12.12.2008

Auto Bailout News and Opportunity

The latest seems to be that the bailout of the auto industry is not going to happen after all. Some of what they were talking about yesterday really sounded good to this blogger, though.

Like getting money towards a deposit for trading in your old, gas-inefficient car.

And if they did go bust, what are they going to do with all those cars? Bankrupt or not - I'd take my chances with a new Ford Explorer hybrid over the rattle trap I've got now. I might be alone on that one. But that's fine. There'd be more for me to choose from.

And let's think a moment about the whole car selling setup. I mean, don't dealerships lose money on selling cars? And they make that money up through repairs and parts. The whole system as it exists now would collapse if cars were made that lasted longer and were built better. Maybe ripping down the whole system isn't such a bad idea.

But then there would be the political fallout of all those dealers and service people who would be out of jobs. And that's where you get into the problem of Congress and politicians making decisions for the industry. I hear Senators talking about those dealership jobs and protecting them which may not be the best idea. If the long term success of the industry means that the whole "I make money on your car breaking" paradigm has to go, then preserving those dealer jobs in the short term would be bad for the auto industry and America.

So now we are going to see how well the marketplace really works to solve its own problems. The hard way.

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