Ford Jellymoulds Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Autoblog.. Now that General Motors and Chrysler have accepted Federal assistance in the form of low-interest bridge loans, the two companies may not have many choices available to them if a Fed-appointed individual were to make product recommendations to senior management. In fact, that's exactly what the so-called car czar would likely do, under the guise of keeping an eye on the interests of the taxpayers who funded the automakers' revival. Ford, though, has not accepted any assistance yet, and it hopes not to. Recent comments made by CEO Alan Mulally may offer a glimpse as to why the Blue Oval's so hesitant to take a handout. After expressing that he's looking forward to working with the incoming Obama administration, Ford's CEO said, "My god, I hope that a car czar does not get into the product strategy of the companies," specifically referring to whether the car czar should decide who makes police cars and taxis. Link.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I know of a friend that had to move in with the mother in law, and bite the bullet because of poor decisions they made, had them losing their home to a foreclosure. The mother in law got into their business, had opinions, told them what to do, etc. Made their marriage a bit stressful under the arrangement. So I would have to hear the whining, bitching and complaining. My point, "You F--ked up, you deserve it, take it and shut up". I feel the same way about this "loan". Don't expect to get a roof over your head and not expect the mother in law to watch over you, have an opinion, get in your way, annoy the hell out of you. When your old and mature enough to make decent decisions, and not be such a loser, then people might respect you. At this point, your immature as evident by your actions and therefore someone will need to look over you and hold your hand. When you prove yourself, and pay back all those involved, THEN you earn your dignity and respect back. Hmmm a second there I'm not sure if I was speaking to a friend or the CEO's of GM/Chrysler. As for Mullaly, he needs to mind his own business and focus on his house and not comment on the situation. Don't comment on what your neighbors are doing or they'll involve you in their drama... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davdog Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I know of a friend that had to move in with the mother in law, and bite the bullet because of poor decisions they made, had them losing their home to a foreclosure. The mother in law got into their business, had opinions, told them what to do, etc. Made their marriage a bit stressful under the arrangement. So I would have to hear the whining, bitching and complaining. My point, "You F--ked up, you deserve it, take it and shut up". I feel the same way about this "loan". Don't expect to get a roof over your head and not expect the mother in law to watch over you, have an opinion, get in your way, annoy the hell out of you. When your old and mature enough to make decent decisions, and not be such a loser, then people might respect you. At this point, your immature as evident by your actions and therefore someone will need to look over you and hold your hand. When you prove yourself, and pay back all those involved, THEN you earn your dignity and respect back. Hmmm a second there I'm not sure if I was speaking to a friend or the CEO's of GM/Chrysler. As for Mullaly, he needs to mind his own business and focus on his house and not comment on the situation. Don't comment on what your neighbors are doing or they'll involve you in their drama... To a large degree you're spot on, I just hope the czar knows when and what he doesn't know. I'm also amazed by the folks saying since ford mortgaged the company prior to not being able to they are in great shape. Ford is losing a lot of money and has been, other then 1 quarter, for a long time. Companies just can't continue to do that much longer then a long time or bad things start to happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Reynolds Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I know of a friend that had to move in with the mother in law, and bite the bullet because of poor decisions they made, had them losing their home to a foreclosure. The mother in law got into their business, had opinions, told them what to do, etc. Made their marriage a bit stressful under the arrangement. So I would have to hear the whining, bitching and complaining. My point, "You F--ked up, you deserve it, take it and shut up". I feel the same way about this "loan". Don't expect to get a roof over your head and not expect the mother in law to watch over you, have an opinion, get in your way, annoy the hell out of you. When your old and mature enough to make decent decisions, and not be such a loser, then people might respect you. At this point, your immature as evident by your actions and therefore someone will need to look over you and hold your hand. When you prove yourself, and pay back all those involved, THEN you earn your dignity and respect back. Hmmm a second there I'm not sure if I was speaking to a friend or the CEO's of GM/Chrysler. As for Mullaly, he needs to mind his own business and focus on his house and not comment on the situation. Don't comment on what your neighbors are doing or they'll involve you in their drama... Whoa!!!! The government has shown time and time again, that they don't have a clue in terms of what they are doing when it comes to business matters such as these. Having said that, what makes you so confident that the so-called car czar was picked with proper and reasonable intent? As far as Mullaly minding his own business, well technically he is. The long term survival of GM has direct impact on Ford. