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Posts By: Robert Farago
TTAC reader galaxygreymx5 writes:
Mr. Farago, I stumbled on this little tidbit while reading greenhybrid.com. A forum member named gltech has a problem with his Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid’s brakes (as in failing repeatedly).
“All of a sudden out of nowhere, the check engine light comes on, along with a couple of other lights, the chimes start going off, and the display under the speedometer alternates between “Service Stabilitrack Soon” and “Service Brakes Immediately”. When this happens, I lose power braking! Luckily, all 3 times I was going very slow in electric-only mode, twice at drive-thrus and once in the grocery lot. The first couple of times this happened I turned off the ignition and restarted, and everything was back to normal, except that the “Check Engine” light stayed on for a day or so and then it went off. Yesterday when this happened for the 3rd time, I had to turn of and restart the truck about 10 times to get it back to normal.”
gltech published a brief blog beginning to outline his brake issues, which he’s now expanded to include battery problems. Other posters on greenhybrid started chiming-in; they’re having the same issues with firmware updates and such. Several are also losing braking on a regular basis.
This little tidbit kind of encompasses everything GM faces now and major challenges going forward. The potential inability to compete in the hybrid game and how it relates to the Volt; the disintegrating dealer network and lack of communication between different arms of GM; and the brain drain as GM sheds staff that probably caused the minor problem of losing brakes in a brand new $50k car.
In the autoblogosphere, Ford gets brownie points for not sidling up the federal bailout buffet. This despite the fact that FoMoCo CEO Alan Mulally sat shoulder-to-shoulder with GM CEO Rick Wagoner and Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli at the pre-trough-snuffling congressional hearings. This despite the fact Big Al has lined-up a line of credit just in case he has to roll up one of those million dollar bills Ford pays him. Unfortunately, out there in the real world, consumers hear “Detroit Bailout,” not “Chrysler and GM Bailout.” Which is, coincidentally enough, fair enough. Ford is in deep shit. MSNBC ran the numbers; they’re bad enough for Uncle Sam to hide the checkbook. As if. If only. OK, here we go. . .
“As for our auto industry, everyone recognizes that years of bad decision-making and a global recession have pushed our automakers to the brink. We should not, and will not, protect them from their own bad practices.
“But we are committed to the goal of a re-tooled, re-imagined auto industry that can compete and win. Millions of jobs depend on it. Scores of communities depend on it. And I believe the nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it.”
This Jackson Citizen Patriot editorial sums up Detroit’s pro-bailout stance perfectly.
A bailout-weary public has every right to be skeptical of General Motors and Chrysler. The price tag to keep these pillars of American automaking alive soon will reach $39 billion. That comes to $127 for every U.S. citizen.
The expensive reality is that the federal government will—and should—lend more money to these companies while demanding progress on the road to profitability.
The alternative—the loss of hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs—is too much to fathom today.
GM and Chrysler are asking to borrow $21.6 billion on top of $17.4 billion they received in December. Think of it as Bailout 2.0. As the public’s patience wears thin, it also might be the last time they could get taxpayer help.
Benjamin Franklin said it’s better to be a pessimist and pleasantly surprised than an optimist and constantly disappointed. Followers of Motown’s meltdown—and the wider malaise affecting the entire auto industry—know it’s going to be a long time before the pleasant surprise part of the equation. Bloomberg reports, “Confidence among U.S. consumers plunged to a record low in February, signaling spending will slump further as unemployment soars. The Conference Board’s index declined more than forecast to 25 this month, the lowest level since data began in 1967, from a January reading of 37.4, the New York-based research group said today.” Lest we forget, the housing bubble begat the auto bubble which begat the collapse which lit up the turbos on Detroit’s decline, as it powered unthinkingly on its Thelma and Louise trajectory. So how’s that housing thing going? Do you really want to know?
Automotive News [sub] reports that the Swedish government is setting up the bailout smorgasbord for Volvo.
Sweden’s Industry Ministry state secretary Joran Hagglund said the government is due to approve an application from Volvo Cars likely to be filed to the European Investment bank (EIB) next month, financial daily Dagens Industri reported.
The government would guarantee 90 percent of a 5-billion-kronor (573 million dollar) loan, Hagglund said.
The remaining 10 percent would be secured from other sources.
Don’t look at me. So why is Sweden happy to go to serve-up plates of köttbullar for Volvo, yet won’t touch Saab with a ten foot stolpe?
Once the feds bailed out GMAC—despite the failed lender’s inability to meet federal regulations—there wasn’t an industry expert who seriously believed that GM could convince its bondholders and union reps to swap $30 billion worth of GM debt for $30 billion of worth GM equity. (No sniggering.) Who cares that the swap was required as part the conditions of the automaker’s $13.4 billion “emergency bridge loans?” Nobody. To its credit, GM played the requisite game of charades, holding “marathon” negotiations with the bondholders and union reps. To no avail. According to Dow Jones, Uncle Sam reacted to the missed deadline with a stern, “Never mind!” And “Chrysler LLC, which received a $4 billion loan, was subject to the same terms as GM and also failed to reach deals with the UAW or debtors, although talks still continue.” See? As long as they’re talking, there’s hope! So . . . back to your smoke-filled room! And no more deadlines for you, Mister! Obviously, there’s more important game afoot: the MSM feeding frenzy over the whips driven by the presidential automotive task force. Question: when did the media and our elected pols become such wimps, weasels, scoundrels and patsies?
Christ symbolism optional, presumably.
Clifton writes:
“My friend at [Hyundai Motor Company] was as excited about having me sample the new Genesis Coupe as I was to slide behind the wheel. I finished my official Hyundai factory tour, stepped off the bus (within the plant confines) and there she was: the Hyundai Genesis Coupe. Bewildered Korean tourists gawked as I was formally introduced to South Korea’s next big thing. They hope.
Instead of digging into the murky finances of federal teat sucker and Chrysler owner Cerberus, The Detroit News has focused its investigative expertise on the automotive lifestyles of the Presidential Automotive Task Force. I’m not sure exactly how this counts as “gotcha” journalism—and neither is author David Shepardson. “The vehicles owned by the Obama administration’s auto team could reflect one reason why Detroit’s Big Three automakers are in trouble: The list includes few new American cars.” Care to expand on that thought David, or just fan the flames of anti-DC hatred simmering in the automotive heart of Bailout Nation? Thought so. Sherpardson reveals that the ratio of domestic owning to foreign driving members is two to eighteen. Shock! Of course, “information was not available on all of the officials, and records for some states were not complete.” Never mind. ‘Cause in this particular witch hunt, if you EVER owned a foreign car you’re named and shamed, I shit you not.
I’m not much of a biblical scholar, but I did see Schwarzenegger’s End of Days. All sorts of weird shit happened before Arnie finally sent the devil packing. As we head down the home stretch for the auto industry reckoning, there’s some odd stuff percolating-up in the autoblogosphere. To wit: TheDetroitBureau.com’s suggestion that a newly independent Saturn or Saab should consider adding examples of HUMMER’s strategically doomed product line to their freshly liberated (or not) portfolio. Michael Strong makes the weak argument. Cross yourself and we’ll continue.
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