When I worked in the auto industry there was only a few thousand dollars per car in actual labor costs. There is no way you can build a cadillac for $18K that sells for $60K. The automotive industry is a huge cash cow. When times are good they are flush with money, when times are bad they bleed money. I remember a few years ago Ford had so much cash that they paid a $25 per share stock dividend. Now they are teetering on the edge of bankruptcy.