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submitted 1 month ago by schizoidman@lemmy.zip to c/world@lemmy.world

And, a recent tour of one of the Asian powerhouse's vehicle plants has proved this beyond a shadow of a doubt, at least to Honda President and CEO Toshihiro Mibe.

"We have no chance against this," Mibe said upon a visit to a Shanghai parts factory, commenting on its seamless automation across all levels of production. Logistics, procurement and all aspects of the process were so automated, in fact, that he did not spot a single human worker on the supplier's floor.

Ford executives saying even three years ago that China was way ahead of the game

Toyota's CEO has likewise said regarding not just his company, but the industry in general, "unless things change, we will not survive"

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[-] unmagical@lemmy.ml 19 points 1 month ago

Well that's capitalism. It's what you wanted right? Competition to keep you on your toes?

Looks like the invisible hand of the market favors what the people want more than what bosses think we can take.

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[-] ummthatguy@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago
[-] BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today 5 points 4 weeks ago

Back in the 80s, American cars got really, really crappy, and that's when Honda, and Toyota, and later Hyundai, Daiwoo, and Kia were able to get market share. American car companies got their shit together, and started making cars that could compete again. So here we are a few decades later, in the same spot.

These scummy Capitalists get a taste of luxury, and they start getting lazy, while the Asians continue to crank away like they're in last place. In the past, the Capitalists finally wised up, and got back into the game, but the current crop are so breath-takingly ignorant, that I doubt they could even recognize that they're in trouble. If someone were to try to explain it to them, they'd probably just attack back.

The Japanese and Koreans will get their shit together. America won't.

[-] architect@thelemmy.club 1 points 4 weeks ago

They know they are in trouble but they think it’s because labor is lazy and needs more exploiting.

[-] chocrates@piefed.world 4 points 4 weeks ago

Herp my derp look who is mad about the "free market" now?

Don't come crawling to us for bailouts this time

[-] hanrahan@slrpnk.net 2 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago)

they already are, it's why you see no Chinese evs in the USA, American car companies cant compete, so you get expensive cars as the tax on that

and that would be ok if the US car companies were frantically retooling before the tariffs ceased in a couple years but they aren't, they're just stalling and the C suite is kicking the can down the road until its someone else's problem. They're well as are through.

[-] Smaile@lemmy.ca 3 points 4 weeks ago

Got to used to not having to compete

[-] Lushed_Lungfish@lemmy.ca 3 points 4 weeks ago

I dunno how the Japanese and Koreans will do, but I 100% guarantee that the American companies will do absolutely nothing, whine about it to their child rapist in chief and then get a massive government bailout paid for by ordinary Americans.

[-] quips@slrpnk.net 3 points 4 weeks ago

almost as if competition is what capitalism was always supposed to be about

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[-] Horsey@lemmy.world 2 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago)

I cannot wait to see legacy auto disappear. It’s about time they failed. It’s fucking absurd that the most expensive piece of tech I own has a 15fps display with touch response rate measured in seconds, rather than milliseconds. They did this to themselves.

Legacy auto did nothing to compete with Tesla software, and they came out over a decade ago.

Oh, and they took the ‘10 bailouts and did fuckall with them. They didn’t take the bailouts and make a suddenly better product.

[-] BioDriver@lemmy.world 2 points 4 weeks ago

Then stop being greedy fuckers

[-] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 2 points 1 month ago

OH NO! THE FREE MARKET IS WORKING BUT NOT IN OUR FAVOR!!!

[-] JohnnyCanuck@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago

I've been wanting Honda to make an affordable all-electric car for years. Based on how BYD is selling, I'm guessing I'm not the only one.

Instead they keep making bigger and bigger, gas-guzzling vehicles, with bells and whistles we don't need, saying that's what sells and they can't make an electric vehicle they're happy with.

Well, too bad. It seems I've bought my last Honda, sadly, because my next vehicle will not burn gasoline.

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[-] whotookkarl@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

How many of those companies spent literal billions of dollars on stock buybacks to inflate share market price over the last decade instead of investing in the people and facilities and products to remain competitive. Even if there is dumping I doubt it's anywhere near the combined spent on share price inflation buybacks & savings instead of investing in the workers and business, these companies enjoy unjustified tax breaks and subsidies from their governments as well.

This is a the economy being equated to wealth/investor class problem. Workers in and around cities want cheap affordable evs & charging infrastructure for renters, mechanics and parts producers want to build and work on affordable evs. People who own stocks expecting growth returns and executive compensation want to sell 10 cars a year for a trillion dollars each if they could.

[-] BeMoreCareful@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Yeah, this is what bad leadership is. Lack of leadership really. China and the US both found themselves the manufacturers of the world.

China took the money and built an infrastructure. The US took the money and destroyed unions..

[-] thorhop@sopuli.xyz 1 points 1 month ago

"Detroit Motor City". I.e subsidizing losses.

