HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I want to wish everyone a very Joyous, Happy and Prosperous New Year!

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That Car Guy

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It is the end of the line for the Serbia made Yugo... The Jokes end here, ok maybe not, but their not making them anymore...

Breaking News! Breaking News! Breaking News!

An announcement has just been made that Belgrade (former Yugoslavia) will no longer produce the pride of comedic jokes in America, the Yugo.

As I am writing this article the decision has been made and it appears that the last Yugo rolled off the line Thursday 11/20/08. The Yugo hit the U.S. in 1986 and sold for about $3,990.00, although selling more than 100,000 Yugo's in the U.S., the vehicle met the ire of the Insurance Institute for Highway after slow speed crash test resulted in $2,197 worth of damage against a flat barrier.

The Yugo was a tremendous success in the former Yugoslavia republics and enjoyed immense popularity.

So, bye bye forever Yugo... I can't say Americans will miss you...

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That Car Guy

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS...

Merry Christmas!

Happy Hanukkah!

Happy Kwanzaa!

Happy Holidays

and

Have a very Happy New Year!

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That Car Guy

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Think Automotive Has Halted Production As They Seek Capital... Could They Be In Trouble Without The Norwegian Government's Assistance...

BREAKING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS!

Think Global a Norwegian automotive company who was looking to begin selling vehicles in the United States in 2009-2010 has halted production as announced by CEO Richard Canny. Richard Canny has described the company as in "urgent financial distress". The announcement has set back the company which is considering bankruptcy if the Norwegian government does not step up to assist the ailing company.

The Think City all electric plug in type vehicle has long been anticipated and was in production when the decision to stop production lines was made recently. The company has been hit hard by the world economic crisis and it's supplier's have been increasingly been more demanding and the company has found it difficult to meet short term working capital demands.

A series of press conferences have been lined up to discuss the companies future, I will keep you posted as I have been anticipating this vehicle for quite some time now.

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That Car Guy

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Finally a Lifeline... A Federal Bailout for General Motors and Chrysler, They Get $17.4 Billion Dollars...

BREAKING NEWS! BREAING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS!

We knew it was coming the lifeline that GM and Chrysler so desperately needed along with the supply chain and the rest of our nations economy. Now I am not endorsing the move although with what happened in the financial industry it was necessary, when the Federal Government bailed out that sector, which started this slippery slope that we are now on.

I will always contend that when Treasury Secretary Paulson pitched the idea that the world was collapsing, I found it unsettling and upon further dissection you find that the very nature of bailing out the financial sector has created an enormous economic vacuum. The only people that will come out ahead is the financial institutions that got us primarily in this mess, it doesn't make since. We rewarded horrible ethics and accounting by the institutions in which businesses and consumers rely on and in turn they are not recirculating taxpayer money back into the system and no one is holding them accountable, that was one of the very reason for the bailout to get money flowing back into the system, yet these institutions are buying other banks and not helping the American public. I have written before that we did not need a bailout to make these acquisitions happen, a free market would have corrected the mess, there is precedent, the weak get gobbled up by the strong, their would have been structured bankruptcies people would have still made their payments and the economy would rebound.

But what President Bush and Secretary Paulson did was bail out their buddies on Wall Street to save their fortunes and their jobs, how else can you explain the lack of accountability, lack of a plan and lack of oversight. The financial industry gets access to $700 Billion dollars and no one stops to say, aren't these the guys who got our country into this mess why are they still guiding the ship.

They are demanding more from the automakers who actually make products, that creates jobs, who's products recirculate and get sold again to employ even more people than the financial services industry. Our government is almost in attack mode against labor and the wages and benefits paid to these workers, yet no one blinks an eye at the outrages compensation packages and bonuses paid to Wall Street types over the years. Have you seen what a typical Wall Street broker makes and the yearly bonuses paid to them in comparison to the rest of the nation's wage earners, it's almost obscene, working with other peoples money. Now I don't begrudge someone from earning a bunch of money, I am merely framing the context of what we have been hearing from some folks in Congress and our Senate over the last few weeks.

They are making the claim that the compensation of labor is out of line and did not make the same comparison to Wall Street, let's be fair about an assessment of wages. If Wall Street and bankers can't figure out how to make money with other peoples money and access to the Treasury Department, they do not need to be running these companies period, particularly now that they are exposed to the over hyped balance sheets and numerous ethics violations. The very nature of paying these outlandish salaries and bonuses on fictitious balance sheets is criminal in my mind, particularly when companies and individuals entrusted there hard earned money to these financial institutions that charge them for using there money.

