Comments on: GM Gets Its Loan; No Bankruptcy for Now

By: DrZen

DrZen — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:47:55 +0000

So let me get this straight. They fuck it up, we pay. They fuck it up, we lose our jobs. We pay so that we don’t lose our jobs and we lose our jobs anyway. Capitalism rawks!

By: bmaz

bmaz — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:44:56 +0000

I reported the facts that were new and that were in the breaking article. GM is fighting to survive, and they are fighting along the grounds that have been laid down, fairly specifically, by Congress. If they perish your concers will not be better served.

By: lokywoky

lokywoky — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:29:37 +0000

bmaz – why did you leave out that GM is having to negotiate harder with the bondholders than the UAW? The union has taken cut after cut after cut – the latest is that they have now accepted total responsibility for the legacy pension and health care costs, and GM is giving them less than 1/4 of the money they were supposed to in order to fund this.

The bondholders want 50 cents on the dollar or they will walk away and goodbye GM.

So please remember there are more problems than the union here – in fact, labor costs are about 10% of the total cost of any car. So even if the workers built the cars for free – GM is still dealing with a lot of debt that the union has nothing to do with. Oh except for taking over a huge chunk of it. Total screw job IMHO.

By: timr

timr — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 18:53:23 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I would not buy a car from a company that either is or is about to or has already declared bankruptcy, there are lots of companies that make cars, why buy from a company that might not be around in 5 years.
Dispite the fact that I own an all wheel drive Buick Rendezvous-I got it in 2003 for a little more than $18,000 off the MSRP due to the fact that my wife worked for GM plus other discounts, and got another $1,000 off because Tiger Woods was playing in the Buick Open that week- and the fact that while in HS I was the parts manager for my local chevy dealer-I don’t really like GM cars, I did buy a Corvette in 1971 when I returned from Vietnam, but traded it in on a Jenson-Healy in 73.(a great car,DOHC 4 cyl engine that topped out at 160 mph) Bought only Chrysler products for over 25 years until this deal came up. Paid $15K for a $34K car. Could not pass up that deal now could I?

By: randiego

randiego — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 18:53:01 +0000

Excellent, this seems like a reasonable/realistic way to go.

The Republican hissy fit starts in 4.. 3.. 2.. 1..

By: ferrarimanf355

ferrarimanf355 — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:53:27 +0000

I’m hearing that they’re holding a press conference at 6 PM…

By: ferrarimanf355

ferrarimanf355 — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:37:53 +0000

It’s not the same without that V8 rumble. Oh wait, the Corvette can get 30 MPG on the highway- owners say it can be done- but because it has a V8 under the hood, it’s bad for teh environment because Greenpeace sez so.

GTFO and let GM build a supercharged Camaro. I don’t want to compromise on the muscle car tradition.

By: bmaz

bmaz — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:21:14 +0000

All manufacturers have either just done the same thing, or are in the process thereof. GM will, when is all said and done, have a fine NA presence (although they will not be as big as they were in previous decades). This will be because they make good cars at competitive prices. People tend to buy such things.

By: bobbyk

bobbyk — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:06:27 +0000

how G.M. will further cut its work force, shutter more factories in North America

Shutter MORE factories in NA? Exactly why are we giving them money to do this? They aren’t going to have much of a North American presence by the time they’re done anyway.

By: NorskeFlamethrower

NorskeFlamethrower — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:21:28 +0000

Citizen ferrariman:

Yeah boy, but the new “muscle cars” are gunna be powered by batteries…goodbye turbo boosters!