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  JoeBigs at 05:33 PM JST - 19th November

  Hell if we give them 25 Bn of the 700 Bn Wall Street bail out. I would not have a problem with that.

  I have read that a large sum of the money is now unaccounted and no one quiet knows where it went. At least if we bail out the automakers we would know where that small portion went.

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  roomtemperature at 06:16 PM JST - 19th November

  "Nippon5 if they are selling more vehicles why are they losing so much money?"

  Well, maybe when US car dealers start giving away cars for $1 with every new car you buy?

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  SuperLib at 06:54 PM JST - 19th November

  frontandcenter: Chrysler was tied to Daimler for how long, and what did they learn from the experience? Nothing, it would seem.

  Daimler bought Chrysler and ran it into the ground, then sold it for a fraction of what they paid. What was it exactly they were supposed to learn? lol

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  helloklitty at 11:40 PM JST - 19th November

  The best thing that could happen is if they go bankrupt. The result will be streamlined Medium 3 that produces only electric/gas cars and no SUVs.

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  Molenir at 03:58 AM JST - 20th November

  This is a really good Op-Ed by Mitt Romney discussing the situation.

  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/19/opinion/19romney.html?_r=2

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  HaroldSteptoe at 04:11 AM JST - 20th November

  America is in economic turmoil. Jeremy Paxman reckons all the big US auto companies will go bust without government handouts.

  So this is capitialism. Great innit, blimey give me good old fashioned socialism anyday.

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  Betzee at 06:28 AM JST - 20th November

  It happened in your country, too, Harold. For many, the British Leyland bailout of the 1970s remains exhibit A in the laundry list of futile government interventions. Despite generous infusions of cash, they could never recover their market share and eventually went under.

  Perhaps it's my liberal guilt, but when I read Wayne County, where Detroit is located, had logged 157 pages of home foreclosures I felt very sorry for the community. It's going to be next to impossible to recover without outside assistance.

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  YuriOtani at 09:50 AM JST - 20th November

  USninJapan2, think most of these SUVs in Japan have the Y (American Military) plate. Parking is thus very easy on the American bases which is catered to them. Most people in Japan live off of a narrow roads and streets. Two small cars can not pass each other in a lot of places. Vehicles in Japan require a parking permit before purchase. Y plates do not need such. Also the larger the engine the higher the weight ax and JCI (Japan compulsory insurance). Y plates get a big discount over the "kanji" (Japan people) plate. Japanese people prefer small sensible vehicles and the ones made in America are too large. It is their preference and not a plot of the government/companies that dictate the small amount of American made vehicles in Japan. The American auto companies have the larger is better mentality. They preferred to make larger profit per unit by making fewer large vehicles instead of making a modest profit selling more units. With the collaspe of SUV sales due to high fuel prices, these companies had to discount price them to sell or below the cost to manufacture. The American auto companies blame everyone but themselves for their woes. The need to reinvent themselves and stop blaming others for their own mistakes!

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  Betzee at 10:36 AM JST - 20th November

  The American auto companies have the larger is better mentality. They preferred to make larger profit per unit by making fewer large vehicles instead of making a modest profit selling more units.

  Also known as higher valued added. The Japanese have certainly climbed into that niche as well and they, along with other auto makers, are hurting too as this article below makes clear. (For those who've driven over the bridge in the background of the accompanying photo, you will immediately notice the difference).

  It's not clear the bail-out being proposed is legal under WTO rules. Foreign auto-makers could bring suit.

  A Sea of Unwanted Imports

  LONG BEACH, Calif. — Gleaming new Mercedes cars roll one by one out of a huge container ship here and onto a pier. Ordinarily the cars would be loaded on trucks within hours, destined for dealerships around the country. But these are not ordinary times.

  For now, the port itself is the destination. Unwelcome by dealers and buyers, thousands of cars worth tens of millions of dollars are being warehoused on increasingly crowded port property.

  And for the first time, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, and Nissan have each asked to lease space from the port for these orphan vehicles. They are turning dozens of acres of the nation’s second-largest container port into a parking lot, creating a vivid picture of a paralyzed auto business and an economy in peril....

  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/19/business/economy/19ports.html?scp=1&sq=long%20beach&st=cse

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  Sarge at 10:52 AM JST - 20th November

  This just in - the Big Three ain't gettin' jack - at least not yet - the Senate just rejected their bailout request.

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  adaydream at 10:54 AM JST - 20th November

  I'm all for the bailout to help the employees. But after what I've seen these past couple of days by the CEOs, I'm convinced that the company won't change and they'll go under anyway.

  I couldn't believe their arrogance. < :-)

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  Nippon5 at 12:24 PM JST - 20th November

  Yuriotani..

  Umm no most of the Hummers and Caddy suv vehicles I see are owned and operated by Japanese (we dont have a base near Shinagawa/Tokyo)... I can even go just down the way and rent an H2" at the local car rental here in Tokyo.. They are no bigger then a Toyota Highace van or the 4x4 's from Toyota and Nissan.. I live on a 4 meter road and next to a 6 meter road, and my back alley area is less then 4 meter.. We have no problem driving down any of these roads with our Full size vehicle, and on top of that the local company has Isuzu NPR dually trucks they run all day long here... Most Japanese buy a car based on the size of the parking space they have.. Most new houses come with a medium size parking space... So any mid size car will fit... The Shakken and the Insurance are not a big difference between weights and cc's once you go above the 660cc vehicle (yellow plate). Also when you take the test you do so in a mid size vehicle at the driving course, this Nissan or Toyota is about the same size as a Malibu, or a caravan .. Its not like you get a Benz Smart to take the test in..

  Maybe you havent been in Japan in awhile, or you just dont live in Japan, but allot of the cars in my area are American or German made vehicles.

  And like I said before its cheaper to produce a f150 then it is to produce a mustang.. The equipment and the basic chassis has been used for 20 + years.. So actually Ford or Chevy make more money on the larger truck then they do on the smaller car.. And that is why they push them so much... A framed vehicle is much cheaper to produce then a unibody vehicle.. The frame can be used along multiple models and vehicle lines, where a unibody is built into the body of the vehicle and is specific top that car...

  And car sales in Japan have been down for years now as younger people do not want the extra expense of owning a car...

  And the only Japanese car that has been on back order(in the states) was the Hybrid cars, and no even they are not being bought now because gas prioces came back down..

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  EurajReturns at 01:58 AM JST - 21st November

  I don't know what they were thinking, spending twenty-thousand dollars to fly to Washington, and then having the nerve to ask for money.

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  YuriOtani at 03:17 AM JST - 23rd November

  Nippon5, I live in my family home on Okinawa during my time in Japan. I spend about half of my time there. My car just manages to fit in the parking spot. There is no room to open the passenger door. I do not have the money to buy a new house. I do not have the money to waste on "luxury" transportation. I place the money needed for such in savings. I can only suppose Japanese with the large autos must be very wealthy. About Americans, most are smart enough (at least for now) to understand that fuel prices can double even triple quickly. Buying a large car is pure folly! It is about the only thing the "big 3" manufacture these days. You have said lots of things supporting the "big 3" which has wasted its profits and would quickly go through any bail out money. They have no vision and are stupid beyond all understanding. I refuse to support them with my money and say no to supporting them with my tax money. These companies are a left over from the time of greed and need to take their place in the garbage can of history.

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  frontandcentre at 02:23 PM JST - 10th December

  Superlib - if you were correct, more fool Chrysler. In actual fact I think that Daimler tried to get Chrysler to build good quality cars but they simply weren't able to cut the mustard

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