http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/...-reports_x.htm

Partially related to future vehicles and this is where I lurk mostly so I figured posting this here would be best.

Anyone see this in USA Today? Its no joke, the Big 3 are getting much better at quality. Whats surprising is the Monte Carlo! FIVE problems per 100 cars! Not too shabby.....

 

Heard that on the news the other night. The best part is the improvement of American cars since 1980. Wow! And I imagine much of that improvement has been in recent years.

 

I think it's been swinging this way a lot longer than we might think.

I believe some "import" owners decide to "live with" problems in their cars as opposed to griping about them, because they think imports were infoulable, whereas the domestic owners come right out and gripe about things more fluently. This has been going on for several years now IMO.

So the bigger question now is...

What excuses will people come up with to stay loyal to their rice burners? Economy? Colors? Tire sizes?

 

you are 100% right on the money!! people have perceived quality and actual..why you think the resale value of some american cars are less then their import caunterparts when they were the same $$ when new and the american car depreciates 20% more??

 

I guess the other things I am seeing that really make me hopeful for the domestics are the new styling trends and the new ad campaigns.

The styling trends are great these days IMO. We are seeing passion in our cars again... from the Mustang's link to it's heritage to the agressive looks of the Silverado, Ram, and F-150 trucks, and across the small-car segments like the Malibu-Maxx, SVT Focus, and SRT Neons - all these cars have a very distinct look to them and they are different, which helps set them apart from the appliance-like bodies of a Camry, Accord, Civic, or Avalon.

Now when we get into the cars like the Vette, Viper, and GT - well that's a whole 'nother story!

Lastly - the ads... what can we say. It was maybe 1-2 years ago I posted on this board about how lame US carmakers ads were. We would see Camrys doing a 4-foot-high car jump through a downtown LA intersection, while the Vette was doing 3mph in a parade?! The Altima and Maxima ads have the cars doing powerslides and e-brake spins on asphalt, while the Focus commercial have a guy and a girl doing a Chinese firedrill on the side of the highway?!?! Which do you think captivates the minds of the 12-16 year-olds?

Well, with the new generation of ads from our homeland - we are kicking ****!
GM - The awesome car-hauler ad with the SSR, C6, and others
Dodge - the latest ad with the SRT-10 blowing off doors
Ford - the GT on a road course "In what gear..."

NOW we're getting somewhere!

I realize that we need to convey the safety features of the new crossover vehicles, and we need to keep the granparents (read that as "aging poulation") happy with smooth rides and the like - and that TV spots are necessary to do this too. In that light, I do not want to see all US car ads with powerslides and smoking tires, but if the shoe fits... wear it! Mustang ads, GTO ads, CompG ads, SRT ads, Cobra ads (GOD I hope there will be some!) and the like should demonstrate the cars capability and underscore the passion that the car holds. After all, isn't that what the buyer is seeking in these cars most of the time - a passion for driving and the desire to exhude "sportiness" and vigor? Let's help them get that feeling starting with first impressions right from the good 'ol TV. Stir the passion in that 12-16 y/o, and they will come when they reach buying age - I sure did!

 

Of course, you know that some a-hole will come by soon and say,

"You know, I've really lost respect for JD Power, based on my vast experience (driving three cars all older than 1995 in the last year, hearing my friends bitch about their 1985 Oldsmobiles, and looking at numerous doorgaps in mall parking lots), they're way off base. No way American cars can be better! American manufacturers have their heads in their butts! Excuse me while I go self-flagellate and hand out $20 bills on Tokyo streetcorners . . ."

 

I agree Proud. All US automaker commercials stunk 5 years ago but now they're awesome! Not only in just action shots of the great cars but now even humor.

Did anyone see the new Colorado commercial? Its actually pretty funny, five dudes sitting in a Colorado and Shania Twain's "Best thing about being a woman" song comes on and the guy in the middle is singing it word for word enjoying it while the others give awkward glances and slowly edge away from him.

 

For teenage drivers, Consumer Reports picked the Subaru Forester and the four-cylinder engine Honda Accord because they don't have powerful motors, and they handle well in emergencies to avoid a crash

In a related story...

Consumer reports also recommends that teenage boys play with Barbie dolls because they're less likely to cause physical harm than sports such as football and baseball.

 

Hehe... notice my sig update?

 

We all know you're a FOMOCO enthusiast, so it's obvious that you like the Malibu Maxx because of its resemblance to a 1981 Ford Escort.

 

Guess what, the Lexus LS430 still has the best reliability of any luxury car. That's exactly what I'd expect from a Toyota.

 

My '89 Caprice hasn't given me any problems

 

True, Toyota has been building their quality up for the last 20 or so years. But the funny part is that new Chevy owners can say their car is more reliable than a BMW or Mercedes, cars that cost at least 20,000 more. Also the quality gap between domestic cars and *** cars is now smaller than ever (*** 12 per 100 and domestic 17 per 100 i believe), and probably gonna be getting smaller. I agree with what Proud said earlier, people are gonna have to be finding other excuses here shortly instead of the classic, "well American cars break down too much"

 

It's 18 per 100 for domestic.. your *** figure is correct though.

Beyond that, you are referring to initial defects... and the domestic market is doing much better there. But honestly, I'm more of the type that likes to know that I can put 100k miles on a car and it'll still be holding up like a brand new car.

But honest to god, once I see a proven long term track record from domestic manufacturers for long-term durability and reliability.. I won't have any excuses and I'll be the first in line to buy an American car (well... once my japanese car wears out, that is)

 

They're there, so are broken down japanese cars with 100,000 or so miles on them...My uncle just bought a CLEAN Honda Accord at auction with 130K miles, drove it "2" weeks, and the tranny took a qrap!...It's all subjective to how they are maintained...I have 180K on my Suburban and 173K on my IROC, both fully function and are clean and run and drive like new...and as you can tell by the miles I love to drive them.. ..spiritedly!..if that's a word..