Oh how right you are! But still I call BS, and it's just so hard to let go. There damn sure is such an animal as an America car company.......a couple or so, actually still exist! But not if the WMD have their way. And Caps94ZODG well put man! I am livid, my uncle just helped his kid get a mazda. He will never live it down, and wait till I see her! P.S. at least it wasn't a dang old french *** nissan.

 

Can you tell me how they arrive at the % on the stickers? TLFI clculates this based on total part sales to each manufactuer then gets the % basaed on total pasrts in the car vs. parts sourced from the USA.

Similar results can be found at the US Commerce Dept., AUtomotive trade policy which tracks these statistics.

BTW, Nissan checks in at a hefty 46% according to the USCD.

 

why thank you

 

I don't know for formula for arriving at the parts content for individual vehicles...interesting that Nissan (I assume on average) is 46% because most of the vehicles (at least the ones manufactured in the US) have parts contnts in the 60% range.

 

but really..this is more than just about parts..

and going after the percentage of parts per vehicle made here, there or anywhere does not prove anything on whats an American car more than another one or justify an import company as more American made parts than the other.

Lets put it this way. I am an American. I was born and raised here. My family is from English, German, Irish, French, Native American, and Italian decent and a few others in the mix, a mutt if you will I guess.

Am I less American cause I have foreign "parts" NO, I like my parents live here work here spend money here and try to live a better life here and help carry on the American way of life.

Same can be said for any domestic car maker. GM is taking the best possible parts it can to make an American car. The parent in this case is GM. They live work and spend money here to try and carry on the American way of life.

And just like a parent or a company yes they have to buy something not made in the U.S.. Might be more avalible, cost less or whatever but does it still make it not an American car? It's parents are still GM right? Then it is an American car. Built here in the U.S.

ohh but toyota and Honda and so one build cars in America using american factories and workers. Sure but I ask again who is the parent and where do they live? Work and spend money to better thier way of life? Its not on these shores.

buy a GM car you help a GM dealer, a GM network, a GM Plant worker, a GM plant, a GM parts supplier (Where?), a GM Company that lives and breathes here in America. For an American economy.


buy a Toyota car you help a toyota dealer, a toyota network, a toyota plant worker (where?), a Toyota plant (where?), a Toyota parts supplier (where?), a Toyota Company that lives and breathes in Japan (where?). For Japans economy.


buy a Ford car you help a Ford dealer, a Ford network, a Ford plant worker, a Ford plant, a Ford parts supplier (where?), a Ford Company that lives and breathes here in America. For an American economy.

buy a Honda car you help a Honda dealer, a Honda network, a Honda plant worker (where?), a Honda plant (where?), a Honda parts supplier (where?), a Honda Company that lives and breathes in Japan (where?). For Japans economy.

I could go one but you get the point by using GM, Toyota, Ford and Honda.
The (where?) are put there to show you where does the money go and where is it being made? its 4-1 for U.S. auto companies to import companies. Where is the money going to to make the part? Where is the plant that made the car? Where is the worker living that works in that plant? Where is that worker spending money from his paycheck thats from the cars we buy? Where does the profit these import car companies make go to help whos economy?

and sure its not that black and white as this there is grey area. I know that.but to lay it out as simple as possible this is the result.

 

I realize there are a lot of people who feel more patriotic if they buy a Chevy or Ford and certainly GM and Ford like to cloak themselves in the flag but feelings are not fact and advertising campaigns do not an “American” company make.

Most people have failed to grasp that in today’s world there are very, very few large companies anywhere that are truly/only “American” or “British” or “German” or “Japanese”…most people look at companies the way they did 50 years ago but the picture isn’t the same any more. Most large companies today are truly multi-national in every respect and hold no true allegiance to any one country; their only allegiance is to themselves and their stockholders and that includes GM. To call GM an “American” company today is wishful thinking; not reality.

You are right, it isn’t a matter of just parts content but does anyone really think that a “Chevy” made in Mexico and sold here is any more “American” than a Nissan made in Mexico and sold here? I submit if anyone really believes that then they are refusing to face reality.

The “profit” argument sounds really good to those who don’t understand profits or how a large company’s finances actually work but it’s a red hearing.

