25th Aug 2009, 15:41

Yes, it is outrageous that "cash for clunkers" turned into a US government funded subsidy for Japanese cars! Worse yet, the government and media seem to want to promulgate the myth that the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic are the top sellers in the program, in contrast to Edmunds who clearly show that the Ford Escape, Ford Focus, and Dodge Caliber were the biggest winners. Why the desire to glorify Japanese cars???

25th Aug 2009, 15:51

I'm not sure what if any point you are making with this post.

Is it Honda's fault that GM, Ford and Chrysler put out sub par products for decades, and then overpaid those 5,000 workers that lived near you and mismanaged their companies to the point of needing billions of dollars of tax payer money in order to survive?

If you want to support that kind of business practice as a patriotic thing in the US good for you. They've already gotten enough tax money out of me for support thanks. Believe me though, it is not going to help your house gain back that 100K you lost and it's not going to blow up that nice little bubble you once lived in.

It is time for the US to wake up and see the light. These large companies have been living on borrowed time for decades and it is about time things got shaken up and we got back to reality. Your house is a good example of how ridiculous things got in this country. It was never worth that extra $100K in the first place! The banks should have failed as well as the auto industry and all other large, greedy business here. Yes it would have been more painful than it has been, but how long did you think this was going to last? We have been living in a dream land for years thinking we were all making so much on investments and real estate... ha. Yeah right... money doesn't come out of thin air and we haven't been a viable producing country for a long time. Even the auto industry you are so quick to support has put out inferior products until very recently... too little too late. Even you must have agreed with that having driven your old Mercedes in the 80's.

It's funny how people jump on the bandwagon when the problems hit home and their little worlds are about to crumble. We are in a catastrophic spending spree right now trying to churn tax money around into these businesses like it is going to help anything. Now the experts are saying we will have double the debt within 10 years at the rate we are going. That should help the economy! Thanks to the big 3 and all the companies like them for that!! Keep thinking that buying a domestic car is going to prevent the inevitable from occurring.... it was a nice dream.

25th Aug 2009, 16:06

Where did you live with this Nissan. Climate would have a lot to do with how well a car lasts. I can't imagine you'd have no problems if you drove it in the snow and salt every winter. And you didn't even need an AC charge in all that time? That would be a record. Good for you on such a lucky car ownership experience.

My Maxima was gone at two years old due to transmission issues and too many recalls, one of which caused the whole front end to fall apart and another that was $425 for a fill tube sensor that was not covered under any warranty. Thankfully I never fixed it but I found out it was recalled for that right after I got rid of it.... nice. The transmission was supposedly an "unadvertised recall" as well but the service manager "never said that" when they refused to fix it for the third time. I traded it at only 47K for about 40% of its value new at only two years old. Great investment there LOL. JUNK.

Nissan and Mitsubishi are off my list as to ever buy again due to poor quality. Nissan is a double whammy as their dealer network is the worst as well.

25th Aug 2009, 17:11

ALL VEHICLES NEED MAINTENANCE. With proper maintenance, a Toyota or Honda will last a very long time. I know this firsthand. My first car was a '72 Honda Civic, my grandfather gave it to me in 1983, when it had 420,000 miles on it. It had the completely original drivetrain and the only really new part on it was the exhaust pipe. I drove it till it had 480,000 miles, and then sold it, while it was still in perfect running condition. As for a Toyota, a very good friend of mine bought a used 1985 Toyota Corolla as his first car in 1987. He bought it when he was 17 years old, he is now 38. HE STILL HAS HIS COROLLA!! The same exact one! He regularly drives from here in Boston, Massachusetts, across the country to San Francisco, California to visit his family twice a year! He has never had anything major repaired on it. It still has the original transmission and engine. He now has over 700,000 miles on it! It's your choice to believe it or not, but this is all true. I'm still very much in touch with him and we talk all the time. It seems pretty obvious to me what great cars Honda's and Toyota's are.

26th Aug 2009, 07:48

My thoughts on any keeping vehicles over 200000 miles in 2009 are that they will chance spending repairs on even a unreliable one to avoid a loan. With uncertain economy and possible job loss downsizing, many risk a high mile car. There are many maxed with bills, mortgages, kids to raise so keep and squeeze car life. A big car loan and not have a job tomorrow is frightening. An old car you can park and or discard and take a bus.

I know someone that keeps pumping repairs into her import well beyond its value. Single parents cannot afford a loan for a new car. Her Honda may make 200000 miles, but it's been costly to make that claim. To her she has so much in it and hopes there will be no more issues. Just because you nursed a car to high mileage does not mean a high import parts and labor does not arise.

26th Aug 2009, 09:23

This comment says a LOT. Of course import owners will rationalize it away as they do EVERY pro-American comment.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2009-07-20-gmtown_N.htm

26th Aug 2009, 13:52

Again, this has much more to do with mismanagement for decades and producing sub-par quality vehicles than it does with people not buying domestic cars today. If we keep supporting this type of business practices, in the US, things will not get better overall, they will continue to get worse and the next recession will truly be even more disastrous than this one has been. Yeah, it is a terrible consequence we are all suffering as my house and job are on the line like many others, but I still refuse to support lame businesses just because it may delay the inevitable and keep the false "American Dream" alive. America has failed miserably and grown at an unrealistic rate on unrealistic money that we have been borrowing for years. Now it is time to get back to reality and start the payback, however hurtful it is going to be. This is about much more than just buying a GM or Toyota.