The automotive industry crisis of 2008–2010 was a part of a global financial downturn. The crisis affected European and Asian automobile manufacturers, but it was primarily felt in the American automobile manufacturing industry. The downturn also affected Canada by virtue of the Automotive Products Trade Agreement.^[1]

The automotive industry was weakened by a substantial increase in the prices of automotive fuels^[2] linked to the 2003-2008 energy crisis which discouraged purchases of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and pickup trucks which have low fuel economy.^[3] The popularity and relatively high profit margins of these vehicles had encouraged the American "Big Three" automakers, General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler to make them their primary focus. With fewer fuel-efficient models to offer to consumers, sales began to slide. By 2008, the situation had turned critical as the credit crunch ^[4] placed pressure on the prices of raw materials.

Car companies from Asia, Europe, North America, and elsewhere have implemented creative marketing strategies to entice reluctant consumers as most experienced double-digit percentage declines in sales. Major manufacturers, including the Big Three and Toyota offered substantial discounts across their lineups. The Big Three faced criticism for their lineups, which were seen to be irresponsible in light of rising fuel prices. North American consumers turned to smaller, cheaper, more fuel-efficient imports from Japan and Europe. However, many of the vehicles perceived to be foreign were actually "transplants," foreign cars manufactured or assembled in the United States, at lower cost than true imports.^[5]

Asia[link]

China[link]

In 2008 the Chinese government reduced automotive taxes in order to spur flagging sales. In January 2009, Chinese auto-manufacturer Chery reported unprecedented monthly sales.^[6] (See also Automobile industry in China)

India[link]

Citing falling production numbers, the State Bank of India reduced interest rates on automotive loans in February 2009.^[7]

For the first few months of 2009, Tata Motors conducted a widespread marketing campaign heralding the debut of the Tata Nano. Billed as "the people's car," the manufacturer hopes the low cost will encourage customers to purchase the vehicle despite the ongoing credit crisis.^[8]

Japan[link]

The Toyota Prius is one of Toyota's Hybrid Fuel efficient vehicles which have moved in and out of short supply

With high gas prices and a weak US economy in the summer of 2008, Toyota reported a double-digit decline in sales for the month of June, similar to figures reported by the Detroit Big Three. For Toyota, these were attributed mainly to slow sales of its Tundra pickup, as well as shortages of its fuel-efficient vehicles such as the Prius, Corolla and Yaris. In response, the company has announced plans to idle its truck plants, while shifting production at other facilities to manufacture in-demand vehicles.^{[9][10][11][12]} On December 22, 2008, Toyota declared that it expected the first time loss in 70 years in its core vehicle-making business. Loss of $1.7 billion, in its group operating revenue, would be its first operating loss since 1938 (Company was founded in 1937). Toyota saw its sales drop 33.9 percent and Honda Motor by 31.6 percent.^[13]

On 5 December 2008 Honda Motor Company announced that it would be exiting Formula One race with immediate effect due to the 2008 economic crisis and are looking to sell the team.^[14] Honda has predicted that there may be reductions among part-time and contract staff. Upper management bonuses would also be reassessed and directors in the company will take a 10 percent pay cut effective January 2009.^[15]

Nissan, another leading Japanese car manufacturer, announced that it also would be slashing production and will reduce its output by 80,000 vehicles in the first few months of 2009.^[16]

In December 2008, Suzuki, Japan's fourth biggest car manufacturer, announced that it will cut production in Japan by about 30,000 units due to falling demand. The company is expected to face its first profit drop in eight years for financial year ending in March 2009.^[17]

On 16 December 2008, Fuji Heavy Industries, Japan's largest transport equipment manufacturer and the maker of Subaru brand cars, announced that it would exiting World Rally Championship at the end of the 2008 championship, "this sudden decision was in response to the widespread economic downturn that is affecting the entire automotive industry", and came one day after competitor Suzuki exited the sport.^[18][19]

Reported in Bloomberg on Dec 23, 2008, that Mitsubishi Motors is to widen production cuts on falling demand. The Japanese maker of Outlander sport-utility vehicles, will scrap the night shifts at two domestic factories as the deepening global recession saps auto demand. The carmaker will halt the night shift at its Mizushima plant, excluding the minicar line. Nighttime work at the Okazaki factory will stop from Feb. 2. The cuts are part of Mitsubishi's move to reduce planned output by 110,000 vehicles in the year ending March because of tumbling sales in Japan, the U.S. and Europe. Japan's vehicle sales may fall to the lowest in 31 years in 2009, according to the country's automobile manufacturers association. Mitsubishi will also halt production of passenger cars on every Friday next month at the Mizushima factory in western Japan. The Okazaki plant in central Japan will close every Saturday in January and for another five days.

