The lovable dudes at Jalopnik are usually too busy trying to shoehorn Hemis into Datsuns or photoshopping NSFW dragon-on-car action to comment at length on the sad state of the American car industry. When they do, Jalop-in-Chief Ray Wert is usually trying too hard to love all God’s internal-combustion children equally to live up to TTAC’s lofty standards of callin’-it-like-it-is. Hell, the “industry apologist” label might even stick on Wert, thanks to his proliferation of the “Not A Bailout” meme just a few short months ago. But time has a funny way of bringing even the most fun-loving of auto enthusiasts around to the TTAC perspective. In response to GM’s stock price free-fall, Wert has penned a lengthy piece calling on GM to declare bankruptcy. At least he had the decency to begin the piece by acknowledging “I’m not the first person to say it.” With that qualification aside, Wert proceeds to spit hot fire. “The pundits saying ‘bankruptcy is not an option’ are completely ignorant of the facts, living in an alternate reality or parroting the GM PR public line (a line I don’t begrudge GM for pushing given the need to be positive or else face a rush for the hills), because let’s be clear here — if the marketplace for credit does not change in the next year, bankruptcy is not only an option, it’s the only option.” And, says Wert channeling his inner Robert Farago (circa 2005), bankruptcy shouldn’t be feared. “Any form of court-mandated reorganization allows GM to reevaluate all sorts of deals — like the one recently signed with the UAW, with suppliers and most importantly, with creditors seeking repayment on the $43 billion in debt and $80 billion in other liabilities on the books at the General — potentially allowing the automaker to wipe some of that out.” Interminable sentences aside, Wert’s got a point. Better late than never.
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I need to have whoever the writer is on these GM deathwatch articles on my radio show. I love the commentary, I have been preaching identcal prose for a year. I dumped my chevy store two years ago anxiously awaiting the announcement, but no anouncement…no annoucment…no annoucnement.
I was listening to bush speak this morning expecting his to say something about GM like, “Oh BTW, for those who are wondering, I made a deal with GM, and GM will never fail, GM is a staple of the american brand, so we decided to just keep it alive no matter what they loose…next question.
Please email me at jwolfe@gowolfe.com, I need an interview for my saturday morning syndicated auto show, want to talk about this site and GM/FMC
thanks
john wolfe
For some time, I have resisted the urge to jump on the deathwatch bandwagon, but given recent events, I a finally of the belief that GM is now in a hole it cannot crawl out of.
Must say I’m also at long last jumping on the TTAC DW bandwagon. For a long time I’ve felt it wouldn’t come to this, but with the current worldwide economic mess C11 seems hard to avoid.
They have been in it. Poor GM dealers are goign to get killed. Think about adding up all the balance sheet assetts of GM in total, and then compile/total all the assetts of GM dealers. I don’t know the answer, but I know the dealers assetts are larger, I think MUCH larger.
Runaway train is coming down the track boys and girls. But Ford Stock now, it will rally when GM delclares. Suburban and Ho customers will go expedition just bc they trust the warranty. Banks that floor GM dealers will get KILLED, many small banks have 2mm+ exposure to their local GM store. b/w thanksgiving and xmas will be just horrific for all dealers, but GM stores could get sliced in half.
Almost a whole week without a GMDW….or is the author now the AP & Reuters?
If you guys get on the radio, what station?
http://www.gowolfe.com/espn click top gear for a list of affiliates. But it’s also on the stream of that website. Click listen live.
The runaway train has not only left the tracks, it’s gone over the cliff.
Our election in November is to simply hire a new engineer, complete with whistle, striped shirt and shovel for coal.
Every train needs an engineer, right?
Who was it that kept saying “bridge out” again?
Oh yeah, those “fools” that only “nutters” listened to – like Ron Paul. The Constitution Party faithful. The Libertarian Party faithful. Austrian economist minded folks.
jwolfe,
I’m surprised that Ford’s stock price is lower than GM’s considering the shape GM is in. Ford isn’t in the best of spots right now, but they appear to have the best shot of survival.
If had some spare cash laying around I’d invest a little in Ford at the price they are at now, knowing that they too could end up in the same situation.
GM spokeperson was saying on CNBC just a few mins ago that Chapter 11 was not an option for them? Counting there chickens I guess eh?
look at fords total market capitalization (priceX # of shares) vs GM. Ford is like 6b vs GM’s 2B (est)
Mually did a better job passing the posion turd through the system over 36 months, GM has kept doing these promotions that they cannot afford to do, selling cars cheaper than it costs them to build, it’s over man, it just has to be
I became a regular reader of TTAC because of the GM Death Watch. The series has done an excellent job of voicing what I’ve suspected about the decline of GM for years.
Companies, no matter how big and successful, cannot do the wrong thing year after year after year after year and expect that there will be no negative consequences from their actions.
I’ve always loved Chevy and Caddy, and I want them to succeed. I wish GM had entered C11 earlier, because I think it would have allowed them to work from a position that is stronger (less weak?) than the one they’ll find themselves in by the time they get there.
Oh yeah, those “fools” that only “nutters” listened to – like Ron Paul. The Constitution Party faithful. The Libertarian Party faithful. Austrian economist minded folks.
And, amusingly, Ralph Nader.
I’ll give you “interminable,” Niedermeyer! ;-)
I actually thought about buying 100 shares of Ford today. At $2 a share, it is a small gamble, and if GM sh*ts the bed, Ford wont look so bad. But I pretty much lose every bet, so me buying it would pretty much kill Ford…
GM spokeperson was saying on CNBC just a few mins ago that Chapter 11 was not an option for them? Counting there chickens I guess eh?
I notice Chapter 7 was conspicuously absent from the quote. Is that on the table?