A $13.4 billion loan package for General Motors and Chrysler will exhaust the last of the $350 billion Congress granted the Treasury for bailout measures. The measure comes even though polls show most peole don't believe the auto industry deserves saving.

Can you blame us? The relentless rain of billion-dollar headlines, writedowns and recovery plans, toxic assets and bankrupted investors, has worn out our financial sympathies. Already, the sight of Detroit's chiefs flying in their private jets to beg Congress for money stoked popular outrage. How many more bailouts can we take?

And yet we have a month to go before anything can really happen, with Dubya a lame duck and President Change still president-elect. A blog-accelerated news cycle will make that seem like an eternity. By the time Barack Obama takes the oath of office, we may be tired of staging rescues.

That is a real danger for the heirs of Maynard Keynes, who are planning to inject hundreds of billions of dollars of taxpayer money into the American economy. We desperately need to fix roads and bridges — remember the collapse of I-35W? — and the repair work alone could keep hundreds of thousands of people employed.

But one man's stimulus package is another man's bailout. The more plans dribble out, the more cynical we become that any of them will do any good. We need a bigger fix — and a better metaphor. A bailout, by definition is a temporary measure; water keeps flooding in. At some point, you have to patch the leaks. Or abandon ship.

(Photo via Old Picture of the Day)

Slapping an infomercial on YouTube will generate far worse publicity than talking to friendly Detroit-based hacks on the automotive beat, who are every bit as dependent on the U.S. car industry for their paycheck as assembly-line workers are. The 81,724 YouTube viewers who have watched the clip are as vicious as ever, rating it two stars out of five (a mercy rating, surely), calling for GM's collapse, and decrying the notion of a government bailout. The only upside for Detroit's messagemakers: The instant YouTube reaction allows them to take their PR campaign back to the shop all the sooner.

Johnson argues that the company needed the site to speak to young users. Well, sure: The site may well generate a lot of talk, and let young, spoiled millennials feel like a big, bad car company cares about them. But will keeping youngsters glued to their computers, complaining about their latest slight, move cars off dealers' lots? Affordable, energy-efficient cars that don't suck would speak far louder. We suggest a new slogan for the venerable car brand: "Keep America trolling."

Can you spot the one that doesn't belong?

If congressional leaders agree to GM's recommendation, the Volt could have a "real" price to consumers closer to the originally reported $30,000. However, since GM is suggesting basing the tax credit not just on battery size, but also on the potential quantity of petroleum avoided, lawmakers could conceivably balk at the tax implications as more alternative fuel vehicles enter the market. In the meantime, we're going to stuff 30 batteries into the back of the Jalopnik Caprice and wait for our $21,000 check from the gubment, secure in the knowledge we're still creating the usual level of smug.

The choice of whether or not to allow the Prius to be assembled in the United States (most of the parts will likely be built in China/Japan) or the choice of production facilities is probably more Toyota's than GM's. More importantly, according to one Toyota spokesperson, they are actually contemplating the decision:

"Nothing has been decided on production of Prius at the joint venture New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., even though Toyota is always seeking ways to build the most appropriate production system."

Installing the hybrid powertrain meant giving the Tahoe a distinctive look. Since the system adds on around 400 pounds of curb weight, GM engineers set about removing mass from other places. Aluminum replaces steel at the rear lift-gate, hood and bumper. An all-new stamping of the hood ties into modified front-end features to increase aerodynamic slip. Even the running boards have been redesigned to help the Tahoe slide thorough the air with less effort. Further mass was extracted from the seats, wheels and tires.

Starting the Tahoe was standard turning-the-key type business. As in Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive system, the screen normally occupied by the navigation system now features animated graphics displaying what percentage of which mode is powering the vehicle. There's also a simpler economy gauge with a needle left of the speedometer to prevent driving mishaps while gazing at the fancy display.

Also as in full hybrid systems like Toyota's and Ford's, a feather foot will keep the Tahoe in full electric mode. A leaden foot brought on the familiar Chevrolet V8 kick, which scooted the monster into motion as expected. Some quick regenerative braking brought the Tahoe to a stop, and full autostop mode silenced the behemoth in standstill Santa Monica, California traffic.

The usual engine-driven accessories have been replaced by all-electric versions, so power steering and AC work while the Tahoe is running in both electric-only and autostop mode. Besides hanging out in California, the Tahoe and GMC cousin Yukon have both been run up to the cold of the Great White North for frigidity tests and down to Death Valley for a scorched-earth exam. As GM staff pointed out, the core hybrid technology behind the two-mode transmission had also been torture tested in the running gear of GM-Allison public transit buses before being incorporated into the larger GM hybrid plan, of which the two-mode Tahoe is just one part. The other part is the Volt plug-in dealy.

Cramming hybrid technology into the existing Tahoe body without having to tear up the base platform or the Arlington, Texas plant where the Tahoe will be built has helped streamline production. GM expects to have the two-mode system installed in showroom Tahoes and Yukons available this this Fall as 2008 models. GM says the system improves city mileage by 40 percent. GM's has yet to reveal highway improvement figures, though had said the composite highway target was 25 percent. Engineers say they're hoping to best that highway figure when the official numbers are released.

Channeling the power according to driver demand is the HOS, or Hybrid Operating System. By joining the HOS and two-mode transmission with existing engines, GM plans to make hybrid technology across the entire model lineup. Theoretically there are no limitations as to which engines can bolt up to the two-mode transmission, from full size trucks to smaller Saturns. A turbodiesel or even flex-fuel engine could married to the transmission, with the HOS sorting it all out. Such modularity could give GM an edge when it comes to hybrid line expansion. Pricing has yet to be announced, but we were assured the Tahoe and Yukon Hybrids would not be the most expensive models on the showroom floor. Still, we're saving our change for the Hoss Cartwright Bonanza Edition Yukon.