GM ceases Venezuela operations after government seizes plant

[41chevy]

8 hours ago, TS7 said:

The one that cannot accept the facts is you Teamster. Venezuela is falling apart because of socialism.

Why argue with a Racist Liberal?  Don't you know in her eyes all white,christian, conservative, non union people are a holes and thieves?, Only union people are "smart".  All us non Liberal Democrats are system suckers and yahoos who need to be educated and led. Just like Obama,  teamstergrrl whom is smartest, most tolerant, non prejudiced person on the site and is who we should heed her input and leadership. We all should be grateful the she bestows some of her insight and genius on us poor bible clinging, conservative white trash, christian non union rabble.

Back to Chevaz and the mess he created before his death and his heir followed the same path, I never realized it was so simple as to be just oil. I thought (stupidly I also thought Vietnam was more than the French being smarter than the U.S. and our failing infrastructure wasn't solely Trumps fault ) that siphoning off money to support his friends and business associates, hording over 81,000 metric tons of food and 9.5  metric tons of medical supplies to sell at a "state" profit contributed to the economic failure.

Question which I am sure you'll answer with you normal prejudiced, sarcastic, snide and,condescending attitude,    How does my statement about NOT cheating on logs manage work around to having a problem with them? All my units are PRE  Computer controlled. So where is my problem?.  Please show your studies and sources that all non union truckers all work 6 days a week, all cheat on their logs, all have no money and all have to fix the non union wreck of a unit on their one day off? How are you so sure we are all living hand to mouth and destitute? Or is that just your clear un biased view of  non union, sub wage earners? You bias and prejudicial views make Louis Farakan, Che and Mao look like conservatives.

I'm finished with you. You may now retaliate.. 

[TeamsterGrrrl]

And if your union hating business strategy is so successful, how come you can't afford a truck with a computer controlled engine?

[Dirtymilkman]

25 minutes ago, TeamsterGrrrl said:

And if your union hating business strategy is so successful, how come you can't afford a truck with a computer controlled engine?

Hahahaha.......I think 41 could buy and sell your life savings many times over. 

[TS7]

Teamster only you could say North Dakota will become like Venezuela.

[Dirtymilkman]

4 minutes ago, TS7 said:

Teamster only you could say North Dakota will become like Venezuela.

Well, MN is starting to look like Somalia. 

[41chevy]

3 hours ago, TeamsterGrrrl said:

And if your union hating business strategy is so successful, how come you can't afford a truck with a computer controlled engine?

Why waste the money on something I don't need? My trucks and crews haul my products only and are a hell of a lot more dependable than the latest electronic units and are tailored to my specific work.. Aren't my pair of Marmons and my Macks up to your standards? My people are all are happy with them.

Also dear heart, I don't hate the unions.  I could care less what they do. What I do not want them interfering with or telling me or my people how, what and when to do something.

You should really try not twist peoples words to fit your agenda, it's not becoming to you.

[Underdog]

And if your union hating business strategy is so successful, how come you can't afford a truck with a computer controlled engine?

Again, Rowdy 1, Teamster 0. Computer controlled engine is the government and large corporations telling the individual what is good for him. We have had 15 years of computer controlled crap that does nothing for my bottom line. I am putting my 1985 MH back on the road because I, as an individual, choose to. I have decided in my business plan that I cannot afford a new computer controlled truck.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

[TeamsterGrrrl]

Sorry that this forum is about all the computers you can handle, remember the weeks it took some of you to adapt to the last software upgrade? And while you caveman are busy gettin' greasy trial and error replacing parts, I've neatly plugged my computer in and fixed the problem. I mean... Can't you guys even handle VMack 1?

[41chevy]

Glad you know how well maintained my trucks are and how much money I wish to spend on something I have no requirements or contractual obligations to have..You as a company driver should not had to plug in a fix your own units or is this your rust bucket Ranger or VW. I personally think you are full of your Snarky self righteousness but unlike you I don't leap to assine assumptions just from a few sentences like some people do.

So when I say Marmon read the word and use your all knowing expert powers to tell us what shape it is in and how good it is....

Rest you hand on the computer as give us the facts..... Can I get a "praise the power of teamstergorilla and a Amen"

Edited April 25, 2017 by 41chevy

[Underdog]

I'm proud to be a caveman. Because of computers, many of our recent generations have lost the ability to think and survive. I don't mind technology as a tool, but many have come to rely on electronics, and couldn't solve a problem without some sort of device.

