letters to the editor
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
There are engineers and engineers
AUTOMOTIVE NEWS Regarding “Did you hear the one about Ford not making cars here anymore?” Dec. 17, autonews.com: True, the Detroit 3 do produce more vehicles and more in the United States than the transplants. But the point about the Detroit 3 employing workers and paying their benefits implies that the transplants do not, and that is wrong. » Read Article [REG] |
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Good business advice pays off
AUTOMOTIVE NEWS This a time for thanks. I'm a second-generation import dealer in the panhandle of Texas. I'm so thankful that my father was such a great teacher, automobile entrepreneur and general businessman. His foresight and business practices have kept our business afloat for 35 years while I have watched so many others fail. » Read Article [SUB] |
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Our leaders must break the logjam
AUTOMOTIVE NEWS I am a used-car dealer in the Austin, Texas, area. I was a corporate executive for Jeep Corp. and a mid-level manager in the field for Ford Motor Co. I also have owned minority percentages of several new-car dealerships across the country. I agree that something must be done for a long-term solution for the Detroit 3. But right now we must push the financial institutions to finance the retail side of this equation. » Read Article [SUB] |
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Editorials
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Columnists
Industry needs fair playing field
The most important dilemma facing the automobile industry, as well as the most important predicament facing the economic stability of the United States, is our balance of trade. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 29
Washington knows just what we want
It's interesting that the government has to bail out the Detroit 3 and tell them what to build because it knows what we want to buy. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 29
Detroit 3 must market together
It is imperative that the Detroit 3 unite in marketing as strongly as they united to lobby for the bailout. They should develop one theme for advertising and agree to use it for the next few months. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 29
All you really need to know
By the time this letter is read, the bailing will be done. Someone, please read: All I Really Need to Know About the Auto Industry I Learned in Kindergarten. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 22
Small suppliers can't finance GM
While General Motors may want to placate suppliers and ensure them that the terms of the contract will be met, banks are looking at this with a slightly different slant. Forget trying to insure money due; my lender informed me that it will no longer look at GM receivables as eligible. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 22
Higher fuel taxes? Good grief! No
I was not surprised that Automotive News has pushed the concept of higher fuel taxes. It just goes to show you that common sense eludes so many in positions of power today. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 22
Hey, Chrysler: Where is my bailout?
Hey, Chrysler, remember me? I'm the dealer who sold your K cars, your Omni Misers (that got in excess of 35 mpg -- where are they now?). » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 15
Industry thrives under new owners
About 25 years ago, the car industry in the United Kingdom found itself in a similar situation, with the same dire predictions about economic collapse that we now hear in the United States. Today, the United Kingdom is again producing 1.7 million vehicles a year, as it did in its days of glory. Only the names of the players have changed. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 15
Quality dooms Chery in the U.S.
I have been surprised and puzzled to read that poor Chery is not in a position to export cars to the United States because it and Chrysler are no longer financially strong enough to do so (“China's dream to sell cars in U.S. and Europe fades” on www.autonews.com). Have you forgotten that Chery was extremely close in a deal with Malcolm Bricklin's Visionary Vehicles to make Lexus-like vehicles for Kia prices? » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 15
Make Saturn a technology leader
I was dismayed to learn that General Motors' reorganization plan includes selling or shutting down Saturn. I work for one of Saturn's largest vendors, and we have proudly partnered with Saturn since Day 1 back in the early 1990s. » Read Article
[SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 15
Isn't an auto show a place to sell?
Whatever happened to the auto SHOW? I can remember when an auto show was just that, a showcase for all the new cars I could buy. I could either make a deal at the show or plan to visit my local dealer to acquire the vehicle I had chosen at the show. It was a great way to sell new cars, right now! » Read Article
[SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 8
Higher fuel taxes are not the answer
I am surprised to read your suggestion that higher gasoline taxes would be good for the automotive industry. You said, "Obama faces a unique opportunity to raise the federal tax on gasoline" as part of his energy policy ("How to revive the industry and help it thrive," Opinion, Nov. 17). How can you possibly advocate higher taxes in any form? » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 8
A $15,000 rebate, not a blank check
Don't give the automotive industry a blank check. Instead, give the check to the U.S. taxpayers. Give each taxpayer a $15,000 federal credit voucher that can be applied to the purchase of a vehicle produced by a U.S. automotive manufacturer. It could be used during the next five years. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 8
Chrysler retirees look for equality
Company health insurance for Chrysler white-collar retirees age 65 and older was canceled in 2006, and life insurance for all retirees was canceled in 2008. We continue to support Chrysler, but we have been singled out by Chrysler management as easy targets. Chrysler management and active white-collar workers have lost no benefits. The UAW still has the best-in-class benefits. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 8
If only we'd had an energy policy
The Detroit 3 have perhaps made more than their share of mistakes, but the lack of a U.S. energy policy greased the skids for them. Our government should have forced, with taxation, the price of fuel to increase at a rate of slightly more than inflation starting after the first energy shocks 30-plus years ago. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 8
GOP has lost this Republican
I have become a Democrat! Wow, who would have thought? It seems all right to bail out a bunch of bankers who made a bunch of loans nobody wants; $700 billion is a small price to pay. Couldn't jam it through Congress fast enough. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler ask for $25 billion in loans, and suddenly saving our economy is not that important. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 1
Are execs, UAW willing to sacrifice?
A letter to the domestic auto industry from a laid-off engineer: The time has come for the domestic automakers and the UAW to have a heart-to-heart talk. It most likely will take years to recover from the greed and excesses of all parties. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 1
Wake up, Washington
Which employs the most people: the banks or the auto industry? Which provoked your recession: the finance system or the auto industry? » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 1
Merge the Detroit 3; it's the way to go
I urge Congress to call on the Detroit 3 to merge into one company, USA Motors. Congress can assist in the economics of a transition into a stronger, leaner, future-oriented single entity. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 1
Detroit 3 bailout is the better bet
What's better: A 50 percent chance of recovering a $50 billion bet in five years? A 0 percent chance of recovering $156 billion over three years? That is what legislators should be asking themselves when debating the merits of extending loans to the domestic automakers. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 1
Rome burns while pols fiddle
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., are examples of our useless, do-nothing congressional leadership. They said the auto companies have an opportunity to show they would put the federal money to good use. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 1
'Buy American' talk won't help industry
It was only a matter of time before the well-intentioned but tired, wrong-headed idea of providing incentives for purchasers of Detroit 3 vehicles surfaced once more ("How to revive the industry and help it thrive," Opinion, Nov. 17). In times of industry crisis, the advancement of this idea is as predictable as the tides. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 24
It's time to move to mass transport
The current state of the auto industry is complex, dire and emotional. This is a high-impact issue, not only to the industry but also to the world economy. As politicians go about their bickering ways regarding the subsidizing of the U.S. economy, they are missing the perfect opportunity to move this country forward toward mass transportation. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 24
No one bailed out Oldsmobile
I am a former Oldsmobile dealer and have seen firsthand what happens when a car company, or part of one, goes out of business. There was no discussion of any bailout to save Oldsmobile or its dealers and suppliers. Life went on. No crisis was imminent. » Read Article
[SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 24
Detroit 3 CEOs must offer to quit
The blame game is getting us nowhere and just delaying the inevitable. Congress needs to act to save the auto industry before we all begin to freeze in the dark. The CEOs of the Detroit 3 need to take responsibility for the current situation, offer to resign and thereby take the blame game off the table. » Read Article [SUB] 12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 24
