http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/17/autos/chrysler_shutdown/

"NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Chrysler LLC announced late Wednesday that it is stopping all vehicle production in the United States for at least a month.
All 30 of the carmaker's plants will close after the last shift on Friday, and employees will not be asked to return to work before Jan. 19.
Chrysler blamed the "continued lack of consumer credit for the American car buyer" for the slow-down in sales that forced the move.
The company ordinarily shuts down operations between Dec. 24 and Jan. 5. This closure would add roughly two weeks to that shutdown.
Chrysler is the third of the Big Three automakers to suspend operations for January. Last week, General Motors announced it was idling 30% of its North American manufacturing capacity during the first quarter of 2009 in response to deteriorating market conditions. That move will take 250,000 vehicles out of production. On Wednesday, a Ford spokeswoman confirmed for CNN that the automaker is adding a week to its normal two-week seasonal shutdown at a number of its plants.
Chrysler would not say how many fewer vehicles would be produced because of this shutdown. A total of 46,000 employees will be affected. They will be paid during the time off through a combination of state unemployment benefits and Chrysler contributions, but they will not receive the full amount of their working pay, a Chrysler spokesman said.
"Chrysler dealers confirmed to the company at a recent meeting at its headquarters, that they have many willing buyers for Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge vehicles but are unable to close the deals, due to lack of financing," the carmaker said in an announcement. "The dealers have stated that they have lost an estimated 20% to 25% of their volume because of this credit situation."
Auto sales have been hit hard by tight credit and the struggling economy. Overall auto sales in the United States were down 37% last month compared with November 2007. Chrysler's situation was especially bad. Its sales dropped 47%.
Chrysler's financing arm, Chrysler Financial, has tightened lending terms for buyers and earlier this year, it announced it would no longer offer leases.
Industry seeking help from Washington
Chrysler, Ford Motor Co. (F, Fortune 500) and General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) have approached Congress for aid to help them get through the current financial crisis. A congressional effort to establish a stopgap, $14 billion loan program to help Chrysler and General Motors at least until next month collapsed in Congress last week.
The Bush administration has said it is working on a possible plan to throw the companies a lifeline using money from the $700 billion bailout approved by Congress in October, the Troubled Asset Relief Program or TARP.
"It's clear that the automakers are in a very fragile financial condition and they're taking steps to deal with it," White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said Wednesday. "We're aware of their financial situation and are considering possible policy options to provide assistance in an appropriate way. As we've said, a disorderly collapse of the auto industry should be avoided."
"The speed and severity of the U.S. auto market's decline has been unprecedented in recent weeks as consumers reel from the collapse of the financial markets and the resulting lack of credit for vehicle financing," GM said in a Dec. 12 announcement, citing a 41% drop in November sales.
Both GMAC and Chrysler Financial are trying to receive federal assistance under the TARP program. GMAC is affiliated with General Motors, which owns 49% of the finance company. The other 51% of GMAC is owned by a consortium of investors led by Cerberus, which owns Chrysler and Chrysler Financial."


Well, they are just loosing money fast...

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Current Garage
2008 Mercedes GL320 CDI 188k mi Repair/Work in progress
1994 S350 160k mi Garage Queen & prepping for repairs
2005 E320 CDI 203k mi Healthy & Daily Driver
1994 S350 357k mi Retried as parts car
1984 300TD 214k mi Blown OM617 Poss OM603 Swap??

Sold
1987 300SDL 200K+
1994 S320 181K mi
2008 E320 Bluetec 127k mi
1999 S420 130K mi
1980 240D 360k mi
15+ Others that has come, stay and gone

GONE, BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
1995 E320 SE 220k mi
1984 300SD 350k mi

Their heads are still in the ground. Quit building crap and maybe people will buy your cars... The End.

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1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

Maybe if they start building DIESEL CAR'S, SUV and VAN might sell good in EUROPE.

__________________
Current Garage
2008 Mercedes GL320 CDI 188k mi Repair/Work in progress
1994 S350 160k mi Garage Queen & prepping for repairs
2005 E320 CDI 203k mi Healthy & Daily Driver
1994 S350 357k mi Retried as parts car
1984 300TD 214k mi Blown OM617 Poss OM603 Swap??

