Sell GM's assets to Toyota

[fuji]

A Canadian perspective: What does it matter to us whether the foreign car company is Japanese or American? Toyota is an efficient, profitable company that was recently expanding its operations in Ontario. GM is a faltering mis-managed firm that has been contracting.

Rather than bailing out GM we should take whatever money was on the table, along with all of GM's assets, and start negotiations with Toyota on creative ways to get many former GM employees jobs.

Why give money to the companies that are losing it? Why not support the ones that know how to make products people want?

 

[alex52]

Toyota is not so stupid as to buy garbage. Chinese might buy the GM plants,and ship them to china.

 

[oldjones]

Smarter would be for China (or India) to buy the plants at fire-sale prices, sell off the useless bits, ship the hardware for higher-end models back home where an enormous marketl wants them, and build the stuff here that GM's so-called managers thought was beneath them.

After all, if the Japanese and Koreans, to say nothing of the Germans, could make money even after adding trans-oceanic shipping costs to their prices, just imagine what profits GM and their buds could have made if they'd resolved to beat them on the proverbial beachead instead of letting them slowly take over.

While the evil consequences of just abandoning the Big Dumb Three to bankruptcy are too horrible to contemplate for the broad society—all those people who just made the cars, and the seats and the steering wheels, and the tires and the sales signs and the ads and commercials and …—who had no say in the stupid decisions that brought this on, that doesn't mean writing the bozos another cheque, as was done for Iacocca at Chrysler.

We, the governments of Canada and the US could buy the companies outright at current prices and have money left over to pump into them. We could fire the current managers—mostly bean counters who couldn't tell you what a good car is—and hire the folks who make the European GMs and Fords that Waggoner and his ilk wouldn't sell us.

 

[onthebottom]

Smarter would be for China (or India) to buy the plants at fire-sale prices, sell off the useless bits, ship the hardware for higher-end models back home where an enormous marketl wants them, and build the stuff here that GM's so-called managers thought was beneath them.

After all, if the Japanese and Koreans, to say nothing of the Germans, could make money even after adding trans-oceanic shipping costs to their prices, just imagine what profits GM and their buds could have made if they'd resolved to beat them on the proverbial beachead instead of letting them slowly take over.

While the evil consequences of just abandoning the Big Dumb Three to bankruptcy are too horrible to contemplate for the broad society—all those people who just made the cars, and the seats and the steering wheels, and the tires and the sales signs and the ads and commercials and …—who had no say in the stupid decisions that brought this on, that doesn't mean writing the bozos another cheque, as was done for Iacocca at Chrysler.

We, the governments of Canada and the US could buy the companies outright at current prices and have money left over to pump into them. We could fire the current managers—mostly bean counters who couldn't tell you what a good car is—and hire the folks who make the European GMs and Fords that Waggoner and his ilk wouldn't sell us.

And there are so many well run government programs like.... um.... .well.... oh never mind.

The best thing that could happen to Toyota is that the US government enters the auto industry...

OTB

 

[gramage]

And there are so many well run government programs like.... um.... .well.... oh never mind.

OTB

that what happens when you elect a party that doesn't think government can work, it doesn't.

 

[fuji]

The US administration has been nationalizing the economy faster than you can say "Hugo Chavez" (phrase due to The Economist).

Citibank got nationalized today--the government poured in 27b when its market cap was only 20b. So now the govt. in theory owns over 50% of the firm. That's not some fake ownership either--their first act as new owners was to set the terms of employment for the CEO. The largest insurer is also now government property, along with a long list of other firms.

Why stop there? Why not nationalize the car industry too? The GOP is on a roll--before Bush leaves office the administration will preside over most of the American economy, at this rate.

 

[21pro]

sell the junk to TATA motors not toyota.

 

[WoodPeckr]

The US administration has been nationalizing the economy faster than you can say "Hugo Chavez" (phrase due to The Economist).

LOL!
Yet Dubya was just on TV saying how he still supports 'free market Capitalism'!
Was he lying again!....

 

[chiller_boy]

And there are so many well run government programs like.... um.... .well.... oh never mind.

The best thing that could happen to Toyota is that the US government enters the auto industry...

OTB

Wrong time for this ideological position. Banks(private) are failing or threatening to fail left and right. All investment banks may be gone before we know it. American automobile companies have practically managed their
way into oblivion if they are not helped by (gulp) government. The insurance industry(private) is a disaster as its largest company needs(gulp) government help. today, most US innovations are arising out of Universities with (largely) government funding as private companies(like big Phama) spend their resources on advertising products of questionable need.

Now the US government entering the Auto industry does not mean that senators will design cars. What it does mean, hopefully, is that longer term goals for environmentally friendly, reduced gas mileage(these already there in nascent form) and mass transit ideas will leap to the forefront over decisions based on immediate profits.

