances. One of those burdens only the automotive cognoscenti will understand: GM was in danger of inheriting the Fiat X1/9 enthusiasts. (There, I've done it. I said "X1/9.'' Batten down the mailboxes, we've got INCOMING!)

Even a casual observer can see that GM-busy shrinking its own European arm-doesn't need Fiat's woes. While $2 billion might look like a lot, it's not a fifth of the red ink at Fiat Auto, where Luca di Montezemolo aims to turn ...

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