1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

So how many Chrysler plants will actually reopen?

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by TheSportsPredictor, Dec 17, 2008.

  1. old_tony

    old_tony Well-Known Member

    If they're going to keep making Chryslers, they may as well stay shut.
     
  2. 2muchcoffeeman

    2muchcoffeeman Well-Known Member

    Well, Tony, since you brought it up, here's what Chrysler has coming up: Jeeps! Trucks! And even more retro Chryslers and Dodges that in a few years will be perfect for the 24 Hours of LeMons!

    [​IMG]

    http://jalopnik.com/5112263/chrysler-reveals-product-future-to-journalists-we-reveal-plans-to-you

    (Much thanks to Chrysler's half-witted flacks for not inviting Jalopnik to the product reveal, thus not subjecting the site to the terms of the media embargo that old media reporters are stuck with.)
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
  3. steveu

    steveu Well-Known Member

    Hopefully the Belvidere, Illinois plant stays open. (Purely for sentimental reasons. My first car I ever bought was made there.)

    In this day and age, who knows?
     
  4. old_tony

    old_tony Well-Known Member

    That 24 Hours of LeMons sounds like a blast. And perfect for Chryslers.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
  5. 2muchcoffeeman

    2muchcoffeeman Well-Known Member

    And most importantly for current and former journos ... we can afford both the iron and the entry fees. :D

    Sadly, it's too late to enter next weekend's Arse-Freeze-apalooza.
     
  6. joe

    joe Active Member


    Can't be the new middle class. One of them has shoes.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
  7. Pete Incaviglia

    Pete Incaviglia Active Member

    You could film one hell of a horror flick at that plant. Wow.
     
  8. Pete Incaviglia

    Pete Incaviglia Active Member

    Not to threadjack, but check out this gallery

    http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=C4&Date=20080417&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=804170803&Ref=PH&Params=Itemnr=2

    Look at photo No. 3 and look at how many employees there were back in the day.
     
  9. CollegeJournalist

    CollegeJournalist Active Member

    Egg-zactly.

    I don't want to see any American automakers go under. Those three are too crucial to the American industrial machine, and my home state would be highly impacted if they do. Kentucky ranks third in auto parts production nationally, and given that Toyota is one of the largest non-governmental employers in the state, it would kill the state economy. Not to mention the failure of the auto industry would have damning effects on an already crippled economy.

    That said, the financial troubles these three corporations have found are a result of horrendous business practices. Not only did they hang on to the SUV ship 'til it sunk, they made their billions by making shitty cars.

    There's a reason why Chryslers have some of the worst resale values on the market, and a reason why cheap ass cars that the Big Three have constantly pushed on the market break down as soon as the warranties are up. It's like those companies put the cars on clocks, and as soon as the powertrain warranties were up, they fell to pieces.

    The only reason -- and I mean only reason -- I want the bailout to happen is to keep Americans working. As far as the people running these companies, I wouldn't feel sorry for them if they spent the rest of their lives begging in soup kitchens.
     
  10. Bubbler

    Bubbler Well-Known Member

    I have bought three American cars and never had anything like the experience you're relaying here.

    And that poor business practices straw man is total bullshit. It's amazing how free marketers have turned on the auto industry considering they supplied demand to the fucking hilt with those SUV's they couldn't keep on their lots. Typical contradictory bullshit from that crowd.
     
  11. CollegeJournalist

    CollegeJournalist Active Member

    A) I'm not totally faulting American companies. But you don't go $10 billion in the hole in the matter of months if you aren't running a rogue organization. That's shitty business. It's not all the companies' fault just the way the failure of the financial industry wasn't totally the fault of financial institutions.

    But someone had to write the loans that people obviously couldn't pay off unless the economy was booming, and someone had to order mass production of cars that weren't going to sell when gas prices INEVITABLY started rising. Supply and demand is basic economics, but it isn't the be-all, end-all of it and it doesn't explain away every problem.

    Daimler-Chrysler has been putting out shitty cars for 20 years, and it's nearly bitten the company in the ass multiple times. As I said, there's a reason Chryslers have some of the worst resale values on the market. Likewise, other than its banner carriers, GM puts out some god-awful products. Pontiac is, in large part, a joke.

    Anyone who denies the superiority of the basic Toyota, Nissan and Honda sedans is fooling themselves. Those lines, like the Accord and Maxima, have a lot of the same parts. But they're better made and more durable, and they're safer in a lot of ways too.

    I'm not faulting the Big Three for producing large quantities of SUVs and taking advantage of the craze (though, in Chrysler's case, they were still ass-awful SUVs). I am faulting the Big Three for putting their eggs in one basket and not having any foresight in the industry. None of those companies had viable fall-back options, and instead of building their bases on affordable, economical cars that would be viable until fuel-consuming automobiles were obsolete, they jumped on the raging bull of the SUV market with full force and had nothing to fall back on when the market for those vehicles (inevitably) went down the toilet.

    The three companies were poorly run. Was some of it out of their control? Sure it was. But like I said, well-run companies don't end up $10 billion in the red.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page