Why GM is still in trouble

[stevesnj]

Very interesting article, seems like GM should be telling salesmen to kiss the butts of customers to help sales but no this is what you can expect still.

Achenblog - Guest Kit: Why Can't I Buy a Camaro?

 

[Hoshiko]

Hey, This is really sad.
Like 2-3 weeks ago, I went to Brooklyn Harley Davidson. Since they are having that "test ride whatever bike you like" I want it to give it a try. Is being long time since I roud a Harley and that one was sweet cool one from the 70's.
Anyways, I pulled over on my fz6, on the little parking space that they have and noticed that they are now selling chinese scooters (sad but funny). Walked inside and 5 minutes after talking to the sales guy, He mention at least 4 times if I was ready to get in a "real bike".
I left witouth riding anything and thinking that I will spend my money somewhere else Harley or not.

 

[YamaSpeed]

Hey, This is really sad.
Like 2-3 weeks ago, I went to Brooklyn Harley Davidson. Since they are having that "test ride whatever bike you like" I want it to give it a try. Is being long time since I roud a Harley and that one was sweet cool one from the 70's.
Anyways, I pulled over on my fz6, on the little parking space that they have and noticed that they are now selling chinese scooters (sad but funny). Walked inside and 5 minutes after talking to the sales guy, He mention at least 4 times if I was ready to get in a "real bike".
I left witouth riding anything and thinking that I will spend my money somewhere else Harley or not.

I get this a lot around hear as well. Harley davidsons are cool bikes it is too bad that the majority (not all) of the people who ride them are so narrow minded. It reminds of an old saying "Harleys are like hemoroids. Every A$$hole has one".

Yamspeed

 

[Red Wazp]

Ever had a Yamaha or any other Japanese dealer let you test ride their bikes? None in my parts-sucks.

BMW will.

 

[zigzagg321]

and the transmission output shafts are shearing off on the SS versions.

The new Camaro SS is definitely one of the hottest pony cars to come along in the last decade, but so far it hasn't been all roses for the car, with a recall over a faulty battery and now a new problem with breaking manual transmissions.

The Tremec TR6060 sourced to send the LS3's power to the rear wheels is a popular industry choice, found in a wide range of muscle and performance cars including Chevrolet's own Corvette, but the units installed in Camaro SS models apparently have some internal flaw that lends them to sudden and catastrophic failure.

Reports of the problem have been emerging on enthusiast forums for the past several weeks, usually with breakage occurring during use of the built-in launch control. Owner speculation points toward the output shaft being the weak link, but today GM issued a statement to Camaro5, one of the largest Camaro enthusiast sites on the web.

The statement reveals only that GM has decided to temporarily stop shipment of the car to dealers, and that an 'in production' review will be made. GM makes it clear that it is "NOT requesting vehicles be returned for any service or dealer deliveries stopped as a result of this action."

Once the problem, if any, is found, expect GM to take further action. Camaro SS owners out there might want to refrain from using their traction control for hard launches for the near future, however, to avoid a lot of downtime as their transmission is replaced.

Automatic SS models and all other Camaros are unaffected by the problem.

All Content Copyright 2006-2008 Motor Authority

 

[SovietRobot]

GM sucks because they make crappy cars.

 

[necrotimus]

When the 350Z first came out they were not allowing test drives. My wife really liked the looks of it but she wasn't going to buy one without driving it. We took our business elsewhere.

 

[madmanmaigret]

The best that comes to those who wait.

I wouldn't buy a first model year of a car anyway. too many bugs they haven't worked out. Have you ever noticed that as a car matures in it's life cycle they get better? more power, better fuel economy, etc.....

 

[HowlFZ6]

Ever had a Yamaha or any other Japanese dealer let you test ride their bikes? None in my parts-sucks.

BMW will.

This is true. I've had the same experience.

 

[Boneman]

GM sucks because they make crappy cars.

I found a great interview with Adam Carolla about GM and the bailout. It's worth a read! (Ace is my hero! Some of his rants are just epic!)

http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/automotive_news/4294731.html

Sorry, I don't feel one bit sorry for GM. They did this to themselves by ignoring the very simple (and inexpensive) rule of "listen to your customer".

Want to really hate GM, watch "Who Killed The Electirc Car?" documentary. You can watch it on YouTube here: [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3rw9MsHB8Y]YouTube - Who Killed The Electric Car (in 2 Parts) [Part 1 of 2][/ame]

After I saw that film, GM can go rot in hell!!

 

[Mattberkshire]

I get this a lot around hear as well. Harley davidsons are cool bikes it is too bad that the majority (not all) of the people who ride them are so narrow minded. It reminds of an old saying "Harleys are like hemoroids. Every A$$hole has one".

Yamspeed

My brother has a similar, far ruder, version about BMW X5's which he seems to hate. He reckons X5 are like cl*ts cos every c*nts got one.:spank:

 

[shuckle]

Ever had a Yamaha or any other Japanese dealer let you test ride their bikes? None in my parts-sucks.

BMW will.

They will around here as long as you have at least an M2 license (we have M1, M2 and a Full M in Ontario)

Some of the dealers also have special days to encourage people to come out and try everything. Especially women's days - those are very popular.

 

[ELIZABETH]

Ever had a Yamaha or any other Japanese dealer let you test ride their bikes? None in my parts-sucks.

BMW will.

