Honestly, I drive a Japanese car and for reason only.  Quality.  I had 3 American cars before and I was spending my weekends in Auto Shops fixing the car.  They were not cheap cars, but just poor quality.  After the time when I was driving my daughter to day care during winter, my car just stalled and I had to wait for a tow truck, with my little girl on the back seat.  I had enough and bought a Japanese car.  I've been driving it for 2 years now and forgot what my mechanic looks like.

I could care less where my car was made, but if I'm spending $40K on a vehicle, I want quality.

Thanks,

Russell Volk

http://www.ePhiladelphiaRealEstate.com

Are all people who buy property in America, Americans? Are all parts of all cars made in America? Is Chrysler competitive in every way with foreign car makers? When I bought my Honda, did I not support an American family? How about the importers of foreign cars? Are you going to put a guilt trip on them?

Please keep in mind that almost all Japanese cars are made in Kentucky or Tennessee or somewhere else in the heartland of this great country.  Chrysler and GM for that matter are having problems because they put out garbage product.  Nissan is using American workers so why are their cars more superior?  My guess is they are not cutting corners to save a buck and I know they are smart enough not to dump a ton of cash into gas guzzling SUV's like Ford, GM, and Dodge does. Smart business decisions make great companies and the Japanese companies make smarter business decisions.    

Uh oh Al, looks like you've started something that is going to backfire on you. LOL

I'm a huge NASCAR fan. This year is the first year in NASCAR history that a foreign made car has been driven in the series (well, there was one guy waaaaay back when that drove an MG in the series but that was just one guy and this is more than one team driving them this year). But Darrel Waltrip pointed something out during the race - all the American made cars were made in Canada and Mexico where the Toyotas were actually the "ONLY" cars that were manufactured in the U.S.A. .

I guess even the auto manufacturers are outsourcing.

My first car was a jeep, when they were made by AMC.  I loved it.  When I decided to get a new jeep, Chrysler had bought AMC. From day one the new jeep gave me trouble.  Stalling at lights, electrical shorts and trim falling off.  That was 1990

A friend has a dodge durango and it has also been a nightmare. Imagine constantly breaking down with 4 children under 6. Dealing with tow trucks and putting baby seats in courtesy cars.  I cannot imagine the added stress in my chosen career if I worried about my car stalling with a  client in it.  

I blame Chrysler for chrysler trouble.  If they are closed and sold for parts - good riddance.

I have bought japanese cars ever since and besides routine maintenance, I never go to a mechanic.

American cars are not cheap at all and not reliable.

If I'm going to spend the same ammount for money for a car what do you think im going to buy?

LOVE MY HONDA.

www.CTHOMES1.COM

Well, personally, we are FORD people.  I have a Ford Freestyle and my husband has a Ford Mustang.  He has also built a 65 Shelby Replica.  

To be honest, even though I dont own a foreign car, I agree with the foreign car owners as far as quality of product.  I have owned a few chrysler products in the day, some good, some bad.  My husband is VERY knowledgeable as far as cars go, so when he says "this is a good car" then that is usually what I will go test drive.  If I dont like it, then I wont get it.  He suggested the Dodge Magnum.  It looked nice on the outside, but once I drove it, I realized I didnt like how it felt.

Either way, I feel that there are plenty of people who drive "american" cars vs. those who drive "foreign" cars.  If Chrysler needs to sell more cars, then they need to build a competitive quality.

BTW,  I thought that Chrysler was in Ohio and Detroit was home of FORD??? Maybe Im wrong!!!

Maybe Michigan should of planned a little better from day 1 and not have been totally dependent on the automobile business to keep the state moving!

So do you only work with Americans that only want to buy homes made by only Americans and no foreign tradeworkers helped build that home?  Not gonna happen!  Not possible!

Why is it that people don't complain when foreigners want to spend their money here and purchase things in our Country, but are first to cast a stone if an American puchases another product made overseas?

You'll gladly take their money though, wouldn't you?

And American cars.....are JUNK!

