9th Jul 2009, 14:51
20:16 what full size truck do you own, as I am wondering?
First it's Honda, that does not even make a full size at all, and it's on a car based frame, then a Lexus who has no truck at all, and then Tundra who yet again has a limited lineup that does not even fulfill many of the tow and carrying requirements in our household. I guess that's why there so many more Ford F Series sold as well as GM Silverados and Dodge Rams.
I like to compare to what your first hand experience has been with full sizes, if any? I own a new Silverado; better room, ride, comfort, carrying capacity, better towing capability and far better warranty. I doubt Honda? Only the Ridgeline would pull our boat even up the ramp. I'll take the far more superior full size domestics. Sales figures relate it as well in comparison to the meager import full size truck sales. Again, what do you drive?
10th Jul 2009, 21:48
Well, actually we didn't convince OURSELVES... HONDA did. Our last Honda (a '90 Civic) was sold to a junk dealer at 99,000 miles. Before that it had more problems than any TEN domestics we ever owned. Our family's Buick LeSabre was sold last year with over 277,000 miles with never a single repair. As far as I'm concerned (and from personal, hands-on experience) I feel justified in saying that (at least in our case) Honda DOES build crap while GM DOES build the best. I'm not fond of replacing transmissions at 40,000 mile intervals and junking cars at less than 100,000 miles. That's why we drive Ford and GM.
11th Jul 2009, 12:58
"1013. Any thoughts on full size trucks; the topic of the review."
I think we won't see many relevant comments on full-sized trucks. It has been long ago established on this site and others, using accurate and oft-cited data, that the Tundra simply can't stack up to the full size Chevy, Ford or Dodge full-sized trucks, hence imports fans have veered off into other areas (which they can't back up either).
Our companies use full-sized Ford, GM and Dodge vans and trucks for heavy hauling, and Rangers for light-duty hauling and commuting to job sites. You WON'T find a Tundra in our fleets because they are simply not truck enough to do the job and we can't afford the repair costs and downtime. It's as simple as that.
12th Jul 2009, 10:25
I was wondering why the topics went way off the exact vehicle being reviewed. I like discussing my full size excellent Silverado vs Tundra. I tested both and like GM, which is a nicer drive and better warranty as well.
13th Jul 2009, 16:56
Somehow I'm having a very difficult time believing these stories about these myriads of people who own Hondas that have miraculously crapped out on them at 50,000 miles. Out of all the people I know or have worked with who have owned them, I have not known a single person who had any serious problem with theirs. I know of one person who owned a 1999 Odyssey that had a faulty transmission - which was replaced free of charge by the dealer.
Otherwise I drive on one of the busiest freeways in the world in California every single day. There are literally thousands and thousands of 20-25 year old Hondas and Toyotas on the road, some with 300,00, 400,000 miles. What's more is that these cars still actually look pretty good given their age. On the other hand if you happen to see a 2000 Dodge Neon, or a Cadillac Catera (The Caddy that zigs), it's more than likely to be falling apart: trim peeling off the sides, shocks that are worn out, shot exhaust systems, loud squeaking from under the hoods. In other words they're worn-out well before their time.
I had a friend from Romania who wanted a super-cheap car to drive while he drove to the city for work. He bought a 98 Buick Century. It only had 40,000 miles yet the car was completely falling apart. It was just a big piece of crap. The interior was just plain awful in the thing. Everything under the hood was cheap and covered in thin plastic.
Yet on the other hand my Mom has a 2007 Honda CR-V. The fit and finish inside and out is impeccable. Probably more of what you would find on an upper end BMW or Mercedes. The engine even looks nice and uses high quality hardware. She's already put over 100,000 miles on it and the car has needed zero, and I mean zero work whatsoever.
In response to: "Fusion is rated two full levels HIGHER in predicted reliability than Camry and one full level higher than Accord." Well... there's a BIG word that stands out there, and that would be PREDICTED reliability. Fine. In that case I will predict that the new Mahindra pickup trucks that will soon arrive from India will have a higher predicted reliability than the Camry too. Why? Because that's my prediction. See? It's easy to predict what something could do versus what it ACTUALLY can do. I think I'll stick with known data versus a guess.
Yes - for probably 20 years we've been hearing over and over and over about how much the big 3 has improved, at just how much the quality gap has closed, or that they are now " Just as good" or even " better" than the evil Camry. Yet the reality winds up being the same: Junk that fails prematurely, skimpy, cheap interiors, sloppy drivetrains, and poor dealer service with warranties that often do not get honored.
So you can keep right on saying how BAD those Hondas are. But I'm afraid truth speaks louder than words and you're going to have a hard case trying to sell the story because again - I know not a single person who has had a "crappy" Honda.
9th Jul 2009, 12:46
Obviously someone hasn't been doing their research.
Ford currently has the EXACT same percentage of "recommended buys" as Toyota (75%). The Fusion is rated two full levels HIGHER in predicted reliability than Camry and one full level higher than Accord. In J.D. Powers LONG TERM (NOT initial quality) reliability studies, Lexus was beat out by Buick and Ford. Toyota is way down the list. The Ford Escape hybrid is ranked tied with the Honda CRV and the Toyota RAV4 in several quality surveys on the Internet. USA Today rates the awesome Ford Fusion hybrid as the best hybrid on the planet. The Ford F-150 continues to be the best selling truck in the world for the 30th year in a row. The world-class Cadillac CTS is the fastest sedan in the World. The Corvette was just ranked higher than the Ferrari in overall performance and drivability. Its sales have increased by 300% in Europe since 2004. The sales of the 2008 Chevy Malibu went UP a whopping 51% while all other cars' sales (including Toyota's) were in a nosedive.
These are facts, not baseless rants. At the present time Ford is outselling Toyota by a hefty margin (nearly 2 to 1) due to the hot-selling Fusion, Focus and the ever-popular F-150.
Why someone can be so violently opposed to helping the U.S. economy by putting down any and all domestic vehicles is beyond me. Buying a Japanese or German vehicle hurts 91% of those in the U.S. who work in auto-related jobs (which are estimated to make up 1 in 10 of ALL jobs in the U.S.). Even if Japanese vehicles WERE better (and the facts DON'T support that assumption) there is no way as a U.S. citizen I could justify sending money to Japan when our own people are losing their homes and quality of life.