Car makers in bankruptcy

I'll buy a car from a company that can give me a good, sturdy, good-looking car that doesn't need a lot of repairs and has good gas mileage. Period. If a company can't provide that.....maybe they deserve to go into bankruptcy.

Same here. And GM and Chrysler do not provide that at the moment so no thanks, I'll go with a toyota.

I had nothing but problems with my Chrysler pt cruiser ... But never had any trouble with Moms GM olds intrigue

the trouble is that each one of these car makers keep at least 300 other companies in business so if I had some faith then yes

That's one of the biggest issues with letting any of the big three "die". Their industry impacts so many others like the parts manufacturers for one.

I personally have not bought a North American car in years and most certainly would not buy one from a company in bankruptcy. I would be very concerned about warranties in that case.

That attitude of mine is not condusive to helping NA manufacturers but they are their own worst enemy. They knew a change was coming and that smaller cars would be the norm, yet they rejected that information and continued on their merry way. Now they are paying the piper.

Hopefully if they fail, other, more reliable car manufacturers such as Honda, Toyota, VW, etc. will start production in North America. For some reason these companies seem to be able to produce cars, make a profit, and keep employees happy without having to file for bankruptcy. Maybe there's a lesson in there somewhere that the big 3 could learn from.

The latest in Ontario, Canada is that they want the Provincial government to top up the pension funds of these workers and retirees of the auto industry out of tax dollars. The government is saying they don't have the money and that it isn't fair to all the folks in the Province that don't even have a pension fund but have worked and paid taxes for years. Maybe I'm hard-nosed, but I agree. They are already getting or going to get a pension from the auto industry plus their Canada Pension, plus their Old Age Security. People with no pensions from a corporation will only ever get the CP and OAS so already the auto folks are miles ahead of the average Joe.

We bought a car in February. We were already leery and bought a Honda. Ironically, It was manufactured in and most of the parts are from North America.

The only car I have had trouble with was a Chrysler product, and it was a nightmare. (I probably deserved that, because there wasn't a single "right" reason involved in that decision, but that's a different discussion.) It's also the only NA car I have ever bought, or ever will.

Basically, Linda stated it perfectly, with the exception that the Japanese do manufacture in North America, so there's even more reason to make comparisons between their situation and the big three NA, and the latter to come up stinky.

I'm on my second Ford Ranger and I must say they are very dependable vehicles. I had my first one for ten years and my second one is five years old now.

I haven't had any major issues with my GM cars that I have had. I had a pontiac that had 165,000 + miles on it when I gave it to a friend when I purchased another pontiac. He drove it to well over 200,000 miles. I had a grand am that had over 188,000 miles on it when I got my new Saturn. Nothing wrong with the pontiac, just wanted the new saturn. I am very pleased with my saturn with 155,000+ miles on it. I do keep my cars very well maintained however. Yes, I would/will purchase another GM even if they do file bankruptcy.

I would buy a GM car again. The Cavalier I had was a great car and I never had a major problem with it.

This is for another thread but I never thought these idiotic bailouts were the answer anyway.

I didn't either. Here is a question, if GM does file for bankruptcy, will they have to pay that bailout money back??

with the motor trade being in the state its in it puts a lot of jobs in jepody, i worry for my job secruity (even though im having problems with the boss) weve seen a lot of redundancies because the brand is lossing money, so i back the bailouts for the brand its purely selfish reasoning why i back it, because i want to keep my job

I would love to be able to buy an American made car, especially being a Michigander and seeing first hand what this mess is doing to others in my area. Unfortunately though, I really need a car that I can rely on to run with low-no maintenance for many years and I don't see that with GM, Chrysler or Ford. My Honda Civic is 10 years old/150,000 miles and has only required routine maintenance *knock wood*. My Honda Civic was manufactured in Liberty, Ohio with 80% American parts. When one of the Big 3 can consistently produce cars with those kinds of statistics I will buy from them.

Maybe you should consider a Ford truck. I bought one in December and love it. It came with a 3 year bumper to bumper and 5 year powertrain warranty. Before that, I had looked into buying a Toyota but the salespeople were so rude that I had a hard time forking over my money to them. Anyhow, my truck was made in the U.S. and Canada, and 6000 miles in, seems pretty good.

What makes me angry is that these companies wanting to declare bankruptcy have accepted bailout moneys.

