Ask The Best And Brightest: Has The Industry "Learned The Lessons Of 2008"?

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

I don’t think the industry learned a lot of lessons from 2008—they will this time around

…said GM CEO Dan Akerson at the Geneva Auto Show [via the WSJ]. But which “lesson of 2008” is Mr Akerson referring to? Overproduction? Incentive and fleet sale dependency? There were so many lessons to be learned in 2008… right Dan?

It would not be a good thing to see $5-a-gallon gas right now.

Oh, he’s talking about getting caught flat-footed by gas price spikes. Fine, let’s ignore the other “lessons of 2008” and hash out the truth behind Akerson’s comment: is the industry ready for $5 gas? Remember, consumer choice tends to exaggerate changes in the price of oil. Or, is it possible that some OEMs are “too ready” for high gas prices? After all, if automakers overcorrect for high gas prices, profits will suffer when the spike subsides. Or is, as BNET’s Matt Debord suggests, Akerson just trying to get the market to price risk into GM’s stock value?


Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Zackman Zackman on Mar 03, 2011

    Now, now, now, (wagging finger) don't you remember the old adage about "What's good for General Motors is what's good for the country"? It appears that was never truer than it is right now! Some more: "What goes around, comes around".

  • Brettc Brettc on Mar 03, 2011

    Since I fuel up roughly once a month I had no idea what the prices were even at. So I just checked the MSN gas prices site and found that here in Southern Maine, gas is around $3.40 while Diesel is now at $3.99. So that means about $60 to fill up my car (15 gallon vented tank). Besides making me temporarily unhappy it doesn't affect me too much because I only fill up about 12-15 times per year. I'm lucky that I live about 10 minutes from my jobs and my side job pays a decent mileage rate when I have to go to remote sites to do work. But I know that it really affects a lot of people because a lot of people don't have the luxury of living close to where they work. But the upside of high fuel prices is that car manufacturers might be more willing to start selling more fuel efficient options that we don't normally get in North America. So in answer to the actual question - no, most car manufacturers haven't learned much of anything from 2008. I think Hyundai, Honda, Toyota, Ford, and VW are positioned well to do okay if prices spike and stay at a high level. The others will take a while to catch up. And for VW, that's only assuming they can allocate enough TDIs to the U.S.

  • Akitadog Akitadog on Mar 03, 2011

    Here's a question: If everyone slowed down their driving speeds by 5% as a result of higher gas prices, how much would we as a country cut back on in fuel use?

    • See 1 previous
    • Strfish7 Strfish7 on Mar 03, 2011

      This is just mental masturbation, since it's never going to happen. See all the comments above.

  • Dzwax Dzwax on Mar 03, 2011

    I am perhaps at the other end of the spectrum from many of you. My company truck travels from job to job every day. Gas mileage is everything to me. A truck that got 30 mpg would save me almost $500 a month per vehicle at current gas prices. All the small contractors and tradesmen around here are looking for relief from the high cost of hauling our tools around. Guys who always went for the highest horsepower are now thinking about gas mileage.

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