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Automotive News & Views 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
With parts coming from everywhere, does "Buying American" have much meaning anymore? Is quality and price the bottom line?
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Well, my "investments" are doing pretty well. My 1988 Buick Park Avenue is 21 years-old and my 1989 Cadillac Brougham is 20 years-old. My 2007 Cadillac DTS Performance and her 2005 Buick LaCrosse are also doing well. Sheesh! A car is never an investment. It's just another thing you buy.
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Replying to: 62vetteefp (Nov 05, 2008 10:27 am) |
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Replying to: 62vetteefp (Nov 05, 2008 10:27 am) More and more of that production is moving out as UAW contracts allow for even more plant closings. Hell, Ford is actually using a good portion of the money ($23 billion) they borrowed on their 'junk' bonds largely to buy out employee contracts so they can close even more plants (14 last year) and put some more folks on the unemployment lines. In the meanwhile it is Toyota (and Honda and Nissan and even Hyundai) that are spending billions to build new plants here, thereby employing, even more Americans. Of course, not all 'American' cars are built overseas, but things have changed, are getting worse. The real reason why those Aveos you talk about can't be imported anymore is simply because the dollar is so weak., the same reason why the 'Japan 3' build plants here. The current and forseeable financial woes of GM/Ford/Chrysler will force even more of this as those manufacturers search for some way to actually make money. If the 'Big' 3' survive, it will be because of a government intervention/bailout in the case of GM and Chrysler and possibly only as a result of Ford's rather Draconian policies in recent years. Until the point that the 'Americans' get things straightened out, the carbuyer is putting more money in more American's pockets by buying a Camry or the like. For my part, I'd much rather be sending my money into Georgetown, Kentucky for example than I would be sending it into Mexico - or even Canada.
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Replying to: captain2 (Nov 05, 2008 12:05 pm) The transformation will be far faster. Probably 50-60% of both companies products will go away either way. In the meantime, the "Asians Built Here" should be at the top of the sales numbers in 2009 vs. the Old Big Three. Regards, OW
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Replying to: lemko (Nov 05, 2008 10:42 am) Try telling that to all the rich A$$H  &*S who've ruined the old car hobby
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Replying to: circlew (Nov 05, 2008 12:32 pm) My opinion is that Detroit needs to get out of the 'mainstream' car business, concentrate on those low tech high profit trucks and SUVs, of course and maybe keep a minimal presence in the specialty car markets e.g. the Vette, Mustang, Camaro etc All this would require a lot of downsizing, which I think would run contrary to those UAW contracts and other expectations. In any case, quite painful and a lot of perfectly good folks out of work . Heck if gas stays at $2 for any prolonged period of time, they might be able to sell those behemoths again, make some money and sign ridiculous labor contracts again in the false euphorias of some black ink. Detroit hasn't been a real factor in the car business anyway, for a number of years now - unless, of course, you are into renting cars  .
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Replying to: captain2 (Nov 05, 2008 2:22 pm) If they wanted to sell SUV's into high cost fuel markets, they should have targeted affluent only. Perhaps that will be one area they can manage because $55K for a hybrid SUV has a very small customer base and shrinking extremely fast. Mainstream SUV's need to make 25 MPG minimum to sell briskly even particularly when the economy turns positive. Regards, OW
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Replying to: captain2 (Nov 05, 2008 12:05 pm) I guess significant can mean different things but GM has over 60 plants in NA (powertrain, sheet metal, assembly). 3 are in Canada 3 are in Mexico Now with all the announced closings this may change slightly. In fact GM has announced closing a truck assembly plant in both Mexico and Canada. And I might add GM does sell vehicles in both countries, so building a few vehicles where they sell them would be nice. http://media.gm.com/manufacturing/facilities.html |
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I guess significant can mean different things but GM has over 60 plants in NA (powertrain, sheet metal, assembly). 3 are in Canada 3 are in Mexico Well, if that's the case GM must have dozens of NA plants that are doing nothing. Just surveying Chevrolet, the following cars/trucks are assembled in Canada: Korea, or Mexico - Aveo (of course), Avalanche, Equinox, HHR, Impala, Monte Carlo, and Silverado, a substantial portion of Chevy's overall volume. and a number will increase as those plants you're talking about are allowed to close. That is significant particularily for a manufacturer that claims to be 'American'. Just a guess - but it would seem to me that since Toyota built that $1 billion dollar truck plant in Texas, and in consideration of all the high volume vehicles (Camry etc.) that they have been building in Kentucky for years that the car/truck buyer is more likely to end up with a US made Toyota than a Chevy. By necessity, GM and the other 2) will end up being the same international cos. that the others are - but in the same vein should be embarassed to be calling themselves 'American'' - something that it plainly not the case now and likely even less so in the too near future. The slogan ought to be: Buy American and put another American out of work!
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A story I read somewhere today about Toyota pointed out that they were importing 50% of their vehicles, but since their truck production here had been cut, that percentage probably had increased. I'm not sure that means you're more likely to get a Toyota built in USA than a Chevrolet. |
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