Funny that somethings in this article is the same crap I've said before on other threads about this topic, but none-the-less this author has it clear on this BS.
From C&D
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/hot_lists/car_shopping/latest_news_reviews/10_lies_pinhead_legislators_believe_about_the_auto_industry_car_news
Quote:
10 Lies Pinhead Legislators Believe About the Auto Industry - Car News
Can these people really be so dumb?
Perhaps the most frightening aspect of the automotive crisis is not so much the specter of impending financial doom, overcrowded bread lines, or the end of Automotive Life As We Know It. No, it’s the up-close and too-personal look at the men and women who run our country, and, by extension, at some members of the mainstream media who report stories now and ask questions later, if at all.
Public-spirited citizens that we are, let us detail for you 10 lies that pinhead legislators—and, by extension, the mainstream media—believe about the car industry.
Lie 1: American companies don’t sell fuel-efficient cars.
Truth: Really? Really? Of course they do. The Detroit Three currently offer, among others, the Ford Focus, the Chevrolet Aveo and Cobalt, and the Dodge Caliber, and for decades before that, consumers were offered everything from the Ford Falcon to the Plymouth Valiant. The U.S. automakers have always made fuel-efficient cars, and they still make them. For years, that’s all Saturn made. But the American manufacturers have always used the shotgun approach; if you throw enough pellets at the target, a few are bound to hit the bulls-eye. Early imports used the rifle method: just one bullet. But companies like Toyota have adopted the U.S. model. There are 15 Toyota models, eight of which are trucks or SUVs. And Toyota’s overall sales in November were down 33.9 percent, while Ford’s dropped 31.6 percent. Explain that, Mr. Congressman and Mrs. Congresswoman.
Lie 2: American consumers will only buy fuel-efficient vehicles.
Truth: Then why is the only Toyota to show a major gain in November the Sequoia SUV? And why do some Toyota dealers currently have to discount the Prius as much as $1500 to move them?
Lie 3: Detroit is dragging its feet in making trucks, SUVs, and large cars more fuel-efficient.
Truth: Domestic-brand trucks and SUVs get the same lousy mileage as trucks and SUVs built everywhere else. Why? Because they are trucks and SUVs! As for large cars, many European brands are able to achieve excellent overall mileage for them, in large part thanks to diesel power. With seven states, notably California and New York, subscribing to pollution standards that are stricter than federal standards, though, it did not make much sense for U.S. manufacturers to develop diesel cars when they can’t sell them in two of the largest states.
Lie 4: Detroit forced people to buy gas guzzlers.
Truth: We’ve heard some interesting dealer stories over the years, but none involved putting guns to customers’ heads to require them to buy a Ford Excursion or Chevrolet Suburban, when what they really wanted was a Ford Escort or a Chevy Cavalier. Plenty of people (such as, for instance, President-elect Obama, who used to own a Chrysler 300C) like big, powerful, safe vehicles.
Lie 5: Auto executives flying on private jets is a slap in the face to the American consumer.
Truth: Apparently the no-private-jet rule applies only to automotive executives. If you are an executive of, say, AIG or Citigroup, it’s fine. Of course, the financial companies didn’t have to travel to Washington, D.C. to grovel for their bailouts—they were simply handed out like party favors—so the opportunity to publicly flog their executives for their method of long-distance transportation never presented itself.
Lie 6: People aren’t buying domestic-brand vehicles because they are of inferior quality.
Truth: That perception lingers, but it’s no longer the case. They aren’t buying domestic-brand vehicles because people aren’t buying anything. According to major independent research, GM and Ford cars are virtually identical in quality to Japanese cars. GM has won numerous awards for its current crop of cars, including two straight North American Car of the Year awards and top accolades from Motor Trend, Consumer Reports, and, most important, Car and Driver.
Lie 7: It’s easy and cost-effective to close brands.
Truth: It costs billions to close the dealers, and you lose customers. Is that the best use for the bailout money, to pay dealers not to sell cars? How well has that worked with farm subsidies?
Lie 8: Only the American companies were so stupid to not see this coming and prepare.
Truth: Everyone is losing sales and money, but only the U.S. companies don’t have a cash cushion. One big reason: Foreign-based companies don’t have U.S.-size legacy costs, which include things like retirees’ pensions and health care, because of things such as nationalized health care.