Toyota on Dec 22, 2008 slashed profit forecasts amid a sales slump. The Japanese automaker, often held up with Honda as a success story for the rest of the auto industry to follow, said it expected a slim profit margin of US$555 million for the year ending in March 2009. Toyota had originally been projecting a massive profit of $13.9 billion for that period. Their sales in the United States were down 34 per cent and were down 34 per cent in Europe as well. They expected a loss which would be the equivalent of about $2 billion (CDN)." Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe said the impact on the company from the struggling global economy has been "faster, wider and deeper than expected." "The change that has hit the world economy is of a critical scale that comes once in a hundred years," Watanabe said, speaking in Nagoya.^[20] Facing its first loss in nearly sixty years, Toyota sought loans from the Japanese government.^[21]

On November 4, 2009, Toyota announced its immediate withdrawal from Formula One, ending the team's involvement in the sport after eight seasons. See also 2009–2010 Toyota vehicle recalls.

South Korea[link]

The Hyundai Genesis named the 2009 North American Car of the Year.

South Korean automakers have been generally much more profitable than their US and Japanese counterparts, recording strong growth even in depressed markets such as the United States.^[22] Despite a global economic slowdown, Hyundai-Kia successfully managed to overtake Honda Motor in 2008 as the world's 5th largest automaker, climbing eight rankings in less than a decade.^[23] Hyundai-Kia continued its rapid success in 2009, when only a year after overtaking Honda, it surpassed Ford Motor as the world's 4th largest automaker.^[24]

Hyundai-Kia's continued success was unusual at a time when most automakers saw their sales falling sharply, with leading automaker GM even filing for bankruptcy. Hyundai-Kia took significant advantage of the prolonged automotive crisis by producing affordable yet high quality and well designed vehicles.^{[citation needed]} Rapid globalization has seen state of the art factories being built in several countries including Slovakia, the United States and China. The manufacturing facilities have been geared-up to build products that are designed and engineered for local markets. The Kia cee'd is a leading example, being designed, developed and engineered in Germany and built in Slovakia.^[25]

Unlike others, this crisis turned into an opportunity for many South Korean automakers. Korean automaker Hyundai offered customers who have lost their jobs to return a new-car purchase for a refund.^[26] The continued growth and success is attributable to the country's fuel-efficient and well-equipped, yet affordable cars with generous warranties, such as the Kia Picanto, Kia cee'd and Hyundai i30, which attracted global consumers at a time of severe economic recession, rapidly rising oil prices and increasing environmental concerns. South Korean automakers therefore had a competitive advantage against expensive luxury vehicles and SUVs from US, Japanese and German automakers.

During the fourth quarter of 2008 to the first quarter of 2009, which was the height of this automotive crisis, the extremely weak South Korean won, especially against the US dollar and Japanese yen, significantly boosted the price competitiveness of South Korean exports in key markets. Another factor that helped maintain this momentum was an increasingly improving brand awareness, attributable to the introduction of the country's own luxury vehicles such as the Hyundai Genesis and Hyundai Genesis Coupe, which received highly positive awards in the press and reviews. Hyundai's brand grew by 9% in 2008, surpassing Porsche and Ferrari, while it used the Super Bowl football broadcast, the world's most expensive commercial air time, to promote the Hyundai brand in the United States.^[27]

Nonetheless, South Korean automakers were not completely immune to this automotive crisis and in December 2008 Hyundai Motor Company had begun reducing production at plants in the U.S., China, Slovakia, India and Turkey because of sluggish demand. The company missed an earlier projection of 4.8 million units for 2008 and announced a freeze of wages for administrative workers and shortened factory operations as demand weakens amid a global financial crisis.^[28]

South Korea's fourth largest automaker, SsangYong Motor, owned by the Chinese automobile manufacturer SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation), is the worst affected company in this crisis as it manufactures mainly heavy petroleum consuming SUVs. The carmaker recorded its fourth straight quarterly losses by the end of 2008 with red ink of $20.8 million in the third quarter. Also during the July to September period, sales dropped 63 percent to 3,835 vehicles. Its production lines have been idle since Dec. 17 as part of efforts to reduce its inventory. The automaker has halted production twice previously this year. In December 2008, SAIC gave an ultimatum to the SsangYong union to accept its restructuring plan or face the parent company's withdrawal, which, if implemented, would mean certain bankruptcy.^[29]

However, the South Korean Ministry of Knowledge Economy said that there will be no liquidity provision at the government level for five automakers - Hyundai, Kia, GM Daewoo, Samsung Renault and Ssangyong."We have no plans to inject liquidity into the carmakers," a ministry official said. "It has been repeatedly made clear."^[29]

Europe[link]

In Europe where car sales had also drastically decreased, consideration was being given to financial support for the automotive industry, particularly in France, Germany and Italy. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Jean-Claude Juncker, Luxembourg's Prime Minister and head of the Eurogroup of single currency nations, discussed the possibility of a common rescue package to be agreed by all the EU member states.^[30]

France[link]

On November 20, 2008, French automobile manufacturer PSA Peugeot Citroen predicted sales volumes would fall by at least 10% in 2009, following a 17% drop in the current quarter. As a result, it planned to cut 2,700 jobs.^[31] On the 11 February 2009, PSA announced it would cut 11,000 jobs world wide, however none of these are expected to be in France.^[32]

Renault announced a net profit for 2008 of 599 million euros for the 2008 financial year. This was a 78% drop in profits from the 2007 financial year. European sales fell 4% and world wide sales 7%, forcing Renault to abandon their 2009 growth targets.^[33] This however made Renault one of the few car makers to return a profit. Renault consistently struggled to return profits in the 1990s.

