Chrysler says "Thank you, Ameirca". America says "F%&k You!"
Discussion
Read the comments posted below the ad. The hostility is simply unbelievable!
http://blog.chryslerllc.com/blog.do;jsessionid=A02...
Cheers,
Madman of the People
http://blog.chryslerllc.com/blog.do;jsessionid=A02...
Cheers,
Madman of the People
they have replied to the comments :- http://blog.chryslerllc.com/blog.do?id=566&p=e...
don't think the dealerships will be expecting many sales...
don't think the dealerships will be expecting many sales...
Its funny that no one says a thing when AIG(a clearly horribly managed company) and Wall street get a 200Billion dollar injection...But when the "Big 3"(and the tier 2 and 3 companies that are attached to them) get 7% of what wall street gets...HOLYHELL... all kinds of people are yelling and screaming...
Lets break this down to a practical level...
the Big 3 and supporting companies represent the single Largest block of employment in the country...around 7 million people...
Wall street and AIG....not so much
No one asked AIG or wall street to take any wage cuts...they sure did of the Big 3....
Question is Why the difference?
Lets break this down to a practical level...
the Big 3 and supporting companies represent the single Largest block of employment in the country...around 7 million people...
Wall street and AIG....not so much
No one asked AIG or wall street to take any wage cuts...they sure did of the Big 3....
Question is Why the difference?
Maxwedge said:
Its funny that no one says a thing when AIG(a clearly horribly managed company) and Wall street get a 200Billion dollar injection...But when the "Big 3"(and the tier 2 and 3 companies that are attached to them) get 7% of what wall street gets...HOLYHELL... all kinds of people are yelling and screaming...
Lets break this down to a practical level...
the Big 3 and supporting companies represent the single Largest block of employment in the country...around 7 million people...
Wall street and AIG....not so much
No one asked AIG or wall street to take any wage cuts...they sure did of the Big 3....
Question is Why the difference?
You have hit the nail on the head. The difference is that the politicians think that they understand car production but they don't understand banking which they still think is some kind of magic trick ( which of course it was - fraud ). They certainly hope that the public doesn't understand it, and of course many politicians have a direct financial interest in the banking industry. Lets break this down to a practical level...
the Big 3 and supporting companies represent the single Largest block of employment in the country...around 7 million people...
Wall street and AIG....not so much
No one asked AIG or wall street to take any wage cuts...they sure did of the Big 3....
Question is Why the difference?
They conned themselves into thinking if they threw money at the banks the problem would be solved, whereas what has actually happened is that they have partially bailed out some grossly inefficient and poorly run companies who have used the cash to maintain their own lifestyles and start (but only start) repairing their balance sheets.
I think the Big Three aren't particularly efficient themselves, however, not that that makes the bank rescue any better, and while the USA needs a strong automotive industry, what it doesn't need, but I am afraid has, is a partially nationalised inefficient industry, just like Britain in the 70's, and one where the bosses are still paid far too much.
Maxwedge: I'm sure if AIG pulled a similar clueless move they would have had a similar response. Bailing out AIG is also a different story as they were (arguably) much more critical to the economy.
The entire auto bailout has, once again, thrown a light on the hypocracy, inefficiency and infuriating arrogance of Detroit to me. These are for-profit companies who kowtowed to the unions, overpaid unskilled workers and produced absolute crap product for at least twenty years. Any other industry would just be allowed to fail. In the past, the US has seemed to have some sort of romantic attachment to its auto companies and auto workers. This goodwill is officially gone at this point. The taxpayer have been forced into this by dire predictions of (probably necessary) mass unemployment and the ridiculously powerful auto lobby. The bailout will do nothing but delay and prolong the long-needed complete humbling of these companies that bankrupcy would have provided, all at taxpayer's expense.
Chrysler is particularly galling. Judging by the Avenger I rented about a year ago, the Town + Country I looked at (briefly) recently when buying a new family car, the reviews of vehicles like the Calibur that I've read and the dime-store interior of the 300 I've driven on many occasions, Chrysler essentially gave up trying to produce even mildly competant cars several years (decades?) ago. Add the golden-parachute-driven MB merger/debacle and you've got one of the worst run companies in US history. GM and Ford have at least proven that when the chips are down, they can (grudgingly, it seems) start to produce reasonably good vehicles. Chrysler has, as of yet, not produced anything even marginally up to snuff.
Giving billions of taxpayer money to a company that makes crappy products, has been the plaything of a private equity firm that has proven that it knows absolutely nothing about the auto industry and has been run by increasingly incompetant and arrogant management for decades is insulting and infuriating. Bailing out GM and Ford is ever so slightly more tolerable (maybe), but bailing out Chrysler (again!) is simply throwing money away.
The entire auto bailout has, once again, thrown a light on the hypocracy, inefficiency and infuriating arrogance of Detroit to me. These are for-profit companies who kowtowed to the unions, overpaid unskilled workers and produced absolute crap product for at least twenty years. Any other industry would just be allowed to fail. In the past, the US has seemed to have some sort of romantic attachment to its auto companies and auto workers. This goodwill is officially gone at this point. The taxpayer have been forced into this by dire predictions of (probably necessary) mass unemployment and the ridiculously powerful auto lobby. The bailout will do nothing but delay and prolong the long-needed complete humbling of these companies that bankrupcy would have provided, all at taxpayer's expense.
