Detroit Three

Even After $14 Billion in TARP Money, Detroit's on Life-Support

Steve Parker | Posted 01.08.2009 | Business

Read More: Treasury Department, Automotive News, FICO Score, Chrysler, Detroit Three, Cars, Detroit Auto Show, Ford, Jeep Patriot, Dodge Ram, Nissan, TARP and Auto Bailout, Los Angeles Auto Show, General Motors, Infiniti, Paul Krugman, Chrysler Financial, NY Times, Detroit Bailout, GMAC Bailout, Business News
Steve Parker

With economists predicting a rough 2009, 2010 and maybe even 2011, there's not much chance of '09 and '10 car sales reaching even 2008's miserable 13.1 million.

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Car sales, 2008; even worse than we thought

Steve Parker | Posted 01.06.2009 | Business

Read More: World Rally, Pony Cars, Porsche, Automotive News, Chrysler, Ford Mustang, Hemi Engines, The Wizard of Oz, Isuzu, Obama Administration, Mercedes-Benz, Cars, New York Federal Reserve, Fuji Heavy Industries, Ford, Volkswagen, Maybach, Motor Trend, Nissan, Dodge Challenger, Cadillac Srx, Chevrolet Equinox, Scotland, Mercury Milan Hybrid, Timothy Geithner, Huffington Post, Buick Lacrosse, GMAC Bailout, Pickups, TV Pitchman Vince, FICO Score, 2010 Chevrolet Camaro, Toyota, Gm, Minivan, Ford F-150, Detroit Three, Associated Press, Chicago Cubs, American Honda, Gmc, Smart Car, Wall Street, Colin Mcrae, Detroit Three Loans, Cadillac Cts Wagon, Subaru, Bmw, Car Czar, Daimler, Mitsubishi, Treasury Secretary, SUV Sales, Credit Unions, Ford Fusion Hybrid, Business News
Steve Parker

Monday brought three conference calls, each about an hour, with executives from each of the Detroit Three announcing, dissecting and, most of all, spi...

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Bottom Line: 2008 Car/Truck Sales Probably Worst Since 1974

Steve Parker | Posted 01.03.2009 | Business

Read More: Ebay, Treasury Department, Porsche, Automotive News, Paris Dakar Rally, Wall Street Bailout, Congress, Hank Paulson, Troubled Assets Relief Program, Chrysler, Ford Mustang, Detroit Lions, Cars, Detroit News, Ford, Highland Park, Supercharger, Dodge Durango Hybrid, General Motors, Chad Hall, Dodge Challenger, Chrysler EVs, Chevy Cobalt, 1974 Oil Embargo, Detroit, Carroll Shelby, Off-Road, Baja 1000, Porsche Panamera, Detroit Bailout, Chrysler Aspen Hybrid, Pickups, FICO Score, Chevy Cruze, Minivan, Hilton Hotels, Nascar, Detroit Three, Gm, Robby Gordon, Mexico, Washington DC, Daewoo, Rod Hall, Tokyo, Gmac, TARP and Auto Bailout, Seoul, Detroit Three Loans, San Jose Del Cabo, Hummer Sale, gt500, Darpa, Stuttgart, SUV Sales, Business News
Steve Parker

The only other time the industry has seen a 3-million (or more) unit plunge was following the 1974 oil shortage.

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Ten most significant import cars, 2008 and beyond

Steve Parker | Posted 12.31.2008 | Business

Read More: Turbochargers, WRX STI, Nissan Maxima, Tesla Motors, Cindy McCain, Kia Rio, Mercedes-Benz, Cars, Toyota Highlander Hybrid, Civil Rights, Clean Diesel, Los Angeles Auto Show, Nissan Versa, Germany, Toyota Yaris, California Air Resources Board, Carroll Shelby, Kei-Cars, Carly Fiorina, Porsche Cayman, Carb, Swatch Watch, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Porsche Cayenne Diesel, Colin Powell, Careers, Cnbc, All-Wheel Drive, Computers, Detroit Three, Kia, Honda Fit, Chaebol, South Korea, Renault/Nissan, Horizontal Opposed Engine, Colin Chapman, China, steve.parker.com, Porsche Boxster, Blue Line Hybrid, Ev, Congo, Subaru Impreza, Front-Wheel Drive, Audi Clean Diesel, Rear-Wheel Drive, Caroline Kennedy, Switzerland, Charlie Crist, Lotus Evora, Hyundai, Electric Cars, Climate Change, Nissan Altima Hybrid, Mid-Engine, Porsche Panamera, F1, Hyundai Accent, Toyota Venza, Afghanistan, Carlos Ghosn, Smart ForTwo, Ferrari, Japanese Carmakers, Smart Car, Direct Fuel Injection, Roger Penske, Bmw, Christianity, Mazda 3, Volkswagen Jetta Diesel, Citigroup, Doch, Brembo, Business News
Steve Parker

Happy New Year! We've had the pleasure of helping to create and now write and and moderate this automotive blog beginning in June, 2008, and so far i...