France/Germany[link]

On November 24, 2008, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed to support the crisis-stricken automobile industry in France and Germany.^[34] Detailed plans would be announced shortly.^[35]

Italy[link]

Fiat and Chrysler hope smaller models like the Fiat Grande Punto could be successful in the U.S. market

On December 16, 2008 Fiat in Italy announced that it will extend its temporary plant closures in Italy by a month; the Pomigliano d'Arco, the main plant for its Alfa Romeo cars will be shut for four weeks.^[36] However, on February 20, 2009, reacting to actions by the Italian government to stimulate the automotive sector, Fiat said its plant closures would be curtailed.^[37] The company also forecast that sales in Europe will drop by 14 percent in 2009.^[36]

On January 20, 2009 the company announced that it had entered into an agreement, subject to regulatory approvals, to acquire 35% of Chrysler. Fiat's 35% stake in Chrysler would not involve a conventional sale of shares, but would be achieved in return for allowing Chrysler to utilise some of Fiat's fuel efficient technologies (Chrysler's February submission to the U.S. government included a commitment to produce nine Fiat-derived vehicles over a four-year period starting in 2010, including four hybrid-electric and battery-electric models).^[38] Chrysler would be accorded access to Fiat's sales outlets in Europe, while in reciprocation Fiat will also gain access to Chrysler's dealership network in the U.S., where it is predicted smaller models such as the Fiat Grande Punto may be successful.^[39] In the past, Fiat has had trouble gaining a foothold in the American markets, whilst Chrysler has never held a strong market share in Europe since it sold its UK based Rootes Group and France based Simca to PSA Peugeot Citroen in the 1980s.

On January 22, 2009, Fiat announced a 19% drop in revenues in the last three months of 2008. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said the government would meet to discuss the issue.^[40]

Russia[link]

Russia's automotive industry was hit hard by the late 2000s recession, which started from United States. Production of passenger cars dropped from 1,470,000 units in 2008 to just 597,000 units in 2009. Lorry production fell from 256,000 to 91,000 in the same period.^[41]

In late 2008, the Russian government introduced protectionistic measures, worth $5 billion, to improve the situation in the industry. This included $2 billion's worth of bailouts for troubled companies and $3 billion credits to buyers of Russian cars.^[42] Prime minister Vladimir Putin described the move as vital in order to save jobs.^[43] The tariffs for imported foreign cars and trucks were increased to a minimum 50% and 100%, respectively. The tariffs are linked to engine size of the vehicle. The increased duties led to protests in Russian cities, most notably in Vladivostok, as the import of Japanese cars is an important sector of the city's economy.^[44]

The most efficient anti-crisis measure executed by the Russian government was the introduction of a car scrappage scheme in March 2010. Under the scheme, buyers of new cars can receive a subsidy which is 600,000 rubles ($20,000) at maximum.^[45] Sales of Russia's largest carmaker Avtovaz sales doubled in the second quarter of 2010 as a result, and the company returned to profit.^[46][47]

Spain[link]

Spanish automobile manufacturer SEAT (a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group) cut production at its Martorell plant by 5% on the 7 October 2008, due to a fall in general sales. This affected 750 employees and continued until July 2009.^[48] SEAT is still continuing to install solar panels in its Martorell plant near Barcelona.^[49]

Sweden[link]

On December 11, 2008, the Swedish government provided its troubled auto makers, Volvo and Saab, with support amounting to SEK 28 billion (3.5 billion USD). The two companies had requested assistance, faced with the financial difficulties of their U.S. owners Ford and General Motors. The plan consists of a maximum of SEK 20 billion in credit guarantees, and up to SEK 5 billion in rescue loans.^[50] On the 18 February 2009 General Motors warned Saab may fail within ten days, should the Swedish government not intervene.^[51] On 20 February, an administrator was appointed to restructure Saab and assist in it becoming independent of its troubled parent General Motors. General Motors have confirmed their intention to sell their Swedish subsidiary, Saab.^[52] Of Sweden's 9 million population, 140,000 work in the car industry and they account for 15% of exports.^[51]

United Kingdom[link]

In the United Kingdom, Jaguar Land Rover, now owned by Tata Motors, was seeking a $1.5 billion loan from the government to cope with the credit crisis.^[53]

