This is the Motoramic Dash, a daily roundup of the most interesting news in the automotive world.
If General Motors was expecting to quietly pull $10 million worth of advertising from Facebook just as the social network prepares to go public in the year's most-anticipated stock sale, it's not anymore. Tuesday's report by The Wall Street Journal sent GM and Facebook scrambling for explanations -- and gave Ford a chance to set itself apart.
Despite what some headlines suggest, GM isn't leaving Facebook; where else could Buick share stories about New Mexico wolf rescuers? What GM's dropping are paid ads, which it told the Journal and others simply don't work that well. While $10 million isn't a major loss to a company valued at $100 billion, several Facebook watchers took GM's news as confirmation of rumors from other advertisers about how well Facebook ads really work. (Full disclosure: Yahoo competes with, relies on and is suing Facebook, as if you haven't heard.)
Meanwhile, showing the power of social media, Ford offered its own take on Twitter, saying "our Facebook ads are effective when strategically combined with engaging content & innovation." Ford has been more agressive and adept than GM in taking advantage of new media; here's where we note that the Ford Mustang has 4 million Facebook friends, while the Chevy Camaro has 2.7 million. Sometimes it's the tools, and sometimes it's the talent.
Other stories today:
Warren Buffett buys 10 million shares of GM: Having the country's best-known stock picker (and friend of Mark Zuckerberg) buy into your shares is a good thing. (Detroit News)
Former Ford chairman Harold Poling dies at 86: Poling was the epitome of a Detroit auto executive, working for Ford for 43 years and steering the company through several rough times.
New Nissan Altima guns for bigger slice of midsize segment: Nissan wants to sell more Altimas than Toyota does Camrys. If only this ended in fisticuffs. (Automotive News)
Salon columnist asks is it ethical to drive a stick shift: Yes, dummy. (Autoblog Green, because the original article just isn't worth the click)