"Our" Economy

[ShnOmac]

I posted this in another thread but I really want to hear what people have to say, fire away!


So I am sitting here reading this thread and thinking about this madness we call the economy. Most of us agree that the economy is not at its best right now and there is alot of problems with our big three. Then it struck me...... I am part of our Big 3's problem. I BOUGHT A BMW.... What if I would of bought a car from the big 3? What if we all bought a car from the big 3? We bitch and moan about the economy yet many of us do nothing to change it. Maybe we should realllllly start looking at our purchases a little more carefully before we fork over the cash. This economy has really got me thinking..... WHAT CAN I DO DIFFERENT??????? I think I am going to sale my BMW and buy a vehicle from the big 3. Hey I am only one person but its a start. Maybe we can change our economy and not have to wait for our government to figure it out for us. What if each one of us convinced 1 family member or 1 friend to buy from the big 3 instead of foreign? Maybe its to far fetched but damn it I am willing to give it a try.

[nickspohn]

"Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."

[detroitboy]

My father retired from Chrysler, my brother from GM, my former in laws from GM, my uncles from Ford, Chrysler and GM, and more friends and neighbors than I could ever even count up (fortunately I was the red headed step child and went into law enforcement).
But buying American has always been our motto for most in this area. Neither I nor anyone in my family would ever have even considered buying a foreign car no matter what the price, and most of my current neighbors feel the same way. I was shocked when I went to the west coast and saw all the foreign cars on the road!
So what went wrong with the rest of the country???? Sure the big 3 built some losers....but so did Toyota, Renault, Honda etc. What about all the years when Hondas and Toyotas all warped their aluminum cylinder heads if you looked at them wrong? The consumers just sucked it up, paid the repairs and kept whining about the quality of the American car they had 5 years before their Honda. The American consumer has not been the best educated consumer...in fact they have been brainwashed into believing the American products are inferior and its going to come back and haunt the entire economy. Lets hope its not too late. I love my CTS and my GMC pickup and would'nt take any foreign car over them for any reason. Everyone has to chip in and do their part to help solve our current problems.

[joes3rdcamaro82/91/2010]

Nothing pisses me off more than to see a person with Vet. tag pull in to my dealership for service driving a Toyota.

[joes3rdcamaro82/91/2010]

I have never owned a anythin but domestic.

[littlecammi]

The mainstream car magazines have for decades been praising Japanese imports for their economy and reliability and European imports for their engineering and performance, while denigrating virtually every American car (other than 'vette and Viper). They justify this bashing with the lame claim that their criticisms make American automobile manufacturers improve their quality. Now they are starting to acknowledge good American products (such as the Chevy Malibu), but are continuing to compare them to the imports they have crowned as best in class. It is now too late for the American carmakers to regain sales lost to Toyota, Honda, BMW, Mercedes and Audi. The car magazines have done too good a job convincing the American public that imports are good and American cars are bad. The sharp styling of the new Camaro may steal a few sales from entry level BMWs, but the only way American car manufacturers can truly regain lost sales is if the American car magazines would praise American vehicles while also heavily criticizing the imports. And this will never happen.

We need to tell every decent American: Do not buy a Camry or Accord - buy a Malibu instead. Do not buy a BMW 3-series coupe - buy a Camaro instead. Do not buy a Porsche Boxster - buy a Corvette instead. (etc.) I have never owned an import and I never will.

[Nickdago]

Agree. I do everything I can to tell people that American cars are better now than ever. My brother-in-law just bought an Accord and I have done nothing but tell him how bad the reviews have been on his new car every chance I get(see edmundsonline and motortrend). He does also have a Hummer and an Escalade but still. People for some reason still believe the Jap cars are better than they really are while those of us who really appreciate cars for more than just transportation know different. it would be a shame to let GM go under now when they are finally just getting their sh__ together and building world class cars.

It is to bad they have let the UAW control their business over tha last 30 years instead of them controlling the UAW. Not sure how all the foreign car companies have been able to tame the Unions but they sure have been able to keep them from telling them how to do business.

What GM really needs is some kind of suda bankruptcy where the goverment guarantees to keep them flush with cash while they rid themselves of all of these Union strangleholds on their business structure as well as lighten the load on their dealership count. This will over the long run along with the quality of cars they have been putting out almost guarantee their survival into the long haul.

[andyrew]

In contrast I have never owned anything but European. However I havent ever purchased new, its all been used from a member of the community.

I will be purchasing a new car in the next year, and I have a wide pallet of options, however Im am 90% at getting a Camaro. The other 9% is a G8, and the 1% is european, in which it would be used.

[EllwynX]

All my vehicles have been Chevrolet.

My mother has only owned GM/Chrysler/Ford vehicles since the mid-80's (she did have Datsun and old VW Bug in the 70's).

And my father has owned GM/C/F with the exception of that Datsun, VW and an Eclipse he bought 3 years ago. But he did decide the Eclipse was to small and traded it for a Charger that he loves.

[NAHURRY]

pure GM for me, mom,dad and sister!

[wildpaws]

All of my vehicles in the last 40 years have been GM with the exception of two used VW "beetles" years ago and my first car which was a used Ford. I've bought mostly Chevy with a sprinkling of Oldsmobile, Pontiac, and GMC. It is sad when sitting at a stoplight and looking at the vehicles around me and seeing more imports than domestic vehicles.
Clyde

[BigRigMike]

It is great to buy a vehicle from the Big 3 but I would also recommend to make sure you buy one that is made in North America. Preferably USA but I love Canada so I have no problem supporting them and a stronger Mexico helps make a stronger a USA.

[DarrenJ]

I have NEVER owned anything but a domestic nor would I unless the big 3 go down, then I wouldn't have a choice. Most have been GM, I owned 1 ford I purchased used from my brother-in-law (that car was the biggest POS ever!). Mostly Chevy starting with a 1973 Chevy van. My wife had a Renault when we were married, we had it about 2 months! The list:

1973 Chevy Van, 1976 Chevy Nova, 1979 Dodge Aspen, 1987 Chevy Cavalier Z-24, 1985 Chevy S-10, 1991 Chevy Lumina, 1992 Oldsmobile Cutlass International, 1993 Chevy Z-24, 1994 Chevy S-10, 1996 Baretta Z-26, 1998 Olds Bravada, 1999 Olds Bravada, 1999 Chevy Truck, 2000 Olds Bravada, 1992 Chevy Z-24, 2002 Chevy Cavalier, 2003 Chevy Suburban, 2004 Chevy 3/4 T Diesel truck, 1999 Camaro Z-28, 1967 Chevy Camaro, 2006 Chevy HHR, 2008 Chevy Surburban, 2008 Chevy HHR and soon to be a 2011 Chevy Camaro SS.

The Ford POS was in there somwhere between the 1994 S-10 truck and the 1996 Chevy Baretta.

We currently have the 1967 Camaro, 1992 Z-24, 1999 Z-28, 2004 Silverado, 2008 Surburban and the 2008 HHR.

Nothing against foreign drivers, but I do feel we need to be patriotic and buy American!

[AZZ28]

The best vehicles I've owned have been American...the worst vehicles I've owned have been American. At the end of the day, it's still: BUY AMERICAN!