Chrysler is particularly galling. Judging by the Avenger I rented about a year ago, the Town + Country I looked at (briefly) recently when buying a new family car, the reviews of vehicles like the Calibur that I've read and the dime-store interior of the 300 I've driven on many occasions, Chrysler essentially gave up trying to produce even mildly competant cars several years (decades?) ago. Add the golden-parachute-driven MB merger/debacle and you've got one of the worst run companies in US history. GM and Ford have at least proven that when the chips are down, they can (grudgingly, it seems) start to produce reasonably good vehicles. Chrysler has, as of yet, not produced anything even marginally up to snuff.
Giving billions of taxpayer money to a company that makes crappy products, has been the plaything of a private equity firm that has proven that it knows absolutely nothing about the auto industry and has been run by increasingly incompetant and arrogant management for decades is insulting and infuriating. Bailing out GM and Ford is ever so slightly more tolerable (maybe), but bailing out Chrysler (again!) is simply throwing money away.
Protectionism is never the answer, neither is isolationism, which is a particularly American disease. You have to compete, and it seems to me that though the Americans are good at that, once they have built a big business they want to preserve it in formaldehyde.
America needs more, smaller, leaner, proactive car businesses. The reason exports of American cars have never been great is that the domestic market, where gas is traditionally cheap and roads are unchallenging, has always been so strong that the manufacturers can be lazy, which in other areas of US manufacturing they are not. So they are NEVER going to sell big quantities of these types of car abroad, and gradually the Japs and the Europeans are invading their market, by selling the kind of cars which the US can't be arsed building.
They need to take their vehicles to a far higher level of sophistication and compete, simple as that. Henry Ford did it, why can't someone do it now?
America needs more, smaller, leaner, proactive car businesses. The reason exports of American cars have never been great is that the domestic market, where gas is traditionally cheap and roads are unchallenging, has always been so strong that the manufacturers can be lazy, which in other areas of US manufacturing they are not. So they are NEVER going to sell big quantities of these types of car abroad, and gradually the Japs and the Europeans are invading their market, by selling the kind of cars which the US can't be arsed building.
They need to take their vehicles to a far higher level of sophistication and compete, simple as that. Henry Ford did it, why can't someone do it now?
The thing is that the American people are probably just as pissed that the banks got a ton of their money. It's just that the American people can choose what sort of vehicle to buy. It's a very direct protest. Maybe they'll even do it. Rather than typing a few unhappy words into the Internet...
Well, I doubt if anyone in authority is going to take my advice, but I think that they should be developing lighter smaller cars which offer better accommodation and performance, as well as looks. Even though the MMGW thing is just politically inspired rubbish, it still makes sense to have cars which are cheaper to run, and safer. Maybe oil, whether it is going to run out or not, is just old technology and they should be looking seriously at what other technologies have to offer.
In the short term, they need to cut a whole lot of complexity out of their manufacturing process, focus on a small number of successful models, rebrand and re-equip them for the austerity era, and then look at spinning off brands like the Mustang into independent companies. If they need government help with anything it is getting the unions and restrictive practices off their backs. Maybe they should 'Americanise' what's left of their foreign car holdings, rename them and produce them in the States. It will be tough, no doubt, but the longer they wait the tougher it is going to be. I don't really think that partnerships with foreign companies would help, based at least on the British experience, and also seeing Daimler Chrysler. Ford own Mazda (I think) and sorted out JLR. What are the Japs or the gGrmans going to teach them? They just need to kick out the fuddy-duddies and give it a real go.
Maybe it is time to pension off a whole raft of the senior management, the American Caesar generation, and let younger guys have a go.
Without private jets, at least at first.
In the short term, they need to cut a whole lot of complexity out of their manufacturing process, focus on a small number of successful models, rebrand and re-equip them for the austerity era, and then look at spinning off brands like the Mustang into independent companies. If they need government help with anything it is getting the unions and restrictive practices off their backs. Maybe they should 'Americanise' what's left of their foreign car holdings, rename them and produce them in the States. It will be tough, no doubt, but the longer they wait the tougher it is going to be. I don't really think that partnerships with foreign companies would help, based at least on the British experience, and also seeing Daimler Chrysler. Ford own Mazda (I think) and sorted out JLR. What are the Japs or the gGrmans going to teach them? They just need to kick out the fuddy-duddies and give it a real go.
Maybe it is time to pension off a whole raft of the senior management, the American Caesar generation, and let younger guys have a go.
Without private jets, at least at first.
Edited by cardigankid on Wednesday 7th January 07:39
BMW Z4 and X5 are made in the USA. I fancy a Vauxhall Monaro VXR but I can't say that there is anything specifically American that appeals at all, mostly because the styling seems crude or they are just too large for what they contain. Jeep, Chrysler, Corvette, Mustang, whatever, none of them do much for me at all, and they should.
The VXR is made in Australia by GM.
Ford Crown Victoria (the most common police car) is made in Canada.
Dodge trucks are made in Mexico and Canada as well as the US. All Chrsyler 300 models are made in Canada and PT Cruisers are made in Mexico.
Maybe if Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep were actually making an effore to redirect manufacture into the US, there would be more sympathy by US taxpayers.
Ford Crown Victoria (the most common police car) is made in Canada.
Dodge trucks are made in Mexico and Canada as well as the US. All Chrsyler 300 models are made in Canada and PT Cruisers are made in Mexico.
Maybe if Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep were actually making an effore to redirect manufacture into the US, there would be more sympathy by US taxpayers.
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