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Toyota Projects First-Ever Annual Loss; Congress Disses Detroit

Steve Parker | Posted 12.23.2008 | Business

Read More: Simon Boag, John Campi, White House, Congress, Australia, Trd, Buick, United Auto Workers, Suvs, Phil Murtaugh, Crossfire, Mercedes-Benz, Cars, Detroit News, Detroit Auto Show, Hardtop Convertible, Daimler, Toyota Motor Corp, Moraine, Masters of the Universe, Mongolia, Bankruptcy, Detroit Three, Gm, Washington DC, Land Rover, Bonfire of the Vanities, Tom Wolfe, Floorplanning, Cnn, Banks, Japan, China, Corporate Jets, Automotive News, Roger and Me, Wall Street Bailout, Suzuki, Chrysler, Jim Press, GM Bankruptcy, Federal Reserve Board, President Obama, Ford, Katsuaki Watanabe, General Motors, Dayton, CNN/Opinion Research Poll, President Bush, Michigan, Detroit Bailout, Uaw, Automaker Bailout, Associated Press, Tokyo, Private Planes, g4 Challenge, North American International Auto Show, Nyc, Wall Street, Detroit Three Loans, Deborah Meyer, Vice President Cheney, Toyota Racing Development, Republicans, Slk, Business News
Steve Parker

Congress took a perverse pleasure in giving Detroit's CEOs and the UAW president the third degree -- unnecessary theater while our country suffers this economic decline.

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Procrastination Doesn't Fix It

Joan Blades | Posted 12.22.2008 | Business

Read More: Uaw, Big Three Automakers, United Auto Workers, Detroit Bailout, Detroit Three, Automakers, Jobs, Bailout, Cars, Detroit Automakers, Labor Unions, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Unemployment, Automaker Bailout, The Big 3, Auto Industry, Unions, Detroit, Business News
Joan Blades

Why not convert one third of the automakers' industrial capacity to building state-of-the-art wind generation? We need to be strategic in solving our economic and energy woes.

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Bush Punts Auto Industry to Team Obama; UAW Concedes Even More

Steve Parker | Posted 12.20.2008 | Business

Read More: Tarp, Automotive News, Msnbc, Wall Street Bailout, Union-Busting, Troubled Assets Relief Program, Chrysler, Right to Work, United Auto Workers, Rick Wagoner, Honda, Cars, Detroit News, Ford, Automaker Viability Plan, Auto Bailout, GM VP CFO Ray Young, General Motors, Richard Shelby, Two-Tier Pay, Chrysler Viability Plan, President Bush, Foreign Transplant Factories, Ford Viability Plan, Detroit Bailout, Bob Nardelli, Automaker Bailout, Uaw, Robert Reich, Managed Bankruptcy, Default Car Czar, Alan Mulally, Detroit Three, GM Viability Plan, Clinton Administration, Barack Obama, Rachel Maddow Show, Alabama, Asimo, Bush Administration, Wall Street, Detroit Three Loans, Auto Supplier Companies, Big Three Viability Plan, Secretary of Labor Reich, Henry Paulson, Car Czar, Treasury Secretary, Jobs, Unemployment, Labor Unions, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Unions, Business News
Steve Parker

This "agreement" is just another part of the recent "Bush/Cheney Revisionist History Farewell Tour." It was created to fail, just as long as that failure didn't happen while Bush was still president.

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GM's Own "Heritage Collection" Is Now Up for Sale

Steve Parker | Posted 12.19.2008 | Business

Read More: Saturn, Chrysler, Buick, Cars, Arizona, Cadillac Presidential Limo, Ford, Barrett-Jackson Auction, Reggie Jackson, General Motors, Pontiac GTO, Heritage Collection, Impala Ss, Petersen Automotive Museum, Detroit, Ventura Boulevard, Carousel Orange, French Government, Oldsmobile, Corvette ZR1, Tragic Kingdom, Gm, Motor City, Detroit Three, Pontiac GTO Judge, Washington DC, Tiger Shark, Gmc, Los Angeles, Camaro, Tokyo, Magic Kingdom, Louvre, No Doubt, Detroit Three Loans, Olds Aurora, Japan, Disney, Cadillac, Scottsdale, Dallara, Business News
Steve Parker

GM is selling off, one-by-one, piece-by-piece, memory-by-memory, the GM Heritage Collection. Finding out felt like I'd taken a punch to the gut.

