Do you notice foreign car drivers more? (rental, hybrid, MPG)

[iamweasel]

Originally Posted by MrKrabs

You must live in redneck-ville to be getting funny looks for driving a "foreign" car.

I drive an American car....an Ohio-built Honda Accord with 70% US parts (compared to those "American" GM and Ford cars built in Mexico with barely 40-50% US parts).

An Ohio built Accord has FAR LESS than 70% US parts and a Mexico built Ford has FAR MORE than 70% US parts.

How can that be when stickers on the windows may deem otherwise? Read my prior post in this thread about how modules and sub-assemblies are used to "trick" the numbers and vice-versa.

As I said I work "in the biz" and know who manufactured each part on cars like the Accord and Fusion and where they are made. It shocks people when they learn the truth on how these games are played.

[iamweasel]

Originally Posted by boycew02

Oh get off, if you purchase a car you're going to choose the one you like the best in your price range. Reasons for why you might prefer it to another car may differ from other peoples'. It could be its looks, how it handles, the quality of the interior, the size of it, etc. I fail to see how if someone purchases a foreign auto because they like that particular one the most, it is an insult. Please don't take this the wrong way but if you honestly would buy a car which is of lower quality or that you do not like as much as another, simply because it is American, then I seriously believe that you are one of those people who looks for things to moan about because its petty and ridiculous.

I agree with most of what you say but consider this:

- The Asian countries will absolutely support their brands no matter what - even if the product is inferior. Why don't Americans do the same? The Toyota chairman even admitted that without the loyalty from the Japanese consumers when they were making junk when they first got started they never would have become the company they are today.

- Personally, my anger is not with US Consumers or even the Asian companies who sell here on a 1-sided trade agreement. Our US Government is stupid enough to let countries like Japan sell anything they want here yet US companies can't do the same there.

[Soju]

Originally Posted by 4WDGreg

...
Personally, when I see foreign cars on the road, I don't extend courtesies to them that I do for others, such as moving over when they want to pass, letting them merge into my lane etc. You'll recognize me on the highway, because I'm the one who points towards the other lane when you're tailgating me, waiting for me to pull over so you can pass.

Nahhhh.....I'm the one with the big smile and my middle finger pointing at you as I pass in my pretty 300ZZZ baby. Voom Voommmm.
I don't get "brand loyality." I just try to get the best bang for my buck. As others have pointed out some GM and Ford's are manufactured or use parts from Mexico and Canada yet you think you're buying American? LOL

[mikewu9900]

Originally Posted by iamweasel

I agree with most of what you say but consider this:

- The Asian countries will absolutely support their brands no matter what - even if the product is inferior. Why don't Americans do the same? The Toyota chairman even admitted that without the loyalty from the Japanese consumers when they were making junk when they first got started they never would have become the company they are today.

- Personally, my anger is not with US Consumers or even the Asian companies who sell here on a 1-sided trade agreement. Our US Government is stupid enough to let countries like Japan sell anything they want here yet US companies can't do the same there.

the problem here is i would always buy American made cars, if they stopped messing around and built them right, i mean they been doing it for over 100 years. what is the problem???? the fact that they make there cars JUST barley make the warranty is a reason i bought my old 98 accord with the 36000 mile warranty, i knew id never need it, i bought the reliability of honda. I could crap in a box and warranty it, but that doesnt make it good. its still on the road with 208,000 miles and nothing major ever broke. you buy American cars for the same price or more, and it doesn't last, now thats what i call stupid. bad investments.

my nabors jeep grand Cherokee has 38000 miles and its on the 3rd transmission, she is without the truck as much as she has it and she hates it. stuck in the loan, what can she do??? i bet all the money in the world her next car wont be an American car.

they brought it on themselves!!!!!!!!!!!! and now aren't selling as many cars.

i have two words for you: FORD TAURAUS
oh wait, two more words: DODGE INTREPID

if they built a good product, they'd have a loyle customer base

[CortlandGirl79]

I almost always notice foreign cars. Not that i'm looking for them or anything, but they are kind of a rare sight in my area. I believe the Youngstown-Warren area of Ohio has one of the highest concentrations of GM vehicles in the nation. I tried to find an article to confirm this, but no luck yet.

Around here foreign cars do seem to stick out. Behind GM, i would say Ford and Chrysler are next, then maybe honda. I was thinking about this post as i was driving around today and i did notice a few foreign cars(an audi, mercedes, a couple hondas, and a VW), but not a whole lot.

I think the main reason that people around here drive GM is because our local economy depends on them more than we should. There is a GM plant about 10 minutes away from me in Lordstown, where they make the Cobalt and G5. GM is our area's biggest employer.

Not only that, but my former employer, Delphi Packard Electric used to be a division of GM until 1999 when they were spun off. At one time Packard Electric Division of General Motors employed over 15,000 people in our area. Now after the Delphi bankruptcy they employ maybe 1,000 hourly and 1,000 salary....i'm sure the number is shrinking by the day.

Because Packard Electric and GM Lordstown have been around for so long, most of our population over age 50 collects a retirement check from GM. This also means that a pretty high percentage of us get the GM discount. If you think the Youngstown area is depressed now, i would hate to see what would happen without those pension checks and GM Lordstown, our area would cease to exist, no doubt in my mind.

It's actually quite sad what happened to Packard Electric...........if you recognize the name it's because the Packard Automobile was invented here in Warren. I actually sat in the "jobs bank"(don't get me started) where the first Packard was built, now the legacy that the Packard brothers started over 100 years ago is about to be non-existent in the city of Warren.

The Packard Electric Company made incandescent bulbs and other electrical products. With the building of the Packard Motor Car came the necessity of developing an improved electrical system for the automobile. The production of high quality Packard cable became a dominant part of the Packard brothers' operation.

Packard Electric became a division of General Motors Corporation in 1932 and is known today as Delphi Packard Electric Systems. From those early days as the leader in producing vehicle wiring systems, Delphi Packard Electric has built and maintained global recognition for excellence in this field.

The National Packard Museum - Warren, Ohio

Packard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

BTW, now all of Packard's wiring harnesses are made in China and Mexico. The wire is still produced in Warren, but i'm sure that will end soon.

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by iamweasel

- The Asian countries will absolutely support their brands no matter what - even if the product is inferior. Why don't Americans do the same? .

That statement is asinine. You think we should buy inferior products just beacuse they are "American????" Sorry, I'm not into the redneck jingoistic "buy American" crap.....I'm buying what's going to be best for me and my family. The Japanese make the most reliable cars for the money....that's what I'm buying. To say the Big 3 is American is a bunch of horse crap....they are continually moving out of the country anyways....while the Japanese and even the Koreans are moving production here. But, in the end, even if my Honda was made in Japan, I would take it over a crappy unreliable GM, Ford, or Chrysler anyday. I'm more worried about my bank account than the bank accounts of UAW unions and Guido and Luigi at the union hall.

[iamweasel]

Originally Posted by Soju

Nahhhh.....I'm the one with the big smile and my middle finger pointing at you as I pass in my pretty 300ZZZ baby. Voom Voommmm.
I don't get "brand loyality." I just try to get the best bang for my buck. As others have pointed out some GM and Ford's are manufactured or use parts from Mexico and Canada yet you think you're buying American? LOL

And your 300Z is made where? If you wanted more bang for your buck you would have gotten a Mustang GT instead which is faster from 0-60, costs less, and has better quality ratings.

On the scale of "what is american" it would go in this order:

1) A vehicle made in the US with mostly US parts
2) A vehicle made in another country with mostly US parts
3) A vehicle made in the US with mostly non-US parts
4) A vehicle made in another country with mostly non-US parts

Ford, GM and Chrysler are still operating under #1 and #2 for almost everything they make. Honda/Toyota/Nissan are generally still at #3 and #4.

If you're wondering why #2 is ahead of #3 it is because assembly labor only makes up 10-15% of the cost of a car while material/parts cost is closer to 75%.

[iamweasel]

Originally Posted by mikewu9900

the problem here is i would always buy American made cars, if they stopped messing around and built them right, i mean they been doing it for over 100 years. what is the problem???? the fact that they make there cars JUST barley make the warranty is a reason i bought my old 98 accord with the 36000 mile warranty, i knew id never need it, i bought the reliability of honda. I could crap in a box and warranty it, but that doesnt make it good. its still on the road with 208,000 miles and nothing major ever broke. you buy American cars for the same price or more, and it doesn't last, now thats what i call stupid. bad investments.

my nabors jeep grand Cherokee has 38000 miles and its on the 3rd transmission, she is without the truck as much as she has it and she hates it. stuck in the loan, what can she do??? i bet all the money in the world her next car wont be an American car.

they brought it on themselves!!!!!!!!!!!! and now aren't selling as many cars.

i have two words for you: FORD TAURAUS
oh wait, two more words: DODGE INTREPID

if they built a good product, they'd have a loyle customer base

Wouldn't you agree that it is hard to build a competitive product when your own country lets your competitors get a significant advantage over you?

Think about it people...there are thousands of people that work at Ford, GM, etc. Do you honestly believe they are that dumb and don't know how to build a car? It's not that simple....when your competitor has several billion dollars "extra" because of protectionist practices in their home market that certainly lets them do some things local companies cannot afford to do.

[iamweasel]

Originally Posted by MrKrabs

That statement is asinine. You think we should buy inferior products just beacuse they are "American????" Sorry, I'm not into the redneck jingoistic "buy American" crap.....I'm buying what's going to be best for me and my family. The Japanese make the most reliable cars for the money....that's what I'm buying. To say the Big 3 is American is a bunch of horse crap....they are continually moving out of the country anyways....while the Japanese and even the Koreans are moving production here. But, in the end, even if my Honda was made in Japan, I would take it over a crappy unreliable GM, Ford, or Chrysler anyday. I'm more worried about my bank account than the bank accounts of UAW unions and Guido and Luigi at the union hall.

No, it was a rhetorical question. My point is that some countries would do just that - but Americans won't and there is long-term ramifications because of it.

Do you realize that the domestics are moving offshore because the Asian companies are already there and they are just trying to compete with them? Assembling a vehicle is not a high percentage of the cost of the car. (Especially for non-union companies like Honda, Toyota, etc.) Because of that, they can set up an assembly location in the US to make it seem like they are "american" yet 90% of their parts still come from overseas. They are smart to do it that way - I'm not saying they aren't - but people shouldn't be bashing things they know nothing about.

For every 1 job an import company adds here we lose 4 other jobs from domestic companies. Tell me how that helps us?

I just ticks me off to see people like you bashing domestic companies for moving things overseas, yet you think it's okay to buy from a company who is doing just that.

And as far as making quality cars, etc, do you know that the Ford Fusion beat the Accord/Camry in the latest JD Power and Consumer Reports quality studies? (The Fusion was on the cover of the Consumer Reports mag last year.)

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by iamweasel

And as far as making quality cars, etc, do you know that the Ford Fusion beat the Accord/Camry in the latest JD Power and Consumer Reports quality studies? (The Fusion was on the cover of the Consumer Reports mag last year.)

INITIAL quality...which really is an oxymoron anyways. True quality means that a car will stand the test of time and still be reliable when its older. And sorry, Ford does not have a quality track record. Look at the Taurus....I know so many people who had problems with the Taurus even while the cars were relatively newer. This probably explains why you can buy a late model used Taurus so cheap.

Also, JD Power rankings are for sale to the highest bidder. In other words, they're useless.

Maybe the Fusion will turn out to be a decent car, but really, it hasn't been around long enough to tell how reliable it will be over time. Given Ford's track record, the chances are pretty good that it will turn into a headache like the Taurus.

Although Ford seems to be able to make quality trucks....their trucks last a long time....why this doesn't also apply to their cars is beyond me.