Changes

The "transplants" are built in the South and are non-union. Facing steady financial losses, The Big Three have closed many factories and drastically cut employment, especially in Michigan. They are handicapped by union contracts which require them to "buy out" union workers when plants close, at a typical cost of $100,000 to $150,000 each. Health care and pension costs add $1500 to the cost of each vehicle made by the Big Three, and their wage levels are much higher than the transplants.  Average annual wages for production workers at the Big Three were $67,480 in 2007, and $81,940 for skilled workers.  GM spun off some of its divisions into independent companies, such as American Axle  in 1995 and Delphi in 1999.  Ford spun off Visteon in 2000. The spin-offs have shared Detroit's downturns, as have the U.S. owned plants in Canada.   

The "transplants" are built in the South and are non-union. Facing steady financial losses, The Big Three have closed many factories and drastically cut employment, especially in Michigan. They are handicapped by union contracts which require them to "buy out" union workers when plants close, at a typical cost of $100,000 to $150,000 each. Health care and pension costs add $1500 to the cost of each vehicle made by the Big Three, and their wage levels are much higher than the transplants.  Average annual wages for production workers at the Big Three were $67,480 in 2007, and $81,940 for skilled workers.  GM spun off some of its divisions into independent companies, such as American Axle  in 1995 and Delphi in 1999.  Ford spun off Visteon in 2000. The spin-offs have shared Detroit's downturns, as have the U.S. owned plants in Canada.   

Meanwhile the transplants have been growing. Led by Toyota, Nissan and Honda, by 2003 the transplants were producing more vehicles than the Big Three. The transplants built new factories and adding to the employment rolls in non-union plants in the South, especially Kentucky and Tennessee. The United Automobile Workers (UAW) has shrunk steadily since 1980, falling from 1.5 million members to 600,000.<ref> CRS Report for Congress, ''U.S> Automotive Industry: Policy Overview and Recent History'' (April 25, 2005) [http://ncseonline.org/NLE/CRSreports/05apr/RL32883.pdf online]</ref>

Meanwhile the transplants have been growing. Led by Toyota, Nissan and Honda, by 2003 the transplants were producing more vehicles than the Big Three. The transplants built new factories and adding to the employment rolls in non-union plants in the South, especially Kentucky and Tennessee. The United Automobile Workers (UAW) has shrunk steadily since 1980, falling from 1.5 million members to 600,000.<ref> CRS Report for Congress, ''U.S Automotive Industry: Policy Overview and Recent History'' (April 25, 2005) [http://ncseonline.org/NLE/CRSreports/05apr/RL32883.pdf online]</ref>

==Financial crisis==

==Financial crisis==