On 22 December 2008, Tata declared that it would inject "tens of millions" of pounds into the company it had acquired from Ford Motor Corporation in early 2008. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown also stated the intention to help out car industry in U.K.^[54]

On the 8 January 2009, Nissan UK announced it was to shed 1200 jobs from its Washington, Tyne and Wear factory in North East England due to the automotive industry crisis of 2008.^[55] This announcement was made, despite the plant recently being hailed as the most efficient in Europe.^[56][57]

General Motors UK subsidiary Vauxhall Motors, whose brand is the second most popular in the UK^{[citation needed]} has two bases in the UK, a factory in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire and their headquarters and design and development centre in Luton, Bedfordshire. It is as yet unknown whether these plants will be affected by the GM cutbacks. The group along with their sister subsidiary, Opel of Germany, was supposed to be sold in their majority to Magna International, an Austro-Canadian company who supply many parts to large car companies, but General Motors cancelled the transaction.

UK bus manufacturer Optare received an order from Arriva in November 2008 for the manufacture of 53 buses in a contract worth over £6million, securing 500 jobs at the company's Assembly factory in Cross Gates, Leeds, West Yorkshire and the parts centre in Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire.^[58]

UK Van and commercial vehicle manufacturer LDV Group asked the UK government for a £30 million bridging loan to facilitate a management buyout of the group. On the same day this was refused.^[59] LDV has since said it has a viable future and intends to become the first volume producer of electric vans should the management buyout take place. Production at LDV's factory in Birmingham, West Midlands (where it employed 850 staff) has been suspended since December 2008 due to falling demand.^[60] Eventually, no buyout materialised and LDV was declared defunct on 15 October 2009.

Along with several other countries, the UK government launched a scrappage incentive scheme in order to support the crisis stricken industry. Cars registered prior to 31 July 1999, later extended to 29 February 2000, were eligible to be scrap in exchange for a discount of £2000 on a new car, half of which was provided by the government and the other half by the dealer. The scheme came to an end on 31 March 2010.

North America[link]

Canada[link]

The Canadian auto industry is closely linked to the U.S., due to the Automotive Products Trade Agreement and later the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and is in similar trouble.

United States[link]

The crisis in the United States is mainly defined by the government rescue of both General Motors and Chrysler. Ford secured a line of credit in case they require a bridging loan in the near future. Car sales declined in the United States, affecting both US based and foreign car manufacturers. The bridging loans lead to greater scrutiny of the U.S. automotive industry in addition to criticism of their product range, product quality, high labour wages, job bank programs, and healthcare and retirement benefits. The government backed rescue of the American auto industry gained the support of a 56% of Americans in 2012 according a Pew Research Center poll.^[61]

While the "Big Three" U.S. market share declined from 70% in 1998 to 53% in 2008, global volume increased particularly in Asia and Europe.^[62] The U.S. auto industry was profitable in every year since 1955, except those years following U.S. recessions and involvement in wars. U.S. auto industry profits suffered from 1971-73 during the Vietnam War, during the recession in the late 1970s which impacted auto industry profits from 1981–83, during and after the Gulf War when industry profits declined from 1991–93, and during the Iraq War from 2001–03 and 2006-09. During these periods the companies incurred much legacy debt.^[63]

Facing financial losses, the Big Three have idled many factories and drastically reduced employment levels. GM spun off many of its employees in certain divisions into independent companies, including American Axle in 1994 and Delphi in 1999. Ford spun off Visteon in 2000. The spin-offs and other parts makers have shared Detroit's downturns, as have the U.S.-owned plants in Canada. Altogether the parts makers employ 416,000 people in the U.S. and Canada. General Motors alone is estimated to have lost $51 billion in the three years before the 2008 financial crisis began. GM is set to reacquire factories from its Delphi subsidiary during its Chapter 11 restructing.^[64]

The 2005 Harbour Report estimated that Toyota's lead in benefits cost advantage amounted to $350 US to $500 US per vehicle over North American manufacturers. The United Auto Workers agreed to a two-tier wage in recent 2007 negotiations, something which the Canadian Auto Workers has so far refused.^[65] Jared Bernstein, the chief economist of Vice President Joe Biden, noted in an interview with WWJ-AM in Detroit that most of the 2007 contract concessions apply only to new hires, while older workers "still benefit from contracts that were signed a long time ago."^[66] However, only 30% of parts used by the Big Three employ union labor, with 70% sourced from non-union labor.