I've had Chrysler cars for the last 9 years, 4 with a Neon and 5 with a Sebring, and other than small problems, I've been very happy with them. My mom and Dad both had Town & Country's for a bit and they liked them also. I guessed I was just raised in a family where buying a foreign car was like the 8th deadly sin My mom has a Honda CRV right now though and for my next car I am seriously considering a foreign car, most likely a Mazda, who, coincidentally, are having financial difficulties but I put massive miles on my cars- I've had my current car for just over 5 years and I already have close to 130,000 miles on it, and foreign cars have a reputation for going and going and going. If I am lucky, i will not be in the market for another car for at least 2 more years, so at that time I'll see how GM and Chrysler are doing to see if I would possibly buy a car from them.

I'm not sure if I could buy from the companies gone bankrupt or not. I guess I would have a "wait and see" approach. The last couple of GM cars we had weren't spectacular, and had enough issues for us to think twice about buying GM again.

We have a 2007 Ford Fusion. Everything we've had issues with was covered under warranty, and overall I'm very happy with the car. We're thinking of getting an F-150 for our next vehicle.

I agree about the Toyota sales people. We looked at some when we were looking to buy a car, and the Toyota people just didn't seem interested in selling us a car. Their price was $200 off of sticker price. That was their "deal" on the car. Honda was nice & wanted to sell us a car, but $500 payments were way out of our affordability range. Ford bent over backwards to get us into a car and gave us a good deal on the car and on our trade-in (which was a Pontiac Grand Am).

I learned to drive on my dad's 3 speed Scout! One of my first cars was a gorgeous white/navy Scout 4 speed, with 4 wheel drive. Man, I loved running the oil well trails, Ba-ha-ing through the woods up in northern lower Michigan.

OT: I will never buy 'Big Three' cars EVER again. I drive a '92 Honda Accord (built in Ohio, I believe), that has never needed anything more than routine maintenance, and still looks like new. My first few cars rusted out, my Pontiac needed a whole drive train after 25,000 miles. The 'Big Three' make junk. Always have, probably always will. My money is too precious and hard earned, to waste on them ever again.

How interesting that we are both from Michigan, the automotive 'Mecca', and we both own Honda's built in Ohio!!!

I have to agree, but I really wonder if they believed that a change was coming. If they were too stupid to realize that times change and they have to reengineer their cars to meet that change, then who is to say that they will ever wise up?

It's a shame, because some of their cars were outstanding. The Ford pickup truck line is outstanding, and the GM van we owned was the best van out there.

But honestly? The only good big 3 car that we've ever owned was the GM van and the rest gave us nothing but problems. I'm a fan of Toyota's because they haven't needed any repairs outside of regular maintenance. Between DH and I we've owned 5 of them. My current Toyota was built in the U.S. and the only guilt that I have is that some of that money goes overseas to Japan.

Hey, even my dad who told me not to park my "foreign crap" in his driveway now drives a German made vehicle. Sold his Ford truck last year for a BMW.

Oddly enough, my Father, who has been a lifetime GM/Chevy owner (and IH Scout, lol!), also owns a Honda Accord. He fell in love with mine in the mid '90's. He also swears he'll never go back!

I just wanted to add that when I was growing up, my dad would not buy anything but Chevrolet. Keep in mind he only ever kept a car 2 years so it was unlikely much would go wrong in just 2 years. He loved his Chevies and I must say I'm still very partial to the '57 BelAir.

I had a Crown Victoria for a couple years and that car was an absolute lemon. I believe whoever it was that said FORD stood for "Fix Or Repair Daily". When I contacted Ford about my problems they had no time or interest in helping me so I don't expect I'll buy any Fords in my future nor will any of my family.

I have owned 2 Hondas, Chevies, Buick, Pontiac and Ford and with the exception of the Hondas, none of the others can compare to our current VW Diesels. I don't see any of the big three in my future.

My parents had a VW golf diesel for a long time and loved it, but I haven't seen that many of them in the US. I always wonder why diesel fuel is not used in the US for anything besides buses and some bigger trucks...

As far as all those people who say they are very happy with their ford/chrysler/gm cars- I agree that they aren't terrible cars. It's tempting to buy a US car when you can get it for a few thousand less than say a honda. I probably would buy one if I was buying a brand new car, but the only thing that stops me is their re sale value. I have a 2004 honda civic right now, bought it for $15,000 it's been paid off for a while now and I checked it's resale value on kelley's blue book recently cuz I'm thinking of selling it- the resale value is $9,000 (I have 100,000 miles on it) ...
What more could you ask?? You drive a car for 5 years and 100,000 miles, sell it and end up spending only $5,000 in the long run for it! This would never happen with a US brand their re sale value drops big time.

