GM CEO Wagoner: "The Market This Month Seems Kind of Like Last Month"

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

Did Ford Marketing Maven Jim Farley get Rick Wagoner high? How else do you explain the GM CEO’s Valley-speak whilst describing what will be incontrovertible evidence that the company he’s running has hit the wall? What’s that? What do you expect from an accountant who never uses the word “accountability?” Don’t be so churlish! “Last month, we also had tight credit, so I think there’s no question that it’s affecting automotive activity,” RW told Automotive News [sub]. That seems sort of kinda definitive. And then.. “I can’t tell you honestly as we sit here today that it seems worse than last month, but certainly no better.” Uh. OK. So what’s the plan? “Wagoner held out hope a federal auto loan package, tax breaks and a banking bailout, all pending in Congress, would support demand.” As opposed to, say, building vehicles people want to buy? I know, more churl. Anyway… “He also said the automaker, which is scrambling to shore up its cash position, was hoping for more liberal rules that would allow the loans to be used more widely. ‘We’d like to see them to include all new technologies with significant improvements in fuel efficiency, like our new Lambda-based CUVs, which get significantly better mileage than full-size SUVs.” See? I made that last bit up and you didn’t even notice.

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Joeaverage Joeaverage on Sep 26, 2008
    truthbetold37: I know everyone is calling this a bailout. To be honest Toyota received money from the Japanese government to develop the hybrid. What’s the difference? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partnership_for_a_New_Generation_of_Vehicles Our automakers have received money before too. Can anyone point to anything the big 2.8 released with gov't backing? I can't. This is what worries me about the Detroit bailout package. Will they waste this too?
  • Skygreenleopard Skygreenleopard on Sep 26, 2008

    ^ To Tex and Joe: Very good points. In addition, the one certain car that wants to be be the product of an impending bailout is a $40k small Chevy semi-hybrid shaped like a marshmallow. As if this promise of viability weren't laughable enough, I haven't seen a thing from Ford or Mopar. What will change? I don't mind laughing at the new Sebrings, but seeing my tax dollars go to its surely terrible successor will just make me hurt inside.

  • Geeber Geeber on Sep 26, 2008
    truthbetold37: I know everyone is calling this a bailout. To be honest Toyota received money from the Japanese government to develop the hybrid. What’s the difference? Toyota wasn't going broke when it received the government money. And because of this, the Japanese government could be reasonably sure that it wasn't basically flushing said money down the toilet.
  • Geotpf Geotpf on Sep 26, 2008

    For everybody who says Toyota has received Japanese government money to build the Prius, please provide a link proving it. And, anything Jim Press says doesn't count-he's working for another team now and has incentive to stretch the truth and/or outright lie. That is: 1. Name the Japanese government program from which the funds were disbursed. 2. Provide a timeline when they were provided. 3. Provide a figure as to ho much yen Toyota got. 4. Heck, provide any details at all as to this supposed Japanese government hand out. You know what-you can't, because there was no such program and no such Japanese government funds. Now, on the other hand, America's Partnership for a New Generation of Vehciles (and it's successor, FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies) is documented to exist, and so is the more recent $25 billion dollar bailout.

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