Delphi, which was spun off from GM in 1999, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after the UAW refused to cut their wages and GM is expected to be liable for a $7 billion shortfall.^[67][68][69]

In order to improve profits, the Detroit automakers made agreements with unions to reduce wages while making pension and health care commitments. GM, for instance, at one time picked up the entire cost of funding health insurance premiums of its employees, their survivors and GM retirees, as the U.S. did not have a universal health care system.^[70] With most of these plans chronically underfunded in the late 1990s, the companies have tried to provide retirement packages to older workers, and made agreements with the UAW to transfer pension obligations to an independent trust.^[71] Nonetheless, non-unionized Japanese automakers, with their younger American workforces (and far fewer American retirees) will continue to enjoy a cost advantage.^[72][73][74]

A Chevrolet TrailBlazer, one of General Motors' SUVs

Despite the history of their marques, many long running cars have been discontinued or relegated to fleet sales,^[75][76][77] as GM, Ford and DaimlerChrysler shifted away resources from midsize and compact cars to lead the "SUV Craze". Since the late 1990s, over half of their profits have come from light trucks and SUVs, while they often could not break even on compact cars unless the buyer chose options.^[78] Ron Harbour, in releasing the Oliver Wyman’s 2008 Harbour Report, stated that many small “econoboxes” of the past acted as loss leaders, but were designed to bring customers to the brand in the hopes they would stay loyal and move up to more profitable models. The report estimated that an automaker needed to sell ten small cars to make the same profit as one big vehicle, and that they had to produce small and mid-size cars profitably to succeed, something that the Detroit three have not yet done.^[79] SUV sales peaked in 1999 but have not returned to that level ever since, due to higher gas prices.

In the case of Chrysler Corporation, compact and mid-sized vehicles such as the Dodge Neon, Dodge Stratus and Chrysler Cirrus were produced profitably during the 1990s concurrently with more profitable larger vehicles. However, following the DaimlerChrysler merger in 1998, there was a major cost-cutting operation at the company. The result was the lowering of benchmarked standards for Chrysler to aim at. This directly led to the following in Chrysler's case. There was realignment of the Chrysler Group model range with those of GM and Ford (i.e. a skew towards larger vehicles).

The Detroit Big Three had been slower to bring new vehicles to the market compared with foreign competitors. The Big Three have battled initial quality perceptions in spite of reports showing improvements.^[80]

Falling sales resulted in the Big Three's plants operating below capacity. GM's plants were operating at 85% in November 2005, well below the plants of its Asian competitors, and was only maintained by relying on cash incentives and subsidized leases.^[81] Rebates, employee pricing, and 0% financing boosted sales but drained the automaker's cash reserves. The subprime mortgage crisis and high oil prices of 2008 caused the popularity of once best-selling trucks and SUVs to plummet. Automakers were forced to continue offering heavy incentives to help clear excess inventory.^[82] Due to the declining residual value of their vehicles, Chrysler and GM stopped offering leases on a most of their vehicles in 2008.^[83]

In September, 2008 the Big Three asked for $50 billion to pay for health care expenses and avoid bankruptcy and ensuing layoffs, and Congress worked out a 25$ billion loan.^[84] By December, President Bush had agreed to an emergency bailout of $17.4 billion to be distributed by the next administration in January and February.^[85] In early 2009, the prospect of avoiding bankruptcy by General Motors and Chrysler continued to wane as new financial information about the scale of the 2008 losses came in. Ultimately, poor management and business practices forced Chrysler and General Motors into bankruptcy. Chrysler filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 1, 2009 ^[86] followed by General Motors a month later.^[87]

On June 2, GM Motors announced the sale of the Hummer brand of off-road vehicles to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Company Ltd., a machinery company in western China, a deal which later fell through.^[88][89][90]

Effects of environmental expectations and changing product demand[link]

Environmental politics and related concerns regarding carbon emissions have heightened sensitivity to gas mileage standards and environmental protection worldwide. In a 2007 edition of his book An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore criticized the Big Three. "They keep trying to sell large, inefficient gas-guzzlers even though fewer and fewer people are buying them." For example, Japan requires autos to achieve 45 miles per US gallon (5.2 L/100 km; 54 mpg_-imp) of gasoline and China requires 35 mpg_-US (6.7 L/100 km; 42 mpg_-imp). The European Union requires 47 mpg_-US (5.0 L/100 km; 56 mpg_-imp) by 2012. By comparison, U.S. autos are required to achieve only 25 mpg_-US (9.4 L/100 km; 30 mpg_-imp) presently. Other nations have adopted standards that are increasing mpg requirements in the future. When California raised its own standards, the auto companies sued.^[91][92]

The Big Three received funding for a $25 billion government loan during October 2008 to help them re-tool their factories to meet new fuel-efficiency standards of at least 35 mpg_-US (6.7 L/100 km; 42 mpg_-imp) by 2020. The $25 billion in loans from the Department of Energy to the auto manufacturers were actually authorized by Congress early this year but not funded. Automakers could use these loans to "equip or establish facilities to produce ‘advanced technology vehicles’ that would meet certain emissions and fuel economy standards; component suppliers could borrow funds to retool or build facilities to produce parts for such vehicles."^[93]

Effect of 2008 oil price shock and economic crisis[link]

Medium term crude oil prices 1987-2011.