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Bailout or Not, Nothing Will Be the Same for Drivers or Detroit

Trevor Traina | Posted 12.18.2008 | Business

Read More: Detroit, Auto Bailout, Consumers, Driving, Automaker Bailout, Auto Industry, Detroit Bailout, Vehicle Ownership, Big Three Automakers, United Auto Workers, Detroit Three, Automakers, Jobs, Bailout, Cars, Detroit Automakers, Labor Unions, Unemployment, Detroit Bailout Reaction, The Big 3, Uaw, Unions, Business News
Trevor Traina

Vehicle manufacturers must re-engage their owners and offer them innovative services. What if GM included ads in exchange for lower pricing? What if they developed an in-dash system with Google or Apple?

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White House Still "Gathering Information" While Detroit Suppliers go Bankrupt

Steve Parker | Posted 12.18.2008 | Business

Read More: Toyota Camry, Chapter 11, White House, Thailand, Troubled Assets Relief Program, Flint, Chrysler, Rick Wagoner, United Auto Workers, Cars, Detroit News, Arizona, Facebook, Ford, Detroit Newspapers, Key Plastics, Los Angeles Auto Show, Mark Fields, Southern California, Larry King, Daewoo Lacetti, General Motors, Japanese Cars, Ford Flex, President Bush, Carl Levin, President-Elect Barack Obama, China Brilliance, Uaw, Bankruptcy, Gm, Minivan, Alan Mulally, Special Devices, Detroit Three, Gran Torino, Detroit Free Press, Washington DC, Sandy Levin, Clint Eastwood, Chevrolet Volt, Chevrolet Cruze, Bill Ford, TARP and Auto Bailout, Henry Ford, Detroit Three Loans, South Korea, European Cars, Henry Paulson, Sabic, Detroit Bailout, Automaker Bailout, Detroit, Big Three Automakers, Detroit Automakers, Unions, Auto Industry, Automakers, Jobs, Bailout, Unemployment, The Big 3, Labor Unions, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Business News
Steve Parker

Even Bush doesn't want to go down in history as the man who oversaw the destruction of GM, Ford and Chrysler (I hope), and I'd guess Obama wishes he could install his own new team now and fire Paulson.

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Holding the Auto Industry Hostage to Anti-Union Animus

Roger Smith, AIL | Posted 12.16.2008 | Business

Read More: Big Three Automakers, Wages, United Auto Workers, Detroit Bailout, Detroit Three, Automakers, Bailout, Labor Unions, Cars, Detroit Automakers, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Automaker Bailout, Bob Corker, The Big 3, Unions, Auto Industry, Detroit, Business News
Roger Smith, AIL

Rep. Bob Corker and his colleagues have stooped to a new low in sacrificing the nation's economic recovery to their anti-union ideology.

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Is the GOP Risking the Economy to Win the PR War Against Unions?

Art Levine | Posted 12.16.2008 | Politics

Read More: Detroit Automakers, Republican Senators, Gop, Employee Free Choice Act, Corker, Auto Industry Bailout, Uaw, Mitch Albom, Big Three Automakers, United Auto Workers, Detroit Bailout, Ford, Detroit Three, Automakers, Jobs, Bailout, Labor Unions, Cars, Unemployment, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Gm, Chysler, Automaker Bailout, The Big 3, Unions, Auto Industry, Detroit, Politics News
Art Levine

With three million jobs at stake, potentially costing taxpayers $150 billion, unions remain the primary targets of the GOP blame game for the troubled auto industry and the failed bailout deal.

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Motor Racing Reacts to Worldwide Recession

Steve Parker | Posted 12.15.2008 | Business

Read More: Porsche, White House, 24 Hours of LeMans, Daytona International Speedway, 12 Hours of Sebring, NASCAR Drivers, Bobby Labonte, Cars, Daytona Prototype, Xtrac, Soap Box Derby, Chip Ganassi, Petty Enterprises, Irs, Formula 1, Felix Sabates, Soap Box Derbies, Richard Petty, Indy Racing League, New Hampshire Speedway, Detroit Three, Nascar, Chevrolet, Gm, Washington DC, Tony Stewart, Kyle Petty, Alms, Dodge, Monaco Grand Prix, NASCAR Money, Turbodiesel, Alfa Romeo, Tarp Bailout Bill, Gran-Am Rolex Sports Car Series, Joe Gibbs Racing, Chrysler, Honda, Ford, Audi Clean Diesel, Volkswagen, Mazda, General Motors, Indycar Racing, Detroit, Detroit Bailout, Indycar, Adam Petty, Uaw, Toyota, American Lemans Series, Ricardo, NASCAR Support, Cosworth, Porsche Rs Spyder, Sprint Cup, Ferrari, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, Formula One, TARP and Auto Bailout, Daytona 500, Audi, Roger Penske, Bmw, New York Times, Super Bowl Commercials, Business News
Steve Parker

With car sales suffering worldwide, the marketing and advertising budgets, where many companies keep their racing dollars, are often the first budgets to be trimmed.

