No Yankee Cars: The Anti-American Road Show

From the desk of Paul Belien on Mon, 2005-11-28 15:06

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Car dealers importing American cars in Belgium are on the brink of bankruptcy. For the past three months the Belgian government has been refusing to deliver the required safety certificates for the cars. Since 1 September companies importing non-European cars must be able to show European certificates guaranteeing the safety of the cars.

The Belgian authorities are making no problems for Japanese, Korean or other non-American cars, but are refusing to give safety certificates for Dodges, GMCs, Chevrolets, Chryslers, Lincolns and other American car brands. Belgian dealers can import the cars via Germany, where the certificates are delivered without any fuss, but this costs them up to an additional 3,000 euros per car – a surplus which they do not like to inflict on their customers.

There are about twenty car dealers in Belgium selling some 5,000 American cars per year. Since September, however, they have not been able to sell a single American SUV, jeep, pickup truck, or other “big American.” According to Jos Meulemans of Geronimo Automobiles in Blankenberge, one of the largest importers of American cars in Belgium, the American cars are being singled out because their gas consumption or their appearance “do not conform to the European – read: Green – culture.” He says the ministry is pestering the importers of American cars by not answering their requests for information and by claiming that the American safety belts are below standard.

One car dealer, who was interviewed last Friday in Antwerp’s daily newspaper Gazet van Antwerpen, said he is facing bankruptcy as he has not sold a single car in weeks. In the past it took only one week to get an American car cleared, but since September it has become impossible. The dealer wishes to remain anonimous “as he fears more harassment.”

Renaat Landuyt, the Socialist Belgian minister of Mobility, told the paper: “It is a matter of road safety. I will make no concessions.” Landuyt maintained that the fact that his administration is slow “proves that my people take their job seriously. One cannot be too cautious in matters regarding safety.”

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Renaat Landuyt (Belgian minister of Mobility) flanked by Tom Korologos (US ambassador to Belgium, with camera) and General Edward Hanlon jr. (US military representative to NATO) at a Memorial Day ceremony earlier this year.

Unsafe AMERICAN CARS my arse!!??

Submitted by Stomper (not verified) on Fri, 2005-12-02 02:41.

i TELL YOU WHAT....THE next TIME i SEE ONE OF THOSE eUROPEAN HOT MATCH BOX CARS I'M GOING TO DRIVE OVER IT WITH MY HUGE MONSTER TRUCK AND CRUSH IT'S OCCUPANTS INSIDE!! THAT WILL SHOW THIS EURO-WUSS JUST HOW "SAFE" EURO-WEENIE-MOBILES TRULY ARE!!

...OF COURSE I'LL NEED TO BRING A CROW BAR ALONG WITH ME TO PRY THE LITTLE RINKY DINK WUSS MOBILE OUT OF MY TRUCKS TIRE TREADS...BUT THAT'S THE COST OF LIVING FREE AND DRIVING AMERICAN.

amercinan cars = gay

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 2005-12-05 14:12.

amercinan cars = gay cars

america and cars ? like me and ballet ....

Try the 2006 Dodge

Submitted by Brigands on Fri, 2005-12-09 17:24.

Try the 2006 Dodge Charger...We dont have that in Europe except an over-expensive car like a Ferrari or Lambo....

Petty Nonsense

Submitted by GVB (not verified) on Thu, 2005-12-01 02:33.

I can't believe that a government of a first world nation would stoop so low. Suddenly cars from the US or cars of an American marque are all unsafe? This is in comparison to the microcars that are quite common in Europe? Perhaps the United States should ban the importation of the Volvos which are made in Belgium. The worksmanship is poor compared to those of Swedish manufacture, and this leads to unacceptably poor safety. You can still get one imported from Canada where its safety has been OK'd- for a price. ;)

Sure is nice to see that the

Submitted by Eski (not verified) on Wed, 2005-11-30 05:56.

Sure is nice to see that the liberal, socialist, euro-trash is behaving the way we'd expect. These ever tollerant, peace loving backstabbers hate success when they have to think about their own lack thereof. Our economy is in much better shape than anywhere in the EU and our unemployment rates are at rock bottom. Is there any country in the entire continent of Europe that has unemployment rates below double digit numbers? I guess I can understand their jealousy. You know...... the primary reason that General Motors in teetering on financial, shaky ground is because they have been forced to adopt European style labor practices for their employees because of labor union extortion. This is testement to the superiority of the American way of government and traditional business practice. Add some euro - style rules to the game and everything goes to hell. When you get right down to it, the thought of a Belgian driving a good American car fills me with the urge to deficate.

Yeeeeeeee-Hawwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Submitted by Bob Doney on Wed, 2005-11-30 11:56.

This is testement to the superiority of the American way of government and traditional business practice.

So, Eski, you see the American way of government and business as something akin to the Wild West, and everything else is somehow European! It's certainly a new take on history that the Teamsters, the United Auto Workers and your teachers' unions are somehow European inventions, whereas free market capitalism was spawned only in America.

Bob Doney

Bizarre

Submitted by neandertal (not verified) on Tue, 2005-11-29 07:48.

Thanks for posting that Paul. It is hard to believe that a big American car is more dangerous to its occupants than a Citroen or whatever is popular in Belgium. I can understand that they would be concerned that the American cars might roll over the European cars, killing the Peugeot drivers before the drivers in the American cars noticed anything. That must be what they are worried about. Safety first.

Angry

Submitted by Cogito on Mon, 2005-11-28 18:26.

This makes me so angry.
Who will ever save us from this fustigation?

Well, the Americans might...
Since we can count on military actions from the Walloon army when we eventually want to split Belgium, we should make sure they come to stand against a stronger army.
Americans by now should understand how advantageous it would be to split Belgium in order to break the power of the EUSSR, that they might want to help us with the split-up.
Not that there will be any fighting in that case. The American army showing just its face will appease Philips-the-tough in a split second.

Partition of Belgium

Submitted by Jason (not verified) on Mon, 2005-11-28 18:49.

I'm sure France wouldn't mind Belgium splitting up as well. It's been a dream of France to re-annex the French speaking lowlands since Napoleon III.

An given the third-world craphole Wallonia would be without it's sugar-daddy to the north, I'm sure they wouldn't object to a referendum promising a new sugar-daddy to the south.