Wow! It's like 5 bucks for a gallon here!

 

To simply blame all of the problems on the UAW is being too simplistic. The UAW was looking out for its members, and both GM and Ford AGREED to the contracts. That being said,. though, perhaps it is time now for renegotiation, as concessions may be in order.

Remember several points---where does FoMoCo make the vast majority of its money? On trucks and SUV's. Same for GM. While we mock the Ridgeline, the Tundra, and the Titan, Honda, Toyota, and Nissan do not make their money on them---it is the Accord, the Civic, the Camry, the Corolla, and the Altima that are bringing in the bucks for those companies. The Ridgeline, the Tundra, et.al, are not "heavy hitters." They do steal some money away from FoMoCo and GM, but are not the big money-makers.

A friend of mine in the car manufacturing business says the big issue now is the $$$ on each car that goes to retirees--that hurts FoMoCo and GM the most.

Again though, I lived through the oil embargo of the '70's and remember who hit it rich then---Honda, Datsun, and Toyota---Ford and Gm STILL HAVE NOT LEARNED THEIR LESSON.

It was easy money to sell F-150's, Jimmys, Explorers, Sierras, and the like; however, their has to be a major shift in thinking by these companies to move them to where they are competitive.

The misconception of quality is fading---many buyers know that Ford's quality rivals that of the Japanese---but both Ford and GM, for years, have been playing "Catch-up" with the three Japanese auto makers in terms of design.

The UAW did its job to protect its workers and the contract was ratified by both sides; I am sure that all of the bean counters for the big three were busy checking to see if the numbers added up...and, at that time, they did.

Perhaps, with the present issues at hand, FoMoCo and GM (along with Chrysler) can press the issue and renegotiate some changes...

TSC

 

According to Stefan Weinman spokesman for General Motors, General Motors spends $5.2 billion on health care for 1.1 million people, equaling $4,727 annually per person. People can buy cheaper cars and get the same value without the health care costs of $1,525 built into every vehicle made. Add another $675 per car for pension costs.

http://www.carlist.com/autonews/2005/autonews_131.html

That is a legacy cost of $2200 added to each vehicle!!

According to 2007 figures given here (http://www.autoobserver.com/2007/09/...ke-a-deal.html) “GM’s current labor costs are $73.26 per hour” and “The cost is $25 to $30 per hour more than the labor costs of Asian rivals such as Toyota and Honda that have plants in the U.S. The creation of the VEBA could eliminate as much as one-half to two-thirds of the gap virtually overnight.”

http://clusterstock.alleyinsider.com...s-doesn-t-work

 

And that's only a small part of their financial oversight.

 

Then one might expect the Toyotas to be at least $2000 less expensive than a comparable Ford...a Camry begins a $19,145---a Fusion starts at $19,035.

Toyota's profit margin is actually larger, and Ford is working very hard to compete model-by-model. The Honda Accord begins at $20,775...same scenario. Ford's prices are competitive with Honda, as well.

TSC

 

To stereotype. The people that buy those cars do so because they feel they're getting more for their money, and less maintance cost. Depending on the Jone's to pick their car for them.

But thats just a passing thought.