Comments on: Why do American cars SUCK?

By: BF

BF — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:57:23 +0000

SO much idiotic babble.I have never seen , read, or heard so much ignorant blabber in one place. I have yet to hear ONE substantiated comment. It’s quite obvious that most of you are quite embarrassed about your recent FOREIGN purchase and I HOPE YOU are the one who is out of work..And when it comes YOUR turn to retire you want WHAT? DO NOT ASK FOR ONE NICKEL FORM ANYONE, it would be quite contradictory on YOUR part ,you think? Maybe Japon will mail your drugs, tax money, and possibly some casjh for ahh I know FOOD !! WHAT IDIOTS !!!! I forgot, HWT STUPID< IGNORANT< IDIOTS..Wait until it's your tuen THEN COME BACK and tell me all about YOUR tiny little world and how YOU made it better by jap crap !!!IDIOTS

By: Gary Grant

Gary Grant — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:23:28 +0000

Well said Al, except for the socialist country nonsense.

By: al

al — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 07:02:55 +0000

I found this article to be rather childish but I expected it from someone who is living in a socialist country and therefor has no understanding or respect for the free market. It has nothing to do with profit structure/accountants. If us companies recognized that bidding for higher quality materials would yield greater revenue than they would do it. accountants??? the whole company is aimed at maximizing profits from the CEO to the designers to the engineers. not just the accountants! You now have to ask yourself a different question: why wouldn’t a company make a change that would lead to greater profits (ie better plastics) The problem therefore is not internal to or endemic of the company. The problem is external. The largest external force: Taxation and income tax structure and labor/unions. GM and Ford have to cut costs with their plastics because they are paying so much more in labor (union contracts, pensions, benefits) and an income tax system which is hostile to free markets and overly complex leading to sky high opportunity costs.

By: rudeboy

rudeboy — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:45:30 +0000

VW has made a far superior car for generations! Issues arise from moronic Americans either too cheap to pay for proper service or American mechanics too dumb to perform said maintenance. As for American cars? Honda and Toyota are as American as apple pie and the big three (GM,Ford,Chrysler) are just like the antiquated American mindset – Big, Dumb, Lazy. Commence hillbilly redneck retaliation.

By: Mechanic

Mechanic — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:34:44 +0000

The old american cars were built very tough and reliable, then they wanted to compete with the small imports back in the late 70’s and that’s where they failed misserablly and kept failing. As they kept failing, they restructured to regain profits and the quality of materials went down hill very fast. By the late 80’s and early 90’s they were cutting corners to save $50 on every car. This meant big profits for them but it also sealed their fate as being inferior cars.

I am a driver, please build me a car that will do everything I need it to do and that will last me at least 25 years. It can be done and I believe Toyota has done it, I drove an old ‘79 Corolla for 600,000 km. But now the new Toyota’s and Hondas are being cheap. You can’t trust anyone to build a reliable car anymore.

Conclusion, American cars suck, Hondas & Toyota’s suck, BMW & Mercedes suck, vw’s suck, your car sucks and my new car sucks too!

By: George TheCar

George TheCar — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 01:03:50 +0000

people are getting better cars, note the declining road fatality rate for the last 4 decades, at prices that, inflation adjusted, are declining as well. Additionally cars are way more efficient and deliver better emission results.

As is the case with so many things, 50 or a 100 years ago, many different solutions were tried to solve design problems. It that time many old designs are discarded and new adopted by experience narrows the design choices to the best performing and most cost efficient.

“They used to build them better” is a myth whose day is done. Other than for collector value, I wouldn’t trade any 1950 car for a 2010 model.

By: George TheCar

George TheCar — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:12:47 +0000

My first car was a VW bug.

It wasn’t particularly comfortable, fuel efficient nor safe. It had the badges and chrome you speak about but I would much preferred to have a car of the capabilities of a Yaris than that bug. It would have been seen as a supercar!