I believe in keeping money in America as much as possible. Most of the things I buy have to be made in America. Why? One of the reasons we are in this hole is because a lot of people/companies buy or sell stuff overseas where it is cheaper. And the labor also overseas is not only cheaper, but most often way worse conditions than over here. Obviously not everything i own is made here, but i really do try. As I believe we all should.
I have a 1995 Chevy Cheyenne truck and I LOVE it!! She is my baby, with over 212K miles, she is still running strong. Personally I love trucks and plan on only ever owning trucks, and well I dont really like foreign trucks all that much...(not that many foreign companies even model trucks lmao) My parents have a Hauyndi (sp?) Sonata, because it was cheap, yah its ok but some of the stuff inside is falling apart and if we got in an accident that cheap car would kill you. I dont know what we should do about the bankrupcy thing. But a lot of jobs will be lost.....So yes I would probably buy another Chevy or a Ford diesel The bigger the better I dont like small clown cars like my dads 1984 944 Porsche.....

Good Bless America. Nothing is better than when it is MADE in America

I would consider it. Right now I am driving my mother's 2001 Buick Park Ave. AKA The Land Barge. I have NEVER liked this car. Poorly designed. Poor fit and finish for the price tag. Always had NVH issues (noise, vibration, harshness.)

Too much is at stake here to let the car companies die. They actually WERE PRODUCING what the public wanted - which was big SUVs... then gas prices went through the roof and the bottom fell out of the market. They just can't turn on a dime.

It takes approx 2 years to bring a car to market... product cycle USED to be a lot longer than that, but it has had to be shortened up b/c of competition and shrinking market share.

I'm not making excuses, just trying to provide an explanation from someone who has been on the inside. These companies JUST DON'T MOVE that quickly. ( I used to joke that getting Ford, GM, et al to respond quickly to shifting market trends was like trying to turn The Queen Mary around in a bathtub!!)

They are still quite hide-bound. Ford was a little bit out in front and that is why it is in somewhat better shape, but not by much.

In many respects the domestic automakers have caught up in quality, but it depends on the product line. Check out JD Powers and Assoc. for quality and satisfaction data.

That said, the car(s) I"m thinking about are the Saturn Aura or the Chevy Malibu... both of which are reskinned Opels.

А lot of people feel that way- I have mixed feelings. I mean, obviously trade and specialization is better than trying to produce things when it's more advantageous to let other countries produce them and trade with them...
Then the problem is, it's more advantageous to the country as a whole but what about all the people who lose their jobs? They don't have any advantage out of it...So I really do agree with what you said. The only problem is no human being will sacrifice their profits, getting the best deal for their money just to keep businesses in America and to help the country's production. It's just unrealistic.

Well, within a year there are going to be 2,600 less GM dealerships from which to buy their cars (costing 137,330 jobs at those dealerships).

We've owned Saabs in the past (owned by GM for a number of years now). Our car was totaled when we got hit in January. We're now driving a Toyota. Wouldn't go back to a Saab if you paid me. Love the drive - but there was ALWAYS something wrong, and usually just after warranty...

...though it looks like Saab is going to be one of the lines they're losing.

Laurie

I have four GM's (but all 80's cars). Two Chevys, two Pontiacs.

I'm not a purchaser of new cars anyway. I'd never lease a car, I'd have to have cash in full for it. I wouldn't buy a new GM (well except the 2010 Camaro ... I Camaros). I also wouldnt buy a new Chrysler or new Ford (except maybe an F-250 diesel).

Our daily driver is an Acura, 232k miles and going strong as ever. When we buy another car, it'll be another Acura. Right now Toyota & Honda top the quality and reliability list when it comes to auto makers, according to a consumer report aired on the radio last week. Plus, many of the Japanese cars are manufactured in the US as well - I was amazed at how many plants there are in the US for these cars.

If the Big Three dumped their unions, maybe they wouldn't be in such a hole

Ain't that the truth?

Now, did I hear Barack is going to let the Unions take over the car mfrs?

Just keeps getting better and better, because we know how honest and truthful the Unions are. No corruption there.

Barack is keeping his word to the Unions, though, for helping get him elected.
I guess it is good he is keeping his word to someone even if it is Hoffa like unions.

If you're buying a car that has been on the market for a while. It may be a good deal if you aren't after a vehicle-as-status-symbol type car.

I'm seriously considering getting a used Pontiac Vibe when I come back to the states. Its a Toyota in disguise and the resale is less than the Matrix largely because of what I would term 'relative label prestige'.