[RowdyRebel]

It's not that I cannot afford a computerized truck...it's that I don't want one. Mechanical stuff can be repaired or Redneck Engineered to gget back to a shop. Wire corrodes or terminal comes loose or a sensor goes haywire and you're fucked on the side of the road with a truck that won't run. The emissions crap is another demotivational factor working against my willingness to spend money on a new truck. Nothing like having a busy day and having the truck tell you it needs to park on the side of the road for a while so it can regen...or having it decide to do so when you're out in a grassy field, or at a dusty grain elevator, or anywhere else where high temperatures are dangerous. Not to mention, I don't care to have a fuel line running to hot exhaust components...fitting cracks, sprays diesel onto the hot exhaust, and your truck burns up. Have you noticed the increase in trucks burning up in wrecks? An older truck would just be totalled. In a newer truck, you'd better be able to get yourself out or you'll be burned to a crisp. Then there is the whole DEF issue. Most of the places I stop at for fuel do not sell DEF, so I'd have to make a special stop (or pay through the nose for the bottles) to top that off. Waste of time and money either way.

My 17 year old Mack earns just as a 2017 model year Mack would earn...but without the note. It is cheaper to insure, and while maintenance costs more than it would with a brand new truck, it is still cheaper than the note on a new one. I simply don't see any reason to spend a bunch of money to receive more headaches with more overhead attached to it for no additional revenue. It is a business. If it made good business sense to buy a newer truck (reduced overhead, reduced costs, increased revenues, etc...) then I might consider it. However, there are no economic benefits to running new equipment over my well maintained older truck.

I drive older stuff because I like older stuff. I've put over $20K into a 27 year old Suburban for my wife that might book for $3500. Sure, I could have bought a much newer model for that...but that wouldn't have been as much fun. It's like going to a car or bike show and seeing a brand new vehicle with a few store-bought aftermarket shiny parts bolted on. ANYBODY can do that. I like seeing the older stuff that has been preserved or restored. I like seeing the rat-rods, where creativity knows no limits. I like seeing the vehicles that DON'T look like every other car on the road. Same goes for what gets parked in my driveway. Why buy some plain, boring, cookie-cutter vehicle when I can build something truely unique?

It isn't for lack of money that I don't have a new truck, but for lack of want, and all of the money in the world won't change that.

[TeamsterGrrrl]

You guys really expect me to believe you got six figure sums in the bank, but you run old trucks because you like 'em? If that were the case you'd be preserving your old Macks instead of working them! Saw a study the other day comparing average vehicle age with average income in Kentucky... Turns out the biggest determinant of how long people keep vehicles is income. In the higher income areas people trade for new every 5 years or so because they can, in the low income areas they buy vehicles that are at least 10 years old and run 'em into the ground, because that's all they can afford.

I learned about this early on working for fleets... SOP was to trade the vehicle before it got so old as to be unreliable and needed a lot of expensive repairs. For a high mileage fleet this meant around 5 years, before an engine overhaul was needed, and about the time the extended warranty ran out and and as soon as they could claim a depreciation tax write off on it. For a lower mileage fleet around 10 years was common, with the vehicle put on close to home low mileage runs the last few years. That's why back when the trucking industry was healthy in the 60s and 70s you didn't see many trucks over 10 years old on the road.

Today rates have been cut to the bone, the big fleets get huge discounts on everything, and the only financing smaller operators can get is on credit card terms. There's no shame in admitting that you're poor and underpaid, but it's stupid to stay in that rut. When you're having to spend $10k plus to overhaul a truck that's worth $5k, it's time to look for a better job!

 

[kscarbel2]

Geez-a-wizz everyone, how this dynamic discussion was born from a news post about GM and Venezuela is beyond me.

Truth be told, everyone has put forth valid points. 

[Dirtymilkman]

Do you really think big fleets get cheaper pricing?! The way big fleets get a truck cheaper is the dealer's set up a cheaper package. Fleet trucks don't have the nice amenities in the cab, the sound proofing, or plushness. Lot of times they have steel air tanks, steel fuel tank straps, painted steel dpf covers and steel wheels. That stuff all needs replacing in four or five years. These are referred to as throw away trucks. 

There are also fleets out there refurbishing their older trucks. Does that make them stupid? If they get one half more mpg with the older trucks and run 2000 miles a week think of the money they save.....Oh wait I better find a report on it so you don't have to figure it out. A fleet running 10 trucks can pay a driver's wages saving one half mile per gallon. 

My last truck I financed for 3.3%. Not sure where you come up with this high "credit card financing" rate. 

If you judge a person by the vehicle they drive then what are you TEAMSTERGRRRL?!  Being you drive a Ford Ranger. 

[TS7]

No Kscarbel2 someone here cannot face the fact that socialism has failed in Venezuela. Because of greed there the people are eating dogs and cats, tell me where I am wrong. So someone here thinks truck owners on this site are not paying there fair share for roads. Has this person ever paid any highway use tax? No. Has this person ever owned a Class 8 truck new or old? No. This is what has happened in Venezuela keep taxing the ones that are working and no one will work, then what? Anyone who supported Bernie Sanders this where he would have taken you. 

