GM = Government Motors

[drewtam]

So what I've read is that GM will be 50% owned by Federal Gov't, 40% owned by the UAW. The bondholders are expected to take an unequal loss, by being forced to swap for worthless stock. In essence the country has decided to nationalize GM.

I hope no one buys another car from them! If at all possible, don't buy any OEM parts. Don't support these looters!

There was a chance for GM to recover if it went in to bankruptcy. But now that it is nationalized, it will forever be on the tax payers charge. The only way to stop it is to never support them with money. This will at least minimize the tax burden.

[Tim L]

Is GM going to start making Trabants?  I hear those  worked out pretty well in the last Workers Paradise. 

Tim

[Azrael256]

Wait, wait, how did the UAW slime its way into this one?  They've gotten far more than they bargained for, and nobody in their right mind will lend them a nickel ever again... but the UAW?  Did they have some previous stake in the company that I didn't know about?

My GM embargo started in 1998, but I agree.

[Standing Wolf]

Wait, wait, how did the UAW slime its way into this one?

They contributed millions of dollars and got out the vote for representatives of the Democratic (sic) party last November.

I won't buy a union-made vehicle—or a union-made anything else, for that matter.

[roo_ster]

As long as GM has any bit owned by the gov't or has a bail-out loan with the gov't, I am not buying GM.  Period.

[Gewehr98]

If at all possible, don't buy any OEM parts.

All of us GM owners want to know how well that idea will work out...   

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

All of us GM owners want to know how well that idea will work out...   

C'mon, now, it ain't that hard. All you need is a hunk of steel, a dremel, and a plan. 

[dogmush]

All of us GM owners want to know how well that idea will work out...   

Actually, for the vast majority of parts, Get aftermarket.  NAPA's parts are useally very good, often come from the same suppliers, and skip the GM (or OEM) markup so they're cheaper.  It's a pretty rare part these days that's dealer only.

[Gewehr98]

One should temper that sentiment.

Aftermarket parts are often not all they're cracked up to be.

I've seen some bad results, from high-grade bolts that were actually imported counterfeits (and caused a U-2 to disintegrate in midair) to Chinese fenders that would leave a mile-wide gap when installed. 

When you go to NAPA/Weaver/Kragen/AutoZone, are you going to research the origin of said parts to guarantee they're made by the same contractors that made the original?

[longeyes]

We should all have learned a valuable lesson: don't invest in stock, invest in politicians; they will take care of you.

The GM and Chrysler cases mock property rights.  This is Third World-style expropriation.  Ask the the bondholders who were strongarmed in favor of union workers.

[jamz]

If I dug conspiracy theories, I'd wonder at the fact that teh administrations climate change goals have so much to do with CO2 emission reduction, and... hey waddya know? They now own the US's biggest automaker.

[Racehorse]

I was actually feeling inclined to try a GM SUV until all this government intervention stuff started. Now, I wouldn't touch a GM with a 10-foot pole.

I predict rapidly declining sales and ongoing government subsidies.

[longeyes]

GM and Chrysler will not be auto companies.  They will be "the projects" with some vocational training activity disguised as auto making. 

[FTA84]

They will be the automotive Fanny and Freddie.

Tax dollars (from the rich) will be feeding these companies and eventually, they will be forced to provide 'equality' loans to high risk individuals of protected social classes.  Exactly the same way the housing market worked out, so shall this.  Ford, Toyota, et al, will make it through but only to compete with the government backed GM and Chrysler.

[dogmush]

One should temper that sentiment.

Aftermarket parts are often not all they're cracked up to be.

I've seen some bad results, from high-grade bolts that were actually imported counterfeits (and caused a U-2 to disintegrate in midair) to Chinese fenders that would leave a mile-wide gap when installed. 

When you go to NAPA/Weaver/Kragen/AutoZone, are you going to research the origin of said parts to guarantee they're made by the same contractors that made the original?

I disagree.  I'm a mechanic by trade, and premium aftermarket parts are as good or better then the OEM parts they replace in most cases.  Now you have to use a little sense.  when you ask for the Alternator at NAPA, and they give you three choices:  1 for $130 and one year warranty, 1 for $180 and a "limited" lifetime warranty, and 1 for $200 and a full Lifetime warranty, the third one is the one you want.  And it's as goo or better then the OEM one.* 

If you buy the bottom of the line import stuff at Advance and compare it to OEm yes, it'll compare badley.  But buy Premium, and that's what you get, and still at about 15-20% under what the dealer will charge for it.  List.  I'll not even start with what you can get it for with a shop account.

And sometimes I research manufacturers, but I'm not going to here.  That's why I said "useally" in that sentence.  But in reality, as we discuss in the other thread, many "domestic" are made overseas, and an OEM part is as likely to come from china or brazil as an aftermarket one.