Originally Posted By: XS650
Originally Posted By: Tempest
A little old, but plenty of monitary statistics:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/01/26/news/companies/pluggedin_taylor_ford.fortune/index.htm
Quote:
According to the latest calculations, the gap between Japanese and American carmakers' profits average out to about $2900 per vehicle, and the home team does not have the advantage.
Interesting article, if you read the article and apply some elementary school math, a bit over 1/2 of that difference is labor and a bit under 1/2 is that people aren't willing to pay as much for equivalent American cars.
When the big 3 owned the US market, they were perfectly willing to give the unions whatever they wanted because all 3 were in the same boat and could pass it on to their customers who didn't have much choice about what they bought. The same for chrap quality. As long as Ford, GM and Chrysler were the only real game in town, they could foist all sorts of 2nd rate quality off on their customers and they did.
I get no joy from seeing the US car makers going down the tubes, but their management earned it for them.
The US car companies need to be disassembled to the point that they can be restructured with new management and new work rules. New work rules and getting labor under control can be done with restructuring. Unfortunately, I doubt that the people running the show have what it takes to put competent management in place.
Nicely put, as much as I don't like the UAW, I would hate to see China take GM and Chrysler over. I would hope that Uncle Sam steps up to the plate and stops it, free enterprise or not!!!!!!! If they don't I hope we use the factories to build up the Military, we’re going to need it.
IMO it will be the UAW that destroys what's left of the auto industry, because I don't think they'll make any concessions that are worthwhile. If Ford survives it will be a short period of time before the UAW destroys them too! We are in a financial crisis that most of us have never seen in our lifetimes, and this is just the beginning. Greed started it rolling, and no one has a clue how to stop it.
JMO,
Frank D