Pixar working with Ford, not GM, on upcoming Cars.... hmmmm

[KNWVIKING]

http://www.wdwinfo.com/newsroom/newsdetail.htm#1105659657

Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but it sure seems like the logical choice would have been GM. Is this just another jab Jobs & Co. are taking at Disney ? Will Cars have an obvious Ford feel to it ? Hmmm......

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

http://www.wdwinfo.com/newsroom/newsdetail.htm#1105659657

Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but it sure seems like the logical choice would have been GM. Is this just another jab Jobs & Co. are taking at Disney ? Will Cars have an obvious Ford feel to it ? Hmmm......

GM sponsors Test Track at Epcot. Honda will be the sponsor of Disneyland's 50th anniversary fireworks. Renault is a sponsor at Disneyland Paris. And Herbie the Love Bug is about a Volkswagen. I fail to see why, "it sure seems like the logical choice would have been GM," for Pixar's upcoming movie, Cars.

I wouldn't read this as "another jab Jobs & Co. are taking at Disney."

 

[Peter Pirate]

Maybe you're not reading enough into this Vike...

 

[KNWVIKING]

.... Renault would be the logical choice in France and Herbie was around long before GM came on board at WDW. Does the heavy Asian population on the left coast make Honda a natural sponsor, especially after US aligned itself with Toyota.

Look at the vehicles Disney owns at WDW. They're all GM. Even the class 8 tractors Disney use were purchased back when GM had ownership with Volvo.

Decades ago Chevy got into the school bus business because they wanted youngsters seeing that Blue Bow Tie every morning. They realized the brand identity would lead to auto sales when the kids grew up. "Cars" will generate huge merchandise sales. Will GM be happy all these kids will be playing with Fords ?

 

[disrailfan]

.... "Cars" will generate huge merchandise sales. Will GM be happy all these kids will be playing with Fords ?

I am sure the company I work for "DaimlerChrysler" will not be happy about it.

 

[WDSearcher]

.... Look at the vehicles Disney owns at WDW. They're all GM. Even the class 8 tractors Disney use were purchased back when GM had ownership with Volvo.

Decades ago Chevy got into the school bus business because they wanted youngsters seeing that Blue Bow Tie every morning. They realized the brand identity would lead to auto sales when the kids grew up. "Cars" will generate huge merchandise sales. Will GM be happy all these kids will be playing with Fords ?

Disney doesn't "own" Pixar -- they're partners with them. They may be able to suggest that Pixar go with GM, but I wouldn't think Pixar is in any way obligated to do so simply because GM is a Disney theme park participant in Florida. And for that matter, there's no evidence anywhere that Disney DID ask, suggest, or in any other way direct Pixar to talk to GM when doing the film. And something tells me that if Jobs were purposely snubbing Disney by going to Ford, we'd know it.

As far as the press surrounding "Cars" states, Jobs met the guy from Ford, they hit it off, and so there's a partnership. It doesn't appear as though he went with Ford to purposely snub GM -- he met the guy and thought it would be fun to work together. Even the press hasn't drawn the "jab at Disney" parallel you have, Vike.

Besides, Jobs' beef is with Eisner. He's never said that he's against all things Disney and all things Disney-related.

 

[KNWVIKING]

Like I said in my OP, maybe I'm reading too much into it ( and I probably am ), but when Pixar/Jobs and Disney/ME are concerned, I'm always looking for a conspiracy. It just doesn't seem that anything happens be accident when these two companies are involved.

 

[WDSearcher]

... but Christmas is busy time at WDW, remember?

I should have realized you were talking from your conspiracy theory happy place.

 

[raidermatt]

There's probably not much there, but on the other hand, I'd wager quite a few reward points that there's more to it than "they hit it off and made an agreement".

If that really is it, then the idea that Jobs would want to disassociate Pixar from Disney simply because he doesn't like Eisner doesn't sound so wacky.

 

[SnackyStacky]

I thought I had read at JimHillMedia that the GM sponsorship of Test Track was hanging by a loose thread. No?

 

[Peter Pirate]

Snacky, my old rival, you hit the nail on the thread...That's what I meant when I said Vike maybe wasn't reading enough into it! Perhaps there is more than meets the eye and this is the beginning of a new relationship and the end of another...

 

[GOOFYFREEK]

Ok I have a twist to the whole thing. They have Richard Petty as one of the cars and Earnhardt Jr was doing a push for it during the Nascar season this year.

What cars are they using for the stunt show?

 

[SnackyStacky]

Ok I have a twist to the whole thing. They have Richard Petty as one of the cars and Earnhardt Jr was doing a push for it during the Nascar season this year.

What cars are they using for the stunt show?

I believe I had read the stunt cars are specialty "shell" cars. I think they're made exclusively for the show, and not by any of the previously mentioned companies...