Congratulations! Your tax dollars are building four of the ten worst cars on the road.
Considering all the car companies in the world, this is a truly remarkable achievement for Obama Motors.
Let’s be specific. We’re talking about the Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Aveo and Chevrolet Colorado, made by General Motors, and the Dodge Nitro, made by Chrysler.
Forbes reports this remarkable story of American manufacturing know how:
If you want to drive something dependable and long-lasting, steer clear of these vehicles.
With a 22% improvement in sales last month, and despite the six-month, $4.3 billion loss it announced Wednesday, General Motors is likely to have its strongest spring and summer in years. Plus, the automaker had critically acclaimed new products at the recent New York Auto Show and the much-anticipated Chevrolet Volt is due out this fall.
Year-over-year sales of GM’s Cadillac division alone are up almost 76%; sales in the Buick, Chevrolet and GMC divisions were each up more than 40% for March. The industry as a whole was up 24.3%.
Unfortunately just because GM’s cars are selling well now doesn’t mean they’re the best bet for durability or value — yet. It’ll take awhile before GM’s new direction shows up in tangible new products at the dealership.
Four of the seven vehicles on our list of the worst-made cars on the road come from GM brands. And all of the cars on the list — including Chrysler’s Dodge Nitro and Jeep Wrangler — are made by Detroit’s Big Three. Only one car on the list is made by Ford Motor (NYSE: F).
This reminds us of a former client, a production manager at a major semiconductor company, who once stood before an international sales meeting, looked with disdain at his worldwide sales force and said, “Last year you complained that we made shit. (pause) This year you’re complaining that we’re not making it fast enough.”
Never laughed so hard.
Source: Forbes
This post was last modified on April 15, 2010
View Comments (22)
Some of you that claim to be conservatives which in my mind has always meant patriotic seem to be eager for an American company to go out of buisiness and are rooting for the japanese Toyata to prevail. That seems very, very odd to me. Is it because obama had his hand in it?For your information GM had paid back the bailout money in full with interest 5 years ahead of schedule so what is the problem?
Yes, Obama is harassing Toyota to try and drum up business for GM. (Fear mongering?). Ford did not need to take the welfare $$$ from the government because they dealt with their unions and manufacturing problems efficiently. They are selling the hell out of their vehicles because of their quality, style and business sense. Good job Ford. keep up the good work and stand up to present governments harassment promoting Government Motors. God Bless America. -- Dan
Deb maybe you should devote your life to Toyota and help them fight off all the devil American haters and ploters. DJ, I'm with you, somebody else here mentioned that we owed the japanese because we bombed thier citys, well thats too frikin bad. You people remember who started it in the first place? DJ you mentioned the atrocities of the japanese but forgot about what they did to the Chinese and Koreans, they killed millions of Chinese before we were ever involved.
PS. I think the only reason Ford is solvent is because every government, law enforcement, school security guard, EVERYONE buys ford. Notice all the cops have crown victorias? They have been getting government help all along!
I read somewhere not too long ago that 97% of the police departments in the US buy American. Yes, Ford is at the top of the list, but I've seen GM and others as well...even unmarked Volvos to catch dangerous drivers.
I'm not sure, but I think that police departments can buy whatever vehicle they choose unless it is mandated by their jurisdiction. They have a higher horsepower and other goodies that the average Joe can't get at the dealership...only when the PD sells the old vehicles to the public. BTW, there are some Prius cop cars in Michigan (big uproar!), NYC and Illinois.
Maybe it's just me but somehow cops don't look so tough in a Prius. Now a Charger is a different story!
Ray, exactly what I was thinking. They are skewering TOyota for stuff American car dealers got away with for years! But now that Toyota is a major competitor with Government owned car companies, they are the devil incarnate! Isn'r it a conflict of interest for a competitor to evaluate your business?
I may be wrong but I seem to remember that at least some Japanese car and motorcycle co.s have recieved financial help from the Japanese gov. in past years so the perception that they have never done that would be wrong.It is with our help, the American tax payer, that Japanese industry got help after WW2, and in my opinion an unfair advantage over American industry because everything was brand new. So as a conservative that dislikes most of what obama has done, I don't have any problem with giving our car companys help back on thier feet, after all it will be repayed. It would be stupid to let our car industry die for the fact that who do you think built the planes and tanks during WW2?
"It is with our help, the American tax payer, that Japanese industry got help after WW2..."
Not only in the form of a 7 year occupation to rebuild the country, but during the war they also got "help" in the form of slave labor from the POW's...they helped build the Mitsubishi factories that manufactured the Japanese Zero's!
