Highlighting the inefficiency of American automakers on clarkhoward.com

Honda is the envy of the manufacturing world for the flexibility and efficiency of their plants.

Here's a question for you: How long does it take the Japanese automaker to go from making, say, an SUV to a different model of car -- on the same line in the same assembly plant? A stunning 5 minutes, according to a Wall Street Journal report. And how much does it cost? Absolutely nothing, thanks to the use of modular robots that can be quickly adapted.

By comparison, it takes Ford a whopping 13 months and a staggering $75 million to make a similar change at one plant. That's what Detroit is up against. We taxpayers are going to be asked to keep the Big 3 Motown automakers in business in the coming months. But in the free market, people always choose to buy from the most efficient producers.

Until the Big 3 can get creative solutions like Honda, it won't matter how much money we throw at them.

What others are saying

Bankruptcy can be a good thing...
I wonder what affect unions have had on American automakers' plant efficiency? Ford and GM have unions while Honda does not correct? If we allowed Ford and GM to file for chapter 11 couldn't they "restructure" and renegotiate their contracts with the union making them competitive again? I understand the value of unions, but if a company can't compete then they can't create jobs...Bankruptcy doesn't necessarily mean gone forever, just look at the airline industry.
By Ryan O @ 11/19/08 10:10:14 AMreport abuse
Bailouts for everyone
If the 3 US automakers get a bailout, then I need to receive one also, since I lost 100K in my 401. I'll be paying for their greed & inefficiencies anyway.
I couldn't care if they all fold up
By SteveR @ 11/11/08 08:07:25 AMreport abuse
Crooked Management
Check the SEC filings. In many US companies the officers now take home more than the entire rest of the company combined. In some cases, they take more than the entire payroll & stockholder profit combined.

The outsourcing contracts go to the guys they play golf with who kick back in kind or with off record benefits like drugs, prostitutes & political favors.
By Ugly American @ 10/15/08 04:19:56 PMreport abuse
Unions
Just another fine example of union workers being paid too much for a subpar job, with the usual answer"Lets blame it on management"
By Tommy @ 10/15/08 03:23:16 PMreport abuse
shame on the US auto industry
No wonder, the big 3 can't compete. In real capitalism, they would go out of business, but the US govt keeps bailing them out! Shame on the US govt and pity the tax payers who keep bailing out the incompetent US automakers!
By PTMAN @ 10/15/08 01:44:03 PMreport abuse
What do you mean Clark. I thought your answer was to bail everyone out. Shouldn't we also bail out the American automakers. It can't possibly be their fault they are so inefficient. If your for bailing out Wall Street, then why shouldn't American automakers get a bailout too.
By Peacock @ 10/15/08 01:20:00 PMreport abuse
Detroit Doomed
Even consolidation can't save these organizations. It costs far too much money for American auto companies to produce their vehicles and the american consumer is not willing to pay it. This forces american auto makers into lean margins, with heavy inefficient management overhead that spells disaster. Let's let these guys die off already and start looking towards mfg. next generation energy products.
By Mark @ 10/15/08 12:10:49 PMreport abuse
Free Market
The free market is just an illusion. The feds bailed out big business and guranteed big execs their parachutes. Socialism for the top and capitalism for the rest of us.
By Bill @ 10/15/08 09:38:27 AMreport abuse
Failure
I think the failure is our goverment gives the big 3 automakers millions of dollars to keep bad practice in place. If the government would stop giving $ they would be force to compete in the market place. They know it does not matter, the feds will bail them out.

And, Big execs from the big 3 get millions from the oil companies not to produce real energy eff cars.
By Bill @ 10/15/08 09:28:32 AMreport abuse
UAW - Failures
I had worked in the auto industry for over 20 years - the major roadblock for US manufacturers is the UAW! How can a firm survive when they pay their janitors up to 50K with pension/benefits (I know because I supervised janitorial staff at a Ford Plant). Unless they break the UAW - they will be doomed to fail
By Steve @ 10/15/08 09:12:42 AMreport abuse
LEAN
One more thing...

The crazy thing about Lean is that Henry Ford was the first Lean Auto Manufacturer.... Taichi Ono of Toyota talked with him about improving it, and he would hear nothing of it. Taichi Ono then went on to spread the word at Toyota, which was a joke in the US at the time... look at how things have turned around.
By Mike @ 10/14/08 07:31:54 PMreport abuse
LEAN
Honda has been able to do what Toyota has been doing for 20 years. They are adopting Lean Manufacturing techniques. If all companies used these techniques, it would still be cost effective to produce in the USA. I practice Lean, and have helped our company avoid exportation of several jobs. Read The Toyota Way... it is a great book.
By Mike Walters @ 10/14/08 07:29:02 PMreport abuse
Clark didn't read the whole article
Read the article GM and Ford do have plants like this. Honda just as the most. They have more than Toyota too, so it is not just the Big 3 that are behind Honda.
By db @ 10/14/08 04:55:36 PMreport abuse
Its the Quality ,stu
clark is absolutely correct. Even though they paid the lobbyists to lower the fuel standards, people still buy fuel efficient cars, right ?
What good is the medical system if no one can afford or use it ?
What good is big and heavy trucks that consumes so much gas for grocery shopping ?
By sks @ 10/14/08 04:21:03 PMreport abuse
auto maker inefficiency
first the slate must be cleaned on job expectation. Robots are suspect because they "take the place" of people. Maybe the real solution for detroit is some new business, like how about re-education in trade schools for working with new manufacturing techniques? McCain is right, the auto jobs are not coming back as they existed previously.
By margaret @ 10/14/08 03:44:38 PMreport abuse

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Oct 14, 2008 -- Highlighting the inefficiency of American automakers

What others are saying