Yes, It's true that there is assembly and vendor parts manufacturing
blending in almost all cars built in the world today, but quality of
design, parts and assembly are very different between car companies.
This is where the value of a car is really noticed. Two brackets or
water pumps can come from the same vendor but if a Honda bracket or
water pump is a better design than a Ford bracket or water pump then all
bets are off. I once read that Honda actually over designs their
engines by 20%. In other words, they design an engine for 200hp and
then dial it back to 160hp for production models. Same amount of
material and assembly costs but wears much better than American designed
competition. I am a huge proponent of accelerated life test, stress
testing, hence over design...it does cost more to have quality
initiatives in place but you're almost guaranteed not to be visiting
bankruptcy court because you can't sell your product. I grew up as I
die-hard American car fanatic. After buying a 1989 Ford Taurus brand
new for $16,000 I was hammered by fuel pump problems and heater dial
detents wearing out early in the vehicle life....built in obsolescence??
I then purchased a new 2000 Chevy Malibu for $15,800....after 5,000
miles the front brake rotors were warped and recalled....after 60,000
miles the plastic intake gasket cracked and started leaking coolant(I
was lucky as most of these gaskets leaked internally and destroyed the
3.1L engines). The car has been sitting ever since and I replaced it
with a used Honda that had a lot more miles. Last story....I purchased
a 1991 Honda CRX Si with 205,000 miles on it for $2,400 to commute to
work....3 1/2 years later and at 350,000 miles the wheel bearings wore
to the point that the engine started to overheat when I went above
60mph. It sat in my yard for 6 months until a young man was excited to
get the car with all known issues for $650.00. Now that's value and I
also got 40mpg when I kept to the speed limit. Enough said.....I'm
praying for the American car companies to have wisdom in decision
making.
Happy Turkey-day all!!
-----Original Message-----
From: TechNet [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Stadem, Richard D.
Sent: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 9:53 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [TN] A Modern Parable (NTC)
Regarding "American" cars vs. Toyota, check this out:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081125/ap_on_bi_ge/safe_cars
Please note that American-made cars now include Toyotas, Saabs,
Volkswagens, BMWs, etc., and likewise those made overseas consist of
many American-made components, including engines and transmissions.
There are no clear-cut pedigrees anymore, haven't been for a few years.
Note what they said about Chrysler:
"IIHS said Chrysler LLC was the only major automaker that did not
receive a single award. They said Chrysler could have picked up five
awards if the head restraints had been improved in the Dodge Avenger and
Chrysler Sebring, the Sebring convertible and the Dodge Grand Caravan
and Chrysler Town and Country.
Chrysler spokesman Cole Quinnell said he could not comment on whether
the head restraints might be upgraded in the future. He said Chrysler
vehicles are equipped with a variety of safety features and the
institute's results "are just one of the sources of information about a
vehicle's crash performance."
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