3rd Jan 2011, 16:31
"TOP performers??" Maybe a decade ago. Toyota currently ranks 21st out of 33 car makers in build quality. Ford ranks 5th and GM also ranks way ahead of Toyota.
4th Jan 2011, 11:47
Toyota's Lexus is above ALL domestic competition. They use the same drivetrain components in most of their line. Toyota has fallen purely from the recall fiasco and not from actual poor reliability. See this is a "predicted rating", much like the predicted high ratings of the Fusion. You can go on about J.D. Powers and Consumer Reports all day long (or all year long as in the case for this site!) and it will tell you nothing about the real world experience with any brand of car.
Who cares what J.D. Powers says? Really, go make your purchases based on a ratings company. If I did that, I would still be buying GM junk that has cost me many $thousands over the years just to keep running. Now I drive imports mostly, and I never see a repair shop. In fact in my 27 years of driving I have never taken any import in for any repairs...ever. Only one domestic I have ever had gave me this kind of reliability, but I only had it for around 32K miles, and it was still mint when I traded it in.
4th Jan 2011, 18:42
"I have never taken any import in for any repairs...ever"
Me either. The repairs were going to cost so much we traded them... for domestics.
29th Jul 2011, 07:07
I am back to buying domestic cars and trucks... GM and Ford have great ratings, and the design and style of their vehicles has come a long way. It's about time we start taking care of our own economy, supporting our neighbors, friends, and family who build these vehicles right here in our country. Anyone who reads or listens to the news, and thinks otherwise, better wake up!
10th Aug 2012, 20:21
I agree with you, we need to support our economy, however, you need to know where GM and Ford build their cars. Many many Toyota's are built right here in Canada and the USA.
11th Aug 2012, 16:16
Again, people just don't understand. It doesn't matter WHERE a car is made. If it is built by a foreign-owned company, the profits go out of the U.S. I don't know why this is so hard for people to grasp.
7th Jan 2014, 13:34
A late reply, but "where" the cars are built makes a huge difference. You can support Ford and GM, but if most of their cars are built outside of the USA, then that's where the jobs are, and that's where the support for local economy will be. Even if Ford and GM reaps the profits, all of that goes to the stockholders and not to the American economy, which is still driven by the middle class that need the JOBS stemming from where the cars are built, which provides more than just manufacturing jobs, such as secondary jobs such as office workers, clerks, accountants, computer techs...
23rd Apr 2014, 15:15
If you want to buy the car with the MOST American content, you have only one choice. The Toyota Camry.
20th Apr 2016, 18:34
Most Toyotas found in North America are built in US and Canada, and soon we will add Mexico. The quality of Toyota is mostly good, but the Vibe/Matrix 2.4L engine has a high probability to burn oil. Get the 1.8L; it's a better engine. This 2.4L engine is also found in the Camry, so avoid this engine as well.
The early Toyota Highlanders suffer from slow tranny shift symptoms. Do your homework.
3rd Jan 2011, 13:15
Yeah because Fords are so safe with their fire issues and breaking rear axles huh?
All cars have recalls. Toyota is STILL ranked one of the top performers overall, even with the recalls, and they will be on top soon enough where they used to be and where they belong.
And what was so unsafe about the Highlander you tested? Please elaborate on what you think is so unsafe about a brand new car that scores higher than any domestic SUV in pretty much every safety test.