Trust me on the Japanese workers in Japan. I lived there off a Navy ship for a couple of years in the 80's. The average company worker is similar to government workers here as far as benefits. They have been slowly moving away from it but culturally they still have the mind set. I know it will help one of your other arguments elsewhere but Japan runs a huge deficit because of it.

When you look at the world market many American auto owners are like Harley owners. Loyal to a fault. Willing to accept an inferior product out of loyalty and patriotism. They also will pay top dollar if it makes the vehicle look/sound better or go faster than everyone else.
Chrysler's bail out was more direct but the government has subsidized and bailed out the auto industry in many indirect ways for years.
The original topic was that regulation and unions were killing the industry in America...This is not true because Japan makes cars here, prosper and make a profit....but just like Harley eventually will kill themselves in the world market so will we unless we go back to making a superior product that is efficient. Foreign automakers already have a huge head start. Eventually small turbocharged/supercharged power full engines will dominate the market...while manyAmericans still have the Harley mentality.
Bigger, more noise, more fuel and oil consumption. Performance is relative until gas cost enough. We can but still don't make superior 4 and 6 cylinder engines. This has and will cost the US auto industry dearly like it did before when gas spiked in the 70's.

 

Very good points. And here's a question, how many of you acutally use your trucks for work? How many bought it just because it looked good? I mean lets face it, unless you haul or tow regularly, a Civic or Camry will get you back and forth to work just like an F150 will - only itll be a helluve lot cheaper.

 

True to a point ^. The people who bought on looks, good for them. They are entitled to own whatever they want, why should you have to settle? Why is the gas companies making decisions for us? Nobody wants to attack them and why 4-5 years ago, oil was 50 bucks a barrel cheaper and demand was slightly less? Civics and Camry's are not the cheap alternative, they cost about the same as any other similar car. If that's the alternative, I'd get a Focus or a G5 or whatever I could fit in. Keep in mind too, 6.5 ft tall people can only fit in certain cars too. My truck fits just fine and when I feel like loading it and using it, I do. Nice having a truck sometimes. I love the people who cry about all these huge trucks, gas guzzlers, polluters and then suck up to their friends with trucks because their civic can't carry dirt, sheets of drywall or tow anything. Pickups become very desireable to the fair weather friends who want their cake and eat it too. Eat poo diqueheads.

Get this though, see how us Canadians have a higher or at par dollar with Americans, Toyota is whining how it is becoming too expensive to build cars in Canada now. WTF gives, they aren't even unionized and have no retiree costs, and really no labor costs above what they pay a worker per hour. They are going to cry poor, joining the band wagon they invented for off shore cheap labor.

 

Indeed... We don't "NEED" a truck either (My wife and I). We just got one for the looks, and at the time (at least when we got the first one (1999) gas was only $0.79 a gallon. Today at $3.00 a gallon, they're not as much fun...

I tell ya, when we had the Expedition (30 gallon tank) and the SuperCrew (24 galon tank) and that gas hit $3.05 a gallon- it was costign me about $165 a week to keep those trucks on the road. $660 a month in gas...

It's about that now, as fuel in my area is hovering around $2.89 a gallon. While I do muss my Expy (thirsty b***ard!), I don't miss it when I pull the Edge up to the pump, with it's 19 gallon tank. $48 a week to feed it, beats the snot out of $90+. And on the highway, it's not even close.

Today, it costs me $54 to go 432 miles in the Edge.
It costed me $90 to go 429 miles in my Expy (5.4L), which never got more than 14.33 on the highway.

If the new Suburban actually hit it's claim of 22 MPG (with the 5.3L) I could go 660 miles for $90.00, or roughly 432 miles for roughly $58.00 @ $0.13 a mile fuel cost to run.
The Edge costs me about $0.125 a mile to run, and my old Expy (2003) was about $0.209 a mile.

Doesn't sound like much, but as miles rack up, it makes a difference.

 

Most European cars are even shinier turds than some of the American cars. If you like overpriced cars that burn oil and have electrical problems then you have a winner!

 

Yup, anything German.

 

The Harley quote made me laugh. I bought a Yamaha Roadstar. It is basically a knock off of the Heritage softail at half the cost. Harley riders give me so much crap for riding a ricer. I usually laugh at them and say "Its paid in cash, and I did not have to get a second mortgage."

I am sure your statement will infuriate some in this forum. But hey, the truth is the truth, and sometimes its painful to hear. As for as the "Sheep" mentality goes, I believe that you have made some very valid points. Refreshing to hear, but odd in this day and age.

 

repost

 

The original topic was that regulation and unions were killing the industry in America...This is not true because Japan makes cars here, prosper and make a profit....

the japanese factories in the US are NOT union. They don't have the associated costs with the union and they pay lower wages. The japanese companies that pay the American workers in America does not have the same culture involoved here.

 

Unions are killing the American car industry; Ford, Chrysler, Chevy are poster children. They for sure are not killing foreign car makers building their product in the US because they are not unionized. Sure there are other reasons for the American vehicles makers decline but cost is the main culprit and the majority of cost comes from their work force. Another factor that noone has spoken of is the pay of executives. Upper management in the Japanese market don't make what they do in the US!!

 

As US auto unions decline and die America will be able to compete in the world market yes?
Since we can eliminate the regulations excuse.

 

Couldn't agree more!! It's sad that something that started to help American workers is nothing more now than a pair of handcuffs for the US auto industry. Unions have served their due. The UAW is a dinosaur and extinction is past due!