What is quality? Consumers believe they find it in a car that never breaks. Engineers look all the way to the parts level and see how long a given component actually lasts. Advertisers bullshit their way through it, and dealers don’t care so long as the car gets out of the lot before the wheels fall off. As a car guy, I look at how long someone owns a car and WHY they get rid of it. Case in point. I now have access to a database that will eventually cover over 200,000 trade-ins over the course of the year. As someone who has a keen interest in metrics, I’ve found that the current vehicle’s mileage and condition at trade-in time can tell me an awful lot about quality. The findings?

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As compelling as Ford’s executive paycut for Easter Monday holiday “compromise” is, there are still plenty of stormclouds brewing around Dearborn. For example, Ford’s supplier spin-off Visteon is tanking, telling Automotive News [sub] it “cannot assure that it will remain in compliance with the terms of its outstanding debt instruments.” The firm’s $328m fourth-quarter loss is being blamed on a billion dollar revenue drop and “asset-impairment charges” of $200m. This coming from a firm that has never turned an annual profit. Amid growing rumors of bankruptcy filings (and 13 cent stock price), Visteon’s only other choices are asset sales or government bailout. Meanwhile, inquiring minds (OK, MSNBC) are beginning to wonder when Ford will succumb to the siren song of the federal bailout.

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Whoa. I mean, way-hey! It seems like just a thousand years ago that GM started hyping their retro-styled rear wheel-drive Chevrolet coupe. And now, at least a week before GM scarfs another “bridge loan” and a good month before the company files for Chapter 11, one of our valued contacts has sent us these dealer prep sheets (PDF) for the new 2010 Chevrolet Camaro. Thank God GM Car Czar Bob Lutz is still alive to see this day.

The New York Times reports that the European Union is drafting trade duties on imported American biofuels to protect its own $10b biofuel industry. Even though both the US and the EU subsidize biofuels, European producers complain that American producers benefit from production subsidies in the US and retail subsidies in Europe. The EU has been investigating these claims, and tariffs of 44 euros per 220 lbs of imported biofuel could be put in place by this summer. Meanwhile American subsidies for corn ethanol production are set to expand indefinitely. We’ve argued that trade disputes could bring the bailout boom to a rapid close, but perhaps such a dispute will rid us of wasteful ethanol pork first.

The merge-and-nationalize “solution” favored by those who don’t know their history has a new lease on life, reports the Financial Post. And the new champions are none other than GM’s bondholders, who continue to negotiate an equity restructuring. The logic goes that since bondholders are being asked to swap their debt for equity, a larger merged firm would make for a safer investment. And the idea might just be crazy enough for the government to buy in too. “From the government’s perspective, a GM-Chrysler combination offers the appeal of collapsing two problems into one and achieving necessary consolidation,” reckons Citigroup analyst Itay Michaeli. “But it would likely also entail additional government funding.” Just $4B-$6B extra though, and worse job loss. No biggie. But, argues Michaeli, “if a true buy-in exists that [a merger can generate US$6 billion to US$8 billion] in annual EBITDA synergies . . . we would think that the GM bondholder committee would attempt to condition the [debt-for-equity] exchange on M&A, since the upside would essentially accrete to them.” Of course that’s an “if” of epic proportions.

George Carlin famously opined, “Everyone who drives slower than you do is an idiot; everyone who drives faster than you do is a maniac.” I took a fair amount of stick from the B&B the other day for admitting I’ve exceeded the speed limit in the past. The squeaky wheels here at TTAC seem to consider 123 mph not acceptable; which makes me wonder what some of those people would have said if they’d ridden up I-75 with me a few years ago when I decided to “max out” my 911.

Some of you feel that any speeding is unacceptable, but I’d suspect you are in the minority, even at TTAC. The average driver does speed. [ED: gasp!] So, B&B, the question becomes: where do you draw the line? At ten over? Fifteen? Double the limit? 300 kph? Sure, conditions vary, so let’s stipulate a set of familiar conditions: a Florida freeway, five lanes, wide, good weather, visibility to the horizon, clumps of traffic with long gaps between. What’s safe? What’s acceptable for the “average driver”? What are you willing to do in that situation?

I’ll open with my personal opinion: in a car I own, by myself or with consenting passengers, with the V1, Lidatek and various other devices in play, I’m willing to floor it until we reach the limit stamped on the sidewalls. You?

Sometimes this is an easy question to answer. If you’re talking General Motors, I’d have taken Wagoner out of the driver seat sometime in 2005. At least. But when you’re talking about an aging family member who may be giving up their connection to the outside world, deciding when to take away the keys can be a wrenching decision. The New York Times reports that new tests may help identify when patients with Alzheimer’s begin to place themselves and others in danger by getting behind the wheel. But for elderly people without an early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s or dementia, the signs that a family member may no longer be able to drive safely are not always immediately evident. Have you had to take the keys away fom a family member who was no longer able to drive? Was it possible to do so before an accident occurred? Does your state or local government require additional testing for elderly drivers? Have you been denied driving privileges for reasons other than criminal charges?

Automotive News [sub] reports that Ford CEO Alan Mulally and Executive Chairman Bill Ford will take a 30 percent pay cut as part of a package of management cutbacks aimed at easing passage of a recent Ford-UAW agreement. Additionally, Bill Ford’s entire compensation package will be “set aside” until the company returns to profitability and the Board will forgo all cash compensation this year. Finally, 2009 performance bonuses for global salaried employees and senior executives have been canceled. Read Bill Ford and Alan Mulally’s memo to Ford employees at the Detroit Free Press. And what of those UAW concessions? A UAW memo on the Ford agreement is also up at the Freep (PDF), and it includes the jaunty assurance that “there is no loss in your base hourly pay, no reduction in your health care and no reduction in your pension.” So what are the concessions?

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Bloomberg reports that a GM bankruptcy filing could result in an up to $1.2b payout to its advisors, lawyers, accountants and affiliated toadies. According to UCLA Bankruptcy professor, Lynn LoPucki, the GM bailout bonanza could easily shatter the previous record for bankruptcy fees, set at $906 million by Lehman Brothers. “The bonanza has already begun and will continue through the bankruptcy,” LoPucki tells Bloomberg. Her estimate is based on bankruptcy statistics that she collects, and she says the size and complexity of GM would make its bankruptcy significantly more expensive than even the Lehman filing. And of course news of these fees has anti-bankruptcy politicians downplaying rumors that the Obama administration will arrange a Chapter 11 reorganization for GM.

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Due to overwhelming (negative) reaction to the choices we made for Monday’s logo poll, we are starting from scratch but this time with professional graphics designers. Several have expressed a desire to offer their services, gratis, for which we are eternally grateful and we hope to provide the winner with something. I’m thinking a permanent, prominent link on TTAC to their portfolio or business site and the glory and recognition that goes with being “Designer to TheTruthAboutCars” or somesuch. I digress.

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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.

Motorists will no longer be sent to jail on the mere accusation of a machine in Maricopa County, Arizona. County Attorney Andrew Thomas yesterday announced that he will dismiss all criminal speeding and reckless driving cases brought to him when the only evidence presented is a photo radar ticket. Thomas condemned the process that imposes jail time on those accused of driving 20 MPH over the speed limit without any human witness to the alleged crime.

“The bottom line is, the way the law is written and the way our Constitution is written, to bring criminal prosecutions based on photo radar evidence only is not something our office can do, or frankly should do, given the Constitutional mandates,” Thomas said.

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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. . .

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