Hi Al,

I loved your article, here in Southern Ontario, we too know what kind of economic downfall can happen with a drag in the Automotive sector. HOWEVER...I lay the blame on the big 3 themselves and further more, unless they really get their butts to the drawing board and redesign themselves, this meltdown is going to continue! What amazes me most is that their desire to produce huge gas guzzling trucks outweighed their desire to analyze the wants & needs of the demographics. Instead of GM and Ford still being the huge names around here, we have Toyota. Yes, the plant is here, however the workers are not part of the Canadian Auto Workers Union. That means that they do not have the wages nor the benefits of their counterparts that work for Ford or GM. So, who has Ford & GM really let down? Their employees and the micro economies that they support. To have a job or not have a job is the key. If Chrysler, Ford or GM had a 6 cylinder, 4 wheel all drive, 4 door compact sedan with a little style 2 years ago...I would have bought one. I traded my Jeep Cherokee in because of environmental concerns...just too much gas! The big 3 have some big thinking to do...get with the game plan before it's too late!

Just my opinion

Donna

I remember when they built the Honda plant just outside of Marysville, Ohio. I remember the cries, "The Japanese are coming. They couldn't win the war so they are going to take our country little by little with land and jobs". In hindsight, this is ridicuous. Honda has pumped a lot of money into the economy of many families, villages and towns. I don't have a Ford or a Chevy plant near where I live but I will, for your sake Al, think very long and hard about my next buyer or seller who works for the Honda plant or any one of the over 100 companies that supply parts to these Honda "traitors". Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

Disclaimer: Sarcasm full intended!!

The American auto industry like many others in our great country has made terrible choices in dealing with labor, health care, product development, & quality control (both product and service).  Many corporations thought the days of HUGH profits would last forever and made some of the worst business decsions ever.  They are now paying the price and hope that the Feds (American Taxpayers) will bail them out.  The fear of dealing with harsh issues is often passed on from one management team to the next until finally one management group has to deal with it.  What we are seeing from a number of companies is their day of reckoning! As a country, we might need one of the BIG 3 auto giants to go under to wake everyone up.  Many folks would be impacted but many of those folks contributed to the problem.

I have owned a number of GM cars and have had very little trouble with them. I would not balk at buying another one based on may past results. It does not matter how clean your car is if you do not do the basic PM. It's amazing what that can do for the life of a car.

Let's face it, most American Cars are not as good as some of the similarly priced Imports. I got 187,000 miles (without many repair bills) on a Nissan Maxima and still sold it for $2000 cash. I can get a simlar car from Infiniti today for under $30,000.

I don't know much about the Detroit auto industry, but l am all in favor of a Ford & General Motors merger. Together they could delete some of the less popular and competing models to improve the bottom line, and then budget some of those monies to hire the best techicians, designers, and experts in the woprld to again produce the best cars in the world!

If GM FORD, or FORD GM could make dependable, good looking automobiles with a 100,000 mile guarantee and a decent resale value, I would think a lot of people in Detroit and other auto manufacturing areas could get back to work. And that is a good thing for whole country including those of us in the real estate industry.

Jay Rogers - and I am still ready to help your referrals in the Charleston, SC area.

The proud owner of a "Ford Focus SE" and yes I use it for real estate. I wanted a car that got decent gas milage; I wanted an american made car; I wanted a car that was fun to drive.  

I also noted that now Toyota is quickly becoming the largest car company the recalls are going up also. Quality, most of what Detriot makes is on par with the competition.

We just had a new Toyota plant open here to compete for the full-size pickup truck market. The tax break they were given will take years to recoup. They have a good 10-20 years they will not have to worry about any retirement cost and with a young labor force health care cost are going to be low also.  Looks like a pretty good advantage to me. The wages are below union wage levels also.  The price of the product is about the same as the competion. Skilled labor at bargain prices, hard to compete with that.

I will say this go to Ford.com and look at the family of Ford cars and trucks...could a Volvo be in your future???

