Ford says that they will be laying off another 10%-12% of their salaried workforce with the goal of them being off the payroll by August 1. No fancy buyouts this time - there will be a (not so) lovely parting gift for those leaving, along with a swift kick in the butt (thanks for playing). As Ford has already cut about 1/3 of the salaried people, it makes you wonder either:

1. Ford had WAY too many people a few years ago
2. Ford is going to have trouble doing all of the work it needs to do to design, manufacture and sell its products, or
3. Ford is going to eliminate all of the non-value-added work that its hard-working, smart employees are forced to to do daily (don’t hold your breath on this one)

Hyundai has announced the pricing for their new “luxury” sedan, the Genesis. This is a rear wheel drive sedan (coupe will follow later). 2 engines will be offerred, a V6 and a V8. The V6 will start at $33,000 and the V8 will start at $38,000. No word yet on the drugs that will be made available to dealership personnel and customers to revive them when they find out that Hyundai wants $40K for a car. Maybe this will work, like Lexus in the late 80s to undercut the competition with a great car. The track record recently has been good, but the name Phaeton keeps coming to mind. Is Hyundai reaching too far?