Many Japanese companies used Allied POW's to build and prosper during the war and the treatment of those POW's was horrendous. Not to mention that they were starved on a daily basis (usually 600 calorie diet - mostly rice) and were never compensated.
I need to stop now before I really go off on a tangent!
It would be interesting to read the article or the paperwork that indicates that Japanese car and motorcycle companies have received financial help from the Japanese govt. If it could be provided that would be great. I wouldn't want to have the wrong perception, however I would like to know the truth before my perception is perceived as wrong. Overall it is wrong if it is true, and the Japanese people should be angry about it. As I mentioned more than once, that is not the way to do business. Not there and not here. The point though that the issues with Toyota here in this country, are not government related they were consumer related and the dog and pony show was unnecessary and wasteful of time and funds.
Since the US bombed two major cities and the fallout of it was of massive proportion for decades after, I can understand government (tax) money going to help rebuild. It has a lot of purposes, the first one being charitable. It makes the US looks good to not just put a guy down when he is being evil or wrong, but once he is down lift him up and in the process hopefully gain an ally. That leads to the second purpose. It is a good strategy and I don't fault funds being used to aid a country in disarray especially when that can add a major ally and strategic points for bases in the area (close to China for example). It is to our benefit so it is not necessarily badly spent funds on the general sense.
Industries were helped by the war and helped the government with the war efforts. Govt paid for needed goods and it want back to the people and went back to the govt, it is cyclical. There was a mutual benefit there. For everyone. Sure the car companies got help from us, but I don't see the mutual benefit to the people per se. If they had to break up and become smaller pieces, perhaps it would have created a way for entrepreneurial people (who have desires to make cars) to come up with good products and reinvent the industry. Those who have the best and safest products emerge as the winners, those who fail to meet demands of safety and satisfaction go away. That benefits everyone in my opinion. People may rethink the needs for unions and people who want to work get new jobs. However people in govt and the car companies panicked because they were too big and wanted to do the right thing. However still to this day, many have still lost their jobs or the industry being as it is has created a negative ripple effect so there is still struggle, so, so far do not see the bailout working out. Now they know that if they want to continue they have to do things right. Hopefully they learnt that.
I am glad it was repayed. That is the best thing that they could do for themselves. If it was repayed that is excellent. We do not need government to mandate what cars we should be driving or not.
Hmmmm.....Toyota is fast losing the race, may be worse than an Escalade sooner than expected! Per CNN they're now recalling 600,000 minivans....Oh what a feeling!
http://bit.ly/bsLWBy
They start doin that, giving money to foriegn companys, I'd be for public hangings.
KimmyQueen , Toyota is a Japanese Co., why would the US government even consider giving a Japanese Co. any money, no matter what kind of economic shape it was in?
That is not the point. I wasn't suggesting that funds would apply to them. Just stated that as far as I knew the govt had no business getting involved with Toyota. Besides they are a private company, no govt in their case, the Japanese govt, shouldn't give them money regardless of where they are financially, then it is not a private company it is a govt run/owned company which defeats the purpose of having a private/consumer based company in the first place.
The point about Toyota is that they don't owe the US govt anything. All problems were truly consumer related and it is up to consumer to chastise the company for their mess up. Bad things happen with cars all the time, govt intervention was not necessary (besides NOTHING came out of that whole thing) so I agree with Ray that the showboating was PERHAPS a political play perhaps due that Toyota is a non union company.
Regardless of being US companies, they (the big three auto companies) are private companies and as such should have stuck to the basics of capitalism and deal with their problems without going to the government for money. Humiliating themselves or allow the politicians to humiliate them and thus being the govt whipping boys was a terrible move. Just the act of owing the country money puts them at a disadvantage that they may never be able to shake off.
If Toyota donated enough money I'd bet our illustrious representatives in DC would be falling all over themselves to give them money.
I find it funny that people that call themselves patriotic Americans would be giddy about what they think are problems with American cars, which I think is bullshit anyway. So it's obama attacking toyota and not toyotas own durability and quality causing thier problems? I own A GM product and love it and own it because my last GM got almost 300,000 mi. on it when I sold it to the person still driving it. And that was with no engine or tranny rebuild.
Better than my last GMC truck. 2 rear differentials, 4 transmissions, 2 sets of valve stem seals in about 188k miles. No I didn't drive it like I stole it either. For contrast I have a Chevy pickup at work, runs and runs, seldom a problem, the employees drive the snot out of it, so go figure.
I have a Land Rover with 283k on it I've had very few problems with, but it's contrary to most people's experiences with Land Rovers. The previous Land Rover I had had way more problems.
I think a lot of making a car last is how well you drive a car and how well you maintain it, regardless of brand. (exeption being a lemon, which they all make now and then).