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In the US, they have. Others are quick to tell you Renault did it in the rest of the world. It can be debated though.
Anyhow, Chrysler still got beat by Toyota and Honda. The Odyssey and Sienna are way better than Chrysler in every possible way (mechanical, aesthetics, reliability, durability, ergonomics, and style).
Even rebadging it as a VW couldn't save it.
That may be true, but the minivan is still a big seller for Chrysler
I do not want the Japanese car companies to fail, but I'm sick of AMERICAN people putting down AMERICAN companies
That may be true, but the minivan is still a big seller for Chrysler
I do not want the Japanese car companies to fail, but I'm sick of AMERICAN people putting down AMERICAN companies
Yes, it is a big seller for them. I won't disagree with you there.
I also agree with your second statement.
What you should acknowledge, and be thankful for is, that Japanese car companies forced American cars to step up with their designs, quality, and engineering. All American car lovers/supporters can say that. Look at Ford. They have vastly improved. I don't know if I could say the same for GM and Chrysler (that they're on the same level as Ford), but they're building better cars than they did 10-15 years ago.
I wouldn't buy a Ford tomorrow, per se, but I rent cars a lot during my business travels. So when the rental car company clerk at the airport asks me what type of mid size sedan I want. I don't mind a Ford (depending if they carry them).
I always do over any Chrysler or GM product. I got accustomed with their cars when I'm on the road, travelling.
(That's if they're out of Toyotas, Hondas, Hyundais and the like at the rental place. J/K. ..)
I certainly will continue to keep them. And enjoy the comments they get when I am driving them.
Go right ahead. I'm not missing anything, anyway. Now, if you were driving cars like a '70 Chevelle SS 454, a '70 Buck GS 455 Stage 1, or a '69 Dodge Charger R/T 440-Magnum, then I would be jealous!
YEP !!! I agree. The edge is the Mustang is built here and the challenger and camaro isn't. That was stupid on both gm and chryslers part.
I do not see how this can be considered stupid for GM and Chrysler. They are both in financial trouble and the smartest thing they can do is to have their vehicles built outside of this country. The UAW has contributed greatly to the downfall the American automobile business and the best thing all three companies can do is to have as many vehicles as they can built outside of this country.
If you look at the history of the UAW and their best contracts you will find that they have always used the worst financial times of the auto companies to strike; knowing that the companies would have no choice but to give in to the union demands to get their factories up and running. November 11 of 1970 ended a 67 day strike at GM plants. The union went on strike due to the fact that they knew the long anticipated Vega had just come out. GM made a big deal about the Vega and they did not have cars going out to the dealers. This was hurting GM big time so they reluctantly caved in so that they could get the cars back into production. This contract provided a 30% wage hike over three years, the thirty year retirement program and a full pension system. This contract also included having a shop committee, grievance committee, an education committee, a health and safety committee and a recreation committee in each shop. The amount of people used in these positions would be more than 100 in each shop. The working on these committees were all UAW members and were paid by the automobile company. They were not paid the same wages as the average assembly line worker, but rather, they were paid the same top dollar wages as skilled trade workers, such as electricians. Of course, the workers that were UAW members working for Ford or Chrysler would not settle for less than what GM gave.
At the same time the UAW began really strangling the American auto industry, the government decided to add a large number of safety and emission regulations that the American companies did not see coming and were not well prepared for. GM pushed for the government to require catalytic converters since they invented them and held the patent but even they were not prepared for the move from leaded gasoline to unleaded gasoline. They were not sure how to make power with the unleaded fuel since most of their power had always come from big engines with high compression. Unleaded fuel is not a friend of high compression. Add to this the CAFE standards that came out in the seventies and it is easy to see the reason that all of the big three were making cars with eight cylinder engines that rarely even reached the 200 horsepower mark starting with the 1972 models. Add in the oil problems of the seventies and it seems amazing that the American automobile companies did not fall sooner than they did. Why would someone pay top dollar for a 1977 Corvette with 180 horsepower when they can buy a Datsun 280Z with 170 horsepower with a six cylinder and 700 less pounds for $1,000 less?
Perhaps if the first small American vehicles were not such a disaster the foreign companies would not have had their sales rise quite so high in the eighties until present day. The Vega was not a bad looking vehicle but GM made the mistake of making an aluminum block mated to cast iron heads as well as making sleeveless piston cylinders which lacked the solid seals of sleeved cylinders. This made these engines prone to leak a good deal of oil. Chevy dealers often referred to these engines as disposable due to the fact that they had become so accustomed to changing them. The Gremlin and the Pinto also arrived in 1970 and I do not even have to discuss the issues with those cars. Americans did not forget about these disasters once the eighties began. Add to that the dreadful small cars of the eighties put out by the American companies and "disaster" is the only word that comes to mind. The Chevette and the Dodge Colt were not only ugly but had a bad reputation with reliability. Let us not forget the return of the Nova name in the eighties. Ugh.
In any case, I do not feel bad for any UAW worker at all. It is mainly due to the UAW that the American auto companies are having more vehicles built outside of the United States and the UAW strangle hold. The smartest thing the foreign auto makers producing vehicles in this country and their employees have done is to resist the UAW influence. The American auto companies will have problems as long as the UAW controls them. Too bad our president is so close with this union. This fact only ensures that they will continue to demand and get while hurting the companies that pay them. Does nobody see a problem with using reverse seniority for layoffs due to the fact that the union feels that a worker with seniority should be allowed to sit at home and collect 95% of his or her pay while laid off rather than having the "new guy/girl" do this? What other job ensures that you get 95% of your pay for as long as you are laid off?
The only people that I can see supporting the UAW are those that are in the union, have family in that union, some who are in another union hoping that theirs can become as powerful as the UAW, and many involved in our corrupt government, including our president.
I also forgot to mention that within a year of the 1970 strike, GM upped the production at Lordstown plant where the Vega was made from 60 cars each hour to 100 cars each hour. GM reduced their number of quality inspectors at the time (probably so they could use the money to pay all of the committee members for the union mentioned in my last post) and figured it would not make a difference due to the fact that the plant had a highly automated assembly process and was built to be able to produce 140 cars each hour. What they did not count on was angry UAW workers (I guess they felt their contracts were not good enough to make them work harder) that would deliberately leave bolts out, dent and scratch the bodies of the autos, etc. This also did not fare well with the American public looking at the Vega.
I know. Buick has been doing well in China for a while. It's considered Creme de la Creme in China. Glad they let the local Engineers and Designers have more input on these cars.
They actually look nicer than the Roadmaster, Electra, Century and Park Avenues we have to force ourselves to look at on this side of the pond.
They actually look nicer than the Roadmaster, Electra, Century and Park Avenues we have to force ourselves to look at on this side of the pond.
Yes very bland cars indeed. Even worse then the Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera which saw NO MAJOR changes from its inception in 1982 until its end of production in 1996
That is as bad as when Ford redesigned the Crown Vic, Grand Marquis, and Lincoln Town Car for 1998 and then just left it alone
That is something that hurt American auto makers until recently, they often went 7+ years before redesigning a car. Dont believe me? I'll list some cars
3rd gen Ford Mustang, 1979-1993
4th geb Ford Mustang, 1994-2004
3rd gen Chevy Camaro 1982-1992
4th gen Camaro - 1993-2002
Ford Ranger - No major changes since 1995
Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera, 1982-1996
Dodge Caravan/Plymouth Voyager, 1983-1990
3rd gen Chevy Cavalier, 1985-1995
Luckily American auto makers have smartened up and are now resdesigning models every few years or even replacing models after a few years (shows they cant come up with cars people like?)
I cant think of ANY Japanese automakers that made a car that went 7+ before being redesigned, if you do, list it
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