Posted on 07/29/2026 4:24:26 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970
PARIS — Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz are trying to jump-start the Franco-German engine one final time.
After joint ministerial meetings in Germany last week, the leaders of the European Union’s two biggest economies have tasked their governments with striking a grand bargain that they say would strengthen Europe’s industrial defenses and revive the bloc’s automotive industry — key priorities for the two countries.
The pact would fuse France’s push to reserve more public procurement contracts and subsidies for European industry with Germany’s drive to rescue its ailing carmakers, whose crisis has reached an acute stage after Volkswagen warned recently that it would have to cut 100,000 jobs worldwide.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.eu ...
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Chinese subsidized crap put your auto industry out of business
Beautiful cars with great interiors that are chronically over engineered, unreliable and prohibitively expensive to maintain once out of warranty killed the European auto industry.
“subsidized crap”?
Who subsidizes more than the EU?
European companies like Airbus wouldn’t even exist without massive tax payer subsidies.
Time for new tariffs on European cars.
No, costs go down when they go out of warranty and you don’t have to pay dealer prices for routine work. That’s why BMW patented a new screw head to try to retain the work for their high priced dealer network.
The electronics are the most problematic parts in many European cars. Some contain up to 90 canbus modules. Many of those especially in European cars are problematic, expensive, and require factory programing at replacement. So I wholeheartedly do not agree.
Which French Cars were giant classics?
[OK, Citroen had some fun chassis stuff in the 60s/70s.]
[And Michelin Tires may still be GREAT!]
[”KONI shocks were designed in the Netherlands”, so Macron needs to go back and cry at his Mommie’s knee...”]
bigger factor was energy costs quadrupling in germany due to insane “green” policies, compared to other industrial countries ...
1. Stop making critical engine and under-the-hood parts out of plastic that gets brittle and fails extremely fast.
2. Stop making smaller engines and slapping turbos on them.
3. Stop making cars that snoop on the owner.
4. Stop overloading them with sensors that prevent them from use when its not a critical issue.
5. Stop making them deliberately hard to fix/repair/replace parts.
“Stop making smaller engines and slapping turbos on them.”
Living at 4000’, I’d suggest that the turbo setups need to be made Old Skool Toyota bullet proof....
Want to make a car that sells. How about updated air cooled VW Bugs and Buses that sip fuel and just put-put down the road. Make em cheap, sell them cheap and the world will thank you.
But the German and EU allowed it! Please, the last German leaving their former work place, turn off the light!
No, how about a Trabant............
A drive in the world’s worst car:
https://www.howandwhy.com/world/the-trabant-is-why-socialism-failed
They are socialists afterall.
Citroen, Peugeot, Renault
Three reasons the French are known for their wines.
Yup, their plan sounds nazi/fascist
Boeing isn’t subsidized?
The stupid krauts didn't learn a damned thing after WW eleven. When they captured American aircraft and equipment they were stunned to discover how few tools were required to maintain them. Nuts and screw heads were all of a standard size and components were placed in easy to reach spaces.
The krauts had a different tool for every little part and thought empty spaces within an engine compartment were inefficient. The humble Volkswagen was somewhat of an exception. If a Tiger broke down you had to have mechanics with the right, special tools to fix it. If a Sherman did, a farmer from Nebraska could get it up and running again.
I wouldn't touch a new BMW or Audi with a ten foot, highly specialized pole if you paid me. Sadly, that is the case with most modern cars now. Oddly, an older Porsche will serve you well if it has been maintained as they are pretty reliable compared to the rest of the crap that has come out of Germany.
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