Posted on 12/19/2009 9:57:41 PM PST by Zhang Fei
Lawmakers and U.S. automakers are peeved with Japan, which has launched a cash-for-clunkers program that doesn’t accept American-made cars.
Under Japan’s program, consumers who trade in a car at least 13 years old can get a tax cut of up to $2,800 toward the purchase of a new car.
But the program excludes imported vehicles from companies that have low sales in Japan. That covers General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, according to the American Automotive Policy Council, which has pressed the Obama administration for action.
U.S. producers are particularly irked since Japanese companies did well under the cash-for-clunkers program Congress adopted. Just fewer than half the 677,000 vehicles sold were made by Japanese companies, though Japan notes that 80 percent of Japanese-brand autos sold in the U.S. are American-built .
The clunkers program is aggravating a longstanding sore point with American automakers. U.S. companies complain that Japanese trade barriers have kept the market for American-built cars and trucks small. Only about 10,000 U.S. cars are sold in Japan. By comparison, more than 1 million Japanese cars have been sold in the States this year, even in a depressed market.
“I urge the Japanese government to stop discriminating against American workers and manufacturers, and I urge our government to take action if they continue these discriminatory policies,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) said in a statement.
She said that the U.S. program applied to all cars sold in the U.S., “not just American cars, which is what I would have greatly preferred.”
A source at the Japanese embassy said U.S. automakers choose to export their cars under a program that does not require fuel efficiency tests. As a result, the cars are not eligible for the Japanese cash-for-clunkers program.
However, he said the U.S. could choose to export cars under the normal export process. This would require that they submit their vehicles to tests at a cost of $4,000 per model.
“We don’t think we exclude the imported cars,” the embassy source said.
It’s not clear what the U.S. can do. A spokeswoman for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said administration officials have raised the issue with
Japan, and that the U.S. wants changes that would offer U.S. vehicles a greater chance of qualifying.
Japan’s program is set to expire at the end of March. Steve Collins, president of the auto council, said at a minimum the program should be expanded to include all imported vehicles — if it is, in fact, extended.
Let them do it. Free market helps the end consumer.
She said that the U.S. program applied to all cars sold in the U.S., “not just American cars, which is what I would have greatly preferred.”
Debbie Stabenow is a stupidity machine.
“which has launched a cash-for-clunkers program that doesn’t accept American-made cars. “
but most clunkers are American cars...
Meh... can’t blame them for doing what we’d want to be done.
Good for Japan. My only quibble is excluding Ford. The sooner Government Motors and Chrysler go bye-bye, the better.
Sounds like the Japanese are just being smart.
I'm generally a free trader. But the Dems decided they were going to institute a program to keep Detroit alive - Cash for Clunkers. Well - if you set out to subsidize Detroit, you should subsidize Detroit. Instead, taxpayer funds were wasted subsidizing foreign manufacturers. Letting foreign manufacturers participate in Cash for Clunkers diluted the impact - Detroit's profits were far lower than they could have been because they did not get the full benefit of the program. Detroit will come back to the trough when stimulus funds run out and their sales nosedive again. And more money will be doled out to keep them afloat. Why waste more money when we could have done it right the first time - by excluding foreign makes from Cash for Clunkers?
Exactly. I drive a PT Cruiser and it’s the last Chrysler I will ever own. It’s Ford or an import for me from now on.
What a bunch of whining titty-babies.
The Asian model for growth: gain maximum access to the US market while keeping your home markets closed. Worked for Japan, then South Korea and now Red China, as well as lesser trading partners.
While an interesting story, does it really need to be in breaking news?
Not to be bitchy but too many articles have been showing up in breaking lately that should not be.
The problem is that they won't go bye-bye. Uncle Sam will keep them afloat no matter what. If a GOP prez couldn't muster the political capital to sink them, do you seriously think Ogabe will let them fail? If taxpayer funds are chained to Detroit's survival, we should at least spend as little as we can rescuing them. One way to do it would have been to restrict Cash for Clunkers to domestic makes.
Amen!
Buying from Govt motors is like cutting your own legs off.
I think it's an ice pick in the eye from a major ally. We expect these kinds of things from the Chinese, but Japan is supposed to be our ally. Reminds me of the time when Japan sold milling machines to the Soviets so they could make quieter submarine propellers (subsequently used in ultra-quiet subs like the Kilo, which the Russians have sold to the Chinese).
Their anger is misplaced. If they wanna be pissed, they should be pissed with 0b0z0 who left the door wide open in his CFC scam...
And the American companies are too _______(?) to use the exclusion as an advertisement advantage: Too Good to be scrapped
That should get Japan's government to change their collective minds.
Although 0bama may be implementing Cloward-Piven, there is no guarantee that a socialist state would arise from the remains of wreckage. In fact, given American history, culture and attitudes it may be more likely that the exact opposite would happen as Americans reclaim the ideals and principles of the American Revolution.
hahahahahahahahahahahaha
Japanese carmakers benefitted most from our cash 4 clunkers program.... hahahaahha
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.