In 2008, a series of damaging blows drove the Big Three to the verge of bankruptcy. Part of the cause was very high labor costs (much higher than the foreign plants in the U.S.)^{[citation needed]}. The Big Three had in recent years manufactured SUVs and large pickups, which were much more profitable than smaller, fuel-efficient cars. Manufacturers made 15% to 20% profit margin on an SUV, compared to 3% or less on a car.^[94] When gasoline prices rose above $4 per gallon in 2008, Americans stopped buying the big vehicles and Big Three sales and profitability plummeted. Robert Samuelson has advocated a more consistent energy policy, arguing "wild swings between low and high fuel prices have crippled the U.S. industry by erratically shifting buyer preferences -- to and from SUVs."^[95]

The financial crisis played a role, as GM was unable to obtain credit to buy Chrysler.^{[citation needed]} Sales fell further as consumer credit tightened and it became much harder for people with average or poor credit to obtain a bank loan to buy a car. During 2007, nearly 2 million new U.S. cars were purchased with funds from home equity loans. Such funding was considerably less available in 2008.^[96] In addition, stock prices fell as shareholders worried about bankruptcy; GM's shares fell below 1946 levels. Furthermore, the instability of the job market and individual consumers' finances discourages consumers who already have a working vehicle from taking on a new loan and payments, which affected almost all major manufacturers.

The annual capacity of the industry is 17 million cars; sales in 2008 dropped to an annual rate of only 10 million vehicles made in the U.S. and Canada. All the automakers and their vast supplier network account for 2.3% of the U.S. economic output, down from 3.1% in 2006 and as much as 5% in the 1990s. Some 20% of the entire national manufacturing sector is still tied to the automobile industry. The transplants can make a profit when sales are at least 12 million; the Big Three when sales are at least 15 million.^[97]

The crisis has affected auto companies around the world, with large sales decreases experienced by all.

As of December 19, 2008, oil prices had fallen to $33.87 per barrel, but the automobile crisis continues.^[98]

See also[link]

• Corporate welfare
• Lemon socialism
• Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry
• Too big to fail

References[link]

External links[link]

• CAR industry news.
• Auto Industry Financing and Restructuring Act.
• Capitalism and the auto crisis.
• Toyota losses highlight global auto collapse.
• GM closes plants in Wisconsin and Ohio.
• Crisis grips German auto industry.
• Thousands of jobs threatened in Swedish auto industry.
• European auto industry in crisis.
• Feb 2009 Restructuring Plans: General Motors Chrysler

Ndamukong Suh

Suh in the 2011 NFL season.
No. 90     Detroit Lions
Defensive tackle
Personal information
Date of birth: (1987-01-06) January 6, 1987 (age 25)
Place of birth: Portland, Oregon
Height: 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Weight: 307 lb (139 kg)
Career information
High school: Grant High School, Portland, Oregon
College: Nebraska
NFL Draft: 2010 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2
Debuted in 2010 for the Detroit Lions
Career history
Detroit Lions (2010–present)
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
AP Defensive Rookie of the Year (2010) NFL Alumni Defensive Lineman of the Year (2010) Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year (2010) Sporting News Rookie of the Year (2010) Pro Football Weekly Rookie of the Year (2010) PFWA Rookie of the Year (2010) Pro Bowl (2010) First-team All-Pro (2010) Sporting News First-team All-Pro (2011) College awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2011
Tackles 102 Quarterback sacks 14.0 Forced fumbles 1 Interceptions 1 Touchdowns 1 Stats at NFL.com

Ndamukong Suh (pronounced /ɨnˈdɑːməkɨn ˈsuː/ in-DOM-ə-kin SOO, born January 6, 1987) is an American football defensive tackle for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Nebraska, and earned All-American honors. He was chosen by the Lions with the second overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft.

As a college senior, Suh became one of the most decorated players in college football history. He won numerous awards including the Associated Press College Football Player of the Year Award, Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Chuck Bednarik Award, Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy, and was recognized as a consensus All-American.^[1]

Early years[link]

Suh was born in Portland, Oregon. He attended Grant High School in Portland, where he earned Parade magazine high school All-America honors and was voted the 2004 Portland Interscholastic League Defensive Player of the Year and was a Class 4A first-team all-state selection.

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Suh was ranked sixth among defensive tackle prospects in the nation.^[2]

College career[link]

Ndamukong Suh playing in the 2009 Holiday Bowl.

Suh attended the University of Nebraska, where he played for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team from 2005 to 2009. As a true freshman in 2005, Suh played in the first two games and had an assisted tackle against Wake Forest before missing the remainder of the season after undergoing knee surgery. He received a medical redshirt.

In 2006, Suh played in all 14 games as a backup defensive lineman and earned freshman All-Big 12 honors from The Sporting News. Despite coming off the bench, he finished the year with 19 total tackles, and ranked among the team leaders in tackles for loss (8) and quarterback sacks (3½). In his sophomore season, Suh started in 11 of the Cornhuskers' 12 games, and recorded 34 total tackles on the season.