No one around here (St Louis) will let you test ride a new bike...just used ones. They say the value goes down if there is more than 2 miles on it. :don'tknow: Makes it hard to decide on which bike you want. I couldn't even ride the USED bike, being a newbie with no "current" bike insurance. My cousin had to test ride for me, and we were fortunate enough to find a used FZ for him to test.

 

[stevesnj]

But car dealers usually buy a vehicle and use it just as a demo. They eventually sell it anyway at a lower cost so it doesn't make sense to me.

 

[ELIZABETH]

Some of the dealers also have special days to encourage people to come out and try everything. Especially women's days - those are very popular.

The dealers in Ontario let you try out women??? I had no idea Canada was like that!

 

[wolfc70]

The dealers in Ontario let you try out women??? I had no idea Canada was like that!

:rof::rof::rof::bow: Priceless!!

 

[SovietRobot]

I found a great interview with Adam Carolla about GM and the bailout. It's worth a read! (Ace is my hero! Some of his rants are just epic!)

Top Gear USA's Adam Carolla on the Auto Bailout: Exclusive Interview - Popular Mechanics

Sorry, I don't feel one bit sorry for GM. They did this to themselves by ignoring the very simple (and inexpensive) rule of "listen to your customer".

Want to really hate GM, watch "Who Killed The Electirc Car?" documentary. You can watch it on YouTube here: YouTube - Who Killed The Electric Car (in 2 Parts) [Part 1 of 2]

After I saw that film, GM can go rot in hell!!

Yeah I miss the aceman on loveline. I grew up listening to him everynight!

I saw that documentary last year and was kind of appalled by GM's moves.

Most american car companies are terrible. They sacrifice quality for savings and still are unable to make money. What I really hate is the hundreds of billions of dollars the american taxpayers are paying to "save" these companies.

 

[CdnMedic]

GM (and the other domestic companies) should listen to what the customers want.
I am VERY loyal to GM and will ALWAYS ONLY own GM.
I have an 04 GMC Canyon... They would have sold alot more of them if they came with a v-8 from the start, instead of adding a v-8 now in 09. They hardely advertise their vehicles. I'm astounded at how popular canyons and colorados are, despite the fact I've never seen a TV ad.
Another... The top of the payroll guys. How about giving yourself an honest salary, not wasting company money for little private trips disguised as a business trip, and actually do your job 5 days a week.
Factory workers don't need to make $40 an hour, plus benefits. You are likely highschool educated or a drop out, and yet make more than alot of college and university educated people... It's not hard to put a fender or a back seat on a car, and I feel you are easily replacable and thus, not "worth" much in the work place.
There are a few things they need to change, but the cars are not one of them. If we had it the way people wanted, we would all drive either a honda civic or a toyota tacoma. Did you know the tacoma has more recall issues than the colorado? The frames are rotting out from under them at the joints!
This camaro issue, is not GMs fault, as it's an issue from the transmission manufacturer, and will be fixed. I wouldn't buy a first year run of a vehicle as new either... My Canyon is a first year of a vehicle, but I bought it used knowing the potential issues it could have... And it's been totally great to me.

 

[Hellgate]

Remember that each dealership is a franchise and each dealership has their own personality.

I recently bought an '09 Malibu LTZ, 4 cylinder, 6 speed auto. Its a great car. I looked at Camry, Accord, etc and the Malibu is a better car. Quieter, smoother, better price.

The deal I worked with was very helpful and the transaction was smooth and fast. We didn't have to dicker to much on the price of the car and trade.

So far I've put about 9,000 miles on it including a trip pulling the Buell and track gear from Austin to LA, not a single problem. I get 22 around town and about 30 to 32 on the highway.

There are terrible dealers for anything, and yes many American car dealers are the worst. The factory pulled many franchises recently and I suspect we'll see the remaining ones get better. We'll see.

 

[wolfc70]

GM (and the other domestic companies) should listen to what the customers want.
I am VERY loyal to GM and will ALWAYS ONLY own GM.
I have an 04 GMC Canyon... They would have sold alot more of them if they came with a v-8 from the start, instead of adding a v-8 now in 09. They hardely advertise their vehicles. I'm astounded at how popular canyons and colorados are, despite the fact I've never seen a TV ad.
Another... The top of the payroll guys. How about giving yourself an honest salary, not wasting company money for little private trips disguised as a business trip, and actually do your job 5 days a week.
Factory workers don't need to make $40 an hour, plus benefits. You are likely highschool educated or a drop out, and yet make more than alot of college and university educated people... It's not hard to put a fender or a back seat on a car, and I feel you are easily replacable and thus, not "worth" much in the work place.
There are a few things they need to change, but the cars are not one of them. If we had it the way people wanted, we would all drive either a honda civic or a toyota tacoma. Did you know the tacoma has more recall issues than the colorado? The frames are rotting out from under them at the joints!
This camaro issue, is not GMs fault, as it's an issue from the transmission manufacturer, and will be fixed. I wouldn't buy a first year run of a vehicle as new either... My Canyon is a first year of a vehicle, but I bought it used knowing the potential issues it could have... And it's been totally great to me.

I agree, a company I used to work for had a few Canyons, nice trucks, but kind of underpowered. I thought the Inline 6 from the Trailblazer would have been perfect. Other than that, they were nice trucks, even if the interior could have been better.