I must say... if you dont live in Michigan... YOU have no idea how this has a direct effect on our real estate business. So I must stand up for some of what Al has said. We know of many associates who have left the business or lost anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 of their income do to the change in the real estate markert. When any of the BIG 3 make any type of change... it has a big trickel down effect. Al & I work less than a mile in a half apart, don't personaly know of each other, but we do know about one another. Here's a man who is very passionate about everything he does and stand for. Everyone need to vent once in awhile.

I do undrestand your concerns Al. I currently drive a BMW (all paid for) & have been trying to sell it. I see & feel the effect of not driving a american made auto and know that relates to where we live. The BIG 3 Country. Someone is coming to look at it today.. though I will hate to see her go, but it will be much better for my business.

Best wishing you all the best!

Michelle LaDuke

www.MichelleLaDuke.com

Could the demise have been suicide by Union rather than homicide by REALTOR?

Great post Al, nice comments James and Michelle. For starters check out

http://levelfieldinstitute.org/

What's GMs least dependable vehicle? The Pontiac Vibe built by Toyota, same vehicle as the Toyota Matrix wow!

Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan higher initial quality rankings than a Honda Accord and Toyota Camry according to JD Power and Associates and the Fusion and Milan aren't boring, can't say that about an Accord.

Toyotas V-6s still dropping like flies after 10 years of knowing about the problems see

http://www.petitiononline.com/TMC2003/petition.html  and

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070118/BUSINESS01/701180399

Becky if people aren't earning money here in Detroit we can't go to Florida to stimulate your economy thus allowing your residents to purchase homes etc... About 5 out of 10 people I know make yearly trips to Florida (percentage sure to drop if this continues)

It's not 1978 and there is very little if any quality difference between the Japanese and US make automobiles as a whole.

Whenever I spend money I try to make sure the majority of it will be re-spent here in the US. Remember what you drive drives America.

Great news Jay, GM has a 100,000 mile warranty visit a Cadillac dealership and pick up a STS-V it's a world class vehicle and $20,000 less than anything comparable.

Al maybe you could help me out by not letting the foreign autos pull out in traffic? At least we can make their commutes longer.

P.S. I love my Jeeps

I'm in southeast MI, also. Shortly after I got my license I knew an agent who wasn't allowed in the house she was going to list. She showed up in a Nisan (spelling?). The seller had lost his job at one of the big 3. I drive a cheapie Ford Tauras. 4 doors for clients, decent looking, decent milage and 200,000 miles before it needs work outside of brakes and tires. The large SUV's were built to supply a demand. Until a few years ago, our economy was booming and there were big ugly Hummers all over.

I think our politicians can carry some of the blame. At one time the Japanese charged such a high import tax that their citizens couldn't afford an American car. We should have imposed the same kind of tax on their imports. I don't know if this still exists.

We tend to elect some poor negotiators when it comes to trade agreements.

You can't blame the unions. Michigan businesses have been heading south for years to avoid union wages. And not just the UAW. Union workers built the car plants in MI. For those who complain about the quality of an American made car, you might want to consider the quality headed south when the plants headed south to the scab labor states.  

When I was a kid my parents wouldn't buy Shell gasoline and had bumper stickers on their trucks that read The Hell With Shell. From the perspective of someone who grew up in a union household, whenever a job my union father could have done moved south, it was food off our table. When our politicians negotiate lopsided trade agreements, that's food off American tables. And the affects won't be limited to just one state.

  I can't remember anything those guys did for me (didn't even contribute to the college scholarship that I applied for).  Price, Quality and Service rule.

  I'm of German decent and don't buy "deutsche auto" because they are too expensive.  Crown Vic was my first Ford and I will never buy another, they wouldn't fix the transmission until it was out of warranty.

They also closed the Atlanta manufacturing facility, felt that.

I had a fleet of dodge trucks one for 14 years never had a problem with it.  When I ordered a new one they delivered the wrong truck 4 times and I bought a gmc the next day.  

  Manufacturers and Realtors alike beware, give the purchasers something of value, real or perceived, or they will pass you by.