So GM and Chrysler got a short term lifeline and that should last until March 2009, when a formal plan is expected to outline their future plans to turn these companies around. As expected Ford Motor Company did not participate in any immediate funds and is not expected to need any in the next few months, however as they have said that if GM or Chrysler fails they would most certainly need an infusion of cash.

General Motors received $9.4 billion and Chrysler $4 Billion Dollars, the government is calling for massive restructuring among labor, dealers among other measures it also includes the appointment of a Car Czar , which is expected to be Secretary Paulson (the absolute wrong choice), President elect Obama will have the opportunity to make his choice while the administrations transitions.

While under the current collapse of the economic framework of the Worlds economy, the decision to provide loans to the auto industry is merited, it is of my strong opinion that much of the future impact could have been softened if free market forces would have been exercised and allowed to work.

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That Car Guy

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Application for TARP Capitol Purchase Program... It takes more documents to get a mortgage...

I read recently that the application to get TARP Funds (Bailout Money) was only two (2) pages long, I did not believe the story. I said to myself surely the ability to get millions and in some case billions of dollars would require more information than what it would take for a consumer to get a home mortgage, it is taxpayers dollars after all.

I have done a little research, it was real easy, google is a wonderful research tool and sure enough I discovered that the entire application is six (6) pages long, the first four (4) pages are guidelines and the final two (2) pages the application with the first page only asking for name of the institution and contact names.

Ok, my first question is and what you won't find on the document, why do you need the money and my second question, how are you going to pay it back. Seriously, not one of those two questions are on the document, if I walked into my local bank branch and asked for a loan, the first question they ask is, what do you need the loan for.

I could go on, but this bailout is the most ridiculous plan in the history of free markets. Starting with the bailout of AIG, we were fed a story that said the banking system would collapse, the only thing that would have happened is that a lot of bankers and financiers would have lost their jobs and investments and another savvy investor would have scooped up the pieces after the collapse at bargain basement prices. Their is precedent and a structured dismantling would have provided enough free cash flows for the remaining entities.

President Bush and Secretary Paulson provided their pals the biggest safety net ever to Wall Street and will take taxpayers at least a decade to get a return if ever, I am sure the way these quick funds have been released their is no guarantees or measures to track the money or reporting back to the treasury on how the money is being spent as it surely is not benefiting the very taxpayers who have provided the funds.

Here is the link to the application below:

http://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/reports/applicationguidelines.pdf

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That Car Guy

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Two Comedians Provide Insight and Opinions On The Global Financial Crisis...

Comedic relief from this financial mess we are in...

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That Car Guy

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Money As Debt...

I thought I would share this video before I begin a regular dialogue about the current financial crisis that is gripping the world economy. It should assist in understanding the banking and financial institutions that we are all indebted too.

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That Car Guy

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An Automobile That Runs On Compressed Air...

Odds are you've never heard of this car.

Why not?

Why is a French company developing it with zero help from the high rolling US-UK dominated global financial system which until recently had money for every loony scheme imaginable?Answer: The banking system and the oil industry are closely intertwined and they want to protect their investment in the gasoline infrastructure at all costs.

Fortunately, France doesn't have the same commitment to gasoline as fuel that the US and UK does. France does have oil companies, but it doesn't have the equivalent of Exxon or Royal Dutch Shell. India doesn't either. But the French and the Indians do have superb engineers.

Assuming that the collapse of the global financial system doesn't derail the launch of this car, India and France will have vehicles that are completely independent of the oil companies. No toxic fuel, no toxic emissions, super low cost, utter reliability, and here's the really cool part: the "fuel" could be available anywhere there is room for an air compressor including your own home.

What's not to like about this? Why is the news of this technology all but banned in the US?

The banking system and the oil industry (and news media industry) are closely intertwined.

It's really that simple.

*Reprinted from Brasschecktv.com

The Car Guys Editor Note:

The technology is available to do a whole host of things, I am not sure I agree about the banking system, news media and oil industry being in bed with Big Oil, that's a little far fetched.

But the exciting thing is the technology, if perfected it could be tremendous...

Don't you just love conspiracy theorist though, no facts just opinions...

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That Car Guy

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THEY'RE BACK... The Big 3 Auto Execs are back in Washington DC begging for their aid packages...

