GM, Toyota, Volkswagen. Spokes On A Wheel. This One’s On Top And That One’s On Top, And On And On It Spins, Crushing Those On The Ground

September 23, 2015 in Daily Bulletin

Whenever a car marker reaches the zenith of the auto industry, a scandal brings it down. Steve LeVine and Jason Karaian looked at the history and pointed to a reason why:

  • GM was top dog for 77 years. Then it grew complacent and stopped producing cars that Americans wanted. It was soon overtaken by Toyota and needed a government bailout.
  • Toyota created trends with the Prius. But soon safety concerns about stuck accelerator pads brought the carmaker down.
  • Volkswagen grabbed the crown but is now plagued by confirmed accusations about software intended to mislead consumers and government about emission standards.
  • Automobile manufacturing is a low margin business.
  • To increase market share companies need to cut price, which means cutting costs, and carmakers seem to have done that by cutting corners and skimping on safety and regulatory features.

Read more here.

Source: Quartz