One dealership at at time EEEEExcelent...EEEEEExcelent

Link

 

That needs to happen in Spokane!

 

I find it very sad. I'm still hopeful that there's time to turn around the domestic auto makers before it's too late. I still can't fathom why GM, Ford, and Chrysler didn't see this day coming, when they had clear warnings about the need to change their products way back in the 70's. Imagine where they'd be today if they had spent just a small percentage of the billions they made on SUV sales planning for the next generation of cars. Instead, we got bigger cupholders. Very sad, indeed.

 

^^I agree but they were more interested in building cash cows (big SUV's and trucks) at the time and investing in the development of those rather than very little profit making smaller cars.

A lot of factors do come in to play and mostly to the shareholders by making them money which proved to be rather short lived anyway.And the oil companies faired extremely well on the gas guzzlers too (read record profits).

But now they want the government to loan them something like $20-$25 billion (which has been approved) to remain competitive against the Japanese automakers AGAIN.

GM and Ford stocks have sunk to an all time low of approximately $5 and $2,respectfully.Chrysler is now privately owned by Cerberus.

 

Detroit has always been concerned with next quarter's numbers. 2 years, 5 years, 10 years out is irrelevant. They have always been reactive (usually too little too late) not proactive. They've had ample warning(s) that this was coming and chose to do little or nothing. Oh they've made a few feeble gestures at making quality fuel efficient cars but mainly it was PR and lip service. All they have been concerned with is is big cars, big profits, with no foresight at all. I do not feel sorry for them. I'm against bailing them out. I know it will hurt a lot of people but at some point you have to pull the plug. I've watched this same ongoing pitiful scenario for almost 40 years now. They just don't get it and likely never will.

 

I agree....I'd feel sorry for them but, based on a report I heard last week, they still have no clue.

 

Correct. Although the American public has part blame in this too. There are still an awful lot of people that think the only vehicle is a BIIIIIG vehicle. It's like drug pushers and drug users. Who's fault is it? I think both. We need a different mindset all around. But in the end it is the responsibility of business planners to make sure a company is ready for climate changes. This oncoming crisis has been obvious for years and Detroit has had their head in the sand.

 

I agree with leica. The Big 3 were building what the buyers wanted - but they were also spending million$ convincing buyers that SUVs were cool...

 

Wait a minute. Wasn't Toyota selling more SUV's than anyone else? Didn't Mercedes and BMW also build SUVs? Last I looked Honda was making minivans and big vehicles too. The answer to America's demise as a major auto maker can't be explained away by just this single factor. The dumping of foreign cars aided by the automakers' governements is a prime reason Detroit has been in trouble. Not to mention poor management, bad decisions on a variety of issues, ugly designs and spiraling labor costs.

 

that Detroit was late to the game with pretty much every innovative technology, following the curve instead of leading it. And Ford and GM both have small cars built in their European devisions, and up until very recently, hadn't put much effort into making them US complient. Toyota rolled the dice with hybrid technologies. GM tanked the EV1, even thier science advisory board pointed out to them that they take out some batteries and add a small motor/generator and they had a winning car from performance, range AND energy efficiency. The Volt comes out in 2010 as a 2011 model... That's what 20 years down the toilet?

Sure they were hampered by coming from a large car format to a small, efficient car market, as opposed to the foreign firms that came from small and grew thier cars for the US. But that's an excuse, not an explanation....

Matt

 

Agree and it's DISGUSTING... short sighted greed resulting in long term stupidity... grrr

sorry for the rant

 

Actually, U.S. automakers were quite sucessful in having very high tariffs and import quotas placed on foreign-made cars and trucks, which is the opposite of the "dumping" charge. This was another short-sighted attempt by the domestic industry to insulate itself from foreign competition. As a result of these restrictions, most foreign manufacturers opened factories here in the U.S., and they've done very well since. Detroit has no one to blame but themselves. By Detroit, I mean the myopic senior managers who've sacrificed the long term health of the companies with one bad management decision after another. U.S. autoworkers are certainly not to blame, they can build cars as well, or better, than any workforce in the world. They just need better bosses.

 

They don't even need to be technical or design innovators - being second allows for learning from the first guy. Unfortunately, being second by a decade or so may be a too-distant second... (witness Chevy's version of the PT CRuiser...)

 

I don't know.....gas prices are down, the park and ride at the commuter train station is less crowded, there are actually more than five MINIs on the lot....could it be our short attention spans will betray us once again????

 

I think the downturn in car sales has a lot more to do with the sputtering economy than it does with the price of gasoline. I would be very surprised if the marked decline in SUV / truck sales turned around. Paying $4 or more per gallon has made an impression on the American public that will not be easily forgoten.

 

Regretfully I'll have to disagree. I hate to say it but I think memory of U.S. society is very short. It's been proven too many times. I hope I'm wrong.

