Is it a Coincidence?
Written by Michael Rebmann on February 3, 2010 – 12:12 am -
covert protectionism = stimulus
The economy sucks. It is widely ackowledged that Obama’s stimulus packages are failures that are just making things worse. BUT, Toyota Motor Corp.’s quality crisis deepened Tuesday, as U.S. regulators accused the company of dragging its feet on fixing defective gas pedals and threatened civil penalties and further reviews of Toyota products. This could prove to be quite a shot in the arm for the U.S. auto industry.
Posted in Economy |
February 3rd, 2010 at 5:52 am
The ones with the pedal problems were manufactured in North America. Go figure…
February 3rd, 2010 at 8:10 am
Mike’s right. My first thought was the same as his. As Rahm says, “a crisis is a terrible thing to waste.” GM and Chrysler sales are going nowhere, so the govt. jumps in with both feet. They never did this with any GM or Ford recalls. As Pauldub points out many Toyota vehicles are produced here so the damage is done to American workers, just not UAW workers. This administration is morally, ethically, and intellectually bankrupt.
February 3rd, 2010 at 9:16 am
Even if this is a legitimate problem, the steps by the government, and the publicity, seem very strong compared to the past. Obama is grasping for straws in an effort to bolster the public perception of his effectiveness. That would negate the fact that the cars are manufactured in North America, after all, Obama’s game is perception, not reality. As soon as Brown won in Massachusetts, Obama pushed health care to the side and started flinging new initiatives. These included the stimulus for small businesses and the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
I could be wrong about the Toyota thing, but we all know that Obama is desperate for a “win” and the economy is the number 1 concern according to public opinion polls. An upturn in the auto industry would make a lot of people think the Messiah knows what he is doing.
February 3rd, 2010 at 11:53 am
I really don’t think that this is going to provide a boost to Government Motors, or Ford.
Toyota has a reputation for quality. This gas pedal problem was an engineering gaffe, not something done by any of the workers. When you work on the line, you install what the engineers have designed into the vehicle. These issues are not the result of workers installing the parts wrong. The parts have design flaws, which is a rarity for Toyota.
I bought a 1980 Toyota Corolla in 1979. Why? Domestic autos at the time sucked. I test drove a Chevy Citation—sure as hell glad I didn’t buy one. I paid 5200 for the car, the loan was 6100, and the car was paid for in Jan of 1984.
I sold the Corolla in 1992, for 600.00 because it needed a new clutch, and I had several vehicles. The odometer read over 250,000 miles. Engine still ran strong, Never changed the carb, alternator, or any parts except brakes, Plugs/Cap/Wires, and the radiator, which rotted out due to being parked by the ocean in Puerto Rico every day for 3 years. Salt air ya know. But the radiator lasted 4 years after the car was shipped back stateside.
I don’t buy foreign cars anymore, because I know where the profits go. But I’m careful about what domestic models I buy.
People who want an import car will continue to buy them, much to the chagrin of the UAW rank and file.
People like Bedenko who get chills up their thigh from foreign cars never retort when I ask them why they’re not “down for the struggle” with the UAW, and buying American cars…..
February 3rd, 2010 at 5:20 pm
Hank,
This will help Ford. They already have a better quality rating than Toyota. Foreign cars image can go away just as easily as the domestics did. Toyota’s problems extend further back than this. They actually lost more money last year than GM (of course, they could afford to). The former big 3’s main problem was that you didn’t know if you were going to get a great car or a dud. most people can’t afford to take a chance on getting a dud, so they bought plain old, blah toyota because when you turned on the ignition it worked.
I had a 1994 Chevy suburban 1500 4WD. I replaced an alternator and differential, was on a 3rd set of tires, & 2nd set of brakes with 267,000 miles when I gave it to my son. GM & ford can make very good vehicles, but most don’t want to play russian roulette.
February 4th, 2010 at 7:52 am
American cars suck, Japanesse are nice but ahhhh… German engineering. My 1980 VW bus while not exactly a show stopper is still running with 144000. Put new tires on it last Feb and changed the oil that’s it. Granted I only drive it in the winter…I ride my bike the rest of the year…but hey it’s still kicking.
February 8th, 2010 at 1:50 pm
My 90 Caravan has 155K, still rolling. My wife’s 94 Caravan has 228K, runs just fine. Lots of US cars suck, not all.
February 8th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
Jim M. is right about russian roulette..The last new GM vehicle I bought has had an assortment of problems that I rarely or NEVER had on any of my others. Most of them are due to cheap outsourced parts or electronics. I do most of the repairs myself but for someone who doesn’t you get a rude awakening with repair bills, especially if you have to go to the dealer for a 2 dollar circuit board that they mark up about 5000%.
You could have a long history with decent cars but if you get one like I had it could lose you a customer for life after all these years. That’s hardly the way to retain customers who fork out 30 grand to them.