Lie 9: The average consumer is too savvy for the market.
Truth: The day gas prices dropped, people went back to buying trucks and SUVs, and Priuses started piling up on dealers’ lots. Because gas prices won’t go back up, right? Are our memories really that short?
Lie 10: Thomas Friedman can fix everything.
Truth: The New York Times columnist is certainly entertaining, in the same way that Ross Perot as a presidential candidate was entertaining. But do you really want to take him seriously? Friedman wants the U.S. manufacturers to build nothing but hybrids, and he gives them just 36 months to make that happen. Three years to completely overhaul the vehicle lineups of three major manufacturers? Do foreign automakers have to stop building their gas-swillers, too? Thomas Friedman, Real World. Real World, Thomas Friedman. First time you’ve ever met, right?
THE POLITICALLY INCORRECT ONE.
Quote:
Lie 9: The average consumer is too savvy for the market.
Truth: The day gas prices dropped, people went back to buying trucks and SUVs, and Priuses started piling up on dealers’ lots. Because gas prices won’t go back up, right? Are our memories really that short?
Hmm its funny. In the past few weeks I have seen nothing but Truck and SUV commercials. Dodge Ram off road super test course or the Denis Leary Ford 150 commercial. Also look closely at GM commercials they show Van, SUV, Truck in the backgroud then prompt the selling point of the G6, G5, etc.
My point is that it goes both ways, as soon as the price of gas went down advertising for less full efficient went up - this is my observations.
Plus its our society, you ain't a baller until you rid a 300c or a Suburban etc. You know what would be real baller if you recycled, bought a smaller truck, and did something that was against the grain. (/end rant)
Most of the article i agree with but I also think there is a lot more to it then the bail out and throwing money at will not fix it. (think outside the box)
i love how all of these magazines--and the media in general--has been perpetuating these exact same lies for YEARS! but now that we are teetering on the edge of financial doom, suddenly its like "oh, yeah, well american cars are just as good as japanese"
American cars are not as good as japanese cars. I bought a cavalier because I have bad credit
Quote:
Lie 10: Thomas Friedman can fix everything.
Truth: The New York Times columnist is certainly entertaining, in the same way that Ross Perot as a presidential candidate was entertaining. But do you really want to take him seriously? Friedman wants the U.S. manufacturers to build nothing but hybrids, and he gives them just 36 months to make that happen. Three years to completely overhaul the vehicle lineups of three major manufacturers? Do foreign automakers have to stop building their gas-swillers, too? Thomas Friedman, Real World. Real World, Thomas Friedman. First time you’ve ever met, right?
100% True, he is such a tool.
spoiler wrote:American cars are not as good as japanese cars. I bought a cavalier because I have bad credit
I have worked on Nissan vehicles and GM vehicles. I will take an 80's+ GM over any new Nissan.
(tabs) wrote:i love how all of these magazines--and the media in general--has been perpetuating these exact same lies for YEARS! but now that we are teetering on the edge of financial doom, suddenly its like "oh, yeah, well american cars are just as good as japanese"
I agree with you. Magazines like car and drivers constant bashing of the big three as inferior has done nothing to help the situation. The only saving grace is that the average person does not really read car and driver. For the most part it is true car guys who can sort through the BS and rate a car on what is important to them not car and driver.
However this time they hit the head on the nail!
FORGET GIRLS GONE WILD WE HAVE GOVERNMENT SPENDING GONE WILD!
(tabs) wrote:i love how all of these magazines--and the media in general--has been perpetuating these exact same lies for YEARS! but now that we are teetering on the edge of financial doom, suddenly its like "oh, yeah, well american cars are just as good as japanese"
Well, "just as good" is a bit generalized here and "Lies" is a bit extreme as well. The problem with the press is that they don't do anything halfway and the problem with people is that they don't remember cars from 20-30 years ago.
