Don't gloat too much over GM's woes

Well i'm not necessarily gloating over GM's woes... I'm just pissed that they would let it get this far, and they still can't for the life of them figure out how to manage their company.

 

Never, ever, give up. There is always something we can do to lessen our impact. Drive less, for one, even if it is a Prius. Reduce, reuse, cycle, recycle, compost, plant more trees, grow your own food. Yes, what we've already done will have implications for years. But that's no excuse to keep adding fuel to the fire, or to 'party on' because the damage is done. It's never too late.

 

Why would anyone gloat at all? I know that some of you have had some less than glorious experiences with GM products, but I don't understand why you would gloat in the demise of an American Company that is immensely important to the American economy? Unless you are independently wealthy, and have your wealth in cash or gold, it will effect you.

 

The best thing we could do for GM, its workers, and ourselves would be to implement universal healthcare.
This is a subsidy of which other countries are taking advantage and with which we still burden our industries.

 

I'm not gloating. It's a very rare occasion that I want to see a business go under and this isn't one of those occasions.

 

I don't think many people are gloating about GMs problems, but I believe a lot of people have a I told you so attitude towards them because of their reluctance to mange their companies. The thing I am fearful of is GM and other companies dumping their retirement fund woes on us. As much as I hate to say it a majority of US companies have driven their companies to ruine and left the American taxpayer holding the bag. My opinion is until these companies (GM included) start taking responsibility for their action the deserve to go the way of the dinosaure.

 

Cash is just paper and has no value as such. If we all agreed to it, Monopoly Money could become the new currency.

Gold might be a good bet but it's illegal to own such large amounts of gold.

 

Precisely. Isn't GM now admitting they have to "adjust" their reported accounting going back 6-7 years? Something about overstating income and understating liabilities. I guess the Enron Accounting has also caught up to them.

Of course, if WE tried that in April, we'd be in deep s***.

[Sacrasm Mode ON] That's what the generous taxpayer is for [Sarcasm Mode OFF]

 

Jayman, as almost always you make a good point. For the first time in my life I am honestly worried about GM. Contrary to what you may think, they really are making some very fine products right now(even other than SUV's). They recently came out with the Red Tag Sale which is doing almost nothing to bring folks into our showrooms. They refuse to "sell the sizzle" of the product and continue to try and sell rebates, price and "one-price". GM needs to deliver 52,000 units in the last three days just to match last November's very weak sales totals. Certainly possible in a good market, but based on the traffic in my stores, no way. It will be more bad news and media glum come Dec 1st. We seem to have entered a very dark period in GM and Ford history.

 

If I were GM, I'd be thinking about:

a. damage control for the short term
b. long term plan to turn themselves around...

Nothing they do in the short term will be really great for them... only enough to keep their heads above water...

 

All it takes is a quick glance at a Consumer’s Report to see who makes the most reliable cars . . . and it ain’t GM.

Consumers now demand quality and reliability. GM is still stuck in the planned obsolescence frame of mind.

List all the GM cars universally known for quality and long term reliability. Now do the same for Toyota. Absolutely guaranteed the Toyota list is longer. Why is that?

No matter how much you hype a turd, it still stinks.

 

I have a big problem with the "rebate" games now being played. Of course, GM isn't the only one, EVERY car maker will play the game to a certain extent.

Times are getting tough, and folks are probably extended to the point they are already upside-down on a mortgage and refi, car payments, etc.

I think GM may have moved a lot of inventory during the late summer with their first "rebate." More than likely, especially given the volatility in energy prices, anybody who was looking at a new GM vehicle has already purchased one.

A lot of folks are also wondering what the "real" price of a vehicle is. Does the price depend on whether or not the car is financed, whether or not GMAC is the lien holder, the "rebate" etc?

As an example, when I special ordered my 2000 GMC Sierra SLT 4x4, I had it built with: Z71 (Off road package), GT5 (4.10 gearing), Z82 (Heavy duty towing: HD rad, transmission cooler, trailer wiring, platform hitch receiver), G80 (Eaton locking rear differential), and sportside box. Almost exactly $45,000 Cdn.

The salesperson naturally assumed I was financing, and while I was on my cellphone he did the paperwork and presented me with a "generous" $1,500 discount and a payment schedule.

I took out my checkbook, told him I was paying for it outright, told him he had to do WAY better than that, and gave him an icy look. $39,000.

I have some investments in local credit unions and know for a fact a car loan is around 5%, depending on your credit rating. It should be patently impossible to offer 0% financing unless the "true" cost of financing is built into the MSRP. Otherwise GMAC would be losing wads of money, and they clearly are not.

 

Kinda disappointed that no one responded to my comment.
(Thought I'd get at least one right wing flaming. )

 

Sorry bout that, work got busy.

Apparently a motivating factor in Toyota doing that big plant near Windsor, Ontario, is the social health care in Canada.

 

That's the point I'm making.
The US does not have a level playing field with other countries because they don't have to factor health insurance into their prices.
Big companies like GM that provide health insurance benefits are at a competitive disadvantage with foreign competition.

 

You're right there.

 

Sounds right to me.

What's criminal is when the same large company raids the fund set aside for such benefits, and all those benefits evaporate. So eventually, the taxpayer has to foot the bill anyway.

The only difference is that the cost was paid twice: first by source deductions from the worker paycheck, then again by the taxpayer to bail out the fund.

If you look around, there are many upside-down or *severely* underfunded retirement and health plans. And not just the ones that made the big boo-boo of investing in that Wonder Company of the 90's, Enron.