I agree that it is likely, taxiguy, and I will be around to see that take place. Demand will be less for traditional cars then. Oil will need to be drilled from the deepest reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico, and the added cost of its recovery will be passed to the wealthy few that can still drive personal autos.

Right now, I count myself among those who do not appreciate the "Art & Science" styling of Cadillac, nor would we agree with the exact type of self-expression that the brand currently inspires. There was a time when Cadillac cars were very beautiful and coveted by all who bore witness. That can happen again if the focus is put back into quality, may be in a few hand-built examples a la Maybach and Bugatti. I would like to see Cadillac take back its throne as "The Standard of the World," however, Buick has conveniently forgotten is promise to build "Better Cars."

Excerpt from a Advertising Age magazine article 27 July 2007:

Is there any correlation between the rapidly eroding fortunes of the Big Three auto companies and their consistently terrible advertising?

Most car advertising is pretty pedestrian, but the U.S. makers generate some of the worst examples.

The latest case in point: Buick's ungrammatical ad slogan for its new SUV, "Drive Beautiful." It's the fifth new slogan since 2001 for Buick, the last being "Beyond Precision." (Shouldn't that be "Beyond Imprecision?") The agency lost the account, but if they'd kept it, I bet their next slogan would have been "Beyond Beautiful."

I've always thought that a slogan should help differentiate your product from the competition. The greatest slogan of all time, Morton Salt's "When it rains, it pours," does a superb job of asserting its very real product benefit.

But what in the name of God does "Drive Beautiful" mean? Does it mean you're beautiful when you drive the car or that the car is beautiful or both? How does it engender meaningful confidence in the car itself? Buick's famed slogan, "When better cars are built, Buick will build them," reeks of self-assurance and relevance.

Maybe what's missing most in Detroit advertising is trustworthiness-a feeling that you can depend on the product and its maker. Good brands give you a sense of dependability, of reliance, of knowing what you're going to get.

I have just found this on the net, its in Spanish so ill try to find something similar but in English, rumour has it that Ford wants to sell Volvo and get rid of Mercury...

http://es.autoblog.com/2008/04/25/rumor-ford-podria-vender-volvo-y-cerrar-mercury/

English

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/09/03/mercury-ever-closer-to-getting-the-axe/

I keep searching though.