As a junior in 2008, Suh recorded a team-high 76 tackles, 7½ sacks, 19 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions (both returned for touchdowns) and a touchdown reception while playing fullback. He became the first Nebraska defensive lineman to lead the team in tackles since 1973. Suh earned First-team All-Big 12 honors in 2008, the first Nebraska interior defensive lineman to earn those honors since Steve Warren in 1999.

In 2009, Suh registered 85 tackles, 12 quarterback sacks, 28 quarterback hurries, 24 tackles for loss, 10 pass breakups, three blocked kicks, and one interception. Suh had 12 tackles (seven for losses, a school single-game record) and 4½ sacks in a 13–12 loss to the Texas Longhorns in the Big 12 Championship Game, for which he received game MVP honors. He helped Huskers defense rank first nationally in scoring defense (10.4 ppg), tied for second in total sacks (44), first in pass efficiency defense (87.3), seventh in total defense (272.0 ypg), ninth in rushing defense (93.1 ypg) and 18th in passing defense (178.9 ypg). He also played all four quarters versus Arizona in the 2009 Holiday Bowl, helping Nebraska record the first shutout in the Holiday Bowl's 32-year history, as well as the first shutout in school bowl history.^[3] He was a consensus First-team All-American and earned consensus First-team All-Big 12 honors and was the Associated Press National Player of the Year, Big-12 Defensive Player of the Year, the Defensive Lineman of the Year, and a Heisman Trophy finalist.

College awards[link]

On December 3, 2009, Suh was named as one of five finalists for the Walter Camp Award. On November 24, 2009, Suh was named one of three finalists for the 2009 Outland Trophy, alongside Mike Iupati and Russell Okung.^[4] On November 10, Suh was selected one of four finalists for the 2009 Lombardi Award, the first Cornhusker to receive this honor since Dominic Raiola in 2000.^[5] In October 2009, Suh was named to The Sporting News and CBS Sports midseason All-American team.^[6][7] Suh began season at No. 3 on Rivals.com′s preseason defensive tackle power ranking.^[8] He was also named to the 2009 Outland Trophy watch list.^[9]

On December 7, 2009, Suh was named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.^[10] Later that evening, Suh was named the 2009 Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner as the top defensive player in the nation.^[11] CBS Sportsline also named Suh their Defensive Player of the Year. The Touchdown Club of Columbus named Suh the winner of the Bill Willis Trophy on December 9, 2009.^[12] That same evening Suh won the Lombardi Award for the top collegiate lineman or linebacker.^[13] On December 11, at the ESPN College Football Awards show, Suh was selected as the winner of the Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation's best defensive player and took home the Outland Trophy for the best interior lineman.^[14] Suh finished fourth in the Heisman race, accumulating 815 points, which is the highest total by a fourth-place finisher for the Heisman in its history.^[15] He was also one of four unanimous selections to the AP First-team All-America in 2009.^[16] Suh was named the 2009 AP Player of Year, becoming the first defensive player to receive the award in its history.^[17]

Career statistics[link]

Professional career[link]

2010 NFL Draft[link]

Suh was widely considered to be one of the best prospects available in the draft.^{[18][19][20][21][22]} ESPN.com's draft analyst Mel Kiper, Jr. described Suh as "maybe the most dominating defensive tackle I've seen in 32 years" and projected him to go #1 overall.^[23] Suh was seen as an ideal fit at either defensive tackle in a 4-3 defense or as a defensive end in a 3-4 NFL defense.^[24]

For off the field marketing activities, Suh signed with The Agency Sports Management & Marketing,^[25] where Russ Spielman will serve as lead agent. At the NFL Combine, Suh bench pressed 225 lb 32 times and had a 35½ inch vertical leap, the highest for a defensive tackle since Al Lucas (36 in) in 2000. According to Barnes: "He is not a hard worker; he is a relentless worker." ^[26]

To prepare for the NFL Draft (and contract negotiations) Suh signed with Maximum Sports Management, and agent Roosevelt Barnes, who would serve as Suh's lead agent. This caused moderate concern for many teams who were hoping to draft him, as this was the same agent who represented Michael Crabtree. Crabtree was the longest 2009 NFL Draft 1st round contract hold out, waiting over six weeks into the NFL season before signing with the San Francisco 49ers. He even threatened to re-enter the 2010 NFL Draft.

Detroit Lions[link]

Suh was selected second overall in the 2010 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. On August 3, Suh agreed to a five-year, $68 million contract with $40 million guaranteed.^[29] On September 12, Suh had his first sack against Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.^[30] On October 10, during a game against the St. Louis Rams, he recorded his first career interception off of Sam Bradford, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft.^[31] Suh scored his first touchdown of his NFL career against the Washington Redskins on October 31, 2010, on a recovery of a Rex Grossman fumble.

