General Motors Corp

With thousands of Chrysler and General Motors Corp. dealerships closing, customers could be confronted with problems over warranty coverage, trade-ins or other matters. Both automakers pledge to make the contraction as painless as possible, but that doesn't mean there won't be problems. "When all of these relationships are disrupted, you can't help but have some elements of chaos, and some practical problems occur," said Aaron H. Jacoby, a Los Angeles lawyer who represents car dealers.

The drastic reinvention plan that General Motors Corp. unveiled Monday would leave the onetime world goliath a smaller, leaner company -- with its legendary Pontiac brand discontinued -- but puts the automaker on a collision course with bondholders that could still land it in Bankruptcy Court. GM proposed a painful downsizing that would eliminate 21,000 workers, 2,600 dealers, $44 billion in debt and four brands -- while making the U.S.

In the brave new world of online auto sales, there are no smiling, smooth-talking sales people to help seal a deal. So how can General Motors Co. sell more cars on EBay? It may be as simple as running a lot of photos, having short spiffy descriptions and responding to e-mails quickly, according to EBay "power sellers" who earned their title by regularly selling at least $1,000 worth of merchandise each month. "The most successful sellers create great listings, with clear concise titles and lots of quality pictures," said Brad Schepp, coauthor of several books about selling on EBay, including "EBay PowerSeller Secrets."

At its bankruptcy filing last June, General Motors Corp. announced drastic cutbacks in its domestic and international operations but kept its South American subsidiary off the auction block. In a recent interview at the regional headquarters here of what is now General Motors Co., GM-Mercosur President Jaime Ardila explained why. Simply put, he said GM's Brazil operation, the company's third-largest after those in the U.S. and China, is the company's "most valuable asset" in profitability and growth potential.

Detroit's not the only one reeling from the collapse of General Motors. There are a few executives bummed out on the Paramount Pictures lot as well. Eleven weeks before the release of its expensive summer sequel "Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen," the studio can't count on its key promotional partner to support a marketing blitz that helps drive mass awareness of Hollywood's big popcorn movies.

Declaring that the country had reached the end of the road with Detroit's automakers, President Obama on Monday mapped a new course for bailed-out General Motors Corp. and Chrysler in a series of moves designed to force the hands of workers, creditors and others with a stake in the companies. Obama, using the threat of bankruptcy as a weapon, vowed to transform the U.S.

General Motors Corp.'s last-ditch, Hail Mary bid to avoid bankruptcy fell with a thud Wednesday as its bondholders overwhelmingly rejected a deal to swap their debt for equity in the company. That offer was a central element in the automaker's efforts -- guided by the federal government -- to restructure outside of court. Without it the company appears almost certain to file a Chapter 11 petition by Monday.

Hundreds of car dealers marched on Washington this week, hoping to build public support for a bill to block General Motors and Chrysler from closing about 3,300 dealerships. These were family businesses, they said, mom-and-pop stores employing hundreds of thousands of Americans. And they were being asked to shoulder more than their share of pain in the restructuring of the auto industry. An honest political observer would acknowledge that the bill has almost no chance of becoming law.

A day after the president threw down the gauntlet for the American auto industry, General Motors Corp. began the work of selling cars anew. On Tuesday, even as its new chief executive acknowledged the growing possibility of bankruptcy, the ailing carmaker announced an aggressive new incentive plan that, in part, will cover car payments for customers who lose their jobs.

Kimberly Young has recurring nightmares. She is rolling over and over and over, helpless, pinned inside a car. Outside Manteca, Calif., last August, the 43-year-old accountant was driving to dinner with her daughter to celebrate a promotion. Her memory of the accident is fuzzy, but she believes she swerved to avoid something, then tried to correct. She remembers hearing a horn. Her 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled over three times. The roof caved in, and her neck snapped.