When faced with a near decision on purchasing a new car so often and many of us come face to face with a dilemma and/or an irony which culminate into a near paradox. Granted many of us simply don’t give it that much of a thought and tend to follow the rule of “hey as long as I got my Bimmer the heck with the other guy in the Chevy”. After all it is a matter of one’s personal preference enveloped with style and sandwiched in Money. Case closed? I don’t think so! What is it with you now? Well If I have $60,000-$65,000 to spend on a Bimmer then it is the ultimate machine but if I have only $20,000 to spend on a Chevy then it is the Heart Beat of America! Isn’t it? Yes? No? May be? But wait a minute-- not so fast.
This brings us face to face with the heart of this topic and the rules are clear: respecting every opinion; that is the good the bad but NOT the ugly opinion. Here it is and I will hand it to you on the following silver plated scenarios to illicit your thoughts: Note I had to confront the following scenarios with many friends and relatives whenever CARS are the topic of the day:
1. Some will argue I’ll never buy an American car. So much for the heart beat above!
2. American cars ride terrible, cannot handle/will not handle like a bimmer. Ok and………..No Fords no Chevy’s for me. OK then……..
3. After 80,000-100,000 miles kiss an American car good buy. New alternator, new battery, new, new, new wow so much for so many parts. So much for automotive qualities at Chrysler, ford, and GM. Look at them MAN they’re loosing for the Japanese’s Toyotas and Nissans. OK and……..so………
4. Others would simply put the blame squarely on the worker’s union. So much for complains.
When I am confronted with these guys above; the first thing comes to my mind is this:
1. Hey guys but we do make the F14, F15, F16, F18, F22 and they are state of the art flying machines. Think F117 for one and B1 for a second. What about the Apache? To me these are the ultimate machines (well yes killing machines) but I trust you get the point. WE DO NOT LACK THE TECHNOLOGY NOR THE KNOW HOW TO COME UP WITH OUR OWN ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE. The million dollar question is this: why don’t we? alas the military hardware and NASA?
2. What happened to the good old cars of the sixties even the fifties???
3. What happened to the Automatic Transmission?
4. What about the kings of the slant 6 engines and queens of the V8 engines? I can go on and on.
Money Questions:
1. Is it true that there are three approaches/philosophies of automotive industry?
A. The German approach: Give me $60.000 upfront I’ll give a bimmer almost trouble Free for the 1st 5 years or so.
B. The Japanese approach: Give me $12,000-$60.000 upfront I’ll give you a Sentra all the way up to 430 Lexus. Almost trouble free for the 1st 5 years or so.
C The American Approach: Is neither a German nor Japanese. You will get more for your money. Luxury / comfort / low RPM / quite engine /55MPH type of a deal. BUT BEWARE you miss with me I may throw in a VIPER for you. Fair game?
D. Some how Swedish cars seldom come up as an issue in these discussions. Sorry for keeping you out Saab/Volvo and thanks for your safety though.
Some vitamins or some sparks if you wish for further discussions and reflections:
1. Hasn’t Lexus proven that luxury and reliability aren’t mutually exclusive? Yes? May be? Is Lexus a Japanesse Mercedes replica? Did Infinity find its roots in a British jaguar.
2. Please Read the following passages I have quoted from another forum and I quote:
“The quality of German engineering depends on which German car you buy. VW has had reliability issues for decades. Opel is crap (figures, what with it being GM). Audi, even though it's a VW company, is generally pretty solid. Mercedes and BMW are generally bulletproof. But, yeah, you have to keep up with maintenance. That's the case for pretty much any car. Maintenance costs can be an issue with German cars” End quote
3. Do I have to be a divorced orthodontic going through a mid-live crisis to buy a Porsche or if my money is very tide can I settle for a base Z28 with no options for an invoice price of $20.000 and when confronted with a mid life crisis order it with the SS package for about $3000 or more??
CAN SOMEONE HELP US TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS GOING ON HERE???
Regards
Billb
This brings us face to face with the heart of this topic and the rules are clear: respecting every opinion; that is the good the bad but NOT the ugly opinion. Here it is and I will hand it to you on the following silver plated scenarios to illicit your thoughts: Note I had to confront the following scenarios with many friends and relatives whenever CARS are the topic of the day:
1. Some will argue I’ll never buy an American car. So much for the heart beat above!
2. American cars ride terrible, cannot handle/will not handle like a bimmer. Ok and………..No Fords no Chevy’s for me. OK then……..
3. After 80,000-100,000 miles kiss an American car good buy. New alternator, new battery, new, new, new wow so much for so many parts. So much for automotive qualities at Chrysler, ford, and GM. Look at them MAN they’re loosing for the Japanese’s Toyotas and Nissans. OK and……..so………
4. Others would simply put the blame squarely on the worker’s union. So much for complains.
When I am confronted with these guys above; the first thing comes to my mind is this:
1. Hey guys but we do make the F14, F15, F16, F18, F22 and they are state of the art flying machines. Think F117 for one and B1 for a second. What about the Apache? To me these are the ultimate machines (well yes killing machines) but I trust you get the point. WE DO NOT LACK THE TECHNOLOGY NOR THE KNOW HOW TO COME UP WITH OUR OWN ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE. The million dollar question is this: why don’t we? alas the military hardware and NASA?
2. What happened to the good old cars of the sixties even the fifties???
3. What happened to the Automatic Transmission?
4. What about the kings of the slant 6 engines and queens of the V8 engines? I can go on and on.
Money Questions:
1. Is it true that there are three approaches/philosophies of automotive industry?
A. The German approach: Give me $60.000 upfront I’ll give a bimmer almost trouble Free for the 1st 5 years or so.
B. The Japanese approach: Give me $12,000-$60.000 upfront I’ll give you a Sentra all the way up to 430 Lexus. Almost trouble free for the 1st 5 years or so.
C The American Approach: Is neither a German nor Japanese. You will get more for your money. Luxury / comfort / low RPM / quite engine /55MPH type of a deal. BUT BEWARE you miss with me I may throw in a VIPER for you. Fair game?
D. Some how Swedish cars seldom come up as an issue in these discussions. Sorry for keeping you out Saab/Volvo and thanks for your safety though.
Some vitamins or some sparks if you wish for further discussions and reflections:
1. Hasn’t Lexus proven that luxury and reliability aren’t mutually exclusive? Yes? May be? Is Lexus a Japanesse Mercedes replica? Did Infinity find its roots in a British jaguar.
2. Please Read the following passages I have quoted from another forum and I quote:
“The quality of German engineering depends on which German car you buy. VW has had reliability issues for decades. Opel is crap (figures, what with it being GM). Audi, even though it's a VW company, is generally pretty solid. Mercedes and BMW are generally bulletproof. But, yeah, you have to keep up with maintenance. That's the case for pretty much any car. Maintenance costs can be an issue with German cars” End quote
3. Do I have to be a divorced orthodontic going through a mid-live crisis to buy a Porsche or if my money is very tide can I settle for a base Z28 with no options for an invoice price of $20.000 and when confronted with a mid life crisis order it with the SS package for about $3000 or more??
CAN SOMEONE HELP US TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS GOING ON HERE???
Regards
Billb