After an injury to Lions kicker Jason Hanson, the Lions had Suh attempt an extra point on November 7, 2010, against the New York Jets. However, Suh missed the extra point when the ball hit the right upright.^[32]

For the 2010 season, Suh led the Lions, all rookies, and all defensive tackles in sacks with 10.^[33] He was picked as a starter for the Pro Bowl, becoming the first Lions rookie since Barry Sanders to be picked as a Pro Bowl starter.^[34] He missed the game, however, due to shoulder surgery.^[35] On January 25, 2011, Suh was named to the All-Pro Team.^[36] He was also named the Sporting News Rookie of the Year,^[37] the Pro Football Weekly and Pro Football Writers of America Rookie of the Year,^[38] the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year,^[39] and the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year.^[40]

In the 2011 season on week 14 against the Oakland Raiders Suh jumped up to block the game winning field goal, to make the Lions 9-5-0.

Suh was named a Pro Bowl alternate for the NFC after the 2011 NFL season.^[41]

Style of play[link]

Suh has been criticized in the media and by other players for his aggressive style of play and has been fined a total of $42,500 by the league for three violations in the first year-and-a-half of his career. In a poll of fellow players conducted by the Sporting News, Suh was named "the dirtiest player" in the NFL.^[42] As of December 2011, he had been flagged for nine personal fouls in his first two years, the most of any player in the league in that time frame.^[43]

2011 stomping incident[link]

During the third quarter of the Lions' Thanksgiving game against the Green Bay Packers on November 24, 2011, Suh pushed Packers' offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith's head into the ground three times, then stomped on his arm. All of this took place after the whistle was blown. Suh was penalized for unnecessary roughness and ejected from the game.^[44] The resulting penalty gave the Packers an automatic first down. The Packers would score a touchdown two plays later, giving them a 14-0 lead and an eventual 27-15 victory.

Initially, Suh denied stomping on Dietrich-Smith, saying he was only trying to get his balance back.^[45] However, on Friday morning, the Lions issued a statement calling Suh's actions "unacceptable." Within hours, Suh wrote on his Facebook page that he'd "made a mistake" a day before and intended to learn from it.^[46] Fox Sports NFL rules analyst and former vice president of officiating Mike Pereira said that based on his knowledge of league discipline, "the question won’t be if the NFL will suspend Suh, but when — and for how many games." He drew parallels between Suh's actions and those of Albert Haynesworth, who drew a five-game suspension—the longest suspension for an on-field incident in modern NFL history—for stomping on Andre Gurode's head in 2006.^[43]

On November 29, the NFL suspended Suh for two games without pay. In announcing the decision, Roger Goodell noted that it was the fifth time Suh had been disciplined for on-field conduct.^[47] Soon after the suspension was handed down, Suh announced he would appeal the decision. The NFL held an expedited hearing before former Oakland Raiders coach Art Shell, so that a decision could be handed down before the Lions' next game, on December 4, against the New Orleans Saints.^[48] The appeal was turned down on December 2, forcing Suh to sit out the game against the Saints and the December 11 game against the Minnesota Vikings.^[49]

Personal[link]

Suh’s mother, Bernadette (née Lennon) Suh, an elementary school teacher, was born in Spanish Town, Jamaica and is a graduate of Southern Oregon University. His father, Michael Suh, is from Cameroon and played semi-pro soccer in Germany while working as a machinist. They met and married in Portland, Oregon in 1982, after Michael Suh was admitted to a Portland trade school.^[50] Although his father is only 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m), Suh's grandfather, also named Ndamukong Suh, stood 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m).^[51] In the Ngemba language of Cameroon, Ndamukong means "House of Spears."^[52]

Suh has three sisters; he is the second oldest of the children.^[53] His older sister, Odette Lennon Ngum Suh, played soccer collegiately at Mississippi State University and is currently a midfielder on the Cameroon women's national football team.^[50]

Suh is a fan of Arsenal F.C.^[54]

Donation and endowment[link]

On April 17, 2010, at the annual Husker Spring Game, Suh announced a $2.6 million donation to the University of Nebraska.^[55] Two million dollars of his gift will go to Nebraska Athletics for its Strength and Conditioning Program, and remaining $600,000 will create an endowed scholarship for the UNL College of Engineering, from which he graduated in 2009 with a degree in Construction Management.^[56] His gift is the largest single charitable contribution by any former player, and occurred before Suh was taken with the second overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.

Endorsements[link]

Before Suh was even drafted by an NFL team, he signed an endorsement deal with Nike.^[57] Suh has also signed endorsement deals with Subway,^[58][59] Dick's Sporting Goods,^[59][60] Omaha Steaks,^[59][61] and Chrysler.^[59]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Suh90.com
• Detroit Lions bio
• Nebraska Cornhuskers bio