http://autos.aol.com/article/general...29142409990001
DOES TO ME!

Please Take Survey!

KC

 

Voted.

 

Oh Yah Majority voted American ! like me, even know I am from Canuckistan. but makes sense to me !

 

Voted! American all the way!!

 

I voted #2:

"Not really. I work hard for my money and thus I want to buy the best possible products I can afford."

As a hard working consumer, I see it as the automakers responsibility to provide me with the best product possible for the money, not for me to freely give them my hard earned money for an inferior product. These companies certainly are capable of and ought to be providing the best cars, period, and if for whatever reason they're failing to do so, then waving a flag in my face is not going to loosen my wallet to pour my cash into some corporate coffers.

That said, I do prefer to buy American and if an American company offers that superior product, I am more than delighted to spend my money on that superior, American-made product. But bottom line, it's up to the company, wherever they're from, to offer that superior product to me in the first place.

I am no fan of corporate welfare, especially with my own meager, hard earned dollars.

 

Superior is subjective. but..

Are you saying if the products are equal you would buy american? or only if they were clearly better?

 

Well, some measures of a vehicles qualities can be objectively measured or assessed (dimensions, engineering features, specs, price, etc.), while others are more clearly subjective (styling, sound and other sensory qualities, tuning, driver feedback and involvement). But for the sake of argument, let's presume readily distinguishable cars in terms of one being superior to the other at a given price.

In the case of two equal cars, one clearly domestic (even that's not so clear in this globalized world, what about a Chevy made in Mexico?), one clearly import (nor is that clear either, what about a Honda made by American workers feeding American kids in an American plant paying taxes to America?), I'd give the nod to the domestic car. But I have little patience or sympathy for a domestic manufacturer trying to foist off a clearly inferior product on me by waving the flag in my face.

What about domestic manufacturer's partriotic duty to country and countryman to develop and produce the finest vehicles in the world, period? Should they not do this, then I think the onus of accountability rests on their shoulders for not meeting that standard, not mine for wisely refusing to purchase their inferior product. Too often, I think this argument, by focusing on the consumer, is turned bass-ackwards in taking the spotlight of responsibility off the manufacturer.

 

I hear ya, but the problem is that buy not buying American, you're hurting the American workers a lot more than the corporate types who are in charge of the poor decisions.

 

vote Vote Vote!

 

I am as patriotic as the next person, maybe more so than many.

As others have said, it is up to the manufacturer to make a quality product. It is not my responsibility to blindly buy American products and "hope for the best".

 

The auto workers do get hurt, but again, who's fault is that? The manufacture's for not doing their job right and building the best products in the world? Or mine for not being gullible enough to buy less than the best for my hard earned dollars? I certainly have all the sympathy in the world for big three autoworkers who, given the proper circumstances, are quite capable of building the best cars in the world, as many foreign manufacturers who've set up shop in the States have readily proven.

But I refuse to coddle bad management simply by having a sympathy gun held to the head of the auto workers as some sort of emotional/patriotic blackmail -- "Buy our crappy cars or this American worker gets fired ... and salute the flag after you stroke out that big check." Rather, in this scenario, I see both the auto worker and the consumer as the victims of bad management and again, the onus of responsibility and solution lies squarely with vastly better management.

I've readily bought American-made cars when I thought they were the best in the market, but I have just as readily bought foreign-made models too when they were clearly better. If someone has a problem with the latter, then don't get mad at me for making a rational decision, get mad at the American manufacturers for failing to serve us, the American consumers, by failing to produce the best cars. THAT is where the blame should fully lie.

 

Here Here!!!
Voted #2

 

Not sure if anyone cares, but here's my opinion as a European Mustang owner:

From an environmental point of view, it's always better to shop local. For example, shipping a Japanese-made Prius to the US or EU renders it completely pointless when you take into account the thousands of tons of fuel burned by the carrier ship.
Sentimentally speaking though, and to paraphrase that GT500 "Autobahn" commercial, I couldn't find a V8 I liked and could afford in Europe, therefore I bought the Mustang.

So, buying a Mustang in Europe may not have made much economical sense for me (I paid $47k for it), but I'm as happy as a kid on Xmas morning whenever I drive it. However, I will soon buy a diesel Mini Cooper or Fiat 500 as a daily driver, but purely on the reason that I want to save the Mustang for the future. And yeah, I think those two little cars are übercool.

 

To me it does not matter which is better, cheaper, more efficient, longer lasting or safer....I BUY AMERICAN!
We are only hurting ourselves if continue to not invest in home and not put our confidence in home products. This is exactly how we stay Americans, by believing in ourselves no matter what the cost and what obstacles we have to overcome.

 

Certainly matters to me . Though I don't buy American because I feel I should, I buy it becuase I believe (based on my experiences) American cars to be made just as well or better in some cases then their foreign counter parts

 

well if we HAVE to buy american...good bye walmart!

 

Werd, it works for China!

 

I couldn't care less where the vehicle is made, as long as it was built by Ford.

 

Works for everyone but the US, we are the only country that our leaders have us up for sale to the highest bidder. Every other country protects its corporations. I say tariff every car built by a non-US company $3000 no matter where it is built. They all essentially do it to our products. Way too many countries are getting a free ride off the American populous, a lot of it funded by our own tax dollars.

 

Are you honestly advocating that?