For thousands of U.S. auto workers, downturn is already here
Thu Jun 22, 2017 | 6:54am EDT
By Nick Carey | LORDSTOWN, OHIO
Wall Street is fretting that the U.S. auto industry is heading for a downturn, but for thousands of workers at General Motors Co factories in the United States, the hard times are already here.
Matt Streb, 36, was one of 1,200 workers laid off on Jan. 20 - inauguration day for Republican U.S. President Donald Trump - when GM canceled the third shift at its Lordstown small-car factory here. Sales of the Chevrolet Cruze sedan, the only vehicle the plant makes, have nosedived as U.S. consumers switch to SUVs and pickup trucks.
Streb is looking for another job, but employers are wary because they assume he will quit whenever GM calls him back. "I get it," said Streb, who has a degree in communications, "but it's frustrating."
Layoffs at Lordstown and other auto plants point to a broader challenge for the economy in Midwestern manufacturing states and for the Trump administration.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-autos-workers-analysis-idUSKBN19C2R2
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This year, I bought a new car for the first time in 19 years. That was only because the old 2003 Corolla, which we put 273,000 miles on, was in such bad shape we practically had to TOW it into the lot. Between the 1997 Cavalier (263,000) and the Corolla, we put half a million miles and saved a ton of money in the process (until 2 years ago, where we were making the equivalent of 3-5 car payments a year just to keep the Corolla running) 
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With regular changes and an on-board electronics system/OnStar letting me know what needs maintained, I think this American-built Cruze will last quite a while. And if it's still going when my kid needs a vehicle for whatever reason, why not?
Cars also last longer now - not even the bodies rust as badly as they used to. Even used cars can go a while under the right circumstances.