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Musings II

Norman Cressy | Posted 12.14.2008 | Politics

Read More: Automaker Bailout, Senate Vote, Big Three Automakers, United Auto Workers, Detroit Bailout, Ford, Detroit Three, Automakers, Bailout, Cars, Detroit Automakers, Gm, Chysler, Detroit, The Big 3, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Auto Industry, Politics News
Norman Cressy

Weeks ago Republicans berated Democrats for suggesting that a company should be told what to manufacture -- hybrid cars, for example--that was not Government's job to do

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"Transplant" Automakers Get Over $3.6 Billion in Subsidies; More Unions, Ralph Nader Comment

Steve Parker | Posted 12.13.2008 | Business

Read More: Change to Win, Herbert Hoover, Chrysler, Decherd, Buffalo, Honda, Blue Springs, Mercedes-Benz, Cars, Montgomery, Ford, Volkswagen, Senators, Nissan, Infrastructure, Princeton, Benedict Arnold, General Motors, Hyundai, Greensburg Indiana, Essential Action, Ralph Nader, Uaw, Lafayette, Toyota, Canton, Detroit Three, Ohio, San Antonio, United Steelworkers, Kia, Huntsville, Democrats, Foreign-Owned, Good Jobs First, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Bush Administration, Chattanooga, Detroit Three Loans, Bmw, Subaru, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Transplant, Tax Exempt, Smyrna, Unions, Japanese Transplants, Spartanburg, Republicans, Detroit Bailout, Auto Industry, Business News
Steve Parker

This post has the latest news on the billions in subsidies which off-shore transplant carmakers have received from state and local governments.

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Senate to Middle Class: Drop Dead

Michael Moore | Posted 12.12.2008 | Politics

Read More: Detroit Automakers, Auto Bailout, Automaker Bailout, Uaw, Big Three Automakers, Bailout, Michael Moore, United Auto Workers, Detroit Three, Middle Class, Detroit, Big Three, The Big 3, Auto Industry, Politics News
Michael Moore

The Senate decided that it is more important to break a union, more important to throw middle class wage earners into the ranks of the working poor than to prevent the total collapse of industrial America.

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Republicans Kill any Help for Detroit

Steve Parker | Posted 12.12.2008 | Business

Read More: Tarp, Automotive News, Congress, Chrysler, Election Day, United Auto Workers, Honda, Federal Reserve, Mercedes-Benz, Cars, Ford, Trifecta, Nikkei, Nissan, General Motors, Troubled Asset Relief Plan, Hyundai, Christmas, US Senate, Bill Clinton, Uaw, Gm, Detroit Three, European Union, Democrats, Walkman, Barack Obama, Tokyo, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Wall Street, Detroit Three Loans, Bmw, Transplant, Harry Reid, NY Times, Southeast, Asian, China, Sony, Republicans, Business News
Steve Parker

Late last night, Senate Republicans derailed a bill, passed the day before by the House, to loan $15 billion to the Detroit Three, with 10 Republicans joining 40 Democrats and two Independents in favor.

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Auto bill clears House; Should it pass the Senate, too?

Steve Parker | Posted 12.11.2008 | Business

Read More: Aclu, White House, Congress, 1979 Chrysler Bailout, Brooklyn, George W. Bush, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Cars, Mazda, Mark Fields, Cerberus Capital Management, Energy Department, General Motors, Buddhist, Hyundai, Nancy Pelosi, Washington, US Senate, Richard Shelby, Barney Dog, Silver Arrows, Uaw, California, Toyota, Bernard Cahier, Detroit Three, John Snow, Democrats, Barack Obama, Ford Motor Co, Robert F. Kennedy, Chrysler, Alabama, Ross Perot, Bush White House, Detroit Three Loans, Roger Penske, Car Czar, Harry Reid, Allard Lowenstein, French Grand Prix, Republicans, Business News
Steve Parker

And now, it's on to the Senate! The House today passed, 237 to 170, HR 7321, the automotive loan bailout bill, and has sent it on to the Senate. H...

