I just read another editorial about how bad US made vehicles are from some editorial weenie that likely drives a Yugo.
Why is the press so down on the US Auto Industry?
I have 3 excellent GM vehicles, a 02 Yukon, 07 Trail Blazer SS & a 07 C6. They have all been excellent vehicles and have provided excellent service, and are exactly what I wanted.
This latest article talks about how the US vehicles are not popular with buyers. Not so, the last few years has been an exciting time to be buying US vehicles. Retro Mustangs, Dodge Chargers, ZR 1 Corvettes, Retro Camaros, Hemi Jeeps ect are really exiciting vehicles to see rolling off Detroits production lines. Not to mention the great selection of SUV's and pickups that are what this country wanted a few months ago.
No one predicted the oil prices that upset the market. You can't respond to changes in demand overnight. And if you bought gas recently, you might want to hang on to your SUV awhile. Remember it's the one that pulls your 4500 pound boat and hauls the soccer team and grocerys around town.
I love my Corvette, and it is absolutely the best sports car value that has ever been manufactured by anyone.
I resent the Senators even suggesting the President of GM should be fired for making poor vehicles that no one wants.
Venting.
LJ

 

Imagine what they'll say if they only make them in white!

 

Amazing the amount of short sighted pin heads in this country. Keep in mind the news media and government have recession proof jobs.. They could care less about us. Plus, it really gets me some dopey senator demands the head of a major company step down when they're the same ones who screwed up all the banks & mortgage companies in the first place!! I'd like to see those schmucks step down. I know if I were sitting there listening to those SOB's I'd be awlful tempted to tell them to kiss my a$$ !

 

Now, THAT'S funny!

 

I have owned 2 American autos in my life. The first was a 1984 model and other is my '05 C6. Both have been, from a quality perspective, vastly inferior to the imports I owned both currently and in between. Does this mean I don't like the Corvette? Certainly not. Does this mean that I don't find the Corvette a good value. No it doesn't. Does this mean that all domestic models are inferior. I don't think so. It means that in my personal experience domestic autos continue to be less reliable and for no good reason given we have just as smart and talented people here.

 

Because most members of the corrupt and in-the-tank-for-the-Democrats Lamestream media are ignorant, agenda driven Libs.

It's no more complicated than that

 

US quality continues to improve. Note the bolded words - that's the reality. GM and most other manufacturers produced crap in the 80's and early 90's - at the same time foreign manufacturers made huge inroads in the US market that swayed many over to the foreign side. I have purchased many domestic trucks - mostly because I have a boat to tow and most foreign trucks (until recently) really couldn't handle it comfortably for a 500 mile tow. Believe it or not, the Corvette is the first domestic car I have ever purchased in my life (purchased my first new vehicle in 1983). I've had VW, BMW, Audi, Lexus in that time. We are planning to replace my wife's Audi next summer. Will we consider a CTS? Maybe - but the new Audi A4 is very nice. GM dug a big hole in the 80's and 90's with customers and is still recovering from that. My first priority is to buy VALUE.

 

Now, this is an obvious response to my earlier posting about 2010 Color Production. It was a fun post. This one is not funny.
LJ

 

I'm sure that would be very telling and troubling....

I'd love to get a list of the autos owned by ALL our elected and media types.

I'm sure that would be very telling and troubling....

BTW believe it or not we own a 2001 PT Cruiser (bought in Jan 01) that has been the most trouble free car I have ever owned. Only TWO recalls and warranty claims. And aside from routine maintenance NOTHING else has failed. And it's tight and rattle free.

Go figure

 

yup the media dont like american cars,they love toyota but never talk of all their recalls they have had in recent years.

 

I think that all of the big three have hurt themselves in the past:
Anyone remember these?:

Mustang II
Pinto
Vega
Citation
Any "X" car variant
Exploding pickup truck gas tanks
Early GM diesels
THE AZTEK!!!!
The plastic-bodied minivans
The whale-boat Impala (other than the SS!)
The Cimarron (yeah, let's dress up a cheap chevy with wood on the dash, call it a Cadillac and try to sell it for twice as much!!)

