PRUDEN: A cream puff for used-car salesmen

The Washington Times ^ | 11/14/08 | Wesley Pruden

[mykroar]

The Democrats are having a hard time selling the bailout of General Motors because nearly everyone has suffered the agony of buying a car. That's how the "used-car salesman," fair or not, became the American icon of deception, fraud and thievery.

Maybe it's true that GM is "too big to fail," though from all the available evidence GM is succeeding spectacularly at failure. What the pols and their lobbyist buddies really mean with their used-car salesman's spiel is that GM is "too big for Joe Sixpack to let fail."

[mykroar]

Maybe it's true that GM is "too big to fail," though from all the available evidence GM is succeeding spectacularly at failure.

Is it just me - or does this comment say it all?

[Republicus2001]

Gee I can’t remember when I got any profit-sharing checks from GM but they want me to cover their losses?

[arthurus]

Too big to fail

In capitalization, GM isno longer even very big.

[Bernard]

If the Big Three automakers fail, that will eliminate most of the private-sector unions. Which leaves public-sector employees.

[GourmetDan]

Are the unions about to get toasted so soon after supporting Obama?

Is this what ‘payback’ is all about?

[arthurus]

It says it all.

[Starboard]

That's how the "used-car salesman," fair or not, became the American icon of deception, fraud and thievery.

Now the American icon of deception, fraud and thievery is the politician.

[Mr. Jeeves]

The Democrats are having a hard time selling the bailout of General Motors because nearly everyone has suffered the agony of buying a car.

I'll guarantee Pruden's original version read "the agony of buying a GM car, but then someone thought better of it. ;)

[Jeff Chandler]

My daughter just took advantage of GM’s agony by purchasing a new Silverado at a screaming low price. They’re practically giving away 2008s. If I didn’t already have something lined up to buy used, I would have grabbed one for myself.

[Starboard]

Gee I can’t remember when I got any profit-sharing checks from GM but they want me to cover their losses?

Similar to the way the government wants a share of all your investing profits, but is not willing to help you out very much with your losses.

[stevem]

Here is a true rarity...I disagree fundamentally with Wes Pruden. I drive a Pontiac Montana. It's a minivan. I treasure it. It's been a great car for roughly 105,000 miles. I expect it to last at least another 100,000 miles.

Here is the true issue with this editorial:

Handing out money is habit-forming, and there's never a lack of "clients."

Anyone who can't see this is a politician or some other idiot. I have started and will continue until we are through as a nation to suggest: Problem? Here is $700 billiuon. That should take care of it.

Maybe, before he dies, it isn't to late to ask Robert Mugabe to come here and fix what's wrong in the US.

[traditional1]

For Democrats to TAKE our earnings, to satisfy their Union or other donators, is out and out THEFT, IMHO.

EVERY failing industry, due to their environmental regualions, OSHA, and every other Federal bureaucracy they (government) has created to appease their voter base, is now to be further piled on the backs of taxpayers.

If the free market system could BE free of interference, the marketplace solves poorly run/unethical businesses through non-patronage, and efficiency will replace waste and mismanagement every time.

What business is next to jump in line when their operation is piss-poor, and they can't attract customers? Rather than recognize their problem management, we assure them of a profit AND continued mismanagement by just sending the earnings in the form of taxdollars to them, and they go on their merry way, while the taxpayer has been fleeced, and they get NOTHING in return.

This all smacks of a concerted effort to destroy the free market/American system, and replace it with communism/socialism, and that's the bottom line in all this bailout B.S.

[So Circumstanced]

Ding Ding Ding!

A special on bilge pumps for sluicy bailouts in ailse three!

Guaranteed to liberally splash- back septic stink at anyone foolish enough to buy it!

[Crawdad]

“Management” hasn’t run GM for a long time.

[Jeff Chandler]

I have owned Fords, a Mercury, Chevys, and a Volkswagen, date of manufacture ranging from 1954 through 1998, and not one of them was a lemon.

I drove every one of them more than 100,000 miles, some of them more than 200,000 miles, and sold every single one of them while it was still in good running order.

The key is to do your research and select the models which are well built. Then treat the machine kindly.

[Volunteer]

What kills me is this is a company who built bad cars and now we are being asked to bail out a bad business model.

[Tail Gunner John]

I recently bought my daughter a Cobalt for a little over half what a Civic was quoted to me.

I am currently driving a 2001 Monte Carlo with 147,000 miles.

No problems, no complaints.

[traditional1]

Yup....you wouldn't give them money for their crappy product, so they have the Gubmint TAKE your money, and give it to them ANYWAY....

Is this a great country, or what????

[okie01]

What kills me is this is a company who built bad cars and now we are being asked to bail out a bad business model.

We are not being asked to bail out GM.

We are being asked to bail out the UAW.

An even less-enticing proposition...

[alecqss]

I think that GM should do precisely what airlines did - declare bankruptcy. That will allow to get rid of present over the top Union contracts and negotiate the new ones. The whole purpose of the “bailout” is to leave it a s is, which means that GM domestically stays uncompetitive and will either completely crash later, or move all production out of the country, or will require constant bailouts.

[SunkenCiv]

Sure, but we can’t be certain which party they support. /sarc

Thanks Bernard.

[JoeFromSidney]

I think that GM should do precisely what airlines did - declare bankruptcy. That will allow to get rid of present over the top Union contracts and negotiate the new ones.

Precisely. If the Big 3 declare bankruptcy, the buildings are still there, the machines are still there, and the people who know how to run the machines are still there. The new owners can get rid of the stumblebums who are responsible for the mess, and start paying the auto workers wages in line with what car-buyers are getting.

[SunkenCiv]

The Big Three were happy to make large cars and trucks, although I’m not sure who built the Russian-derived Hummer vehicles, simply because people wanted to drive ‘em, and because they could make money doing it. Bigger vehicles are priced higher and have a much larger and more expensive assortment of options. The engineering is familiar, and they generally do it very well.

The Big Three have also made small cars since CAFE requirements went into effect, but I don’t think they’ve ever made much on ‘em. I recall reading that the Neon (started as a Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge model, so the entire dealer network could sell it) was the first American subcompact that actually made money for the manufacturer. The reason they can’t make money on small cars is labor costs. Literally the only reason the Big Three ever build small cars is CAFE.

I doubt that the gubmint would go for the bankruptcy approach to busting the union contracts. The unions in the auto plants in Europe aren’t any weaker than the UAW, but those plants produce things like VWs, Audis, Porsches, BMWs, Mercedes-Benz... but those are not cheap cars, and those companies are making money.

Japanese imports of the early 1970s caught on because of the sudden tripling of the price of crude — but I remember how they used to fall apart from the winter salts here in Michigan. The difference is, the Japanese fixed that problem, continued to improve quality, and of course, were used to building small cars for their own market, and rapidly built more capacity in neighboring countries. Now there are Japanese luxury makes, and Japanese-label cars are built in the US, sometimes (perhaps often) with more domestic content than US nameplate vehicles.

[Radix]

I drove 4 Chevy Blazers in a row during the last 20 years.

The last one (a 2002 version) was the biggest POS ever.

I will never buy another GM car, not ever.

Your crap car caused me much travail and lots of dough in repairs. The dealerships were nothing to brag about either.

Go to Hell UAW.

[bilhosty]

I drive a good old fashioned, Red blooded, all American Toyota Corolla. I am very happy with it and would not buy any garage from Detroit and its UAW under any circumstances. so screw ‘em.