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A comment on How Did GM Pay Back Its Bailout So Fast? Well, It Didn't.... Parent comment

Re:How Did GM Pay Back Its Bailout So Fast? Well, It Didn't... by fizx on Wednesday May 05, 2010 @03:49PM (#1322309)
> GM failed because they designed shoddy cars. The Unions had nothing to do with that

If the overhead of dealing with unions adds some amount to your marginal costs, and you have to sell your vehicle for a competitive price, then you have to find a way to make a cheaper car than your competitors.

A cheaper car can happen through lower material costs, less R&D, etc, all of which lead to "shoddy cars."

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Re:How Did GM Pay Back Its Bailout So Fast? Well, It Didn't... by The_Fox on Wednesday May 05, 2010 @04:37PM (#1322491)
I read somewhere that GM's union commitments added about $2,000 to the price of a car. Meaning that if you buy a GM automobile, $2,000 is going to union-related stuff, rather than buying extra features, better quality, a longer warranty, etc.
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