[TeamsterGrrrl]

Dirty, good to see you got a decent deal. As for the baubles, "Chrome won't get ya home". As for the Ranger, great truck, but after 20 years service it's probably getting retired. Sure, I could strip it to a bare chassis then de-rust, replace all the failing bits, and repaint. But with a 2003 TDI to handle the trailering duties and serve as a spare, I don't need the Ranger and makes more sense to spend my time restoring the Cooper S instead of a garden variety Ranger. The 2013 TDI is about to go back to VW, it's being replaced by a new 2015 TDI that I'm picking up thursday, and I'll come out a couple thousand ahead on the deal.

[TeamsterGrrrl]

TS7, North Dakota and the other "petro states" are all feeling the pinch of low crude prices, but most like NoDak have other businesses like farming, manufacturing, and software to fall back on. I've never owned because every time I've done the numbers on buying my own truck I found I would be much better off as a company driver. As far as taxes, that's one of the reasons you buy a new truck- much easier to deduct depreciation than shoeboxes full of parts receipts and tow bills!

[Underdog]

My employer can fill you in on the cost effectiveness of new equipment. He has flipped his entire fleet of 80 trucks over the past 5 years, and now laments that strategy. The new trucks are a net loss on repairs and maintenance compared to the trucks that were replaced. The fuel mileage is down, plus the added expense of DEF. Trouble with auto carriers is the cargo racks, which basically rot from the inside out and need major repairs or replacement around the 10 year mark running in the snow belt. My boss is seriously considering glider kits, to escape the emissions technology nightmare.

Rowdy-2, Teamster-0... Again typical liberal socialist thought process, everyone fits into a category or stereotype. Why does Rowdy have to buy a new truck, even if he has the money?!? It's called individual liberty and freedom to choose. Obviously not important values in Teamster's world. I have experienced new trucks and old, and personally would not buy anything newer than 2001.

[kscarbel2]

3 hours ago, TS7 said:

No Kscarbel2 someone here cannot face the fact that socialism has failed in Venezuela. Because of greed there the people are eating dogs and cats, tell me where I am wrong. So someone here thinks truck owners on this site are not paying there fair share for roads. Has this person ever paid any highway use tax? No. Has this person ever owned a Class 8 truck new or old? No. This is what has happened in Venezuela keep taxing the ones that are working and no one will work, then what? Anyone who supported Bernie Sanders this where he would have taken you. 

C'mon friend, doesn't everyone have a right to their opinion? You don't have to agree with it but should respect it. You're welcome to think they're completely wrong. And of course you can/should share your own opinion.

Step out of the box for a moment, relax and take a deep breath, and think about it. Your one life is far too short to get high blood pressure and a heart attack over this matter.   

[41chevy]

Yes all have right to their opinion and respect.  BUT the lack of respect, the name calling, white race baiting, union hating  and generalization of all others being stupid and sub wage earners, too poor or stupid to buy to new vehicle a normal person would not resort to name calling and making generalizations be cause of their opinions.. Eventually a specific poster baiting members causes them to push back and most all refrain from racial slurs and name calling. Apparently being on the receiving end, we are not allowed to validate our views with out being lectured or disrespected. One member voiced his opinion both with a post and a PM and his posted opinion was deleted. Pity that having to defend your choices is frowned on by certain members.  

[TS7]

Until the people of Venezuela learn that nothing is "free" there will always be another Socialist promising "free" stuff stolen from other people. The truth hurts. Some on this site know that, some do not.  

[kscarbel2]

GM expects $100 million hit to profits from Venezuela action

Automotive News  /  May 2, 2017

General Motors said it would deconsolidate its operations in Venezuela, reducing global profits by up to $100 million after the government seized GM’s plant there last month.

The deconsolidation, announced Tuesday, means GM will no longer include earnings or losses from Venezuela in its South American results, but it does not necessarily signal that GM is pulling out of the country permanently. GM has ceased operations and terminated its workers there while it appeals the plant seizure to Venezuela’s Supreme Court.

“The company expects a prompt decision and favorable outcome,” GM said in a statement. “GM executives have expressed a willingness to talk with government officials and union leaders about the circumstances under which it could be possible to start production and employ some number of workers with a new, viable business model.”

GM’s deconsolidation of Venezuela follows a similar move by Ford in that country two years ago. Ford’s action resulted in an $800 million charge, but the effect on GM’s finances will be much smaller because it had not produced any vehicles in Venezuela for more than a year.

“The illegal seizure of the plant accelerated some decisions that we needed to make,” GM CFO Chuck Stevens told reporters last week. “We don’t necessarily want to exit the country, but certainly it’s not an environment that you can invest in or run a normal business at this point.”

[Joe Ditchkus]

 This one topic alone about Venezuela made me use up all my likes for the day. TeamsterGrrrl you are 0 for 25. for the day. Time to regroup.

[TS7]

It will be a long time before any one builds cars in Venezuela again. Kscarbel what happened to the Mack plant?

[kscarbel2]

16 hours ago, TS7 said:

It will be a long time before any one builds cars in Venezuela again. Kscarbel what happened to the Mack plant?

Still in operation, under Volvo ownership.

The location assembled its 24,000 CKD truck kit in 2015.

.