I never like hearing the bad news of people getting layed off. It sucks and there is no way it can be sugar coated.

However I have been thinking what it would mean for mini owners if BMW/Mini stopped production of new cars. Because of the popularity of the mini I have a feeling that the cars will quickly go up in value, as the only one you could now get would be the ones already owned. Just a thought.

 

 

You may have had no problems, but this list only applies to vehicle satisfaction in 2008. A lot of Japanese automakers have been having increased problems with reliability compared to their products of the 90s while the domestic manufacturers have been steadily improving. Nobody believes me when I say that Toyota had more recalls than GM (I can't remember the year but I think it was 07 or 06, I don't know about 08 exactly)
Honda had a few large problems with small issues (something about the windshield wiper relay in nearly every model) while BMWs consistently have small problems with select cars, but nothing that usually effects the entire lineup.
Infinity and Nissan had a few problems with some of the cars on the G35 platform I was aware of, and the Sentra had some issues as well. Given that most of Infinities sales are with the G coupes and sedans I could see why they wouldn't make the cut, it doesn't mean their bad cars, it's just a flaw in JD Power's survey tactics.

 

I posted this on another thread. I missed it. Let that one die. Here is another article that I found regarding the laid off workers. Those folks were mad!! When is your MINI being built?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/e...re/7893784.stm

Pat

 

We better be hoping for the best for all the manufacturers if the world economy doesn't turn around there won't be anybody left with a job to buy ANY cars. Unfortunately until the powers at be wake up and realise the trade agreements, including NAFTA just don't work, we will be stuck in this downward spiral... Without the buying power of the American worker the whole world eonomy doesn't work.. One American worker looses his job making $16.00 an hour so that 16 people in a third world country have a job making a dollar a day just doesn't provide any buying power. They are still poor and can't afford to buy anything while the worker in America who no longer has a job, isn't able to finance his new truck every few years or go down to Walmart and buy a new TV... Where is Ross Perot when we need him? Does anyone hear that giant sucking sound?

PS: And before long the 16 won't have a job either...

 

^^^

Totally and completely accurate. Can anyone say why Mini is firing whole shifts. It's not like they aren't selling or anything.

 

there getting rid of the employees to save money. i dont blame them. minis arent flying off the showrooms rite now either.

 

3 words. Wait for it.

The sales will come, and soon. I predict this summer will be worse than last. It will be a double hitter of the economy + gas prices. Mini sales will go up because people will trade the old to get the new, even if it costs them more money.

 

Mini sales are down, not because the product isn't desireable or not well made but because folks have/might/are loosing their jobs. Simply put they ain't sticking their necks out when their not sure about the future... Until confidence returns, car sales will be slow.

 

Chrysler's been saying the same thing for the last 5 years. The US market might pick up more, but will the rest of the world? Is someone struggling in Australia who's fuel prices are more stable going to decide to buy a new car this year? What about England itself or other parts or Europe? MINI's an international Brand, the US market may be it's largest but if overall sales are down you do the smart thing and reduce costs. Bleeding out money now hoping things will turn around is not a successful business plan and even last year trucks and SUVs outsold cars, gas will have to get above $5 a gallon and stay there and even then people will more likely do what they did last year, drive less, rather than spend cash they don't have in a market with tight credit to buy what's quite frankly more of a luxury than basic transportation. Kia and Hyundai will pick up some, MINI isn't as predictable.
*edit: that was in response to Pinky Demon.

 

To quote from the article:

If the workers were damaging production before they were informed about the layoff, how could MINI have done anything different? It's a huge risk to the company and its customers to put pissed-off short timers on the line.

As much as it sucks for the fired employees, MINI did just what they had to do.

Steve

 

I agree with you Steve. In a business situation you have to protect your business interests first and foremost.

Pat

 

since when does a market give a rat's **** for anyone working in the market? Markets don't care about oscillation or reaching points where equilibrium doesn't return naturally, as the market still exists independant of the dollar volume that is out there. The idea of either fiscal or monitary policy is to damp out the oscillatory nature of markets. So if gov intervention is so bad, and Keynes was an a*hole, what do we do? Ride the wave down the toilet?

Mini played the same game that every large company does: It keeps what are effectively staff positions under the "temp", "contract" or "independant contractor" label so that they can quickly adjust staffing levels, effectively sidestepping any type of termination regulations that exist while keeping overhead lower. This isn't to say that these regulations are good or bad, just that they exist in some form in pretty much every advanced economy, and companies find ways around them. I'm not going to say if this is good or bad, but it sure sucks to be those who loose work on short notice.

Examples of willfull harm to the product does nothing to help anyone in the long term. Pisses off customers, increases costs too, wasting money making more corporate belt tightening inevitable.

Matt

 

I only see 4... (Jaguar is Tata Motors)

Also, aren't these lists compiled based on manufacturing defects at production? This does not account for design issues at all. Hell, you could be really good at building cars made of paper machete and reach the top of this list, but I doubt it will last longer than the kit car uncle Frank built in the shed last summer.

 

Sorry, in the article I got the list from they still listed Jaguar as an American owned company... So will just toss them out and:

4 of the top 9 JD Power most reliable cars for 2008 and 2 of the top 3 are American.

 

-1 for the person from the republik of california

 

-2
The market drives business not government.

 

Look, it does suck, but even if the economy was just plain peachy, you cannot expect to keep your job for long in a temporary employment agency setting. You signed up for it, and I'm sure they tell you that you are hired on an "as-needed" basis.

It is a risky job, as are many jobs out there, from car salesmen to home redecoraters...

They could have given them a week's notice, though. One hour... kind of cruel.

 

I think it was much "safer" to give them an hour notice.
think of what could have been done on an assembly line in a week with a few "discgruntelled" employees.

Bottom line is. the economy sucks all over, a company has to do what is necessary to keep surviving. i don't blame them for getting rid of extra expenses.

 

The article does say they were given an additional weeks pay.

 

That used to be true. Just look around you. The change is happening before your eyes. Welcome to the new economy controlled by the politicians.

But I digress. The best thing was no notice.

 

....and what an economy it will be.

Name one country where business is controlled (socialism) by the government where the average person lives above our percieved poverty level.

An hours notice was very harsh but given a weeks notice what kind of work could have been expected out of them? They were temps and as so should have known that they were subject to this. Surely they saw production cut backs and should have known that they would be the first to go.

 

None that I can think of. Zero, zilch, nada. But were heading that direction faster than a speeding train.

But this really is not a political discussion.

We use temps in our business all the time. It's why you do it. It gives you flexibility and the means to reduce or increase the workforce without fear of "other" non intended circumstances.

 

I'm not sure how they come up with "most reliable" but if it's at all based off their "Initial Quality Survey" (which is kinda a bad benchmark itself) they go by problems encountered in the first 90 days of ownership, assuming that if the car runs great for that long the next 10 years are a cake walk I guess.
Here's a little more info on some of JD Power's business: http://www.autoextremist.com/current/?currentPage=4

 

I heard that the layoff may yet be reversed. English law allows what happened but German law does not. Not sure how jurisdiction works over there but apparently this is the new angle that the Union is working on... No delay announcements from MINI Canada yet...