VolvoS60:

Mostly US brands that have run their race and passed on to automotive heaven (or hell - depending on how you look at it).

Nationalism won't save a bad/poor product. While US car makers were marketing their thirsty, poorly made, unreliable junk as "Detroit Iron", "Motor City", "proudly American" etc. the Japanese were slowly improving their products bit by bit, until one day, the US woke up to find out that the Japanese had taken over the market completely.

Nippon just build damn good cars. They do break but they break on average far less than domestic US or European marques. And that's good enough for millions of consumers the world over and not just the US.

While US car manufacturers were destroying their balance sheets with shambolic work practices, awful quality and process control, bloated executive compensation, destructive worker union practices etc., the Japanese just got to work building good, solid automobiles.

Any Japanese line worker had full authority to stop the line at any time to resolve a quality issue. US car makers on the other hand considered line stoppage the equivalent of original sin.

No prizes for guessing who thrived and who withered.

pocohantas:


Hmmm. You are such a wonder...
Smart stuff.

VolvoS60:
Mostly US brands that have run their race and passed on to automotive heaven (or hell - depending on how you look at it).

Nationalism won't save a bad/poor product. While US car makers were marketing their thirsty, poorly made, unreliable junk as "Detroit Iron", "Motor City", "proudly American" etc. the Japanese were slowly improving their products bit by bit, until one day, the US woke up to find out that the Japanese had taken over the market completely.

Nippon just build damn good cars. They do break but they break on average far less than domestic US or European marques. And that's good enough for millions of consumers the world over and not just the US.

While US car manufacturers were destroying their balance sheets with shambolic work practices, awful quality and process control, bloated executive compensation, destructive worker union practices etc., the Japanese just got down to work - building good, solid automobiles.

Any Japanese Toyota line worker had full authority to stop the line at any time to resolve a quality issue. US car makers on the other hand considered line stoppage the equivalent of original sin.

No prizes for guessing who thrived and who withered.

ornicus:


To add to this - Toyota design their cars (basic) to last for ten years. They design their suvs to last for 20. Ford and Co, to my understanding take the planned obsolescence route and design their cars to last until projected trade in date. (2years)

VolvoS60:


^^^
It is delicious to watch. US automobile manufacturers have been greatly humbled by the events of the last half century and are playing catch up to the Japanese - an uphill task they are struggling mightily with. For every step GM, Chrysler etc. take, Toyota, Honda, Subaru etc. have already taken ten. Anyone want to play the nationalism (i.e. 'buy American') card? Well, Toyota and Honda have US plants and US suppliers and they actually employ US workers - whereas Ford, GM etc. have outsourced and continue to outsource production to Mexico and other low cost countries. Anyone want to play the "US car makers make better cars card?" That matter was settled a long time ago - Japanese cars are the undisputed kings of quality, reliability and durability - while US car makers continue to languish at the bottom of almost all quality and reliability surveys. The list goes on and on.

The only thing left to prove that there is indeed justice in this world is for the tide to finally turn against European carmakers. Their high end product offerings are mostly over priced, unreliable status symbols with highly questionable build quality. But they (BMW, Audi, VW, MB, Land Rover etc.) would have us believe they are 'luxury cars' and these weaknesses are part and parcel of the luxury car ownership experience.

Thankfully, the Japanese have proved them wrong.

It's the first day of class at a US high school and the teacher introduces a new student called Akito Suzuki, son of a Japanese business man. The teacher starts the American history class by asking who pronounced the sentence, “Live free or die”.
Suzuki quickly raises his hands and replies, “Patrick Henry 1775”.
“Excellent”, said the teacher and continues, “Who said “Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth”.
The whole class remained silent until suddenly Suzuki said, “Lincoln, 1863”.
The teacher was flabbergasted and said to the whole class, “You all should be ashamed. Akito Suzuki, who just arrived in our country, knows more history than you Americans”.
Then someone in the rear of the classroom whispered: “To hell with those damn Japanese”.
“Who said that?” the teacher inquired.
Again Suzuki raises his hand and says: “General McArthur, 1942 and Lee Iacocca, 1982”.
The whole class was silent when one of the students said: “I am going to throw up”.
The teacher asks again this time: “Who said that?”
Without hesitation, Suzuki says: “George Bush Sr. to the Japanese prime minister, 1990”.
One of the students totally mad shouts at Suzuki: “Suck my dick”.
Akito intervenes again: “Bill Clinton to Monica Lewinsky, 1997”.
At this point in time, the smartest guy in the class yelled: “I was the first until this bloody Japanese arrived”.
And Suzuki answered: “Mario Vargas Llosa, Peruvian elections 1990”.
The whole class became hysterical, the teacher fainted. The students gathered around the teacher and said to one another: “We screwed up, now how do we get out?'.
And Akito Suzuki said: “Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, 2005/2006”.