The discussion about bailing out the Big Three has been couched in terms that imply that the Big Three represent the complete future of the automotive business in the U.S. As I have suggested, if they are to be bailed out they should be given money based upon measurable metrics. I have also suggested that […]
In the last column here, I suggested that any bailout of the Big Three include alternative energy metrics against which the three companies compete for better loan repayment terms. In the week since that column was published there has been much discussion about whether America can afford to allow its’ auto industry to go down […]
Recently, I wrote about the Big Three Auto companies and how they need to change, and change their product lines if they wanted to stay “big”. Since those columns there has been even more evidence that these companies are struggling to keep up with current realities. Additional plants have closed, the production of trucks has […]
Two weeks ago I said that I would be writing several columns about transportation in the U.S. This is the final one of that series, at least for now. In the life of this blog I have written about the future of transportation and what it will and should look like. I am sure I […]
GM, Ford and Chrysler represent to a large degree the Industrial Age legacy of manufacturing in the U.S. “What was good for General Motors was good for the United States” was, for decades in the 20th century a very true statement. The manufacturing might of America post WWII was an economic miracle and the apotheosis […]
The fact that you know what I mean when I write the two words “Big Three” points to the power of Detroit and U.S. automotive marketing in the last half of the 20th century. The fact that they are no longer the big three in terms of sales in the U.S. points to the reality […]
The two trend lines are the decline in gasoline consumption and the decline in miles driven. These two are obviously connected and are obviously caused by the price of oil. For the first time in close to 30 years, we have something to be proud of when it comes to our driving behavior. Two different […]
This will be the first of several columns on the state of transportation in the U.S. Regular readers of this column know that for years I have predicted the current high price of oil, the sales collapse of the truck and SUV markets and the need for electric cars. In addition it has been stated […]
When I wrote my first column on the electric car early in 2007 it was triggered by the announcement that GM was going to bring the Chevrolet Volt to market in 2010. As stated then, this was a significant event in that this was going to be the first plug-in car produced in significant volume […]
Well, it finally has happened. The price of gasoline has increased enough to cause pain to Americans so that they are changing behavior. The approach of $4 a gallon gasoline has, in the last month produced two positive results. First, after gasoline consumption increased 1.4% in March over the same month last year, it declined […]