Finally, if you think GM is sourcing parts from offshore because they are “better” you are dreaming…GM is sourcing parts from offshore for the exact same reason everyone else is; they are cheaper.

 

its not advertising. Where is this companies Headquarters?? Detroit? last time I looked that was in the U.S. Cannot be more American than being on U.S. soil.


Again I go back to the where is is based out of?? GM like many of the big auto companies are a global company. "very few large companies anywhere that are truly/only “American” or “British” or “German” or “Japanese”…"
I would love find out what you mean by not American?? They are based in Detroit, the upper management that pull the strings for the company from what I know are American. The majority of the workforce is here in America and the sales of cars here dwarf the sales overseas. But to say "their only allegiance is to themselves and their stockholders and that includes GM" you really think if the crap hit the fan they could uproot and just go somewhere else?? not a chance. if they die here they die everywhere else.This is thier home territory. Its not like if Toyota all of a sudden went belly up here they can't retreat back to Japan..they could. again I just dont see how you can say Ford or GM is not an American company, run by Americans and Im sure most of the stockholders are said americans. Sure they have vested interest in Holden, SAAB, Jaguar, Land Rover and so on but the last time I checked they were not the large segment leaders or controling factors of the company.

Like I said its not as black and white and yes there are the grey areas where cars that are made outside the U.S. that have a chevy badge. Heck the new Camaro is going to be built in Canada. The GTO was built on the other side of the world. But how much % is that really to cars built here? Not alot compared to the amount actually produced here. Or to the fact of how many foreign imports are comming in from overseas. That goes back to the profit thing where you have this to say.

Its not a red hearing..Where does it end up??? The bottom line is is the bank account in Dollars or Yen..If the profit is made and the company is Toyota where does it go? When all said and done and all the books are calculated and finances are looked at and everyone is paid here there and wherever where does that bottom line end up. Japan or the U.S..

I guess I am dreaming....cheaper sure, better why not? A part cant be built somewhere else cheaper and better? Just cheaper?
Heck I know of one GM part that I guess is one heck of a pile of crap. I guess cus it was outsourced and cheaper to make there instead of the U.S. I guess the GTO and Holden are worthless to continue together and GM should sell the company. Sure GTO is not just one part, but a car made in Mexico isn't either.

it seams to me that you dont think a company has nobody in it that has loyalty to his or her own country. People that run GM have no loyalty? Really? Thats hard to beleive.

 

Caps94ZODG;4242132,

This is an old, old argument.

Those who want to think of GM as "American" are going to do so regardless of anything that might be said so with that, I'll just say happy Thanksgiving.

 

Yea it is an old argument. about 50 years of so by your count.

So have a good turkey day, Im sure you got some kinda time off, think about it cus you have an idea that once a company goes global they are no longer "local" so if you had a min. come back and pull me 50 years ahead and tell me how a company that was founded, built, runs its corperation, Its top execs. are Americans, builds cars here in America ( along with outer places), the majority of the employees are American HOW are they not loyal to the country they tuck their kids in at night.

You think your favorite company is not loyal to Japan because they are global? The Japanese pride themselves on being from Japan Its instilled in the work practices and anything that betters themselves they contribute that to the way of life and the betterment of Japan and thier corperation.

you dont thing that same loyalty and "Americana" is here in GM and they are for themselves?

We are far away from a global economy, and if yo uthink buying a nissan or a GM is no different then your thinking to far into the future. There is boarders, trade diffrerences, unlevel playing feild and so on. Till that time I will support my hometown economy by buying from a company that is founded here.
Weather you think its "american" it is AMERICAN by birthright. It is people that think the way you do that will seal its fate by trying to put companies on a global economy before there is a playing feild for one. Your not helping the home team if your buying offshores.

 

I'm so glad we have a person of higher intelligence like yourself around to consistantly correct us.

Happy Thanksgiving ya'll!

 

Individuals...people, can have loyalty to their country but companies are not people...multinational corporations are not people and multinational corporations have only one loyalty and that is to themselves.

Here is paraphrase of my Masters business management course...

"The number one responsibility of business is to increase shareholder value"

It is not loyalty to ones employees or to ones country; the only loyalty is to the corporation and it's owners.