Breaking News! Breaking News! Breaking News!

The Big 3 Automotive Execs from General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are back in Washington DC Thursday 12/4/08 to beg borrow and plead with Congress for a bailout package that will save the companies from bankruptcy.

All 3 Executives are traveling to meet Congress in hybrid vehicles after a disastrous public relations fiasco the last time they showed up. All of the Execs flew in on there corporate jets on the first visit and as one congressman put it with tin cans in there hands begging for taxpayer money.

Although hard to believe on the previous visit not one Exec was prepared to present a plan on how the companies would spend the money and when they planned on paying it back. I am still shocked at this but the Financial Industry set the tone as not one congressman complained when Wall Street showed up asking for their packages in their private planes and did not present a plan or finalize controls or regulations about how the money will be spent. I guess they learned their lesson after appropriating $700 Billion Dollars to the financial industry without strict controls, I don't think so. Since the Auto Industry is asking for far less money, I suppose Congress feels it should put this industry on a tighter leash.

We all know that the money will be appropriated, this show is dress window dressing to appease the public and further scrutiny. However the amount originally asked for of $25 Billion Dollars has now grown to $34 Billion Dollars. General Motors wants $18 Billion Dollars, $4 Billion before the end of the year, $8 Billion by March 2009 and a $6 Billion Dollar credit line, Ford wants a $9 Billion Dollar credit line that it can tap into if the others go belly up, Chrysler needs $7 Billion Dollars as fast as it can get it's hands on it by the end of the year if you can spare some change.

I hope that congress can get this right, although I doubt it as the plans call for most top execs to work for $1 Dollar per year and other execs forgoing bonuses, the companies need to shake up the executive ranks, these are the people that have been steering the ship for the last decade or two.

All of these companies need fresh perspective and insight to what consumers want and just an overall fresher image and you can't do it when it will be business as usual after the bailout. The companies have been hit hard with negative comments about design and my favorite "junk" vehicles that nobody wants to buy. The companies do not build junk vehicles as evidenced by NHSTA and other reports that state emphatically that the domestic brands are as good or better than their import competitors. I would also challenge the notion on poor design, come on have you looked at a Toyota Prius, it's not winning any design awards, it's a wedge on wheels.

I have not been sold on this whole bailout of industries in general but congress and Mr.Paulson (U.S. Treasury Secretary) has set this country back at least a hundred years with this whole bailout strategy. I will be writing more later but this whole bailout matter stinks to high heaven and I can't believe academia and other researchers have not been screaming about it. The whole notion that the world is caving in is nonsense. This whole mess was a Treasury Secretary coming to the rescue of incompetent Powerful Financial and Banking Executives whom he knew and wanted to save their hides. Mr. Paulson begged and pleaded that a meltdown was imminent, as if their was not precedent for these collapses and in fact there are, some other Bank, Finance company or Insurer would have picked up the pieces at bargain basement prices and life would have gone on, folks would still make their payments to those new institutions and the markets would make the appropriate corrections. AIG would have been broken up and sold off and every other Big bank or Finance company collapsing would have been swooped up by another bargain hunter. Once again the folks who drove the Banking and Financial services companies into the ground are still directing the ships, why aren't the stockholders screaming and why isn't congress making these companies accountable for the taxpayers money.

We will see Thursday 11/4/08 what happens next in this chapter of American history, since congress is re-writing how the free enterprise system works in America.

Enjoy Today!

That Car Guy

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Fisker Automotive introduces the production version of their plug-in hybrid Fisker Karma...

The folks at Fisker Automotive unveiled and announced today that their first production vehicle will be on display at The Detroit Auto Show in January 2009. The Former Design Chief at Aston Martin and BMW Henrik Fisker who is CEO of Fisker Automotive, has been steadfast in delivering what appears to be a nearly identical version of the vehicle that was seen at last years Detroit Auto Show in 2008.

What makes the vehicle move is what is being labeled Q-Drive technology, which will provide an all electric range of 50 miles. The vehicle has a 2.0 liter Ecotec turbocharged engine from General Motors that is rated at 260 hp that operates a generator to provide power to after the battery power is exhausted. The Fisker Karma as announced has a 0 - 60 mph time of 5.8 seconds and will reach 125 mph at top speed.

The vehicle is expected to have a base price of $87,900.00 and no announcement has been made about distribution at this time or production timetable.

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That Car Guy

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