American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

I just met up with my brother tonight and he was telling me about his Sunday trip down the "Automile". The automile is a stretch in Eastern Mass where there are about a dozen various dealers within a mile strip of rt 1. Anyway, he stops at the Toyota dealership to talk to someone about downsizing his current full size PU for a smaller truck. A dozen sales people, all knee deep in customers. He says he couldn't even get a sales type to speak with him. They were all too busy. So he decides to leave and come back another time, and he passes by the Chevy dealership where the 2 sales people are hanging out the door having a smoke, not a potential customer in sight.

I have a feeling the April sales figures for the big 3 are going to be worse than March.

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

Add to that taking off the highway tax to address a supply-and-demand gas problem and we're headed for the perfect storm.

Bob Wilson

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

We will be fine, thanks to the Chinese:

Gas guzzlers are a big hit in China

Newly affluent want larger SUVs to fill with state-regulated $2.90 gas



http://www.treehugger.com/beijing-auto-show-r001.jpg

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24242758/
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008...ular-china.php

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

It's been like that for a long time.
Back in 1999 I ended up buying a Ford Taurus because no one at the Honda dealership would give me the time of day (that was on a Saturday afternoon). I didn't have any trouble getting a Toyota salesman to speak with me two years ago when I bought my Prius, but I stopped by the Toyota dealer after work on, IIRC, a Wednesday evening.

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

Call me crazy (well... I am crazy, I have a dissociative disorder, har har) but if the government of China limits gas prices to $2.90/gallon and Big Oil can sell the same product everywhere else for $4-$7/gallon (worldwide), then isn't there going to come a point where Big Oil says "Uh... I think we'll ration out how much oil you get, since we've got actual *paying* customers elsewhere." That's a situation that's bound for ugliness, since China is rapidly becoming the most powerful nation on earth (thanks to Wal Mart and Bushonomics).

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

I had a similar experience with Honda as well. The only reason I put up with the rude/incompetent salespeople and the "big shot" manager wias that I REALLY wanted a Civic Hybrid.

I bought a Scion xD for my domestic partner three weeks ago. We didn't even consider going to the Honda dealer. Over at the Toyota dealer, I cut to the chase. I basically said to the salesperson, "I'm a gay witch. This is my domestic partner. I want to buy a car fom him. Any problems?"

He had no problems!

Actually, he found the "witch" part a whole lot more interesting than the "gay" part. I got treated with a whole lot more respect and honesty this time around, so I think my next car (probably in 2010 or 2011) will be a Camry Hybrid and not a Honda hybrid since cars cost too much money to be treated like crap while buying one.

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

The big oil companies don't sell cheap to China. The Chinese Government just makes up the difference. So the public is subsidized.

Re: American manufacturers missing the boat?
 

In the end the Chinese people pay for it in taxes they just dont see it at the pump.