Quote:
Originally Posted by captainslug
They have been LOSING MONEY for years now because of a horribly outdated business model and product line. It is their own fault that they cannot keep up with the market.
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First, awesome avatar...
I agree with this, but the Union model may have run rampant in recent decades. I'm not disputing the existence of Unions, but rather some disparity between Union position's hourly wage compared to other skilled labor. Nevertheless, GM likely invited this kind of reflex in recent years with outsourcing, antiquated top-level thinking, and just the pure lack of taking a calculated risk.
Case in point #1: Pontiac Aztek. They relied on focus groups, all of which liked the vehicle. Unfortunately, they didn't represent wide public opinion.
Case in point #2: Last Generation Chevy Caprice. The average buyer was either a fleet buyer or in older populations. The radical redesign with the bulbous rear-end turned off many buyers. They needed to transition something like with a combination of some squared angles and rounded euro-styling. The butt got smaller, but the damage was done.
Case in point #3: Cadillac Cimmaron. Luxury car buyers in the early 80's couldn't care less about fuel economy, let alone a re-badged Cavalier. Lincoln town car sales skyrocketed.
Case in point #4: The "Quad-4". Proof that they couldn't compete with Asian 4-cylinder performance and, most importantly, reliability. Head gaskets blown at 70K miles in many Olds and Chevy models. This only strengthened distrust in reliability.
Case in point #5: Everyone knows someone that knows someone that works at the plant. You didn't dare buy anything else or blaspheme resulted. Welp, it didn't and Toyota, Honda, et al took over.
I can keep going, but you get the picture...
-Rick