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Just in: Dems, White House Agree on Detroit Three Bailout

Steve Parker | Posted 12.10.2008 | Business

Read More: White House, Bankruptcy, Mitch McConnell, Cerberus Capital Management, Chrysler, Gm, Detroit Three Loans, Detroit Three, George W. Bush, Cars, Car Czar, Richard Shelby, Ford, Barack Obama, Business News
Steve Parker

Almost shockingly, I agree with Alabama Sen. Shelby for his warning that this $15 billion is just the "down payment" on the amounts of cash Detroit really needs, and they may all fail, anyway.

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Call for Resignation of GM's Lutz, Too, as Condition of Bailout

David Sassoon | Posted 12.09.2008 | Business

Read More: Gm, Global Warming, Detroit, Lutz, Lutz Resignation, Chevy Volt, Big Three Automakers, United Auto Workers, Detroit Bailout, Ford, Detroit Three, Automakers, Bailout, Cars, Detroit Automakers, Bob Lutz Is Full of Shit, Bob Lutz, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Bob Lutz Resignation, Chysler, Automaker Bailout, The Big 3, Auto Industry, Business News
David Sassoon

Forcing out GM's Bob Lutz may seem like a sideshow to the much bigger issues needing resolution to rescue Detroit, but if you believe in the power of gesture, maybe not.

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Lee Iacocca: US Auto Execs Shouldn't Be Ousted

AP | Posted 12.09.2008 | Business

Read More: Lee Iacocca, Auto Bailout, Auto Execs, Detroit Execs, Detroit Bailout, Detroit Three, Business News

DETROIT — Lee Iacocca, the man who led Chrysler through a government bailout in the late 1970s, says the CEOs of Detroit's automakers should not...

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Let Big Oil Bail Out the Auto Industry

Robbie Gennet | Posted 12.09.2008 | Business

Read More: Oil, Gas Prices, Congress, California, Bailout, Ford, Auto Industry, Economy, Economic Downturn, Big Three Automakers, Economic Crisis, Detroit Three, Consumer Spending, Consumer Confidence, Business News, Automaker Bailout, Recession Watch, Financial Crisis, Great Depression, Business News
Robbie Gennet

Seems like such a simple solution, doesn't it? After all, who has influenced the US Auto Industry (USAI) to keep MPG low and fight CAFE standards? Why...

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The Auto Bailout and Post-Partisanship?

Hoyt Hilsman | Posted 12.09.2008 | Politics

Read More: Republican Administration, Uaw, Automaker Bailout, Government Bailout, United Auto Workers, Economy, Ford, Congress, Obama, Bush, Chrysler, Mark Zandi, General Motors, Ron Gettelfinger, Bob Corker, Auto Industry Bailout, Auto Industry, Senate, Detroit Bailout, Automakers, Bailout, Gm, The Big 3, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Detroit, Big Three Automakers, Detroit Three, Cars, Detroit Automakers, Chysler, Politics News
Hoyt Hilsman

This is a mess. Everybody in the auto industry is staring into the abyss - the automakers, the unions, the suppliers, the dealers - not to mention the government and the taxpayers.

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Detroit's Next Step; Analysis of Rescue Proposal Here

Steve Parker | Posted 12.09.2008 | Business

Read More: New United Motor Manufacturing, Bob Nardelli, Congress, Uaw, Meet the Press, Toyota, Pontiac Vibe Hatchbacks, Chrysler, Gm, Alan Mulally, Rick Wagoner, Barney Frank, Detroit Three, Three Tenors, Detroit Free Press, Cars, Chris Dodd, Ford, Corvette, Bob Lutz, Tom Brokaw, General Motors, Detroit Three Loans, Pontiac GTO, Nancy Pelosi, Washington, Harry Reid, Pontiac G8, Detroit Bailout, Nummi, Auto Bailout, Auto Industry, Business News
Steve Parker

It's always nice to own part of any failing automotive giant from the last century, if the companies are still not viable three, six or even twelve months from now, what will taxpayers' ownership be worth?

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Automotive Chiefs Announce Further Restructuring, Closing Ohio

Aemilia Scott | Posted 12.08.2008 | Business

Read More: Cars, Automakers, Automaker Bailout, Unemployment, Economy, Satire, Ohio, Detroit, Auto Industry, Comedy, Manufacturing Jobs, Big Three Automakers, United Auto Workers, Detroit Bailout, Ford, Detroit Three, Bailout, Detroit Automakers, Economic Humor, Detroit Bailout Reaction, Gm, Chysler, The Big 3, Business News
Aemilia Scott

Over the last few years, sustaining Ohio has become less profitable for automakers. When the state began to run at a loss, the Big Three began selling off pieces to Germany and Japan.

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