Let’s say the U.S. has poured billions of dollars into a failing company. How strongly should it try to protect that money once the company files for bankruptcy? The Washington Post is reporting that the plan for GM—which may go belly up as early as Monday—is for federal officials to select 5 or 6 of the company’s new board members, and have a say over which 6 of the existing board will remain. The UAW gets to choose another, and Canada might possibly be given one slot to fill. The rest of us will probably just get t-shirts or a souvenir mug.
Transportation & Infrastructure
GM Bondholders Say No To Debt-For-Stock Offer
By 5.27.09
GM’s debt-for-stock offer to its bondholders expires tonight. The company needs 90% of the bondholders to agree but has a fraction of that, notes CNN, which almost assures a bankruptcy filing in the coming days. We say “almost” because it’s possible the Treasury Department will extend talks with bondholders until June 1st, when GM’s other deadlines hit.
Airline Mechanics Who Can't Read English Are The Guys Reading The Manuals On How To Fix Your Plane
By 5.26.09
Other than drunken pilots, excessive baggage charges, lengthy delays, terrible customer service, and pathetic, expensive food, why wouldn’t you choose to travel by air? Well, how about airplane mechanics who don’t understand enough English to follow basic repair instructions?
Honda Owners Say Brakes Are Made Of Worthlessness — Honda Hasn't Responded
By 5.26.09
While it’s OK for messages from top-secret government agencies to self destruct, that’s not the case for car brakes. But more than 200 owners of 2008 and 2009 Accords have complained that keeping their brakes in working condition has proven to be a mission impossible.
Car Ad On Craigslist Has Hidden Paragraph On Hitler
By 5.25.09
Our commenter Zorantor discovered a weird, uh, can you call this an Easter egg?, buried at the bottom of a Craigslist post last night:
Consumerist And Consumer Reports Will Crap All Over Your Holiday Weekend
By 5.22.09
It’s Memorial Day weekend, the weather is looking nice, and people are leaving work early to hit the pool, fire up the grill, play golf, or enjoy our national pastime. We’re doing none of those things, so we thought we’d ruin it for everyone else.
Jon Stewart to Automakers: "BE A F@#KING PERSON!"
By 5.21.09
In case you don’t watch “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” as obsessively as I do, here’s a segment from earlier this week that is relevant to Consumerist readers’ interests. In it, they provide an overview of news coverage of the closing of GM and Chrysler dealerships, and implore the companies to “be a f@#king person!”
By 5.21.09
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Ground Beef Recall The USDA says Valley Meats LLC, of Coal Valley, Ill., is recalling approximately 95,898 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli. You can check out the labels here (PDF) and the recall notice here. [USDA]
HP Calls About Pants Burnin' Laptop
By 5.21.09
HP called Consumerist about our inquiry about Jillian’s sparking and flaming HP dv2845se laptop adapter that she says burned a hole in her pants and caused a welt on her leg. Jillian had also alleged that HP customer service, regular and escalated, was both unresponsive and rude. HP told us….
Chrysler/GM Car Glut: Savings Opp Or Nightmare?
By 5.21.09
To add insult to injury, Chrysler and GM will NOT be buying back vehicle inventory from dealerships that recently received closing notices. Maybe we have two new candidates for Worst Company in America next year! On the other hand, maybe this is good news for consumers. Large inventories + need for quick cash = SALE!
By 5.20.09
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Sorry, Canada. GM is shutting down 42% of their dealerships north of the border. [Bloomberg]
GM To Close Up To 1200 Dealers
By 5.15.09
The automotive bloodbath continues today as GM plans to eliminate up to 1,200 dealerships. The dealers could start getting notification as soon as Friday.
HP And Compaq Laptop Computer Batteries Recalled Due To Fire Hazard
By 5.14.09
HP announced today that laptop computer batteries have been recalled as a fire hazard due to risk of overheating. Affected models are HP Pavilion, Compaq Presario, HP, and HP Compaq computers sold from about August 2007 to March 2008. Find out if your computer is affected and get a replacement battery at HP’s site.
Toyota Posts First Loss In 59 Years
By 5.12.09
Here’s a story that we missed late last week, probably because we were busy having nightmares about snake heads. Toyota lost $7.74 billion this past quarter. That’s more than GM (though less than GM pre-bailout), and much more than predicted. It’s the company’s first annual loss since Elvis was in the Army.
GM: Bankruptcy Is "Probable"
By 5.11.09
The New York Times DealBlog liveblogged the GM conference call. We’re glad they did, because just reading their recap is depressing enough for us.
Big Brother Is Watching You Grocery Shop
By 5.8.09
Star fruit distributed by Melissa’s Produce between April 21 and May 5 is being recalled due to chemical residues. Mmmm. I’m having a hard time finding coverage of the recall itself, but one grocery store’s handling of the situation got my attention.
By 5.7.09
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Hey, GM just lost $6 B and barely has enough cash to operate. [CNN]
