Ok folks, I got this in an email and some of you may have as well. I have done ZERO research on it so who knows. It is scary though. A Modern Parable. A Japanese company ( Toyota ) and an American company (Ford Motors) decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri River . Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race. On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile. The Americans, very discouraged and depressed, decided to investigate the reason for the crushing defeat. A management team made up of senior management was formed to investigate and recommend appropriate action. Their conclusion was the Japanese had 8 people rowing and 1 person steering, while the American team had 7 people steering and 2 people rowing. Feeling a deeper study was in order; American management hired a consulting company and paid them a large amount of money for a second opinion. They advise d, of course, that too many people wer e steering the boat, while not enough people were rowing. Not sure of how to utilize that information, but wanting to prevent another loss to the Japanese, the rowing team's management structure was totally reorganized to 4 steering supervisors, 2 area steering superintendents and 1 assistant superintendent steering manager. They also implemented a new performance system that would give the 2 people rowing the boat greater incentive to work harder. It was called the 'Rowing Team Quality First Program,' with meetings, dinners and free pens for the rowers. There was discussion of getting new paddles, canoes and other equipment, extra vacation days for practices and bonuses. The pension program was trimmed to 'equal the competition' and some of the resultant savings were channeled into morale boosting programs and teamwork posters. The next year the Japanese won by two miles. Humiliated, the American management laid-off one rower, halted development of a new canoe, sold all the paddles, and canceled all capital investments for new equipment. The money saved was distributed to the Senior Executives as bonuses. The next year, try as he might, the lone designated rower was unable to even finish the race (having no paddles,) so he was laid off for unacceptable performance, all canoe equipment was sold and the next year's racing team was out-sourced to India . Sadly, the End. Here's something else to think about: Ford has spent the last thirty years moving all its factories out of the US , claiming they can't make money paying American wages. TOYOTA has spent the last thirty years building more than a dozen plants inside the US . The last quarter's results: TOYOTA makes 4 b illion in profits while Ford racked up 9 billion in losses. Ford folks are still scratching their heads, and collecting bonuses... IF THIS WEREN'T SO TRUE IT MIGHT BE FUNNY
Thankfully parts are available, if I needed them. The problem car is actually the one with less miles, but older, the Pontiac. It started having problems when it was a fairly new car while I was driving it around out west with under 10K miles on it. It is just a POC(piece of cr@p) car.
I just sold a 92' Blazer with 305,000 miles on it. Clembo and I drove it to California. Old but steady she goes, a fresh GM crate motor at 265,000. Just got a new Nissan Exterra ( my wife calls it a girlyman truck ) but I filled it up today for under $40 and get 2 times the milage I got in the Blazer. Too bad it wont tow a boat uphill. I like Walleye fishing in the mountains for relaxation. I have an investment car, Benz 300SL Gullwing ( worth more than my house) , under a tarp in a garage and babied. I am part owner in a Shelby Mustang, and the wife drives a new Chevy Malibu. My Ford family has disowned me, lol. Except for the Shelby.
US car makers have gotten a bad rap. People want to blast them for some of the cars they make but forget little things like the ability to tow, a truck that one can actually use for work or a vehicle that'll hold 8-10 people, just to name a few. Though important, gas mileage has not been (& will not be) the key for a great many car buyers. I have done extensive consulting work with Ford as well as several various new car dealerships and reliability with domestics hasn't been any different than imports over the past 10 yrs or more. In fact, according to JD Power, this year US cars are safer & get higher grades in initial owner satisfaction. Another fact: Did you know that the Toyota Camry is the single most recalled make of car on the road today? Don't you also find it hilarious to hear certain members of Congress blast the CEO's for incompetence?
Some good points David but one seems to be missing. That would be affordability (is that a word?). Having worked on many construction sites believe me I have seen some damn nice GM trucks. I've also seen some damn nice Nissans. I have three vehicles. Two are beaters but run well (kind of) one is a 1995 Grand Caravan the other a 1986 GMC Rally van. Good vehicles with no bells and whistles but good for work. My wife drives a VERY clean 1995 Chevy Astro. 63,000 miles. So we have nothing but US vehicles. NONE are newer than 13 years old. I've never really been that much into cars but here's what it boils down to with me and countless others. Does it get me from A to B with relative comfort? Will it fit what I need it to fit? I have NEVER had a car payment in my life. When I buy a vehicle it's cash. Done deal. I look at what people WILL pay for a vehicle whether US or foreign and it's just silly to me. U.S. is the silliest honestly. Sure it's great to have all the features, safety etc but why pay even more for one made in the U.S.? Most people can't but start making one that they would consider and maybe they could bail themselves out. They've (U.S. auto makers) have had more than enough time to realize this. Produce reasonably priced vehicles and more will buy them. It's a simple formula.
Yeah, the government sure has done a hell of a job of staying profitable. Like the government should be telling others how to mind their ships, when the governments ships are sinking fast.
The price you pay for a US vehicle is not necessarily more than any import, pricing strategies vary (primarily rebates) but when you compare apples to apples there isn't much difference. There is a lot of discussion right now about US cars being more expensive than they need to be due to built in costs (healthcare, retirees, tax,etc) but comapred to imports the price you pay isn't much different. Every car buyer has a different motivation. I'm like you, a car is a car but some want basic transportaion or the best fuel economy while just as many have to have navigation, video systems, etc. This is precisely why there are so many mfg'rs in the world...each appealling to their perceived "market".
I will opin that Americans are just as much to blame for the auto manufacturers downturn as the manufacturers. They wanted big gas guzzling Hummer H1's etc. They also drive around in big honking Chevy Suburbans(Texas Cadillac) etc with no thoughts of being excessive. Nobody forced the automakers to crank out cr*p, frankly it is what the American public wanted. I have stated before here, I owned a F-150 for 13 years, it became very impractical after awhile. It was one very well built machine that I had minimal problems with - I only sold it because it was impractical after having a family etc. No Japanese owned auto manufacturer can yet manufacture a reasonable full sized pick up truck. Yes, I know Toyota and Honda have them now, but they are too high priced, and no better quality. Face it, in trucks, the Big 3 have the lead. But they must take the lead back in automobile manufacturing too. As stated above, I own a small Pontiac. It is a POC as stated above. It has every possibility of being a good car, they have manufactured that model for years now, you would have thought after 10+ years of the same body style, motor, trim etc. that they would have perfected it. But otherwise.
