[Twilight]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('arretium', 'B')ut do you honestly see the government turning their back on the two remaining auto companies in the U.S.? I just can't see it happening, at least in today's political climate. I also can't see a political climate in the near future which would allow these two companies to go belly up. Maybe you can. If you can, and they do, my hat's off to you to predicting it.

[Pablo2079]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')t will be no great tragedy anyway. There are many other car manufacturers in the US. Like Toyota.

[Gerben]

Expensive oil will create demand for an entire new generation of cars. Cars that can do 50 MPG or more. Prius sales are booming. There are cheaper and more fuel efficient cars than that on the market in Europe. Well... cars... they do have four wheels and an engine. A little one.
They should refurbish the factories to make little cars. GM and Ford make those in Europe, so why not in the US?

[burtonridr]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Cashmere', 'G')one are the days when a return of 5% was expected and a return of 10% was wanted and a return of 20% was hoped for.

[Ache]

With consumers facing high gas prices, housing collapse and credit crunch, auto-maker curbs production of pickup trucks and SUVs
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'G')eneral Motors Corp., battered by the soaring price of gasoline and the U.S. housing crisis, is set to announce Tuesday that it will halt production at four factories in North America next year, including its large pickup-truck plant in Oshawa, Ont.
The GM cutback is the latest blow to the auto industry and follows a similar move by Ford Motor Co., which less than two weeks ago said it would slash production of trucks and SUVs as gas prices chase consumers away from larger vehicles.
All four GM plants assemble pickups or traditional sport utility vehicles, which are rapidly becoming dinosaurs in North America as the price of gas races to $4 (U.S.) a gallon in the United States, creating the biggest crisis for Detroit since the oil embargoes of the 1970s gave Japan-based auto makers their first large market gains in Canada and the U.S.
“You have a triple whammy on the downside: high gas prices, the collapse of the housing market and the collapse of the credit market,” said Dennis DesRosiers, president of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc.

[patience]

GM is a dinosaur that doesn't know it's dead. (Ex-employee)

[Denny]

Thsi is already discussed here.

[idiom]

For some reason its like asking Americans to buy a smaller penis.

Is this the essence of the Oil Crisis?

[AlexdeLarge]

Here is what GM or Ford could sale like hotcakes!

A hybrid work truck. No frills, just a way to get men and materials from point A to point B. My wish list: 4 doors, gets 35 to 40 miles per gallon, hybrid engine designed to be switched to a gas engine when pulling a trailer or when you carry a heavy load. Add opitions like a GPS built in to monitor location, speed and gas milage. Designed to last 200,000 thousand miles. Super Wish item.....sale for around $20,000.00 dollars.

Probably can't be done..........

[arretium]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('AlexdeLarge', 'H')ere is what GM or Ford could sale like hotcakes!
A hybrid work truck. No frills, just a way to get men and materials from point A to point B. My wish list: 4 doors, gets 35 to 40 miles per gallon, hybrid engine designed to be switched to a gas engine when pulling a trailer or when you carry a heavy load. Add opitions like a GPS built in to monitor location, speed and gas milage. Designed to last 200,000 thousand miles. Super Wish item.....sale for around $20,000.00 dollars.
Probably can't be done..........

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Gerben', 'E')xpensive oil will create demand for an entire new generation of cars.

[Specop_007]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('arretium', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Homesteader', 'W')hat if the big 3 ran the numbers 10 years ago and realized due to costs, unions etc that the U.S. automobile industry was toast in 15-20 years. Furthermore the numbers told them they would make more money pushing SUV's as long as they could rather than selling the same number of little fuel efficient models, even if they sold those for a few more years than the SUVs.

[Specop_007]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('arretium', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('AlexdeLarge', 'H')ere is what GM or Ford could sale like hotcakes!
A hybrid work truck. No frills, just a way to get men and materials from point A to point B. My wish list: 4 doors, gets 35 to 40 miles per gallon, hybrid engine designed to be switched to a gas engine when pulling a trailer or when you carry a heavy load. Add opitions like a GPS built in to monitor location, speed and gas milage. Designed to last 200,000 thousand miles. Super Wish item.....sale for around $20,000.00 dollars.Probably can't be done..........

[AlexdeLarge]

Thats exactly what I meant by no frills. Forget the leather seats, power windows, cruise control, etc. This is for business use only. The GPS features are for tracking my fleet It would be nice to be able to track milage, speed etc. and be able to download the data monthly for my review to make sure my employees are driving safely, not abusing resources and getting to work on time. (I'm not talking about the fancy map view system)

I have been buying extended cab chevy work trucks for around 20k. (With A/C and cruise control.) The GPS tracking features can be added from outside sources for the cost of the equipment plus a monthly fee. I have not seen a GPS tracking package marketed as a standard feature for fleet vehicles.

[Pablo2079]

you can use a cell phone for GPS tracking... pretty sure some of the major wireless companies have that feature for fleets now.

[Anjorni]

Whatever happened to the 'small truck' - period? I remember (mostly the 90's models) - when an explorer was a mid-sized truck, an expedition was a large suv and - god forbid the expedition was a bus! Now the 00's explorers are the size of the '90's expeditions, the 00 expeditions are he size of the 90's excursions... and best of all? the 'small' escape is the size of a mid-sized 90's suv... the explorer...
how and when did we let this upsizing happen?
The other day I was driving my 94 ranger (LOVE this truck) next to a DATSUN truck... wow, i felt like one of those 4x4 lifted trucks!
Now THAT'S the truck they need to start building again... those tiny-ass datsuns - that would handle nearly all the 'weekend warrior' do-it-yourselfer needs.
but then again, who am i kidding... everyone around here pulls a yacht down to the harbor and needs all those hp's! silly me.
oh, btw - not to say i get amazing mileage, but out of that 200k engine, i STILL average about 20 mpg. not bad for a 'ford truck'

[big_rc]

The SUV is dead. GM has just decided it. Too bad it took them this long to get their head out of their posterior region. Here is the obit US News has just written. Too bad Detroit has linked its future to this dying, wasteful monstrosity. BTW I love the nickname "Yuppie Chariot". It so fits the SUV description.

General Motors, Others Decide the SUV is Dead