Sold
1987 300SDL 200K+
1994 S320 181K mi
2008 E320 Bluetec 127k mi
1999 S420 130K mi
1980 240D 360k mi
15+ Others that has come, stay and gone

GONE, BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
1995 E320 SE 220k mi
1984 300SD 350k mi

Toyota isn't having this problem...

No credit?! By that they mean you have to have a down payment, crazy! Actualy saving a couple grand to put down!

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I find it hard to get sad about the Big 3's current situation. It might be because aside from the Ford Crown Victoria and related cars, they haven't built a car I really like since 1996 when GM canned its large RWD cars. Chrysler hasn't made a car I really like since about 1988, and in my estimation, American cars haven't been better than the competition since the EPA struck in the mid 70's.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

I totally agree with this. I owned American cars all my life, but my Crown Victorias were the last of them, reliable as anvils, though they float above 75 mph and handle like a balloon floating down a river.


Since 1995 it has been Volvo, Honda, Subaru and Mercedes Benz.


I would never go back and I hate gas guzzling SUVs withblacked out windows, and think the idea of pickup trucks is idiotic unles you tow trailers, have horses or are Joe the Plumber(tradesmen) and retro muscle cars like Challengers, Camaros and Mustangs are absurd..


I don't have the link handy, but I read that about 3 years ago Ford Motor Company actually seriously toyed with the idea of dropping ALL automobiles sold in the USA and just selling trucks and SUVs.


So long as they have short sited, stubborn and greedy CEO's, cars of indifferent or dubious quality put together by rapacious UAW members, that nobody wants, and are unlikely to hold togetherlonger than their payment book, I want no part of them.


I could care less if they die. "Loaning" money to them that they PROBABLY CAN NEVER REPAY whilst they refuse to change their business model, fire the CEOs and crush the out of control Union (I was a shop steward in one of the American Unions myself for years) is a recipe for disaster.


The holy mantra about "jobs" means nothing if the "jobs" are overpriced uncompetitive junk that nobody wants to buy...Probably some or most of the satellite suppliers, if they have GOOD product, could probably sell to the remaining foreign owned car builders that cars in AMERICAN factories and employ non UAW AMERICAN employees.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Here's our government propping up dieing industries, just like the Communists did in old Russia. It didn't work for them. Why would it work for us?

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma

I read the thread header and thought....Oh geez...someone bought that old pos chrysler that I was happy to get rid of, and now they have to get it fixed again.

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It is a truism that almost any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so. Robert A. Heinlein


09 Jetta TDI
1985 300D

Closing down for a month is a good start, but three months would be better. There's too many cars and trucks for sale now.......way too many.

everybody is having this problem. No one is buying cars right now. Sales are down for everyone AFAIK.

I agree with you though, I dont think people need to buy cars (aka pay interest to the bank who buys the car) every 2 or 3 years. Wasteful in so many ways. To be honest though I dont know many people who do that. We have kept our cars for at least 10 years. I guess we can do that because we've bought good cars like Hondas. The Isuzu Trooper was pretty tough too. My dad learned his lesson when he bought a Chrysler LeBaron. Wasnt a terrible car but the tranny died at 30K and the car was never the same.

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1985 CA 300D Turbo , 213K mi

Well, if I walked into the MB showroom tomarrow and put $10k down on a C300 with my 750 credit score I bet I could drive off the lot in one. I'd have a novel thing called a down payment.

So who isn't buying cars? People who actualy can't afford them without silly loan options, and people worried about their jobs. The second reason is probably whats keeping most people from buying.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

The Roman Empire collapsed and yet the world still turns.


Let them go.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

I could pay cash for a new car today, but (A) I no longer buy new cars, and (B) I don't make big purchases with so much uncertainty in the economy. Tight credit may be hurting car sales, but I think consumer confidence is the biggest obstacle to sales right now, especially big ticket items.

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

That's true, Jiim, but not so much for the Romans, eh?

__________________
" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles