Please i would like to know which of the American cars best suits Naija considering availability of spare part in case there need be which would definitely be needed. Ford and Chevrolet of General motors seems to be getting common these days, does it mean that its now wiser to buy a ford instead of the default Toyoto, Nissan, or Mazda,

I can see that no 1 gives a Bleep bout this thread

Hahahaha so if i don't have the money to import the spare, i should just forget about getting 1, wow!!!

If Iam to buy purchase an American car tomorrow, that would be Ford. Am even considering it in my next purchase.

Ikenna.

I think that Ford is actually settling well in Nigeria, A lot of people are beginning to use it. But what about the availability of the spare parts? And yeah like the OP mentioned, companies are now beginning to switch their official cars preference from Toyota to GM(General Motors products) Like the Chevrolet's

Considering availability of parts and simplicity of engine, if I were to go with a Ford product, i will go for Ford Focus.

Depends on your needs.

Americans cars/brands have more gadgets than Asian. Bigger engines might get more power less fuel economy.

A 2.0l Ford Focus might not win against a 1.7l Corolla, but you get a bigger car for a lot less and parts at half price.

Focus works well as good American car to push around. For highway, Impala/GM with the 3800 series engine is king.

The 2.7l chrysler engine has no love because of sludge problems(toyota camry has sludge too).

Mazda3, a clone of Focus is the hottest compact because it has more style.

Among the current models, Chevy Cruze is the best looking with great fuel economy, Ford Focus is 2 with good interior, Civic and Corolla are still ugly not different fro 8 years ago.

I drive a Fusion, and I will take a Taurus, Explorer,Grand Cherokee, Edge, Enclave, G8 over and Japanese car/SUV in the market.

I do not agree with you Sultaan

You may think the Corolla and civic are ugly but the out perform the American Junks (especially the Chrysler cars)

JD power gave the Tundra the best pick up for the past 6 years , And yes over The F150
Consumer reports Highly rates the Honda and Toyota Cars
IIHS Gave the Camry highest rating for all crash test
I have see accords wit over 220K miles with the first tranny and engine it was assembled with

I am not saying the Japs cars are the best, but they are in the game and are big contenders for the number one spot.

I thought the general opinion is that they are undisputed #1.

I'm just saying based on budget and desire, American brands are a viable option to consider for Nigerian roads.

Most people buy cars for parts and level of knowledge required to own such(I was thinking ignorance), but most parts are built to specification.

Vendors make parts for manufacturers, and aftermarket take care of buyers.

If Camry is assembled in Japan,Us and Australia, each plant will have a local supplier for some parts(local content),local supplier(s) for the market.

For service parts to be cheaper and available parts are made to be used in several brands and models you just have to know the part #

The general opinion is that Mercedes Benz makes the best cars in the world

From my parts buying experience in Naija, Most new parts come from china and the used ones are gotten from the junk yards of US and Europe.
With the exchange rate and cost of living in Naija, its expensive to buy a new car part from the US. That makes it expensive to maintain

Also the Naija trial and error mechanics are not experienced in American Cars (You dont want them screwing with your car)

Its safe to buy a Japanese car in Nigeria, but if You really want an American car like the poster asked, i would say a Ford (From most reviews and rating agencies).

@sultan, u said u drive a ford fusion. I am thinking of getting one too n I reside in abuja. What's bin holding me back is d fact dat Its not common, But I rides well n looks cool., I am a little bit scared of d cars reliability n maintenance cost in nigeria. Although online reviews are great, I still hav my doubts due to d nigerian factors,

Pls what r ur experiences wit ur fusion, maintenance cost, are parts available? Whatever u can say to help me make up my mind on if 2 buy or not will b appreciated, a lot.

Its a 2006 model fusion.

Its been great, I have 43000 miles on it now, a V6 getting avg~25mpg, all I have done in the last 2 years is change oil every 6000 miles and rotate tires.

If you get a 2006, you have to decide if the 4cyl or 6cyl meets your need, and its one of the few American midsize available with manual transmission.

You won't have to worry about you car getting the wrong attention.

I appresiate ur response SULTAAN. I'll b going for the 6cl SEL, I dnt hav d luxury of choice else I would have chosen d manual. I love manual tranny. Everything seems allright ind ride xept dat its top speed is 180 km/hr, for a V6!!

U didn't say much in terms of parts n maintenance cost in naija,

SEL is top of line loaded, you will get a good value for money.

I'm not sure how you are planning to get the car into naija, but the oil used in most 2005+ cars is not available in naija 5W20.
Ford uses a synthetic blend or full synthetic. That is far from Visco 2000 20W50 in the market

Unless you break something you don't really need parts on those cars for a while.
I have gone 2 full years with only oil& filter change and air filter.If you ship 5-5qt oil and oil filter, you'll have enough to last over 2 years at cost of $150 max.

Be ready to buy and ship original  parts from US as needed to they are cheaper from US

FYI, the Fusion is built in Mexico, Camry in Kentucky, Sonata in Alabama, and Accord in Ohio. So which is the American car?

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedans/112_0512_family_sedan_comparison/viewall.html