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Reynolds Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 To a large degree you're spot on, I just hope the czar knows when and what he doesn't know.I'm also amazed by the folks saying since ford mortgaged the company prior to not being able to they are in great shape. Ford is losing a lot of money and has been, other then 1 quarter, for a long time. Companies just can't continue to do that much longer then a long time or bad things start to happen. Which is why the company has the product to finally back their full turn around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I know of a friend that had to move in with the mother in law, and bite the bullet because of poor decisions they made, had them losing their home to a foreclosure. The mother in law got into their business, had opinions, told them what to do, etc. Made their marriage a bit stressful under the arrangement. So I would have to hear the whining, bitching and complaining. My point, "You F--ked up, you deserve it, take it and shut up". I feel the same way about this "loan". Don't expect to get a roof over your head and not expect the mother in law to watch over you, have an opinion, get in your way, annoy the hell out of you. When your old and mature enough to make decent decisions, and not be such a loser, then people might respect you. At this point, your immature as evident by your actions and therefore someone will need to look over you and hold your hand. When you prove yourself, and pay back all those involved, THEN you earn your dignity and respect back. Hmmm a second there I'm not sure if I was speaking to a friend or the CEO's of GM/Chrysler. As for Mullaly, he needs to mind his own business and focus on his house and not comment on the situation. Don't comment on what your neighbors are doing or they'll involve you in their drama... I wouldn't call that a fair comparison at all. If the "car czar" (what the hell is the recent fascination with the term "czar" anyway?) actually knows something about the industry, fine. Maybe his suggestions will work just fine. I think what Mulally is saying is that he doesn't want some beaurocrat telling an automaker what to do when he/she has absolutely no idea how the business works. Imagine this "car czar" telling GM "You need to stop building Silverados because they impact your CAFE too much." Is that sound advice? No, but I wouldn't put it beyond possibility if this "czar" doesn't know jack shit about the industry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBV8 Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Did anyone click the "something really bad" link in the last sentence of the article? Good times... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford Jellymoulds Posted January 14, 2009 Author Share Posted January 14, 2009 (edited) Gotta say l don't think the Car Czar will do anything at all, l can remember Clinton giving the big 3 $1.5 billion to build fuel efficient cars for the future in the early 90's. GM built a 80 MPG Precept diesel/hybrid, Ford built the Prodigy 72 MPG diesel/hybrid & Chrysler built the ESX 72 MPG diesel/hybrid none of them made it in to production, and the big three ploughed most of the research money back into SUV & Pick-up development. Gotta say nothing will change with this time round either, GM & Chrysler will do exactly what they want with the bailout money. Edited January 14, 2009 by Ford Jellymoulds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davdog Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Which is why the company has the product to finally back their full turn around. I thought they were turning to the european ford designs? I love my new ranger but I fail to see what other product was added to the pipeline recently with the money from the mortgage. I'm pretty sure they are just using that money to cover expenses since they are losing a lot of money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I thought they were turning to the european ford designs? I love my new ranger but I fail to see what other product was added to the pipeline recently with the money from the mortgage. I'm pretty sure they are just using that money to cover expenses since they are losing a lot of money. No other product? Improved CD3 triplets and hybrid versions thereof, Flex, MKT, MKS, the new Taurus, Fiesta headed to our shores, etc. And then there are the HUGE things behind the scenes that Ford otherwise could not afford, such as plant closures, and mainly the buyouts that have shrunk their workforce to a more realistic size. Then add in other things like EcoBoost development and it's plainly apparent that Ford has done a lot more with that mortgage money than you seem to think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Reynolds Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 No other product? Improved CD3 triplets and hybrid versions thereof, Flex, MKT, MKS, the new Taurus, Fiesta headed to our shores, etc. And then there are the HUGE things behind the scenes that Ford otherwise could not afford, such as plant closures, and mainly the buyouts that have shrunk their workforce to a more realistic size. Then add in other things like EcoBoost development and it's plainly apparent that Ford has done a lot more with that mortgage money than you seem to think. What he said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaZor Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I hope that THIS GUY becomes the car czar. One, he has turned a car company around before and two, he knows that for the D2 (GM & Chry) to survive, they must at least have a level playing field (Fair trade) to become profitable in their own country. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 No other product? Improved CD3 triplets and hybrid versions thereof, Flex, MKT, MKS, the new Taurus, Fiesta headed to our shores, etc. And then there are the HUGE things behind the scenes that Ford otherwise could not afford, such as plant closures, and mainly the buyouts that have shrunk their workforce to a more realistic size. Then add in other things like EcoBoost development and it's plainly apparent that Ford has done a lot more with that mortgage money than you seem to think. don't forget the new F-150, upcoming Transit Connect and Focus not far behind......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Recent comments made by CEO Alan Mulally may offer a glimpse as to why the Blue Oval's so hesitant to take a handout. After expressing that he's looking forward to working with the incoming Obama administration, Ford's CEO said, "My god, I hope that a car czar does not get into the product strategy of the companies," specifically referring to whether the car czar should decide who makes police cars and taxis. Link.. I think Ford accepting government pre-approval for credit invites the car czar to audit products plans. A while ago, Joe Henricks said Ford wouldn't like to to source all RWD cars from Australia but maybe given the current turn of events, that might be a simple, plausible solution. Maybe the impossible becomes possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 I think the real problem here is the Car Czar saying to Detroit, hey you need to make Electric cars that cost 30K+ a year, but the realaity is that gas is still at or under 2 bucks a gallon...thus forcing the companies to take even more loans from the Goverment! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManFord Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Did anyone click the "something really bad" link in the last sentence of the article? Good times... LOL that was hilarious!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zipnzap Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Is this "Car Czar" even a "car guy"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 (edited) Is this "Car Czar" even a "car guy"? nope its a woman, last name is Gabor. Edited January 14, 2009 by Deanh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 When was the last time the government was able to manage anything efficiently? If we thought the government could run auto companies, then we would want to be communists. Even China's auto industry is privately run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah Harbinger Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 When was the last time the government was able to manage anything efficiently? When's the last time you trusted a company to use a $9.4 billion loan on the promised terms? I think far more people would raise a ruckus if those bailout loans were not overseen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tommy8768 Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 I hope that THIS GUY becomes the car czar. One, he has turned a car company around before and two, he knows that for the D2 (GM & Chry) to survive, they must at least have a level playing field (Fair trade) to become profitable in their own country. Only one problem with Lee-he's 84 years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bored of Pisteon Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 (edited) Only one problem with Lee-he's 84 years old. So what? Let's see... Paul Volcker is got to be up there around that age. Isn't he on Obama's team of economic advisors? A couple senators are in their 80's and one is 90. A Supreme Court Justice is almost 90. But still. The "car czar" SHOULD NOT be in the position to tell the Big 3 what cars to make. Just as an advisor and that's it. You're right Nick... The word "czar" kind of reminds me of old kingdoms back in the stone age. Edited January 16, 2009 by Bored of Pisteon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 So what? Let's see... Paul Volcker is got to be up there around that age. Isn't he on Obama's team of economic advisors? A couple senators are in their 80's and one is 90. A Supreme Court Justice is almost 90. But still. The "car czar" SHOULD NOT be in the position to tell the Big 3 what cars to make. Just as an advisor and that's it. You're right Nick... The word "czar" kind of reminds me of old kingdoms back in the stone age. yep, just stock up on Adult depends..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 Why do you need a car czar, why not have an oversight panel meet every couple of months and review loan recipients' financial status and the effectiveness of their reformation strategies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray101988 Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 So what? Let's see... Paul Volcker is got to be up there around that age. Isn't he on Obama's team of economic advisors? A couple senators are in their 80's and one is 90. A Supreme Court Justice is almost 90. But still. The "car czar" SHOULD NOT be in the position to tell the Big 3 what cars to make. Just as an advisor and that's it. You're right Nick... The word "czar" kind of reminds me of old kingdoms back in the stone age. Czar reminds me of Russia lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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