There seems to be a growing degree of support inside General Motors for the notion that it might make sense to save at least some of the models from the company's scraphill-bound Oldsmobile division.
Various executives in different positions across GM say the company is actively considering how to save such vehicles as the just-revealed 2002 Bravada SUV and the year-old Aurora near-lux sports-sedan.
Whatever happens, however, it doesn't look like the Intrigue sporty sedan that's meant to appeal to people who usually buy imports will survive. The fate of the Alero compact and the Silhouette minivan is still up in the air.
No one is willing to go beyond suggestions about this, since any decision on which GM division would get which particular vehicle or vehicles is a long way from being made. This feeling arises from GM's desire to be extremely sensitive to the feelings of its Oldsmobile dealers, particularly in the U.S., since they are already suffering from the decision and could react very badly to such a notion.
For the record, the president of GM's North American operations, Ron Zarrella, told me in an interview that nothing will happen until the current plan to sell the models as Oldsmobiles has run its course. Which means the company will make serious efforts to sell its five models through their existing dealer network and only when they reach a certain money-losing point will a divisional transference be considered.