FRENCHY Loc: Stone Mountain , Ga

And !! don't forget the unions who are playing a huge part of it !!!!

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

LOL, GM when you include the changes to the bankruptcy laws and the losses on the stock was given over $50 billion by the US Taxpayers... and we saw an extraordinary change in the ownership of the company as secured bond holders and stockholders where screwed and the unions were protected and awarded company stock. Can anyone say democratic party fascism?

At any rate had GM gone through a regular bankruptcy they would have risen from the ashes and would not be burdened by contracts that continue to threaten their fiscal solvency today and moving into the future, they would have come back a stronger company, venture capital would have been formed to recapitalize the company and new management would have restructured for a competitive future. This thread has not even considered the costs of "Cash for Clunkers" and the "Green subsidies" put in place specifically to promote the Chevy Volt which has been a disaster.

The saving of GM is hardly a feather in Uncle Sam's or for that matter Obama's cap, given our government's willingness to spend unlimited amounts of borrowed money to fix something that the private sector would have taken care of is hardly good fiscal management, but then again our government has never been accused of good fiscal management.

Now we have a General Motors moving more and more of their production capabilities over to China, yes, we should all be proud.

pounder35 Loc: "Southeast of Disorder"

China should have bailed out GM. Oh! I forgot. Indirectly they did. :shock:

cherylpeters Loc: Kentucky

Ok guys, I am not saying G.M. is perfect but the problem we've been having is with the free-trade agreement the NAFTA issue,which Bill Clinton set into place I grew up in General Motors from the 60s,when everybodys cars were made in America,product's were made in America and now everything is outsourced.we had no choice at one time but G.M. is also trying to bring some of these products back over and they know that's the way it should work.

hondo812 Loc: Massachusetts

As a mechanical engineer I would read some of the various trade magazines especially earlier in my career. I can still remember CEO of GM Roger Smiths reply to the best value in the GM lineup......a 2 year old Buick.

My dad was big on GM, well after American Motors went out of business anyways. He owned Oldsmobiles and Buicks. I have owned one GM vehicle, a 1983 GMC Jimmy. I can honestly say that the Jimmy was the biggest POS vehicle I have ever had and I had owned A Triumph TR-6 before that. I wouldn't drive one of these if they were giving them away. The Jimmy never made it to 55k miles. That was quite something when you consider I bought it used (GM Pre-owned) at a local dealership at around 35k. The tranny went. I got it repaired. Ten months later it went again. Got it repaired at the dealership. 150 miles later (that is not a misprint) it went again. Dealership replaced the tranny and I got 5 more months out of it before the crank snapped.

Since then I have happily become a Toyota customer. I got 199.8k miles out of my first, 285k miles out of my second and I expect to get something similar out of the one I have now. I don't spend a lot of time or money at the dealership anymore and would not ever go back to GM if they were the last place on earth that sold cars. I'd rather walk.

pounder35 Loc: "Southeast of Disorder"

Don't sugar coat it. Tell us how you really feel. :lol: I'm driving a Chevy 1500 PU with a little over 200k. Bought it used with about 50K on it. Only problem I had was I had to replace a fuel pump. :thumbup:

Bunko.T Loc: Western Australia.

Without the workers you wouldn't have a car industry. Any industry for that matter.
And without unions you'd be back to slave labour.

pounder35 Loc: "Southeast of Disorder"

The unions were needed at one one time but today have exceeded their boundaries. Too much corruption and waste. Hmm..... Sounds just like the government. :roll: :thumbup:

cherylpeters Loc: Kentucky

Agreed, We are heading in that direction. When GM was almost finished, my husband said that the people at the union Hall was saying that the company wasn't doing things right. My husband said that they needed to shut up, and just wait, we didn't know if we had a job. There has been times that people use it wrong, but without it we would be back in the days when Henry Ford, was a dictator to his people. There is no perfect answer, just try and make it work. :thumbup:

cherylpeters Loc: Kentucky

I have had two Astro Vans and my last one's transmission just went at 210,000 miles. Now I am driving a Saturn Aura and love it :thumbup:

Bunko.T Loc: Western Australia.

Its funny listening to all this whining about GM going broke etc. We have it here in Aus too.
If folks could just see a little further in front of their noses, it would be obvious why.
Y'all are complaining about the crap they make but go & support the O/S products & let yours die.
It's happening all over where people are attracted by the $$$$. oblivious to the damage they do to their own industry. If you want an industry, you have to support it.
If it's not up to scratch, then jump up & down to improve it instead of going off shore & whimpering about why they go down the chute.
I'm a part of that same problem here. I own a Subaru while GM Holden are pulling out, no doubt being sucked down the plughole by the parent company.
What's the old saying "Use it or Lose It".

cherylpeters Loc: Kentucky

:thumbup:

FRENCHY Loc: Stone Mountain , Ga

Yes !! if you need someone to pamper your ass !!!

Bunko.T Loc: Western Australia.

EXACTLY!! Industry is in the trilogy too. What came first the chicken or the egg.
Irrespective, they need each other & with a bit of mutual respect & understanding, it could work.
As it is, it'll never happen while our bums point down.

Bunko.T Loc: Western Australia.

A collective body to fight for a standard of work place & pay.
If you've been a worker, they've made an impression on your life.
Like taxes, They're a necessary evil.