Only in the short term desperation sense. In the long term, losing GMAC is going to make the auto business very difficult for GM.

- Historically the financing has been more profitable than the cars for GM.
- GM dealers rely on GMAC to floorplan cars (ie buy cars from GM)
- GM relies on financing tricks to move the metal, for example using ridiculous residual values.

What happens in a couple years, when a GM tries to make their quarterly numbers and Cerberus comes back and says "No deals for you"?

 

Very sobering words, and unfortunately very true. Take heed!! Every Chinese made product you buy at Walmart, every import vehicle that gets sold in North America, every tech support call that gets routed to India, slowly adds a bucket of water to a slowly sinking ship that is the North American economy.......I too say wake up and smell the coffee. It won't be long before none of us can afford the coffee to smell unless there is a concerted effort to help sustain some of the large manufacturing corporations in the U.S......the sad part is that we only have ourselves to blame for this........

 

But can you imagine what it would do to the UAW?

 

Maybe GM's contract with Cerberus will be drawn up with favorable long term commitments?

 

bingo..and the truth is we have been putting out as good or better cars for the last over 5 years. Yet if you read responses to online aticles people still think its 1989 here.
The U.S. autoindustry is a vital cog in our country if it breaks we all break. And to those who say so what, whats it matter if its a toyota it is still built here..well when Japans doing fine and were in a world of crap..have fun..was not my fault.

 

and another one hwo gets it ..

 

A sickening turn of events.

I hope that Chrysler can work a deal with Renault/Nissan.

GM buying Chrysler in order to close it down and kill it as a competitor, will only buy time for GM - it won't be the golden bullet which saves it.

I think Wagoner has had his chance. Maybe time for some fresh blood, before GM is unsaveable.

 

This morning's Detroit Free Press had an article that GM is confident it can manage Chrysler's brands. http://www.freep.com/article/2008101...810180305/1014

I find that rather discouraging. I feel sorry for the workers and dealers, but if I had my way, Chrysler would go away and GM would downsize to just Chevrolet and Cadillac.

But I bet that the merger will go through. Buick will get a version of the 300. Dodge will and Chrysler will get various versions of the Delta II and Epsilon II.

 

guion,

You're spot on...period. Imagine how I feel right now, driving to work for a dealership that may have a completely worthless sign in front of it in the next 14 days. I see this the way Guy does...rape the cash, pillage the leftovers for whatever you want, and you're done. Thousands of people out of work. My ONLY saving grace for me personally is that I have a Jeep franchise, and Jeep is too special to ignore. But they'll kill Chrysler and Dodge...I can already see it.

Anyone else who thinks different, or says different, is kidding themselves. I don't care what GM says about managing brands...it can't even manage the ones it has right now!!!!! Guy is right...period. Its the same way I feel. If GM does this, I'm done with the company...period. I'll either go back to banking, or go sell some Hondas. If this sounds personal, its because it is. I'm a very loyal person...and I cannot believe that GM would put Chrysler out of business for 11 months worth of cash flow. Its disgusting, a disgrace, and I have news for anyone from GM that might read this (although probably not)...

If you kill off an American icon like Chrysler, buyers will remember...the fallout will be breathtaking...and you'll lose even more buyers to foreign competition. I have a lot of customers that want to BUY AMERICAN to support their fellow workers. But what's the point of supporting a company that will kill the livelihood of how many????

If they do this, you certainly won't see my a** around here anymore. I'll be busy trying to find a new job...I'll be done with General Motors, permanently. And I know I'm not alone in this sentiment. I'm also positive NEITHER company remotely cares, either.

 

Jason,
Think about how I feel.
I work for Chrysler.

 

Hey dont work for Honda..

work for Ford!

 

I always said I would never, EVER sell foreign cars. I pride myself in not only promoting, but purchasing American products from American manufacturers. Its something important to me...everything from my microwave to my bicycles to my cars to my bedroom set are from American companies, made in America.

I love the auto business. I love cars. Getting out of banking and back in the car business was great for me in many ways. But I've seriously just about had it with the domestic auto industry. No one has any foresight. No one cares about the damage done to their brands. No one is concerned about rebuilding the value of their model lineup...its always more and more about getting someone's *** in the seat today, no matter what it does to residuals. American cars are seen by many as throw-away cars, because within 5-6 years, they are relatively worthless.

I used to be one of, if not the, biggest GM fanboy on this board. But even before this news broke, last week I was on here commenting about how badly GM has bungled Saturn and Pontiac...now this? Chrysler, sadly, as an independent entity, has/had some real signs of life. The new Ram is gorgeous. I've seen the re-designed Grand Cherokee, and some other models. Great stuff. Now? What's it worth? Who cares?

People keep treating these companies and brands as if they're worthless...and now they almost are. Why put my *** on the line for any of them anymore? They don't care about who they crush...why should I? I'm better off working for a manufacturer that actually gives a crap. And I don't see that as being Ford, GM, or whomever else is left standing domestically. They're too far gone...

 

you really think Honda cares about the U.S.?? they are using us...

 

Is anyone else kinda hoping there was a way for Chrysler and Ford to hook up? Mulally seems to actually get it. With Chrysler's structure he may be able to push some profitable, high quality products to the market quickly.

 

I know...I don't think they care about "us" either. But they care about their product, which is more than I can say for any of the Big 3 as of late. Honda, Toyota, and many of the Europeans actually protect their brands. When was the last time you can say that about ANY of the Big 3 in the past few years?

But how the hell does GM or Chrysler care about "us" either? They're about to unemploy literally hundreds of thousands of workers between suppliers, dealers and Chrysler itself if this happens and they dissolve the brands.