I have not read said cables but the Detroit News is reporting today that the US State Department intervened on behalf of the American Big 3 automakers on multiple occasions over the course of the financial crisis beginning in 2009. Not only were issues concerning the Big 3 detailed but also the Toyota recalls were mentioned in reference to their potential impact on US-Japanese diplomatic relations. From cash-strapped Australian GM-mark Holden to the saga of Adam Opel AG, the released Wikileaks cables show the extent to which the Big 3’s interests, in particular GM’s, intersect with those of statecraft. Apparently the row over the proposed sale of Adam Opel AG caused the greatest consternation for US and German diplomats. GM’s operating separately from the US government, which had at that point purchased a controlling stake in the company, baffled and angered German diplomats to the extent that they could not understand how and why GM could act unilaterally. Things also got heated concerning the derailment of the sale of GM’s Hummer division to a Chinese concern, with the move being blocked by the Chinese government because they considered Hummers to be “gas guzzling junk.”