By: David Pysnik

David Pysnik — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 02:03:04 +0000

I submit that almost all new cars suck. I’m going to change the scope from American vs. foreign to new versus old. This equates to comparing the new, Japanese-dominated market to the old American-dominated market of a few decades ago and longer. If you drive an old car, or even go to a junkyard, you’ll see that the American companies once delivered quality. Cars were large and made solidly of strong metals and so were their engines. The exteriors would be adorned with emblems, chrome, vinyl tops, hood ornaments and unique styling. Interiors had switches and handles that were solid and reasonably unbreakable. Interior space was well proportioned and many cars could seat 6 with comfort. If a guard rail was hit, the guard rail was destroyed and a dent left in the the car. Cars rode smootly and softly. Compare this with the new cars of today. Everything is plastic unless it can’t be, inside and out. The bumpers are fiberglass and many are filled with styrofoam with a pathetic, small metal bar inside. Hit a guard rail and the rail is left intact while your car collapes and causes thousands of dollars worth of damage. Interiors barely fit four and do not do so with comfort. Every car looks alike and is plain – no molding, no ornaments, and even the brand names will be painted on or imprinted into the plastic of the bumper instead the company spending 50 cents for a piece of trim. The engines are tiny and overworked. They have annoying timing belts instead of chains and use aluminum parts instead of steel. Everything from turn signal levers to window switches feel like they could easily break and more often do. The suspension is hard and the cars are loud. Proportions are awkward with fat, stubby tail ends and hoods that curve away to use as little material as possible. A new car looks, feels, and is disposable, made as cheaply as possible to maximize profits. Compare a “luxury” Lexus to the Cadillacs and Lincolns of the past and those old beasts will blow away the supposed luxury of anything on the market today. Compare a true sports car of the past, like a Mustang or Firebird, to the “sporty” garbage Honda puts out or to a new Mustang that thinks its got balls with its V6. Compare a neutered crossover with the grocery-getter station wagon that sat 9. The only way new cars are superior is in the natural evolution better technology (for example fuel injection efficiency versus a carbureator) but the past vehicles did the best they could with what they had where it seems practically every new cars actually uses technological advances to cut corners whenever possible. Even though both American and foreign cars suffer from this fever to maximize profits and lower the standard of what a car should be, I blame this trend initially on the foreigners. It was the Japanese who flooded this country with these tiny, plain, plastic cars. Americans, seeing the potential of the low quality Jap-crap for removing the cost and character from their cars, slowly started downgrading the cars to match and the profits were up…for awhile. In the end the Japanese were making crap, but it was more reliable crap than the Americans ended switching to and a new era was born of lame and boring cars like Toyota ruling the road. Kids today will grow up thinking a Focus is cool, an Accord with a V6 is powerful, a Chevy Impala is big, and a Lexus is luxurious. Most will never know what both American and foreign companies aren’t giving them.

By: JackinChicago

JackinChicago — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:24:00 +0000

Jesse, Radman, et al,
What’s with the hysteria? U.S. cars are better and more reliable than they’ve ever been! I own a BMW 525 and have had four other Euro cars in the past. (M3, VW beetle, two Renaults.) All except for the Beetle had their merits. Beemers are great, but man – they do break and they do cost big bucls when they do. Had repairs on all of them similar to repairs on the domestics. Also had over twenty-five U.S. cars. Caddies, Mark VII and Mark VIII, Olds, Dodges, Buicks, Fords, Pontiacs, Corvair, Mustang, Thunderbird Super Coupe. Only real disappointment was a 1982 Chev Cavalier. Right now have a 2002 BMW525, 1998 C5 Corvette, 2006 Caddy SRX, 1986 Chevy pickup I got for 1500 four years ago and put 1200 into – runs great. The reliability difference between Euro and American is close to a push with U.S. being slightly more reliable across the board. Japanese and Korean are a little better, although I’ll admit their reputation is establshed and well deserved, at least for the Japanese. Korean’s first entries sucked, however – remember? Most Fords and newer GM models are very good – check Consumer Reports. Chrysler is lagging a bit, but Fiat owns them now. When Fiat was selling here in the late sixties, early seventies, they were TERRIBLY unreliable, but the FIAT Spider was “Cute.” Same with anything from England, including Rolls, MG, Jags in the early days. Ford saved Jaguar and was largely responsible for their improvement in reliability. Mercedes and VW until recent models have been beautiful cars but very unreliable. Do your homework,, boys. If I’m lyin’ I’m dyin’.

By: Jesse

Jesse — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:22:43 +0000

Yes, American cars do suck. I just bought a certified pre-owned Jeep one year ago, and it is already giving me issues, such as convertible strap, shifter boot, a tailgate that is wearing and rattling, poor design on the tail gate that dented it, and now an inop horn. Screw this. I will only buy jap cars from now on. Had a Toyota PU a few years back that someone gave me, and that old thing ran like there’s no tomorrow. American cars suck, and they deserve to go out of business for as long as they’ve sucked!!! Will never buy American again!!!!!!