Anyone with even cursory knowledge of the automotive industry knows that 2009 saw such tumult and tremendous upheaval that we are unlikely to ever see again. Certainly the industry was crippled and nearly brought to its knees in a panic that for some made the Y2K scare (remember that!?) seem like child’s play.



Most noticeably, 2009 saw record low car sales reaching an annualized rate of 9 million new car sales per year (a decline of almost 7 million from peak to trough).



We witnessed two of the Big Three file for bankruptcy, something that some would say sh...
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The "New Normal:" Are You Ready For It?
By Josh DeForest
December 11, 2009 07:49 AM

The bottom line is that we have come a long way, and the question on everyone’s mind is “where do we go from here?” While the exact answer to that question may be elusive, PIMCO CIO Bill Gross in an October 2009 article wrote of a New Normal. This, he says, is a break in economic climate manifested in lower GDP growth, re-regulation of the financial sector, financial deleveraging and consequently lower ROA.

None of this should come as a surprise given what we have just experienced, the financial hangover will eventually subside, but we will experience significant change in our indu...
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(Dis)Information Overload
By Josh DeForest
October 29, 2009 10:22 AM

With abundant information available through many print and online sources it can be difficult to decipher exactly what is going on in our economy through all the noise. On one hand, you will hear claims that the recession is over and on the other, warnings of a double-dip. There are many voices vying for your ears and each voice has its own agenda. We all know that statistics don’t lie, but liars use statistics. The truth is that you can find data to support just about any conclusion you want to draw. Sometimes a fresh look at the facts can be more telling than all of the “sophisticated” ...
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Third Time's the Charm
By Josh DeForest
October 28, 2009 12:14 PM

As an astonish example of just how messy this government bailout process can become, GMAC announced that it will require additional funds from Treasury. For those of you keeping track, this is round three (the only company to do so), as taxpayers become increasingly intertwined with a company that by the governments own less-than-rigorous standards failed its “stress test.”



GMAC failed its (not-so) stress test earlier this year and was directed by Treasury to raise an additional $11.5 billion in capital. While the other banks that failed were mostly able to raise funds from ...
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From the Auto Finance Summit in Las Vegas
By Brad Emerson
October 16, 2009 08:32 AM

There were some reasons for optimism given by Ford's senior economist this week at the Auto Finance Summit. Check out Mr Hornblass' comments. ...
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