Yes it is unfortunate for the little people but I agree that they would be hurt in the long run anyway.  If the entire auto industry were going bankrupt then I would be a little more sympathetic.  The Big 3 need to take some responsibilty for their own actions.  It will be interesting to see what kind of plan they come back to Congress with next month.  I hope Congress tells them Merry Christmas and sends them home with their tail between their legs.

In September these idiots got 25 billion to help them re-tool and build more energy efficient vehicles.  Why didn’t they mention at that time that they were about to go under?

There is a whole lot of BS going on with this deal.  The little people probably will get hurt, but they would anyway.  I have a feeling these CEO’s want the money so they can all get super-sized bonuses before the companies tank for good.

Is not the definition of insanity not repeating the same process over and over expecting different results?  The Big 3 needs new leadership and a new business plan before I support giving them one hot cent.  I am shocked that they would approach Congress without a viable plan in hand.  Do they think that we as citizens owe them a favor?  Additionally, how irresponsible to wait untill you are within 45 days of Bankruptcy before asking for assistance.  I would like to know what steps they have taken over the coarse of the last 24 months to ensure their financial stability.

Mobile City tried back in the 90’s to switch to propane based cars. I don’t know why that never took off, I mean forklifts and other construction type equipment has been using it for decades. I guess too many environmental organizations are complaining about the bio-diesels, and other alternative fuels not being GREEN enough to make a government want switch in the U.S. It would probably cause too much controversy.

I drove a Sentra to 200K miles with 0 problems.  Had a 1998 Taurus that continuously had problems.  I just bought a new Camry so we will see how that goes. I am sure that on a case by case basis that there are plenty of people that have positive experiences with vehicles produced by the Big 3.  However, as a whole they do not retain there value near as good as their foreign competitors’ vehicles.  I believe that consumers that take the time to research this information give a lot of weight to the depreciation rate of assets that they purchase thus driving demand for the foreign vehicles.  This is why I chose to buy the Camry.  KBB just listed, as a matter of fact, the top 10 Cars based on lowest depreciation over the first five years.  I think 9 of them are foreign vehicles, four of which are produced by Toyota Motor Corp.  I beleive that educated buyers will continue to purchase vehicles that depreciate at a slower rate than same class vehicles with higher depreciation rates.

The first thing I would do is cut the upper management’s (including the board) salaries by hundreds of millions. they would then be able to pay the workers for a little longer. Then file restructure and changed the business model to build economical vehicles that are affordable. It is flat ridiculous to sell a vehicle for 30 and 40 thousand dollars when I can buy an as good or better similar vehicle for half the price from an asian company. My Nissan truck has 250k on it (bought it off the lot in 94 with 14 miles)and it is still going strong. I paid 13k for it.

Toyota does make a darn good car and they have been doing it for a number of years.  Many of them are solid as a rock and tight as a drum years later.

Back in the 80’s I bought a Cavalier and that was my last GM vehicle, because it was a tin can with wheels.  Got rid of that piece of junk and bought a Toyota Corolla then drove the wheels off of that thing.  But, since that time I have had a Ford Aerostar, a Taurus and drive a Ford truck now.  Been very happy with all of them.

I do not understand what obstacles have kept and are still keeping the big 3 from producing a competitive sedan.  Do they actually believe that the Taurus or the Focus are equivilent rivals to their foreign counterparts or do they just not have the means necesary to produce the same?  If the Toyota Camry really is the nuber one selling vehicle in America then why not produce a vehicle as similar as possible?  It’s not rocket science, just educated business decisions.  Produce a product that generates demand… then come ask for help.

rolltide33 - You have a good plan!

A real push could be for municipalities to make the switch to hybrids, or other flex fuel vehicles.  That would drive the production of those, help the municipalities and give the Big 3 a better footing in the domestic market.

The biggest problem right now is that they are taking a loss on every vehicle before it even rolls off the line.  Some want to force the competition into raising their prices with tariffs, etc.  I can see leveling the playing field in some manner, but I don’t think any of us are going to spend 50 thousand bucks on a revamped Pinto.

I agree BamaBob.  Ford does have a demand for its truck line, especially in the medium and heavy duty commercial fleet vehicles.  I would propose filing bankruptcy in conjunction with a new business plan that would include the termination of most production except for the fleet vehicles.  If they would downsize, and restructure focusing on what they do right instaed of pouring more money into what they do wrong they may find themselves in a much better financial position several years down the road.  They should have no problem gaining contracts for fleet vehicle production from municipalities and public organizations around the country.  This could potentially allow them to rebuild capital and re-enter the residential buyers market down the raod with vehicles that can compete with the Toyota Camry or the Honda Accord.