9th Sep 2011, 09:04
Either a Ford F Series or Silverado are great current choices. I upgraded my wheels and sound systems on the past 2, vs piles of repairs. Upgrades, not wasting on fixing brakes etc.
9th Sep 2011, 11:13
So what. It's a Japanese company. The Tundra was designed in the US by American designers and engineers. That they work for a Japanese company isn't an issue. It's also made out of American-made parts from American-owned companies. So what's the point? I thought the reason anti-import people were all against imports was because they are... imported. If the vehicle is entirely American, save for the name, then there's no argument here.
10th Sep 2011, 11:59
It's not even anti import, it's that for towing and hauling heavy loads, the Ford F Series and Silverado do not compromise. Also many more years experience.
10th Sep 2011, 19:01
Technically, the Tundra is not an import in the literal sense of the word. It is made in the U.S. using U.S. parts. Of course the profits go to a Japanese company and they don't pay U.S. taxes. However, the argument isn't import versus domestic in the case of trucks. The argument is real trucks (GM, Ford and Ram) versus poorly built truck wannabes. No truck authority would ever argue that any truck built by a Japanese company can come close to competing in any way with a Ford, GM or Dodge. One only has to look at the smaller, flimsier structural components on the Japanese trucks to see that it's no contest.
18th Nov 2012, 08:57
Can you contact me about what you have found out about the Tundra brake problem? Lou.
allmyf@comcast.net
19th Nov 2012, 10:36
Your first sentence answered the question. Toyota is a Japanese based company. That's an import. If you are turning a wrench here, it's still an import where most of the profit returns to the parent based company. Try taking the emblem out of the grille and putting an American flag in it. Doesn't matter does it? It's an import. Some factories do final assembly in other countries as it's not a completed product to save on taxes. Follow where the bulk of the profits go and where corporate is. But it seems most do not get this. They see a few working on an assembly line (not massive #s anymore) for a foreign entity who stands to get the lion share of the profits out of a country. Well some working is better than the thousands downsized I guess. The unemployment figures just keep going the wrong direction.
19th Nov 2012, 16:29
Arguing about foreign-based corporations versus American industry is pointless. Import buyers just don't understand economics or the benefits of supporting American industry, and probably never will. However, as has been pointed out it is not about turning our backs on American industry, it is about poorly built light-duty trucks versus real trucks such as Ford, Chevy and Ram. Just looking at the huge difference in the size of virtually every vital frame component, steering system component and brake system component is enough to sell me on the more reliable domestic trucks.
20th Nov 2012, 11:36
I have picked up on what you are saying. It seems if someone sees a local manufacturer plant, they assume it's that way across all of America. I am one of the few left working in my family. In the 80s I drove luxury imports. I feel now maybe I should not have. Seemed everyone was making money then. It was very easy to advance quickly and move about to other companies. Now you hold your breath and pray you will be around! Hope everyone amasses great wealth next year with the mentality on here. Maybe my small efforts might translate into a few saved jobs now. Time will tell.
20th Nov 2012, 16:05
If the only argument is that the profits goes back to the parent company, well so what? The point is? If they do, then what does that company do with the money? Why they build more factories, hire more workers, and develop more products. That's what Toyota did, and they built a lot of plants, design centers, and marketing departments in the US hiring American workers. Is this a problem? If so then explain.
If it's because the money goes back to another country, then what do people in those countries do with that money? They use it to buy things, and in many cases American things. That's how the economy works: People buy things from one another.
Let's put this another way. Assume that a farmer produces lots of vegetables and fruit. But in order to grow that produce he has to buy things like fertilizer, farm equipment, irrigation and so on. He has to buy those things from an outside vendor. In that way the farmer is like one country and the suppliers of the fertilizer, equipment are other countries: They sell to one another, and while money might change hands, the results are beneficial. The global economy has been around since antiquity, and this of course goes with the sale and production of automobiles.
21st Nov 2012, 05:06
That's all well and good, but there's high unemployment in this country. Extreme cost cutting measures and low cost labor overseas. My own company has a tech center that sets up prototypes to be built overseas with lower labor costs and no benefits. They set up product lines, and then downsize here.
I also like the farm analogy. My great grandparents owned a large farm. They were unaffected by both the depression and WWII, as they were totally self sufficient. America had thousands upon thousands once employed here. There was no internet to shop very aggressively. There was profitability, and now companies have to make it up in the service departments. Again, you may see a local plant, but it is only a fraction of the high level of employment that was here a short while ago. I am lucky to still be working. The other half less so.
I do not know where the corporate execs in Japan spend their money with the bulk of the profits returned to Japan. It's your money not mine, so that's your doing.
21st Nov 2012, 10:20
With only 83000 Tundras sold last year, it's not a lot anyway. The primary argument I really see throughout the reviews on here, is quality related, and concerns over the massive recalls of late. I don't know what is happening to see this so frequently lately, but it certainly does not instill consumer confidence. The state of the current economy in America is a big enough concern with the amount of people out of work. Taking into account those 2 factors, we are certainly not rushing out to buy this brand. At one time we did... but our consumer confidence is at all time low on this brand across the board. If the economy starts thriving and the millions of recalls over and over are heavily addressed, maybe we will consider returning again. We didn't start out as a domestic owner; it was vice versa!
6th Sep 2011, 12:53
My Dad has a 2002 Tundra - and yes - he uses it for "real" work. As in hauling construction equipment. So far its lasted over 250,000 miles with no issues. Oh - and by the way, the Tundra is the most "American" truck you can possibly by with the absolute highest percentage of American parts. Over 85%. It was designed, engineered, tested, and now made in the USA with American parts suppliers. If I wanted an American truck I'd buy an American truck - hence why I would buy a Tundra.