Tough times for America’s big three automakers
Urban cowboys in pickups and SUV’s are a thing of the past. More and more customers don’t even talk about power any more. Ford, Chrysler and General Motors were not ready for $4 gasoline, and June was another disaster for an industry that helped make America great, with sales of new cars and trucks that plunged to a ten-year low. GM dropped 18%; Ford 28% and Chrysler 36%. Toyota took a 21% hit, but Honda rose by 1.1 and Kia, owned by Hyundai of South Korea, went up by 7.6. On "To the Point": a Chrysler/Jeep dealer who says the Big Three are their own worst enemy. Can they re-tool in time? Can they figure out how to make money on small cars with high mileage before they’re swamped by foreign companies who saw the light a long time ago?
Guests:
– John McElroy: Host, ‘Autoline Detroit’
– Adam Lee: President, Lee Auto Malls
– Maryann Keller: independent auto analyst
– Peter Morici: Professor of Business and Economics, University of Maryland
Hosted by award-winning journalist Warren Olney, "To the Point" presents informative and thought-provoking discussion of major news stories — front-page issues that attract a savvy and serious news audience.