Its sad that the blue collar workers are going to get hit and suffer for the auto companies failure to plan for the future.

But hopefully the car companies will start looking for a business plan that is geared for the long run not the short term.

President Obama needs to be reminded of his own words:
http://tinyurl.com/cwew29

I’m on my 3rd Chrysler made minivan, all bought used, all very dependable. I take a number of long trips every year, towing large trailers sometimes. My current van is a 1998 all wheel drive, has 203,000 miles on it, that I bought 4 years ago with 96000 on it. No major problems, minor repairs and maintenance only. So I’m somewhat puzzled….

The auto workers’ union has been driving GM out of business for years. Their employee benefits and healthcare are a rediculously huge chunk of every car sold.

I hope that Chrysler and Fiat merge. I would love to see sleek, sexy, affordable Italian cars sold in this country again without having to spend 100k plus for a Ferrari, Lamborghini, or Maserati.

I owned a 1986 Volvo that developed a transmission problem after only 20,000 miles. The dealer wouldn’t do anything. Then I wrote a letter to Volvo of North America and cited numerous problems I had in my first year of ownership. They called me back and told me to bring it back to the dealer and everything would be taken care of. And it was.

I then had a Chrysler van that developed problems within 6 months. I had bought the extended warranty because the car was used. When the dealer would not fix them, I contacted Chrysler and they told me that any problems I had were between me and the dealer. That the dealer just bought the cars from them and they had no responsibility after that. I told him about my Volvo experience and he said “Well that’s the way foreign car companies are run – we just sell them the cars. Take the dealer to small claims court if you want to.” I then said “So this is why I should buy American.” I have never again bought an American car and never will. The Volvo had 260,000 miles on it before I donated it to “Cars for a Cure.” I now have 3 Audis and have found them to be phenomenal reliable cars.

When the world’s global economy is fully integrated, cars won’t need to be made in the USA anymore because cars will be made more cheaply elsewhere in other countries. The management of any remaining American car manufacturers will first be outsourced; and then, eventually, American car companies will be fully bought-out by other companies from abroad, that is, outside of the United States. This is because the banking interests at large, such as the Bank of International Settlements, that are ultimately in control of all of this – the world economy in general – are not American. But like Obama said, “It is the way… It is the only way.” The inevitable dismantling of America’s auto industry is, in the words of Obama, what we shall call “moving forward.” We are now at the dawn of a new age, a new era in America. Annuit Coeptis Novus Ordo Seclorum. So, in the words of George W. Bush, “Let’s roll…”

The first tier suppliers were already bankrupt. Visteon, Delphi, Collins and Aikman, Dana to name a few.

After listening to last week’s thoroughly enjoyable On Point show with Shai Agassi, the founder of BetterPlace.com (which makes systems and infrastructure for electric cars), I have been thinking all weekend about the terrible problems with the US auto industry and I see nothing but a solution. Why don’t GM and the others see the cards on the table, follow China’s lead and leapfrog this soon-to-be obsolete gasoline technology in favor of all electric cars which will be more convenient, cheaper, and better for our grandchildren??

The one thing no one mentions and that I believe is critical is that we need companies ENGINEERING cars here in America. I don’t believe that the transplant companies have any significant engineering presence here in the US. This is a critical skill set that has ramifications to other industries, especially in the event of world upheaval. In WWII, the automotive engineers turned to engineering other defense products. If we don’t engineer the cars here, we are just cheap manufacturing.

One additional point, I believe that we need to take a better look at all of the regulations governing our cars. This regulatory burden makes it very difficult for new companies to enter the market, and also drives the cost of everything up.

The Friday NY Times has an article by Mary Williams Walsh, “Plight of Carmakers Could Upset All Pension Plans.” The point of which is the concern that the government takeover of “accelerate the decline of traditional pensions plans,” as other (nonpbankrupt) companies abandon their plans for competitive reasons, causing more and more workers to be shifted to the federal government’s Pension Benefit Guarantee corporation.

How likely is this major abandonment of pensions across the econommy?

What would be the likely impact of this on effected workers?

On the economy in general?

President Obama has the good idea to enhance our rail system – who’s going to build new cars for the railroad – maybe Detroit?

Consumers will not buy a car from a company in Ch. 11, as most can not distinguish between reconstructive bankruptcy and liquidation.

Having just endured bankruptcy with a retailer, I can speak to this with some expertise. As soon as my former company announced ch 11, the customers just stopped showing up. The media covered it extensively and our competitors announced our impending closure to their customers,

When we (briefly) emerged from ch 11, the media did not cover it, and our competitors kept right on saying we were still in bankruptcy, discouraging customers to return to us. Another ch 11 and finally liquidation ensued.

Chapter 11 will be the death knell for Chrysler and/or GM.

For every one employee at GM there are 2 retiree’s pensions they are supporting. How can any company make $ this way? Get with the rest of the country, we don’t have pensions, just a 401Ks (cut in half) but that is reality.

Who killed the electric car? Wasn’t it GM?

You waited until the very last 120 seconds to talk about the national policy that encouraged – *encouraged* – the gas-guzzling vehicles that everybody assumes killed the U.S. auto manufacturers in the early 2000’s!

Even then, you didn’t talk about it as policy nor blame the moron who established it. Remember that simpleton ordered this drastic policy re-direction in 1981 (hint: he also ordered solar panels removed from the White House roof and trashed as one of his first acts in office)?

Why isn’t anyone talking about transforming our auto industry toward electric? You had Shai Aggasi on the show last week and he’s going to transform entire (admittedly much smaller) countries. Time for Detriot and DC to talk with the likes of him!

Mr. Ashcroft wants to destroy the world by saving the auto. Fortunately, he and his guests are losing.

Trains are replacing cars, and thank goodness for Generation Y, the kids leading this effort. It would behoove On Point to at least pause in its car crusade to allow some guests explain why trains are replacing cars.

[...] doesn’t look good. My colleague Ted Janger, an expert on bankruptcy law, offered insights to NPR’s “On Point” (out of WBUR in Boston) this morning. You can listen to the show on-line. What’s scary is that bankruptcy may be the least [...]

The government needs to step in and declare an nationl automotive wage and benifit program. This could be a 3 year program to allow the US Automakers a chance at recovery. The program should be based on the wage and benifits Toyota, Honda etc. in the south are currently paying. With out a level playing field in wages and benifits the US Automakers will continue to have less than steller results if not future failer and the government loans will never be paid back by the automakers.

As a stockholder in a number of automotive companies, which as I understand I am an owner in, it really pains me to see that the stockholders will be brushed aside and left with nothing except worthless pieces of paper. Who gives the new CEO or for that fact the government the right to allow things like this to be said;

“The new GM that would emerge from the restructuring would be 89 percent-owned by the U.S. government and the United Auto Workers unions, provided that workers and officials approve plans to take an ownership stake in exchange for debt.” GM Chief Executive Fritz Henderson.

What happened to the stockholder within the equation? When does the government allow the union to take over and push out the stockholder? You should be appalled at the misgivings of those who caused these situations to happen and prosecute them, not retire them.

If socialism is what the Democratic Party wants, then those in congress are Anti-American. Stop the inane bloodshed of these companies that a bunch of crooks have run into the ground. Stop the inane waste of my tax dollars on programs that will bankrupt the United States. Put a stop to the unions getting a free lunch (95% of wages while on a Jobs Bank, or laid off), get them under control and quit providing them with perks that the other taxpayers don’t get. Lower the wages and the price of cars so they are affordable.