17th Jan 2007, 21:50
My wife has kept her present vehicle longer than any of her previous 5 cars. This is the first one since 1994 that she has put over 20,000 miles on (and I'm NOT kidding). She is one of those people who like to trade often to have something new and reliable. That is great of you can pay for it (and she can).
What has caused her to fall in love with her current vehicle is that fact that it is her first GM car and the smoothness, great build quality and luxurious feel have made her fall in love with it. At 60,000 miles it has never had a single problem and she plans to keep it several more years. Our brief experience with imports was a total disaster and it's great to now have something she can rely on not to break down every other week.
18th Jan 2007, 11:45
You cannot generically say all imports are bad and all domestics are great. Obviously, your wife wants some barge with no handling, which is what she should have bought in the first place.
All the domestic vehicles I have owned have had endless reliability problems. I had only one problem with a Honda, and that was because it was made in America.
19th Jan 2007, 10:26
If you want to see some honest comments and reviews on Toyota, check out the Tundra site. These things are falling apart faster than they can build them.
19th Jan 2007, 12:47
'I had only one problem with a Honda, and that was because it was made in America.'
Hmmm, that sounds like poor logic with a side of Anti-American. It's strange too, because the Japanese made Honda we had was plagued with serious problems, and someone I know with a 5 year old Honda has had HORRIBLE problems with it. It's odd too, because our Mercury, Ford, Chevy and Dodge have had great reliability.
19th Jan 2007, 14:46
More objective commentary from the import crowd. Not all of us want a "good handling" yet lousy riding, flimsy import so we can turn our hats backwards and pretend to live the "Fast and the Furious." Some of us prefer the comfort, style and smoothness of a full-sized American sedan, rather than being cramped into a cheaply made, uncomfortable Japanese cigar box all for the sake of going around corners faster than the posted speed limit.
19th Jan 2007, 14:47
Poor logic? HMMMM, I guess owning various cars since 1981 (23 so far) and the only ones with problems were either domestics or imports made in America means nothing.
19th Jan 2007, 15:57
My household also had a totally unreliable made-in-Japan Honda (a Civic). The CV joints went at 40,000 miles and the whole car self-destructed at 90,000 miles. Our domestics have never had a problem and some have gone over 300,000 miles. Garbage is garbage regardless of what country it is made in. Japanese companies just use poorer quality, flimsier material.
19th Jan 2007, 20:17
She might be driving a late model Corvette... which keeps getting better and better especially 98 present...
20th Jan 2007, 07:02
You have owned 23 cars in 26 years? Wow, your vaunted imports must really be crap if you only keep them for an average time of 1.1 years! In 20 years, I have only owned three cars. They are all Dodges, and are all still my normally driven daily drivers.
20th Jan 2007, 09:47
Given even entry level Hyundais have more room inside than some luxury cars (Rolls Royce, etc.) your comment holds no water. And my Chevy Aveo cruises 85 mph on the highway all day in absolute comfort and smoothness.
Your post is just based on outdated stereotypes.
20th Jan 2007, 11:05
Who is the know it all that thinks Honda uses different or thinner metal than anybody else? Do you know anything? It doesn't sound like it. Metal is metal, genius, and it is of the same quality and thickness as any other car. If you're going to make some kind of anti-Honda, anti-import comment, first understand that you know nothing about Honda's, obviously, and very little about vehicles in general, apparently. By the way, if you are driving a domestic, any Honda will outlast it. As will any Toyota. And to you guys who CLAIM to drive 40 year old GM or Ford trucks; it doesn't count when you've done 17 engine rebuilds on them. Just because you still drive it doesn't mean that it was ever reliable when you have put 9 motors in it and 5 transmissions. A Honda will go that far on ONE motor.
20th Jan 2007, 13:46
AHHHHHH there we have it. The completely non-factual statement that a yuppie import lover makes against a domestic. He/she is basically saying "it's a Honda and a Toyota and it's mine therefore it just HAS to be better." Please, lay down some real facts, not just a big hyped-up statement in blind support of imports.
Oh, and my truck, a 1988 Suburban, with nearly 250,000 miles on her, is still on the original engine and transmission. In fact, in all eight (8) years I've owned it, I've only had to replace the alternator.
20th Jan 2007, 14:39
NO, metal is not metal. Some metals are weaker than others. Some metals have lower heat tolerances than others. Some have a tendency to crack in cold weather.
20th Jan 2007, 14:41
Suggest you read the book "Rivethead". Talks about the "quality" put into Suburbans by the (drunk and high) people who built them.
You obviously got one made on a "Come to work sober" day.
And don't act so high and mighty about your metal argument. Marketers have known for years that GMC customers think their trucks are built of stronger steel than their Chevy counterparts, even though the trucks are exactly the same.
Oh, also enlighten us all as to how many of your 250,000 miles were spent with more than one person aboard. I'm guessing about 5%, if that.
20th Jan 2007, 17:54
I totally agree with 13:46...what is upsetting is blatant generalizations applying to all people that own a domestic. I couldn't get to 50,000 miles without 2 transmissions on my last Honda. Eventually those driving the 80-90's Honda models will have to replace with newer ones.
20th Jan 2007, 19:09
Just to chime in, my 1985 Dodge Ram has 253,000 miles on the original engine and transmission, although I did need the differentials rebuilt at 205,000 miles. And yes, metal is different. Not only in its physical properties depending on alloying, composition, and manufacturing, but also in thickness. Sheet metal thickness is referred to as "gauge" and it varies when the steel mill ships rolled or sheet stock out. Vehicles do use different thickness metal. For instance, the steel is so thick in the fender of a 1929 Model A Ford that you can hit it with a ball peen hammer and not dent it. The metal in my '71 Plymouth and '73 Dodge was also quite thick, and during bad hail storms in Texas the baseball and golfball sized hail stones would bounce off without leaving marks, while the '91 Pontiac and '93 Toyota parked right next to me were totally trashed with dents. Economy cars try to use less metal in order to save weight, which helps increase fuel economy.
13th Jan 2007, 05:12
I paid off my home in 15 years paid my childrens college. I do not consider myself Johnny Hotpants buying a new car and a new truck every few years. What does bother me is throwing good money after bad on very expensive mechanical repairs. I am at the point now where owning high mileage, questionable vehicles are not my forte. I can jump in either of my new vehicles take a very long trip without hesitation. I can understand 1 trans failure, but not 2 of them on my wifes last 2002 import. I should have sold it in 2005 but I thought it would be practical to hang onto it.