CAR INDUSTRY Sales of big ticket items, in particular the autos, declined strongly during the current recession and the market share of the domestic auto manufacturers went down over years. The cash-for-clunkers program in 2009 was implemented to help the domestic production of cars. The following questions could be used as guidelines for your research paper:

The cash-for-clunkers program: objectives and results. Did the car companies ripped the benefits of the program?

The competition between the Big 3 and the Asian car manufacturers (Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Hyundai). Is improving fuel efficiency, car design and customer service key to winning more of the domestic market for the Big 3?

Toyota?s recent recalls and its effect on the market share and brand image. Who are the winners and losers as a result of Toyota?s recalls?

Requirements:

1. The essay should emphasize quality rather than quantity, and its structure should contain 3 sections: Introduction, Economic Analysis and Conclusion.

a) The introduction should be just 1-2 paragraphs long. It should set the relevance of the topic and finish with the main question or questions you want to answer in this paper.The introduction must also state your main argument, idea or hypothesis of your paper.

b)The Economic Analysis section should be 2-4 pages long. In this section you should present the empirical evidence and with the help of some microeconomic tools, you should explain rationally what happens in reality. Include terms like demand, supply, variable and fixed costs, marginal or incremental changes, marginal and average costs, price elasticity, income elasticity, maximization, minimization, normal profit, competitive markets, product differentiation, market structure, oligopoly, and other relevant terms.

c) Finally, the conclusion has to be directly related to the introduction. The conclusion should also be just 1- 2 paragraphs long, and it should answer the questions set in the introduction. Be sure there is a strong connection between the introduction and the conclusion. You can also expand on the implications of your answer and predict something about the future.