Of course you could apply protectionism, but that wouldn't be fair and would set a public precedent on the global markets.

But yeah, the petroleum lobby really managed to screw us sideways. All those anti EV, anti solar and anti wind campaigns.

It is perhaps the biggest, oldest, slowest moving and most fraudulent of bailouts in all of history.

We are just that stupid.

[-] lightnsfw@reddthat.com 1 points 4 weeks ago

Maybe you should have kept up and innovated instead of just trying to stifle your competition and enshittify your products idiots.

[-] Greyghoster@aussie.zone 1 points 1 month ago

That’s the problem with disrupters, people are so involved with dismissing them that they don’t see what’s happening. For years it was all about cheap Chinese labour then turn around and discover that it’s really all about robotic factories and slick organisation. Throw in EVs and it’s the same but worse.

[-] WoodScientist@lemmy.world 2 points 4 weeks ago

People always point out that China "isn't really a Communist country." And while they certainly are different from the days of Mao, they forget that, from the beginning, the goal was to treat the market economy as a means to an end. The CCP values market economics because it allowed China to quickly industrialize. They don't value capitalism for its own sake; they view it as a necessary evil.

Because of this, they're able to do the kind of long term industrial planning that is unthinkable in the US. And there's ultimately likely to be a lot less resistance to mass automation in China than in the US. If the state owns all the automated factories and distributes their goods fairly to all, why oppose automation? Automation is only a bad thing if it represents losing your livelihood, your method for keeping a roof over your head.

[-] imahappyguy@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Aww man, China is dumping to gain market share for EVs? That's crazy. If only car manufacturers had adapted to EVs sooner and researched more into better battery technologies, they might not be in this position. Get fucked. This whole, every car has to be super luxorious in America is getting ridiculous. I looked at a rav4 last year and the "features" they included in the base model was mental. I just want my car to go when I press the pedal. Brake. And a CD Player. I don't need half the shit they put in American market cars. Doesn't help that I have a large family that needs to travel far, frequently. So, my hands are tied with getting an SUV. I'd kill for a better train transit in America. Next car gets to be an EV though. Cause that's the sedan.

[-] benjirenji@slrpnk.net 1 points 4 weeks ago

Of course I'm not invested in individual transportation companies. Even less with the ones refusing to set on EVs.

[-] WhoIsTheDrizzle@lemmy.world 1 points 4 weeks ago

I would bet that Chinese auto manufacturers aren't taking 6 billion a month out of their company to pay shareholders in stock buybacks. Maybe reinvesting in the company to remain competitive is in fact, a good strategy.

[-] jaykrown@lemmy.world 1 points 4 weeks ago

Oh no my portfolio... Seriously, there's something called competition, it's been around for a long time. If Chinese companies continue pushing ahead while US companies remain complacent then that's just what will happen. These older car manufacturers have had DECADES to prepare for the newer battery tech to design and build good affordable BEVs, but they just didn't.

This is what happens when billionaires try to steal the future. Read about the General Motors EV1. Oil companies have fought against the development of EV charging infrastructure in the US.

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[-] electric_nan@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 month ago

Not my portfolio!

Good these are companies that fought the transition to EVs every step of the way. Toyota in particular. Which was ironic after releasing the Prius

[-] Geologist@lemmy.zip 0 points 1 month ago

Toyota is way too conservative. After nailing hybrid tech early on, it seems like they wasted the opportunity to put it on every vehicle they make which would have been such an amazing step forward, instead of treating it as a weird niche for so long.

Also that bz4x or whatever deserves a spot on the worst cars of all time list, just straight up ewaste.

[-] ChapulinColorado@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

How will you know its electric if it doesn't look like shit otherwise?

[-] PseudoSpock@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 4 weeks ago

Aw, Capitalism not working out for you car manufacturers? Awww, that’s too bad.

[-] No_Eponym@lemmy.ca 0 points 1 month ago

automation across all levels of production

Maybe its true. Regardless, article sounds like anti-worker propaganda to me. China is gonna eat our lunch! Better take a pay cut, and be glad you're not laid off!

[-] inclementimmigrant@lemmy.world 0 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

This has been reported on by multiple sources outside of the automotive industry about the rise of dark factories in China.

It's not a secret that China has heavily invested in automation in part due to the necessity thanks to unforeseen consequences of the one child policy. There's a very much lack of labor workers because the current generation are full of people who ultra emphasized education, even in rural areas, and this generation has no intention of working labor jobs. I don't think Western countries, especially America with their abysmal education and having the average citizen reading at a sixth grade level wouldn't be able to absorb that level of automation without tanking the economy unlike China's unique situation.

Now what I'm going to probably find interesting is what's going to happen when inevitably with the revocation of the one child policy and you see the next generation of young adults that may not have the same level of education since you now can't pump all your resources in the singular kid and how that's going to affect them. I do wonder how long this competitive advantage will last.

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this post was submitted on 27 Apr 2026
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