TIMELINE-Global auto industry troubles

March 30 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp Chief Executive Rick Wagoner resigned under pressure from President Barack Obama's administration on Sunday.

In France, PSA Peugeot Citroen also ousted Chief Executive Christian Streiff and replaced him with Philippe Varin, who will take up the position on June 1.

Here is a timeline of the ups and downs in the auto industry during the financial crisis:

Oct. 23/24, 2008 - General Motors (GM.N) and Chrysler [CBS.UL], which at the time are discussing a merger, pledge to cut jobs and close plants as the downturn in auto sales deepens. [ID:nL0464508]

-- In France, Renault (RENA.PA) and PSA Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA) slash their 2008 profitability outlooks and pledge to make major production cuts to combat the crisis. [ID:nLN3604]

Oct. 28 - Honda (7267.T) warns that full-year profits will miss targets because of falling sales and a strong yen. [ID:nT151521]

Dec. 4 - The heads of GM, Ford (F.N) and Chrysler travel from Detroit to Washington in hybrid vehicles packed with action plans a month after being mocked for coming to earlier congressional hearings on private jets without detailed plans to revitalise their companies.

-- They agree to work for $1 a year if lawmakers approve their bids for emergency government aid totalling $34 billion.

Dec. 6 - Fiat (FIA.MI) head Sergio Marchionne predicts only six volume carmakers will remain post-crisis. [ID:nL8643140]

Dec. 19 - The U.S. announces a $17.4 billion lifeline to Detroit carmakers from the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief (TARP) programme. GM is to receive $13.4 billion and Chrysler $4 billion. Ford says it does not need a loan.

Dec. 20 - Canada pledges C$4 billion ($3.28 billion) in emergency loans to the Canadian arms of GM and Chrysler. [ID:nB108203]

Jan. 13, 2009 - Germany unveils a 1.5 billion euro aid package, including 2,500 euro incentives for new car purchases. [ID:nSP378771]

Jan. 14 - China halves sales tax on cars with small engines and offers one-off payments for owners trading in high-emission vehicles for cleaner ones. [ID:nPEK171150]

Jan. 20 - Fiat (FIA.MI) and Chrysler strike a deal in which the Italian manufacturer gets a 35 percent stake in exchange for access to technology and overseas markets. [ID:nLK379561]

Jan. 27 - Britain says it will guarantee up to 2.3 billion pounds ($3.29 billion) of loans for research into environmentally friendly technologies. [ID:nLAL002143]

Feb. 6 - Toyota Motor Co (7203.T), the world's largest carmaker, says it is on track to post an operating loss of some 450 billion yen ($4.95 billion) for the year to end-March, the first group operating loss in its 70-year history. [ID:nT125619]

Feb. 6 - Italy unveils a $1.7 billion package of measures to help its car sector, including a scrapping incentive. [ID:nL674294]

Feb. 9 - France pledges over 7 billion euros ($8.91 billion) of support for its car industry but President Nicolas Sarkozy insists that carmakers must protect French jobs.[ID:nL9664042]

Feb. 13 - Spain approves a 4 billion euro package that includes 1.2 billion euros in state credit for car purchases during 2009 and 2010 and aid to help car part makers upgrade plants. [ID:nMDT006082]

Feb. 17 - GM and Chrysler request nearly $22 billion in additional U.S. government loans as they submit plans with the new Obama administration on how they could restructure. ID:nN17384847]

Feb. 20 - The Canadian units of GM and Chrysler say they are seeking as much as C$10 billion ($8 billion) in aid from the Canadian and Ontario governments. [ID:nN20303381] [ID:nWAT011041]

March 16 - Steve Rattner, adviser to President Obama's autos task force, says the panel is committed to meeting a March 31 deadline for deciding whether GM and Chrysler can be restructured successfully. [ID:nN20495692]

March 19 - The U.S. Treasury pledges $5 billion to aid auto suppliers crucial to the survival of the industry. [nWAT011182]

March 22 - Abu Dhabi's Aabar Investments PJSC AABAR.AD takes a 9.1 percent stake in ailing German car giant Daimler worth 1.95 billion euros ($2.67 billion). [ID:LN133911]

March 22 - Chancellor Angela Merkel says Germany is not aiming to take a stake in Opel, but may give the GM unit aid to help it survive. [ID:nLM58847]

March 23 - Tata Motors (TAMO.BO) launches the Nano, slated to be the world's cheapest car at less than $2,000. Only about 50,000 cars will be available in the first year. [ID:nBOM499250]

March 29 - GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner resigns under pressure from the Obama administration two days before a March 31 deadline to prove it can become viable and worthy of new federal assistance. [ID:nN29279204]

-- The board of Peugeot Citroen fires Chief Executive Christian Streiff after the carmaker last month posted a 343 million euro ($460 million) net loss and says it expects to stay in the red until 2010. Streiff will be replaced on June 1 by Philippe Varin. [ID:nLT74726] (Writing by David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)