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Buying American Cars What Does It Mean?

7263 messages,  Last post on May 27, 2009 at 4:31 AM

You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires

What is this discussion about? Car Buying

With parts coming from everywhere, does "Buying American" have much meaning anymore? Is quality and price the bottom line?


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#6490 of 7263
Re: If GM gets rid of Buick... [cooterbfd] by maverickj
Oct 30, 2008 (12:37 pm)
Reply

Replying to: cooterbfd (Oct 29, 2008 4:10 pm)

I've owned a Ford, Dodge, and a Chevy. Not to happy with Chevy's tho. I just have a preference for American cars. Growing up, my grandpa always told us to always go with American cars. Guess it stuck with me.
#6491 of 7263
Re: If GM gets rid of Buick... [cooterbfd] by circlew
Oct 31, 2008 (3:15 am)
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Replying to: cooterbfd (Oct 29, 2008 4:10 pm)

First of all, the G8 is built there while GM converts a plant HERE to build them
 
All plans are on hold now...we will see.
 
Regards,
OW
#6492 of 7263
Re: Buy American. [hickey86] by sidious6688
Nov 02, 2008 (1:15 am)
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Replying to: hickey86 (Jan 06, 2006 1:14 pm)

Note that you would have to compare the Escape to a same year competitor.
#6493 of 7263
Re: I put my money on American [freedomguy] by sidious6688
Nov 04, 2008 (2:44 am)
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Replying to: freedomguy (Jan 10, 2006 9:28 pm)

For "better value" you have to compare the cost of ownership over time, not the purchase price. Factor in depreciation and the American cars sadly get killed.
#6494 of 7263
Re: I put my money on American [sidious6688] by cooterbfd
Nov 04, 2008 (3:07 am)
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Replying to: sidious6688 (Nov 04, 2008 2:44 am)

"Factor in depreciation and the American cars sadly get killed. "
 
Or do they??? When these studies show percentages of depreciation, it is vs. MSRP, and not actual selling price. So depreciation rates aren't as bad as you'd think. Now, if you want to debate why a Toyota sells for closer to MSRP than a Chevy, THAT'S a different story altogether.
#6495 of 7263
Re: I put my money on American [cooterbfd] by circlew
Nov 04, 2008 (4:05 am)
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Replying to: cooterbfd (Nov 04, 2008 3:07 am)

Depreciation and residual value either way you loose more buying American cars. Period.
 
You can put your money on American. It's still a free country. Hope their cars improve, though.
 
Regards,
OW
#6496 of 7263
Re: I put my money on American [cooterbfd] by captain2
Nov 04, 2008 (7:28 am)
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Replying to: cooterbfd (Nov 04, 2008 3:07 am)

yes and no - because resale value percentages vs. actual price or real street price mean absolutely nothing - it has always been about the total dollars it costs to own anything over a defineable period of time - meaning how much you actually pay for something vs. how much you can sell it for later - in gross dollars. What percentage that resale value might be of MSRP or anything else is unimportant - obviously what IS important, the total dollars lost. The BMW is a car that maintains one of the better resale values in the industry in terms of %residual value - but are also quite expensive to own because the gross dollars of depreciation is quite high. Those 2 sedan favorites, the Accord and the Camry both sell for competitively higher initial prices, have good resale values (much like the BMW) but both usually lead the pack when it comes to true operating expense - the gross dollars lost is less primarily because the the initial price is less.
'American' cars tend to sell new at a lower price than their 'Japanese' counterparts so therefore they must also have a lower resale value - and vice versa. The truth of the matter is that over the shorter term (up to about 5 years) and/or on leases the 'Japanese' cars can very easily be less expensive to own than the cheaper 'American' car.
 If you subscribe to the the contention that there is no real long term reliability differences in most cars these days and are willing to drive that car for a long time then the equation will swing very decidedly into the favor of anything that costs less to buy up front - be it American or Korean (or whatever). Statistics, though, tell us that the average car BUYER is keeping a car 4-5 years and overall 'ownership' periods are even less than that when you also consider the 2 to 4 year terms of leases these days.
#6497 of 7263
Invest the difference... by parkman50
Nov 04, 2008 (11:18 am)
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It amazes me how many people miss the point. When considering Japanese vs. American, consider these two rules I live by.
 
#1. Don't finance cars!! (pay a note to yourself until you can pay cash.)
#2. If you and I can buy two similar cars, but I can pay 5 grand less up front, I will always pick the lower cost car. Take the 5 grand and invest it to appreciate, not depreciate.
 
So now someone please tell me how you paying more for a car up front is a better deal than me paying less and investing the difference in something that grows. Even something with low growth like a savings account is better than a depreciating car.
 
I don't care if it's American, Japanese, Korean, or Mexican made. It's your money, spend it how you want. But saying you're making the smart choice by buying Japanese due to resale value or reliability is not reality. It's one way of justifying your purchase decision. Reality is that all cars are VERY BAD investments. The more you invest in one, the less cash you have to put into a "good" investment.
 
Tada. It's quite simple.
#6498 of 7263
Re: Invest the difference... [parkman50] by circlew
Nov 04, 2008 (1:50 pm)
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Replying to: parkman50 (Nov 04, 2008 11:18 am)

Agreed, and since all cars are bad INVESTMENTS, getting one that is second rate hurts all the more. I won't even start with the cost of gas comparison which leads
to even more pain if you choose unwisely.
 
1. Bad Investment 2. Car is unreliable 3. Car costs more to run over time.
 
Choose wisely, grasshopper.
 
Regards,
OW
#6499 of 7263
Re: I put my money on American [captain2] by sidious6688
Nov 05, 2008 (2:57 am)
Reply

Replying to: captain2 (Nov 04, 2008 7:28 am)

I could not have said it better.

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