 

You are right about ford. They have very competitive cars in the euromarket. I was in Germany last spring, they had Ford Fiesta's, that new looked rather stylish. Cars that also come in diesel (european focus and fiesta) and are very efficient. No clue or desire to sell them over here. Now that is changing with a recent announcement to sell euro cars in the US. About a decade too late, but better late than never.

 

$6 mill for a 1 acre lot with a 53 y/o building on it?

Investment group buys property for $3 mill and sells it one year later - unimproved - in a down market - for twice what they paid?

Sounds like they spent $6 mill for a teardown - must be in one hell of a good location!

Our local dealer just gave up their VW franchise so they could move MINI out of their BMW store and into it's own stand-alone facility.........

 

Maybe I should have said "that I hope will not be easily forgotten..." We'll just have to wait and see how the market reacts to the return of $2 per gallon gas.

 

Americans will forget. The high prices/shortages of the late seventies/early eighties were followed by.... (wait for it, wait for it) ...SUV's.
A lot of marketing strategy is based on the short memories of consumers. And sadly enough, it works and works well.
This series of gas price drops is pretty much influenced by a major economic meltdown. The American car companies will look at it as an opportunity to dump the excess large vehicles from their inventory, not as a time to redesign their thinking about vehicle design.

 

I disagree. The American public is partly to blame but for a different reason. They still refuse to even consider touching an American car. They believe all cars made by the Big Three are unreliable, obsolete designs that have misaligned body panels and will need to be recalled for something every month. BTW, Toyota is getting pretty bad compared to where they were 10 years ago:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news0...a_recalls.html
The link says they recalled a whopping 800,000(!) vehicles in July 2006.
They also recalled a lot of Lexus models (and I keep hearing from people that Lexus ALWAYS makes completely PERRFECT cars!) Yeah right. NO number of recalls can hurt any of the Japanese companies because Americans mostly believe they always make the highest quality, most reliable, perfect cars around. NOT true. My brother had a 2001 Honda Civic and it was reliable for a few years. Then, it just started to fall apart. He kept fixing and fixing it. One day, he threw in the towel and sold it.
The Big Three are losing money because they took too long to turn around and make solid reliable cars. Ironically, GM is making excellent, reliable cars but the American public won't even look at them. That's partly why they're going to go down the drain no matter what they do. Also, it's their own fault for constantly riding the SUV craze wayyy after it was clearly too late to cut back production and come up with something new. The management all needs to be sacked. There's no way they can survive at this rate. I won't be surprised if there will be no US auto makers in the next quarter century. They'll either be bought out by a foreign investment company or totally bankrupt. It's probably going to happen because nothing can save them. Hummer is up for sale. So is the Viper name. GM discontinued a minivan while my previous car, the Dodge Intrepid has been out of production for a few years. The list goes on and on. And Dodge is STILL planning to release, guess what? MORE gas guzzling pickups. I don't get it. Probably never will. When this all happens, we'll be in another nice long recession again. The loss of the Big Three is going to really hurt Michigan and it's going to happen. It was too late a long time ago.

 

You got that right. Most of us can't seem to remember what we had for dinner last night. Anyone remember the Savings and Loan crisis of the late "80s? In response we bailed out the Savings and Loan institutions, promptly forgot the lessons learned, repealed Glass Steagall thus deregulating the banking industry and WALA, the biggest crisis since the depression. What? You mean gas was over $4.00? When?

 

Here is a timely article. Basically documents what most have said in this thread..... 30 years of denial and now it's time to pay the piper. Or will WE have to pay? I say let them drown. Sorry, that's just the way I feel.

 

When Lee Iococa left, Detroit and the American Auto Industry lost what little integrity they had.

These corporate Exec's give themselves Million Dollar bonuses, and retirement plans like they are Shieks and Arabian Princes.......

The blame for their failure falls squarely upon those whom ran these industries, and whom have for the most part and for many years, failed miserably giving the American Consumer what they wanted for an automobile.........and instead shipping them abroad. Instead, these CEO's decided to cater to the masses of Rental Car companies, and Fleet companies providing American's with medeocre cars consiting of subpar quality, fit, and terrible re-sale value....

So here's to those in Washington pushing for the ASKED For 150 Billion Dollar Bail Out...
Bite me !

 

Consider, too, the economics of automobile manufacturing. The Big 3 have a cost structure that is much higher than foreign companies that manufacture in the US. The Big 3 all make and sell lots of small cars overseas, but they are prohibited from importing them into the US. The margins on large vehicles are enough to allow them to make a profit in the US, so that's what they make and convince the US consumer to purchase. There are laws, rules, and cost elements (union contracts, health care and retirement costs) that keep the Big 3 from competing with foreign car companies on an equal basis. The Big 3 management has certainly made some bad decisions, but there are options that are closed to them, too.