US auto majors Ford, General Motors and Chrysler are brands that have been developed and nurtured for decades. These companies have been dominating the US markets for decades due to their continued focus on Research and Development.
But in the last few years due to reduced profitability, these companies have been forced to cut down on their research efforts. Coupled with that the economic slowdown in the US since 2008 has hit the automobile industry very hard. These companies have gone through massive government funding in the last few quarters and two of these companies have gone for bankruptcy proceedings in the last few months.
The number one position has also been lost by General Motors to the Japanese Auto major Toyota in the year 2009. And given the massive restructuring of these US auto giants, these companies might find it very difficult to reach their peak levels at least in the next four or five years.
If there is another recession in the US or Europe, these companies might only see further deterioration in their performance.