White House Auto Task Force to Test Chevy Volt

The White House task force especially formed to supervise the restructuring process of the automotive sector will test drive GM's Chevrolet Volt and will also visit Volt's production facility on Monday. The officials will also meet executives from both GM and Chrysler in Detroit, The Detroit News reported, and will also visit the GM technical center in Warren and Chrysler's truck production facility in the same area.

The task force, who include in Wall Street investment fund managed Steve Rattner and corporate restructuring expert Ronald Bloom, will also meet with UAW President Ron Gettelfinger, the aforementioned source wrote quoting an Obama administration official.

This is one of the first steps made by Obama's auto restructuring team since General Motors and Chrysler requested government funds. Both automakers were required to submit survival plans to US Senate by February 17 and to demonstrate their viability by the end of March.

General Motors and Chrysler last month demanded up to 21 billion dollars in government funds, beside the $17 billion they already received in January.

But even so, General Motors may be forced to file for bankruptcy even if it receives more funds from the government, CEO Rick Wagoner warned earlier this month. According to the same aforementioned source, two influential Senate Republicans have already expressed their opinions that the White House should let automakers fell into bankruptcy.

"I'd like to see the (Detroit) three become two," Thomas Donohue, head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, was quoted as saying by The Detroit News. In essence, Donohue believes that US struggling automakers should at least merge or file for bankruptcy, as government funds would be only a waste of time and resources.