16th Jun 2009, 01:40
I'm sorry you feel that we are no longer a patriotic nation. You clearly have a strange idea of patriotism. Just because I choose to buy or not to buy a certain brand of vehicle does not determine whether or not I am patriotic. Also, I must point out a few errors on your part.
My Nissan that was purchased brand new in March 1987 was t-boned in a collision in January 2008, after just under 21 years of service. So no, it was not junked years ago for your information. The car WOULD still be running as I didn't have ANY major issues with it. The car was still used on a daily basis, often being driven 120 miles or more on the highway in a single day. Even after being totaled by the insurance company, I seriously considered buying back and repairing the car. My mother convinced me it was finally time for something newer and safer as I had gotten more than my money's worth out of it. Had I known how long it would last me, I would've bought 2 of them in 1987! It was of far better quality than any domestic vehicle I have had. Even after 20 years there was no fading, cracking or trim pieces falling off the instrument or door panels. In fact, just before it was wrecked (December 2007), I replaced light bulbs that were original.
I think Ford/Mercury is garbage and the Honda will still be on the road years after the Mercury or the Ford have been retired. So call it what you want, even a top-of-the line Honda is far cheaper than a Mercury, gets better gas mileage, has better long-term ownership costs, etc. Having to ever own a Ford product I believe will literally bring me to tears.
16th Jun 2009, 07:18
"He went on to inform me that he had traded his wife's Japanese import for a Cadillac and was trading his for a Ford Fusion"
See, this is where I am a bit confused.
The last time I checked, Ford Fusions were built in Mexico.
My question is - which is better for our economy: Buying a Ford product built in Mexico, or buying Toyota product built here in the United States?
I think my personal choice would be an AWD Fusion, but the Camry is built here in the states... hmmmm???
16th Jun 2009, 11:42
"My question is - which is better for our economy: Buying a Ford product built in Mexico, or buying Toyota product built here in the United States?"
Assuming this is a serious question, here is what I think is the answer. (I am not an economist however)
Buying the Ford Fusion is better for the US economy. The profit Ford makes on the Mexican built Fusion makes up for the models built in the US that Ford loses money on because of UAW contracts. That keeps some UAW workers employed and off of the unemployment roles and saves us taxpayers some money.
Toyota has large cash reserves and a policy of not laying people off. So when the Toyota factories go idle in the US, money that is currently sitting in Japanese banks comes back to the US to pay people who are not working.
16th Jun 2009, 11:56
People are, of course, confused by ad hype and false impressions put out by Japanese car dealers, as evidenced by comments such as 01:40 and 07:18.
Confusing the number of jobs actually held by U.S. auto-related industries is a favorite tactic of Japanese companies. The U.S. auto industry employs 91% of all auto-related workers in the U.S. The Japanese auto industry employs only 9%. It doesn't matter if Ford builds Fusions in the Antarctic or Honda builds Accord in Mayberry USA. Those are the figures: 91% versus 9%. If you buy a car manufactured by a Japanese company, you are choosing to benefit 9% of U.S. citizens while HURTING 91%. That is simple math.
A few (VERY few) people based on overall industry employment actually benefit from Japanese companies building cars in the U.S. It makes for great hype, but does little to help our citizens. 9 out of 100 is not NEARLY as important as 91 out of 100.
As for reliability, Ford outranks Honda (and every other Japanese brand). The Fusion is ranked one full level above Accord in reliability and TWO full levels above Camry. The Fusion Hybrid is hailed as the best hybrid on the planet (USA Today). When even Japanese-biased publications hail Ford as better than Japanese brands, there HAS to be a good reason. As for Nissan, it has never been regarded as an extremely reliable vehicle in the past or present. The Titan and Armada are some of the most unreliable vehicles ever built, and the Armada has the dubious distinction of being the SUV with the worst resale value. The best is GM, with the excellent Suburban.
I get a bit tired of this "Honda builds cars in the U.S." argument that seems to somehow excuse hurting 91% of our auto-related employees while helping only 9%. I'll continue to keep responding with the facts as long as I need to to get this seemingly simple point across. If people would occasionally base their ideas on something besides Japanese car ad brochures it might help.
16th Jun 2009, 12:00
Well, you can think (or pretend) what you like. But until your car surpasses the 175,000 trouble-free miles on the Mercury, you really have no factual basis on which to offer any opinion. Oh, you can quote all the magazines and surveys that you like, but that means nothing.
16th Jun 2009, 15:45
Nobody in normal circumstances would cling rigidly to a bland, 20-year-old Nissan to the point that they would try to buy it back after it had been t-boned and totaled.
17th Jun 2009, 09:49
I'm going with a friend today to pick up his new 2009 Ford Escape (highest rated small SUV in the world). He will be trading his Honda CRV. After the financial disaster in our country, he is wisely switching to something that will benefit a great majority of U.S. workers (as pointed out very clearly in comment 11:56 above). I've been encouraging every car owner I know to follow this example. Many are doing it. The Honda is a good car, but the Ford is as good (better in some cases) and benefits far more American citizens. It's heart warming to see the used car lot at our local Ford dealers packed with Japanese trade-ins and watching the hoards of customers driving off in their new Fusions, Escapes and Mustangs.
14th Jun 2009, 22:38
"You should really hear how this sounds. I'm sorry, but I buy based on performance, durability and long-term quality and dependability, and traditionally, my family has had more success in these areas with imports than we have had with domestics."
You should see how it sounds being told "Sorry, you don't have a job anymore because your fellow Americans decided to turn their backs on America and help destroy our economy".
As for reliability, our Honda was a DISASTER. It didn't even LAST 100,000 miles and began falling apart at 45,000. So did our other two imports. Not one of our domestics EVER had a problem (even minor ones) before 100,000 miles.
We used to be a patriotic nation. I lament the loss of that virtue.