The Safety Net

My first car was a Ford Fiesta.  I owned it for about two months before we started noticing a problem with it.  Any time I sat idling, waiting for Rod to leave work, for example, I could see -- faintly -- steam rising from the car.  Initially I thought it was just the exhaust smoke swirling about.  Then, one day while sitting at a red light, I looked in the rearview mirror and saw a massive about of smoke billowing from my exhaust.  It seems I had literally blown a gasket.  Because my father was involved in the purchase of this car, I had to buy it from a dealer.  More money but it came with peace of mind - we purchased a warranty.  So, back the car went to the dealer.  There was a problem, however, in that the dealer never filed the paper work that accompanied the warranty.  they would not be reimbursed for the repairs.  My car was with them for about two months.  (I was told not to complain -- after all, I was given a new Chrysler K car.)  The loaner car was nothing more that a set of wheels.  When one thinks of a new car, this loaner had no similarity.

Anyway, by the time I got my Ford back, the decision had been made to get rid of it.  This was sealed when the steam problem cropped up again.  It would prove to be a faulty radiator.  We fixed it and sold the car.  The guy who bought the car had it -- problem free -- for a while.  That experience showed me that owning an American car was not worth the money.

So, now the American car makers are in trouble.  Who saw that coming?  Back in 1984 (when I got my first car), Toyotas, Datsuns (yeah, they still had them back then), and VWs were the "hot" car; however, they cost more.  I wasn't allowed to look.  the other problem was mileage.  Over 100,000 was not to be looked at.  So, I got stuck with American crap.  (Flash forward 20 years -- Rod and I bought Julia a Toyota with over 100,000 miles.  that car is running like a gem two years later.)  

I guess my point is this.  For over 25 years we have known that American cars weren't worth the money they cost.  Even for those who bought them, the resale value was much lower than the foreign counterparts.  The availability of leases simply made things worse.  More people could continue to buy cars - even if they couldn't afford the car.  It's like the housing crisis.  The unions played a part here, too.  UAW fought with no foresight.  What good is a great pension plan if there is no company to pay for it?  What good is a job that pays 53 dollars an hour if there are no cars to make?  So, now we are in the biggest economic crisis in years and the American car companies want a bail out.

Should there be a safety net?

I heard on the news that one in ten people who work, work for the car industry.  Obviously, allowing the car companies to tank would have a massive impact on this country.  However, I can't help but think that this is just putting our finger in the dam.  Down the road another leak will bust through and then what?

I think it's the saddest thing that American car companies are facing dark days.  Still, the writing has been on the wall for many years and no one paid attention.  What guarantee is there that they will in the future?