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BV: Well it’s truly one of the worst months that the auto industry has seen in many years. It looks like they’ll be selling well under an annual rate of 14 million vehicles which we’re used to years of 60 million vehicles so you can get the idea that these are severely depressed…it’s been building throughout the spring with hypes in the gas price and difficult conditions of the economy so the auto makers are sort of staring at their worst numbers that they’ve had in quite some time and it doesn’t look like there’s going to be an immediate turnaround the rest of the summer…
JB: What is the answer for the car makers? What did they do about this?
BV: Well, things are moving very quickly…The gas prices were unanticipated obviously and the companies were not well prepared for it, in the sense that they still were manufacturing lots of pick-up trucks and large sport utility vehicles obviously they’ve been popular for quite some time and now…nobody wants them anymore… they can’t afford them and they’re moving very dramatically the consumers into small cars and lighterweight crossover vehicles…The problem is that companies can’t ship their production that quickly, they’re taking a lot of productions out of the big vehicles but they can’t just turn down the bigger and put more small cars out there….so it’s a cruel irony this past month that consumers are demanding small cars and they can’t make them fast enough for them…
JB: Of the big car makers which one is in the best position to make this kind of transition relatively quickly?
BV: Well…you know the one car maker that it’s done extremely well this year’s been Honda…Honda never built full size pick up trucks, never built a very large sport utility vehicle and never made a VA engine and their sales have consistently been strong and in fact it looks like the Honda Civic is on its way to be the best selling vehicle of any kind in the country…Toyota had a tough month…Toyota has invested heavily in the big vehicles…built a new truck plant down in Texas which they opened a year or so ago…and they’re having some of the same problems the American automakers are…with slower sales of the big stuff…they do though have more hybrids and small fuel ignition cars so they’re not being hurt as badly…and on top of that Toyota is a very healthy company financially…so they can weather this downturn better than General Motors, Ford or Chrysler…
JB: And speaking of Ford, Ford had the worst performance so talk a little about how much of a problem this is in the longer term for Ford…
BV: Well Ford had a very difficult month; their sales are down 28% , they have had just very ( …) numbers on the pick-up sales and the SUV’s…they’re doing well in the small cars but again...they can’t keep up with demand, they weren’t ready for it so they’re squeezed pretty badly…To their credit Ford went into the credit market a couple of years ago and borrowed substantial sums of money to reorganize their business and weather just this kind of situation so…while they’re heavily heavily in debt they do have a lot of cash which should be able to keep them operating and following their new product plan and hopefully beat this race against time to remake the company…
JB: Talk a bit if you would about how the trouble in the car industry both reflects and affects what’s going on in the rest of the economy…
BV: The automakers…despite their enormous buy outs of workers in the last couple of years and the downsizing of their workforce still are huge employers and they have so many other businesses that are dependant on them particularly in the automobile supply end and when they’re hurting like this…there is a ripple effect not just in the sort of the industrial sector, they spend less on ads, they pull back in areas that are sort of hard to measure like charitable giving and those kind of things…and so their success as enterprises affects an awful lot of people…and I think in many ways this…the sales numbers when they’re so poor like this…because they’re big ticket purchases for Americans…they reflect a real unease in the overall economy…very challenging times…
JB: Bill thanks so much for your time…
BV: Oh yeah I appreciate it, thank you.
For New York Times Radio I’m Jane Bornemeir...I’ll be back tomorrow with another edition of Backstory…To subscribe to the backstory podcast go to nytimes.com/backstory
ENGLISH NOTES.-
Phrasal Verbs:
go down (BE REDUCED) To be reduced in price, value, amount, quality, level or size. The numbers went down substantially for Ford, GM, Toyota and Nissan.
turn down. Turn something or somebody down. To refuse an offer or request. They can't just turn down the bigger and put small cars out there.
keep up (with something or somebody). To do whatever is necessary to stay level or equal with that person or thing. They can't keep up with demand.
go into To start an activity or start to be in a particular state or condition, Ford went into the credit market a couple of years ago.
pull back (from something) (not continue) To decide not to do or involve yourself with something you were previously going to. They pull back in areas that are sort of hard to measure like charitable giving.
Verbs:
stare To look for a long time with your eyes wide open when you're surprised, frightened or thinking. The automakers are sort of staring at the worst numbers that they've had.
can'afford To be able to buy or do something because you have enough money.
weather To deal succesfully with a difficult situation or a problem. They can weather this downturn better than General Motors.
squeeze To press something firmly especially from all sides in order to change its shape, reduce its size or remove liquid from it. Figurative: They're squeezed pretty badly.
beat To defeat or do better than. To beat this race against time to remake the company.
Adverbs:
quite (completely) At least in one case GM is not quite as bad as expected.
quite (not very) A little or a lot but not completely. The automakers are sort of staring at the worst numbers they've had in quite some time.
anymore When you have stopped doing something or when something doesn't happen now. Nobody wants them anymore.
Nouns:
turnaround Any change from one thing to the opposite. It doesn't look there's going to be an immediate turnaround the rest of the summer.
ripple efect. When an event produces effects which spread and produce further effects. There is a ripple effect not just in the industrial sector, they spend less on ads, etc.
Idioms:
I'm on my way You say this when you're soon to arrive somewhere. Honda divic is on its way to be the best selling vechicle.
on top of that In addition to something. On top of that Toyota is a very healthy company financially.
sort of (informal) In some way or to some degree.
Adjective: tough. Difficult to do or to deal with. Toyota had a tough month.
Conjunction: though But. They do though have more hybrids and small fuel ignition cars.
