Repper

Demand More for Your Auto Bailout Dollar; Oil Patch Should Bounce Back Long Term

Fitzman,
Get real! The products are good, you and many other American consumers just refuse to look at them. Management has been making the right decisions and turning the companies around for the last decade+, but he can't seem to break through the prejudice that the American consumers have due to past sin's like poor quality and slow change in the 80's.

Also, CAFE standards do nothing to drive consumer demand. They only force automakers to build more of what the cunsumers won't buy. The only way to increase general fuel efficiancy is to make the consumers want to drive those types of vehicles (higher gas prices, etc.) People act like the auto companies have chosen to make larger vehicles that use more gas on their own. No auto comapany has held back from making each vehicle they build as fuel efficient as possible for the cost/price the market calls for.

I do agree that alternative fuels are needed for our own economy and the automotive industry in general. And believe me, the US automakers are fighting hard to get ahead of the competition in that arena. The "bailout" loans would be bridging them to be able to do just that.


On Nov 12 09:06 AM The Fitzman wrote:

> Mmarrrkk: you're still missing my point. GM defends itself by saying
> it has been making the cars and trucks that people want. Yet, their
> market share has dropped precipitiously and they are now close to
> bankruptcy. so, do you really *believe* that they have been making
> the cars and trucks that people want? obviously not. so, now they
> need MY taxpayer money. my point is that, if they want MY money to
> bail them out (and let's face it, MY money will go to the pay the
> salaries of the millionaire GM executives that made these bad decisions),
> then I want something out of it. i want to be able to buy a natural
> gas car or truck. i want to be able to buy a home natural gas refueling
> appliance at a decent price. wrt your comments on socialism or whatever,
> look at what is happening now! the bush administration is taking
> over the banking, mortgage, financial, and insurance markets. and
> it's not socialism. socialism for the rich, which is what is going
> on, goes by another name: *fascism*. now you know why the europeans
> held up posters of hitler when bush visited europe. they have seen
> this movie before.
>
> old wizard: of course the democrats have had a hand in the auto industry
> disaster. i already wrote how the clinton administration blew it
> on CAFE standards and caved to the lobbyist from GM and Ford and
> to the unions. the democrats have also had no spine and let bush
> do everything he wanted. so there is plenty of finger pointing in
> all directions. the article was more about what to do now. wrt oil
> imports, people shouldn't get hung up on exactly which countries
> we buy it from. oil is a global market. it doesn't matter much which
> country our dollars directly go to, when the price of oil goes up,
> it benefits the major producers the most: saudi, russia, iran, iraq,
> and venezuela. democrats dont agree with Pickens? Pickens is a republican,
> and he himself says that republicans won't give him the time of day.
> let's face it, the oil strangle hold on congress controls BOTH parties.
> pickens is making great in-roads with the american people and many
> govenors, but congress has been silent on the issue. it's very very
> sad. wrt obama, i think you are dead wrong. sure, he wants a stimulus
> policy right now, and i totally agree, and so do all the people standing
> behind him at the podium. why give all the bailout money to the millionaires
> he is saying. but, note what his agenda is once he gets into office:
> tax reform and an ENERGY POLICY. he gets energy (except for windfall
> profits) and wants to use energy policy related jobs to help pull
> us out of this economic funk. my bet is that obama will craft an
> energy policy that is a bit more sophisticated than simply "drill,
> drill, drill". it's our only hope.
>
> definitely agree on electric mass transit and building out the natural
> gas infrastructure, first on the interstate highway system. also
> agree on solar, wind and nuclear energy feeding an updated and expanded
> electric grid.
>
>
>

Demand More for Your Auto Bailout Dollar; Oil Patch Should Bounce Back Long Term

longoil, you show that you know very little about teh auto industry. Stay out of the conversation until you do alittle research and find ouut that you're wrong about most of the things you say. GM's been making hybrids for years where it counts, public transport busses and SUVs. The portfolio of hybrids has spread to crossovers and cars as well. In addition, GM's hybrid technology is MUCH better than Toyota's. The problem is misinformed individuals like yourself perpetuating the pervasive misconceptions about the US automakers, so they keep turning a blind eye to the facts, and only consider buying foriegn.


On Nov 09 02:31 PM longoil wrote:

> Why is Toyota profitable and GM and Ford, not ? Toyota makes cars
> in Kentucky using American labor that is non-unionized, but paid
> similar wages to UAW workers. This tells me that problem is not with
> worker salaries, but management incompetence.
>
> The problem with American auto companies is they are risk averse
> and merely make incremental changes to existing technology. The 1928
> Ford Model "A" got 25 mpg using a primitive engine with a carburator,
> distributor based ignition and rear wheel differential. Why is the
> fuel efficency of an average Ford 80 years later only 28 to 32 mpg
> using more advanced modern technology like fuel injection, distributorless
> ignition and front wheel drive ? Toyota is making and selling Hybrid
> cars, GM and Ford are still talking about it.