American cars have gotten much better and TODAY are roughly equivalent in value to Japanese cars, but to say that this was always an exageration from the press is insanity ok? Until the mid seventies people expected cars to break down. It was normal. A car in the Northeast would last maybe 8 years before it went to the big scraphead in the sky. I have car review magazines from 1977 that literally mention that their test models, new cars, were already rusting. Cars like the Pinto or the Vega would have huge holes in them after one or two years and need major bodywork after 4 or 5. Why do you think that people started buying Corollas and Civics? For fun?
Back in the 60's you had a lot more variety when it came to imports. Opel, Epic, Morris, Austin, Fiat, Alfa-Romeo, Rover, Hillman, Vauxhall, Citroen, Peugeot, Renault, Lancia, Innocenti, Autobianchi and probably a crapload of others I've forgotten. However, they all had one thing in common. They were all crap compared to your basic Ford Falcon or Chevy Nova. Smaller, less powerful, spartan, badly made and too expensive. So nobody bought them. It's not rocket science:
People don't buy things that aren't good.
Still, I'm the first to admit that people are suckers, but they're not totally stupid either and won't KEEP buying cars that aren't as good as US variants just because some magazine says so. Remember how Volkswagen was the #1 quality import car? Back in the 1960's it was THE alternative to American cars. Well what happened to that company's sales when their cars became brittle and expensive? It dropped like a rock and never recovered. The same thing will happen to Toyota and Honda when they start charging too much for their vehicles or their quality drops to below American cars, nobody will buy them anymore. That's how the market works.
People always go for the best value, that's why American trucks still have record sales no matter what's happening to the passenger car market. American trucks have always been extremely good value and extremely well made. The problem was that no US company ever seemed to want to make good compact and mid-size grocery getters. Just go out and compare what a 1996 Lumina looks like today compared to a 1996 Camry. It's not the same. Unless it's got ten bazillion miles more the Camry will always look and drive better. Yes, a 1996 Cadillac STS and Buick LeSabre will have weathered time just as nicely as a 1996 Lexus GS300 but all those cars are in the luxury niche market that appeals to people with lots of money.
So yeah, American car companies have made good cars (some VERY good), but until recently just not anything that the majority of the US population bought. So the popular opinion became that US cars = Caca.
Sadly, this is the company's fault. They worked hard to get the reputation they have now. They could have fixed this a long time ago and didn't. Boohoo for them.
or the tundra
or the titan
Nissan and Toyota have always had worse fuel economy than American cars/trucks. That's what makes it doubly obvious that people were buying those vehicles for their quality as opposed to the savings in fuel. Only recently with that stupid Prius and their straight imported Yaris, have Toyota started to have anything ressembling better mpg. In any case, I was talking about value for money, not fuel economy. The Prius gets much better fuel economy than anything else on the market, but you wouldn't see me driving that little troll because it's a crap car. I'd rather drive a Jetta Diesel which gets better MPG on the highway, is more fun to drive, bigger, and will last for longuer than 7 years before needing to have someone toss another 4 or 5 grand into it to replace everything that broke.
Actually, that's kind of a lie. I'd rather buy a bus pass than a Prius. I'd rather buy Herpes. I'd rather buy a date with Amy Winehouse. I'D RATHER 69 ROSEANNE BARR!!!
Not to mention that Green cars are a fad, like SUVs. People will soon realize that they can p*ss their money away on much more worthwhile things.
But this denial that the Japanese did it better for all those years is unhealthy, those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it and all that. Trust me, the worst thing for the American car industry to do is revert to mid-1970s building and design practices. God those cars were awful, you've no idea.
its the media the call Renault-Nissan as Nissan- Renault. As we all know Nissan merged with the Automaker in the 90s with Renault being the parent company.
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/china-buyout-watch-saic-sets-sights-on-saturn/
saturn is badge and body panels how can they Saturn
perfect example of people not knowing what they are talking about remember senn Shelby said Gm could file chapter 11 and all the Gov would warranty the cars. If a supplier is bankrupt it self how are they going to get parts for it. where would i take thing to get work done. I work in a school a teacher thought that GE was the auto company in crisis. I met a guy once who thought Ford GM and dodge where the same company. I hate the media
My favorite example of media cluelessness is Karen Wagner's suggestion that Ford should stop making the Mustang, apparently ignoring that it comprises 20% of Ford's yearly US sales. Opinion is one thing, but dammit woman... learn to count.
