Think the problem at GM is just management? Think again

why GM is failing is a billion dollar question,

I think they don't make wanted cars and that drops the sale and resale values.

I don't believe they make cars that fails more often than the competition.

for decades now, GM, Ford, Chrysler have fallen flat vs the asian auto makes. since the early 80s, the then-limited japanese lineups have had better engineering, quality and reliability than their big3 counterparts.

gm's failure? complacency. the world's largest automake never imagined themselves in this position 20-25 years ago. they banked on their history's success and name alone.

take for example their lust for large gas guzzling cars of the 70s? or big displacement v8s? and now large trucks and suvs. honda and toyota on the other hand, banked on economical products like the historic civic and corolla and accord and camry. they had the smarts on building solid, reliable, practical vehicles. fast fwd to 2005 and these 2 jap-automakes are leading the entire industry now with hybrid technology.

who to blame? the big wigs earning 6 figures in GM, Ford, & Chrysler's exec offices. even with phd's and MBAs, they couldn't foresee what their asian counterparts easily did. with all the recent layoffs, the first to go should be all the old farts still holding top positions; ultimately, they're responsible for their boardroom decisions. hire young, talented, technical people (Google-founder-types) to steer their GM/Ford ships. sheez, at this point what do the big3 have to lose?

for all those who say the japanese don't come up with their own original ideas, i say this: it ain't how you start the race, it's how you finish! if the domestics started it, why can't they finish? oh and if the japanese bore you with their products, just watch F1 and see what they can do, ...but choose not to. unless, you're Michael Schumacher you probably can't handle 500 horses, so why bother? leave that stuff for real profesional drivers. btw, current Honda and Toyota F1 cars run close to 1000 bhp at 20,000 rpms. domestics? sheez, they don't even have a challenger. they're busy in lesser racing series like nascar and stuff...

What the heck is your problem buster.

Is the topic wants u to talk about TOYOTA.It's clearly asking us that why GM plans r failing and what r there problems.

Every time i read ur posts, u turn completly from the topic and go after bashing and degrading TOYOTA.

That's not fair i must say.

What TOYOTA have done to u.If u don't like toyota just be quite.And let rest of the world get their TOYOTA's and it's benifits.

So plz act like a mature man.See the facts and also that how many people r with u in this false statements.

U can't simply describe the most successfull cars in the world as ugly,boring,dead,tasteless...etc

Men who don't know anything about Cars use these words.

Act like a mature CARMAN.

What the heck is your problem buster.

Is the topic wants u to talk about TOYOTA.It's clearly asking us that why GM plans r failing and what r there problems.

Every time i read ur posts, u turn completly from the topic and go after bashing and degrading TOYOTA.

That's not fair i must say.

What TOYOTA have done to u.If u don't like toyota just be quite.And let rest of the world get their TOYOTA's and it's benifits.

So plz act like a mature man.See the facts and also that how many people r with u in this false statements.

U can't simply describe the most successfull cars in the world as ugly,boring,dead,tasteless...etc

Men who don't know anything about Cars use these words.

Act like a mature CARMAN.

First, overly subsidized leases, and now cuthroat pricing. US auto manufacturers have always focused on the "ass for every seat" mentality. When will we learn?<br>
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The only way to survive a price war is to avoid the contest. These last 4 months have severely damaged GM and Ford, and to a lesser extent DMC. But GM ran out of money first. <br>
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No one wins a price war. Throw all the bad management and product issues out the window. <br>
This was avoidable. GM will cut itself by 1/3, THEN the lousy product issue will finish it off. Hope not, but I am concerned. <br>
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Hows the stamp collecting going, JUGNU?

Do you enjoy watching paint dry?

Seriously, your comments in regards to 001Busters post are laughable.

OF COURSE Toyotas are boring, tasteless etc. Every true CARMAN knows this.

You are obviously NOT a CARMAN. Just because Toyota is successful, doesn't mean they have great cars.

They just have great marketing. Their cars, however, are dull.

Hey what is your Problem.

Do u know even a word about cars.

What i have said and what u r answering me.

I just ask 001buster y he is always insulting TOYOTA.

What is your problem with that.

foolish fallow, get lost

No use of responsing guy like u.

Knows nothingggggggggggggggggggggg

ignorant fallow

Hey what is your Problem.

Do u know even a word about cars.

What i have said and what u r answering me.

I just ask 001buster y he is always insulting TOYOTA.

What is your problem with that.

foolish fallow, get lost

No use of responsing guy like u.

Knows nothingggggggggggggggggggggg

ignorant fallow

Fascinating exchange. GM actually makes pretty good cars, but we have to ask the question - why have they steadily been losing market share to the likes of Toyota, Honda, and now even Hyundai?Granted, they do have financial problems and their structure is different from companies like Toyota - but there has to be more. I think a large reason is market focus and long term planning. Toyota can't keep Priuses in stock and there is an 18 month waiting list. Where's GM's hybrid? Toyota is working on its 3rd generation. The problem is that GM would have to sacrifice a lot of profit now, to catch up to Toyota. They might continue like this for a long time - it they can still sell a lot of cars now - even if its less than before - why put money into changing? No one wants to GM go under, but their shareholders won't tolerate 10 years of no profits. So . . . GM keeps using that tired old, 70's technology V6 that gets less than 200 hp out of 3.8 liters when Toyota is getting 245 out of 3 liters. As long an people in middle America keep buying - why change? And just as a note - you only have to read Consumer Reports to see what people really think about they cars they buy.

I think GM's problems (as well as Ford/DC) are systemic. The Japanese car manufacturers looked to the North American shores in the early 70's and set out on a course to improve upon what the American car manufacturers were offering. They produced higher quality cars with simple innovations. They had competitive prices (if not a bit higher) and over time proved to be more durable than their American counterparts. The result was that sales took off.

So what did the Americans do about it? Did they copy the Japanese improvements and take back market share? No .. they just started discounting their cars to make up the lost volume. Of course, this is putting off the problem to another day (and another CEO).

I think GM has their hand s tied. The Unions have become so powerful that they have helped destroy the company they work for, taking their jobs along with it. I recently read that a GM worked in canada earns an average of $75.00CAD including salary, benefits, and bonuses. The equivalent Japanese worker earns $47.50.

So where do you think the difference is made up? Well, if GM sells the same class of car for double the price of the Japanese import, that would work - but wait, GM isn't doing that, they are giving employee discounting to the public and selling their cars for 25% less than the Japanese automakers. So they must be losing money if their imput costs are highre, right?

All I'm saying is: This is a complex problem without an easy fix. GM needs to look at what imports the public are buying and design models that improve on those imports so they have a competitive product. It needs to offer a car that meets or exceeds the reliability of the imports and are economical.

The unions need to do their part as well. Workers must realize that they are building products that must compete against imports from ther countries. Without closing the borders to imports this is a fact of life. If labor doesn't adjust to the new (well it's not really new, is it) reality, they will all be sitting on the unemployment line. And stop screaming for government bail outs to make GM more competitive. That will just prolong the death of GM. If you're not happy making $47.00/hour (like the Japanese)- move over and let an immigrant worker have a try. I'm sure there are plenty of $75.00 jobs out there.

The bottom line, don't just blame the executives, there are only so many ways to stretch a dollar. they have to do their part with good management and innovation and the workers have to work for a wage that is competitive with others in the industry. Otherwsie there won't be an American industry.