The only loyalty that GM or Ford or Chrysler or Toyota or Nissan or Honda has is to GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Nissan and Honda....what country or countries they have their various headquarters in is of absolutely no importance.

In every measurable and objective sense, there is NO difference between buying a GM vehicle build in North America and a Toyota build in North America.

However, since I know you don't and never will believe that, what would be the value of "bringing you 50 years into the future"?

Believing that GM is an "American" company today is more a matter of faith and religion than fact and arguing matters of faith and religion is neaver a "winning" exercise for either side.

 

I would like to know how much these "so-called multi national companies" donated to Katrina and the New Orleans debacle? I would wager that GM donated more money thatn all other rice car companies combined!

Happy John Bradford Day!!!

 

MY parents have a 2000 camery and i spoke to them yesterday and they told me that toyota is having some major problems with there cars and there is a large lawsuit pending on there cars. They told me that there engine produces (oil gel) that forms inside the block and is a defect in degin. Toyota has been calling my parents every so often to sell the car back to them. But there trying to get my parents car back bad.

If this lawsuit goes through its a giant recall on there engine from 2000 and up. And my parents have been getting there service engine,check engine light on every few months and toyota cant find out why. Toyota told them the light is off for now and if comes on again just bring it back to us. It sounds like my parents have one of the defected ones to me.

I never cared about buying any kind of import and always looked in on gettting a gm first then mabe a dodge then a ford. I bet if pepole knew of this lawsuit and toyota's problem they wont be doing so well

 

For the most part I can agree with some of those statmeents, but you know companies are made up of said people and global coperations the bulk of say GM resides in the U.S. so how can they not be loyal to the survival of this country? Again you think GM could pick up and move HQ to Holden in Aus. just cause they were making a better profit in thier division that the rest of GM?? no..Go tell Bill Ford that and see what he says? There is loyalty to a brand and to a company.

and this leads me to this one:
Now. take that book out and tell me who wrote it? Was it someone in the U.S.? Europe even? Was the book published for use in the U.S. for your Masters class?

THIS is where it gets interesting. You think business practices are the same all over the world? WRONG They would like you to think that way, sure the western way of doing buisness is the way, yes to the western world. How long have you been studing all of this?

I have been studing the Japanese culture and its many intricacies for the better part of 15 years. From art, to science, to history to business. When one hobby like Japanese culture flows into others like cars you kinda find yourself looking at both at the same time. See the Western way is Capitolism, its all fine and good but like I said you dont think the Japanese are not loyal to their country??? Since my mind works way to fast for my fingers to type and one of my downfalls of make a complete point Iwill use some quotes to make my point.

Shintoism is a driving force for pretty much most of the Japanese companies to be competative in the global market.
now the flip side:
another way east vs. west are diffrent:

Now here is where it gets interesting:

where are these saliereis getting paid from and who is it benifiting???
and speaking of salieres what if the company keeps shrinking?
Guess it does matter if you buy a Nissan or a GM.

But here is the kicker:

So again where does the profit go??? Japan or the U.S.

Ohh and those parts that were mentioned:


Great level playing field huh???

Still with me?? Well to sum it up:

 

So after all that you still beleive what you were taught?

all of this:
If you do Robert then I guess I can tell you one thing, Like I said I love Japan, I love the culture heck I think they make great cars! But one things maybee folowing thier teachings and research for the last 15 years I have learned one thing. Be loyal to your country, to your people and the companies that are in it. For they are who you are. If you stop supporting who you are then you are nothing. See Japan took alot of how we industrialied back in the turn of the century and applied it to thier way of life.
Look at them now. Back then Americans did things for America, we did it to show how much potential we had, hope and courage we had as Americans. in the last 30 years it has lost its focus. The pride the honor of what it meant to live here. Maybee I am living in a dream, maybee you are? maybee we all are but one thing is for sure. Every time I see somone roll off the dealer lot with a new Toyota, Honda, Kia or Nissan another peice of What I once knew of as America is torn away. Torn away by people that think the way maybee you do and that there is no diffrence in buying from a company that has blood, sweat and tears here in the U.S. vs a company that knows it is working for one thing the betterment of its own country.

I have said my peice:
God Bless