This my friend is why i bought a lt1 z28 and not a accord/civic.

 

Stirring the pot a bit, Robert said that Canada and Mexico technically aren't America, which isn't true. Canada is definitely America, always has been. Most people even get the running joke that really "belongs" to us.

Mexico is also America, but even people there refer to "America" as shorthand to the US, so it's easy to let that one slide.

Overseas, most places lump Canada with the United States as far as "America" is concerned.

Continue.

 

the word "america" is usually used with u nation but can also be regarded as a shorter version of north america. I've been over seas usually in the asian countries and never have i witnessed canada being lumped in with usa..

 

This is absolutely true.

To me, it 'feels' like the money spent on a vehicle built by GM, Ford, and to a lesser extent, Chrysler, is largely going to remain in the North American economy, whether or not it's built in the US, Canada, or Mexico...

It "feels" like a percentage of the purchase price of a foreign car, whether it's built in North America, Asia, or Europe, goes back to its nation of origin. A larger percentage than if the car were made by a "domestic" manufacturer.

Until Nissan, Toyota, or whoever else moves their global HQ from their country into the United States, they will still be widely considered foreign companies.

Not that they should take such a pointless measure, or that there's anything fundamentally wrong with a car being foreign, I just "feel" like we should call as it is.

(and I don't expect to change the minds of the folks in Mr. Nashville's camp on this, either...in case somebody was wondering)

 

That's a pretty common argument put forth by the media and sometimes around here. But I don't think it's true. Sure a Camaro will have an extroverted personality just due to its single-minded pursuit of power above all else. But really, there's not much else to the car. Is a Camaro just as exciting with the milquetoast base engine? Nope, it's a pretty unremarkable car, just like a Camry.

I've owned only two Japanese cars in my life, a 1991 Maxima and a 1990 Toyota SR5. But both still stand out in my mind as having a certain quality about them that made them rewarding to own, something that made you look forward to getting into them each morning. And both did it without having to develop one single trait (e.g. power) at the expense of the rest of the car. They were well-rounded, well-balanced, enjoyable cars.

I replaced the Maxima with a 1999 Grand Prix GT, arguably a direct competitor, and the GP was as forgettable as yesterday's newspaper. Not that it was a bad car, but to me it didn't have near the character that the Maxima did. I have much fonder memories of the Maxima than the GP. Even my beater Toyota was a memorable car and fun to row through the gears, something I can't recall thinking about any domestic econobox.

To those that think the Japanese build only boring cars, I would argue that they are certainly no worse than their direct competitors. A Camry may be dull, but not any more so than a Malibu or Impala or Fusion or Sebring. It's simply not fair to compare the excitement level of a highly-compromised car like a Camaro to a utilitarian vehicle like a Camry.

 

I'm with Misfit on this one; no where in the world I've been lumps Canada and the US together.

As for what constitutes "America", the vast majority of people use "America" as short for the USA, not short for "North America". So in terms of common understanding of the English language, neither Canada nor Mexico are part of "America".

 

Well, that's the whole problem with ignoring facts and only looking at feelings isn't it?

Even if Toyota moved its world herdquarters to Detroit it wouldn't matter because those who hate the Japanese or hate Toyota or both or for whatever reason "feel" like their cars aren't "American" will, at the end of the day, still feel that way no matter where their world headquarters is.

 

But it was built in Canada, 1987, if I remember correctly, was the last year for US built Camaros.

 

Seems like every friggen week there's a new article out questioning "what is American and what isn't?"

And every week it brings a big fat to me. What is "American" and what isn't is a matter of debate that will never be settled again in this so-called wonderful Global economy we've all carved out for each other. What we're left with is numbers games and comparing stats and spouting off statistics.

And you know what? Nothing changes. Toyota will soon be the world's #1 automaker. No denying it now. They continue to see unbelievable market share increases right here in the U.S. Doesn't seem like the majority of people give a flying ----- about this "argument" at all.

Can you tell I've had a bad day? :blah:

 

Where is the "Im with stupid" smiley when you need it.

 

Since we're talking about feelings, I feel that America's(U.S.'s) current romance with Japanese cars reminds me of the same thing going on with things like "German Beer", "French Wine"...no amount of analysis saying U.S. brands are better, will change their minds.
Then you go to Europe, and guess what...it's American Beer, American wine, American Beef..etc.etc...
Human nature, "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence"...

 

I don't see how some peoples' classification of foreign vs domestic is causing any problems. I have a feeling that toyondas would sell well regardless of whether or not they are marketed as pseudo-American.

For emphasis:
I guess my point is that I don't see the merit of the arguement for products made by a global company with HQ in Japan to be considered just as American as a global company with HQ in the US.

That's just my 2 cents. If you feel the need to argue against it, I suppose you're free to do so, but I have seen how much more pointless these threads can become once you get started, and I've no interest in encouraging you further.

My VIN starts with 1, which means American. I believe Canadian built cars start with 2.

I think they stopped building Camaros in the Ohio plant in '87, but 3rd gens were made in Van Nuys up until 92, unless my useless trivia skills are failing me. Not that it adds any relevance to the thread.

 

It is a pointless argument; hence why I said what I did in post #9. However, it's pointless not because anyone is saying that a company headquartered in Japan is "American", it's pointless because it's pointless to consider any large, multi-national company as belonging to any particular country.

The larger companies in the world today, Like GM and Toyota and Exxon, and many others are larger, financially, than many countries; while their PR departments will try to make you believe otherwise, they have no real loyalty to anyone or anything save whatever is in their own best interests.

For better or worse, we are quickly approaching a time in our history when physical location won't mean much of anything at all and trying to define anything as "foreign" or "domestic" will not only become pointless, it will become impossible.

 

First off, I rarely see the media kissing the *** of any American car manufacturer. It's only recently that they've started praising the styling of some American cars.

Second, I take offense to your comment about a base Camaro being unremarkable. I own one, a 5-speed version, and it's the most enjoyable car I've ever owned. Would I spring for a Z28/SS if I had the money? Of course. But even with the base 3.8L engine, it's still head and shoulders above any Camry in in terms of excitement.

 

This is totally correct. These are not micro-market companies, nor do they see themselves this way.

I have said it before on this board and I will say it again. Every year my company sends me to Toyota to a Lean meetings. Lot's of big company representatives there. Any time we talk about the automotive landscape the same outlook is told by Toyota. Toyota always says they see all automotive companies going completely global. There will be three main players. Toyota, GM and a third not envisioned yet.

So, I have great confidence in GM being a main player. I am also always surprised by how much respect is given from Toyota to GM and to Toyota from GM. I used to work for GM so it is intriguing to be out of the automotive world and see how all these fortune 1000 companies all view each other and direct competitors.