And Toyota is having its own problems very similar to the big three in terms of sales in the US.

 

[landscaper]

Anyone buying the assets of any of the big three would cherry pick what they wanted. Most likley buying names rather than hard assets. That is what happened to Rover and JAguar. It would not solve the problems that the big three have, After following this issue for a while it seems more and more likely that chapter 11 is the only solution that will fix the problem. \

There is a rumour reported by Bloomberg that the Obama administration is or has already put together a prepackaged chapter11 for the big three. It would invlove showing up in bankrupcy court with a package and having it approved with out the stakeholders getting a say. I don't know if its accurate or not but it is troubling the package would be what the administration felt was best for the country not the stakeholders.

 

[danmand]

People tend to look only at the Consumer part of the Big Three American auto makers and forget how important those Companies are to US National Security.

Do you really believe that the US will be happy that a foreign owned Company is producing the vehicles needed for the US Armed forces ... not likely.

The Carlyle group will buy the defense assets.

 

[onthebottom]

People tend to look only at the Consumer part of the Big Three American auto makers and forget how important those Companies are to US National Security.

Do you really believe that the US will be happy that a foreign owned Company is producing the vehicles needed for the US Armed forces ... not likely.



bbk

Who makes the Striker?

OTB

 

[landscaper]

Who makes the Striker?

OTB

General Motors defense contractors London Ontario

 

[onthebottom]

General Motors defense contractors London Ontario

Damn foreigners stealing our jobs.....

How many Strikers does Canada buy?


OTB

 

[onthebottom]

Stop being an idiot OTB ... I think you know why the US can't allow the Big 3 to fail, however I do concede that your dumb ass libertarian views get in the way of rational thinking from time to time.


bbk

LOL

So, how many does Canada buy?

ORB

 

[onthebottom]

So what the hell does this have to do with a super power giving up it's manufacturing capacity?


bbk

I'll answer your question after you answer mine....

OTB

 

[chiller_boy]

A Canadian perspective: What does it matter to us whether the foreign car company is Japanese or American? Toyota is an efficient, profitable company that was recently expanding its operations in Ontario. GM is a faltering mis-managed firm that has been contracting.

Rather than bailing out GM we should take whatever money was on the table, along with all of GM's assets, and start negotiations with Toyota on creative ways to get many former GM employees jobs.

Why give money to the companies that are losing it? Why not support the ones that know how to make products people want?

Have you seen the pictures of the cars piling up in san diego and los angeles? All the car companies are in trouble and japans economy is really going down the toilet. Remeber that Ford actually made money in the first quarter of 2008(and the stock was starting to take off). The poor quality of American cars is greatly exaggerated. Yes, they bought into the Bush administrations BS about Americans deserving SUVs and they like their immediate high margin profit but they certainly can and will make cars that the Americans want. With the huge pent up demand in the US and the wave of nationalism likely to accompany a resurgent US auto industry, Ford and GM stocks might just be the place to be. One analyst on CNBC predicts a quadrouple of Fords share price.

Making good traditional cars at lower margins is not rocket science.

 

[danmand]

Have you seen the pictures of the cars piling up in san diego and los angeles? All the car companies are in trouble and japans economy is really going down the toilet. Remeber that Ford actually made money in the first quarter of 2008(and the stock was starting to take off). The poor quality of American cars is greatly exaggerated. Yes, they bought into the Bush administrations BS about Americans deserving SUVs and they like their immediate high margin profit but they certainly can and will make cars that the Americans want. With the huge pent up demand in the US and the wave of nationalism likely to accompany a resurgent US auto industry, Ford and GM stocks might just be the place to be. One analyst on CNBC predicts a quadrouple of Fords share price.

Making good traditional cars at lower margins is not rocket science.

I think you are wrong. The oil price will not stay this low for long, and the
big three are unable to match the smaller fuel efficient cars from Japan, Europe, not
to mention China and India.

 

[landscaper]

Damn foreigners stealing our jobs.....

How many Strikers does Canada buy?


OTB

Just for your information the stryker is a vehical that was developed and designed by Canadians for the Canadian armed forces back in the late 70 early 80's. The Stryker is a derivative of the Armoured Vehical General purpose we concieved and designed, the MArines liked it and ordered a couple of thousand, the army got in with the stryker which is basically and AVGP designed to, U.S. army requirements.

 

[james t kirk]

Of the big 3, I think Ford stands the best chance to recover.

They have a good range of cars, they are producing better quality cars than the other 2, they are fairly sucessful in Europe, they have some interesting designs in Europe and Australia, they still sell a pile of F150's. They make AWD vehicles, Hybrids, and the Focus and Fusion are quite capable of competing with Japanese cars.