Hood River car dealership closes
By Dan Tilkin KATU News and KATU.com Web StaffHOOD RIVER, Ore. – It’s no secret the U.S. auto industry is in big trouble. With CEOs appearing before politicians who are reluctant to hand over $25 billion to save the Big Three – Ford, GM and Chrysler – it's no wonder people are holding off on buying a new car, especially if it is American-made. The historic slump is hitting many dealerships hard, including one in Hood River that has been selling American-made cars for more than half a century. Now, the doors are closed and the lot full of unsold Jeeps, Ram pickups and Chrysler PT Cruisers are heading back to Detroit and other plants via car transporter trucks. One salesman, who identified himself only as “Erik,” is now out of a job and pulled no punches when he placed the blame for the precarious position of the U.S. auto industry and the loss of his job. He blames consumers, specifically those that bought foreign-made cars. Erik told KATU News that the American public perceives U.S.-built cars in the same way it views car salesmen – as “fat, lazy and overpaid.” “The truth is, there’s a tremendous amount of expense to manufacture vehicles. We’ve had a marketing scam run on us for decades,” Erik said, “and the perception of the American public is that our [U.S.] products are not any good, and that those [vehicles] made in Japan – which used to be synonymous with poor quality – are far superior.” Dealerships are complaining that it is hard to get financing even for people with good credit as the credit crunch continues in the financial markets. Customers wanting to buy large pickup trucks reportedly need to put down nearly $10,000 to get financing. The Hood River dealership that is closing had to sell an average of 70 cars a month to stay in business. In Washington D.C., politicians wrangling over helping U.S. automakers with a $25 billion aid package have criticized the industry for being uncompetitive and having a “lack of vision” when it come to emerging trends like fuel-efficient cars such as hybrids and electric vehicles. Toyota introduced the first high-mileage commercially available hybrid car, called the Prius, in 1997. Honda followed in 1999 with the Insight, which got 70 mpg on the highway, according to the EPA. The first domestically produced hybrid car in the United States was the Ford Escape Hybrid, which was first available in 2004. So far, there has been no consensus on a bailout of the U.S. auto industry. |
 
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