There are so many cars like this that came out of Detroit in the past. I agree that their quality has improved immensely, but then again it HAD to. I'll bet dollars to donuts that anyone who bought one of the above cars is now driving a Toyota or Honda..........Detroit simply had the attitude for years that we would buy anything and everything that they produced, and even now, the above list continues to hurt them in market share........

 

I'm not defending Detroit for some of its bonehead moves in the past but the exploding truck gas tank is a myth and was never true.

In fact, NBC rigged the fuel tank to be remotely ignited for their Dateline show...

 

My Toyota Sienna rattles constantly. I hate it.

 

I completely agree with your comment about the Corvette. It is a shining example of what US engineers/designers/manufacturers are capable of. There is also a lot of evidence to support the fact that American made cars now rival many foreign vehicles in terms of safety and reliability.

(A big) part of the problem is the PERCEPTION that American cars are unreliable ... something that was probably true 15 or 20 years ago. Great strides have been made since then, though I have to say the fit and finish in most of the Big Three's cars is still lagging far behind (compare my 18,000 dollar Toyota-made Scion to a Ford twice the cost and you'll see what I mean). But fit and finish is not reliability. GM and Ford are making some very reliable vehicles these days.

As for the comment about no one anticipating the oil prices we saw in 2006, '07, and '08, I disagree. Many people were predicting such prices and I believe the American public was slow to demand more fuel efficient cars, and the manufacturers didn't bother to develop them. Still, you can put as much blame on the public buying the SUVs as you can the manufacturers. Supply and demand, after all.

And the current welcome relief at the pumps is part of the worldwide economic crash we are experiencing. Oil prices will not stay at these levels any more than the economy will forever be in the dumps.

IMO, the big three are behind the curve not in reliability, but in philosophy. Much in the same way a good percentage of Americans are still behind the curve philosophically. I know single women with no children who are 5' 2" and drive Expeditions. That is really just silly. Our obsession with too-large vehicles that get 11 MPG is shameful and is also NOT NECESSARY. The Corvette is a perfect example of what engineering can achieve if it is pushed and challenged: 436 horsepower and 30 MPG highway. Amazing.

 

Plus the people that own Toyota's will ever tell you they have any work done on them, they are perfect after all just ask PeterK

 

How about a link to the editorial. Love to read it.

 

I must comment that you are missing a part of this issue with your comment. In my experience (maybe outside of the old Audi 5000 / unintended acceleration fiasco) most foreign manufacturers are more WILLING to admit and declare they have a problem (and therefore issue a recall) than American manufacturers. Often the American manufacturer has to be taken to task by the US NHTSA and a recall / campaign is forced. As an example - consider the Lexus LS400. This was a paradigm changing vehicle when it was first marketed - it defined "bang for the buck" in the luxury segment and brought huge problems to BMW, Audi, and Mercedes. EVERY initial LS400 was recalled secondary to some potential engine fire issues - Toyota / Lexus was straight up about this. Did it hurt Toyota / Lexus at all - history has proven the answer to be NO.

 

I have had over 120 vehicles since 1962. American, Japanese, Korean and German. None of the American cars were any less than the imports and in many ways better.

What overseas company has made a better V8 than the small block Chevy? America was the leader through the 80's in engine controls. The best styled cars have been American. The cost of maintaining a car is by far lowest on the American cars.

Who is the only car maker that lost a class action suit for horrible rust through probems? Honda! Whose 3 liter motors failed after 50 to 60K from sludge. Toyota. What company had to recall more vehicles than it made in 2007? Toyota. What model over the years was the most recalled. Corolla.

It is a myth that imported cars are better. The import buyer that has problems has been found not to report on the satisfaction surveys because they excuse the vehicle as not typical.

Go to an import dealer and price a part. Then price the same part for an American car. Huge difference. I went to get a trailer hitch for my wife's 08 Hylander and they wanted $450. The Draw Tite price was $140.

I'm done with imports.

 

Typical response from someone who either doesn't know any better or just wants to perpetuate the myth.

The only ignorant ones here are the ones who blame liberals for everything. Take it to PR&C.

 

Question asked and question answered as this poster sees it.

My apologies if that offends your sensibilities.