I wonder if a first-world country can go without having automakers within the borders. I say we kill off the big three and see.

 

My dad always had that notion to buy an American car and that imports cost more to maintain for year, actually throughout my childhood. We had a 94 Jeep that kept coming in the shop for repairs over & over. When I brought the first import into our family back in 99, a 97 Civic it totally changed their perception and now they drive & love their new CR-V.

 

FYI the Aveo is not a domestic car, it's a rebadged Daewoo.

 

You do realise the G8 is an import made here in Australia by GM-Holden? (known here as the Holden Commodore)

But yeah, FWIW buy them. You'll help our auto industry.

 

See, I usually try to buy American, but I don't buy domestic small cars for one reason: they break. Frequently. Seriously, I see 20 year old Hondas with 300k+ driving around all the time (I had a '93 accord, friend with an '88, etc.). I have yet to see a Dodge Neon with over 150k on it that runs, or at least not without having had a lot of work done. Domestic ain't bad for minivans, trucks, etc. IMO, but small cars is something the Japanese just do better.

 

Another great example of the only good "American" cars not being from America!

 

If you guys regard a Commodore as "good" I shudder to think what bad is like...

We have similar issues to the US with our local industry. People are so blinded by the "red vs blue" (GM vs Ford) thing that they forget you can actually get better cars outside of that box.

 

LMFAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! dang that sucks! you shoulda chased after him and say I LOVE MY FIT! or F DOMESTIC! =P LMAO!!!!!! i swear i hate it when things like that happens and you feel all weird and stupid not knowing what to do LMAO! but the only domestic ill buy would be a Zo6 hands down =P

 

I do not support the big 3 but you guys do realize that millions and millions of people will lost their jobs. Not only the people that work for the big 3, but the suppliers and contractors. This will effect more people than you think. I'm in detroit right now seeing it first hand. Its not a pretty sight people.

 

i know that the big 3 basicly failing is costing jobs... but thats no reason to hate on imports... and really if the big 3 built better cars they would not be in this situation.... i would def buy american if their economy cars were not such POS's

 

That, and as I recall it was only domestic car manufacturers that cause the whole trolley scandal about 50 years back or so...

 

A guy stopped at our house about a month ago to check out our '92 Jeep (170K miles, $2500, too rich for his blood). He was driving an ancient Saturn; told me that 250K miles with no engine work was not unusual for the cars. "The engine is reliable as a boat anchor" according to him. So if you can get past the abysmal build quality otherwise, that may be an American made car to check out.

 

Example #1 why I choose to purchase a Honda

a) My brother purchased a Ford Fusion two months ago, last week while driving in rain his windshield wipers quit working.

b) I still have my 1997 Honda CRV 185,000 miles to date. Only servicing done has been maintenance items, of coarse new tires over time, standard replacement of timing belt, a new battery over time and some work was done when it had over 100,000 to the front suspension. Heater, A/C etc are all original. Further, the wipers on the CRV have never gone out!

I think that above says it all....

 

$49,000 base price, with the Z06 starting at $74,000 and they require premium fuel. Average fuel economy is near single digits. Admittedly, the Vette is the best sports car for the money, bar none, but my HOUSE costs less than a Z06 3LZ.

Actually, the design is so old that, yes, it has become boring. That car has been in so many types of media that I'm tired of seeing it. 3 years after the concept debuts, and GM keeps pushing the actual production of the car farther and farther into the future, if ever. We MIGHT see it on the road some day...

Yeah, I've got a half million++ dollars to spend on a very limited production car. Take a look at how small my penis is!

I've owned roughly a dozen cars over the years. All but one of them was a Ford or GM product. When I was looking at the Fit, the dealer seemed puzzled by how much time I spent under the hood. I've never owned a car that I haven't replaced the head gasket(s) on.

 

the only american car i spent a decent amount of time in : Chevy Cobalt rental car while my mom's 03' BMW 330i was in the body shop

1st of all : It was sluggish

2nd : Wtf, they call that an interior? REAL Vinyl steering wheel unlike the base Fit's almost leather feel.

3rd : The steering and overall experience was rather vague, it gave a sense like "dont even hope for this thing to be spirited." it made driving quite boring and embarrassing too! Well this was probably because we were stepping down from a BMW.

goods : Wee on mileage of a 4 banger vs. a 3.0 inline 6! umm... wee super light steering for those lazy peeps! That is all i thought of that i liked.. well i hated the light steering but for a DD car that's prolly a good thing

 

GM buys toyota engines. Ever notice the VVT-i on the valve covers of the new GMs?

And to anyone who says buy domestic because we need to keep our money in the states, most of the parts that the domestics use on their vehicles are made in other countries and more and more of their vehicles are being assembled in Mexico. They are laying everyone off because they didn't think ahead by decreasing or keeping a low inventory or keeping some money in the bank. Because they have always had a high inventory as soon as the market slows they lay people off.

All of the civics that are sold in north/south america are built in Canada/USA, Ridgelines are built in the USA, 6 cylinder accords are built in the USA, Odessies are built in the USA, and pilots are built in the USA, acura MDX is built in Canada. Honda is not laying anyone off because they are changing to meet the market demand and the managers are all taking pay cuts to ensure no one looses their jobs. Honda also finances their own vehicles and doesn't go through the bank to finance them. Honda factories build to demand. I work at one and we are decreasing from 800 daily units to 600 because of the lower demand but no one is loosing their jobs because they realise that if they lay people off it will hurt the economy even more as well as when things pick back up they will be able to hit the ground running.

Edit: IMHO GM and other domestics besides Ford because they aren't doing as bad, need to go bankrupt so they can restructure, get the UAW out and become a viable competitive company again.

 

Unsafe cars them small domestics...

IIHS-HLDI: Minicars - Current Models

Look at the Aveo vs. Fit. Also go one size up...

IIHS-HLDI: Small cars - Current Models

Not a single domestic wins Top Safety Pick. The much praised (by the automotive press) Saturn Astra is not the safest thing on the road.

IIHS-HLDI: Midsize moderately priced cars - Current Models

Now we have finally a decent car - the Fusion, for crash tests. But the Malibu, and much praised (again from the automotive press) Aura both don't match up. Even a Volvo can't compare to an Accord.

Bottom line is Detroit can't do small cars. They are saddled with UAW contracts up the wazoo... buy a domestic, you're just paying for someone's else's bloated wages and benefits. Let them die - Honda and Toyota will take up the slack and build more plants and create new jobs.

And just about every Honda is a top safety pick... not even Toyota can match that. About the only thing that might not be is the S2000 which is a dated design.

 

My Fit Sport -made in Ohio. So reliable. 2 tuneups and 3 brake jobs - 147k. Can get about 52mpg on highway, about 32mpg in city with air on. All I would change is add more space at front passenger foot well so my cooler will fit in straight up. Maybe a better console. I'd buy it again. It's a workhorse & a commuter car. Mine always has a full load.

 

Holy thread resurrection, Batman!

 

Right? I haven't owned a Fit or logged in in YEARS and I got an email notification today. Hello Fit friends, loved my Fit and miss it sometimes. Someone turned left in front of me and I hit them doing about 40. Walked away without a scratch. Great cars.

I have a Mazda6 now which I absolutely adore. Be well.