If you park your foreign car near a park in Michigan, you can find it damaged.

[Dan B]

Re: If you park your foreign car near a park in Michigan, you can find it damage

The unions are where you'll find forklift drivers being paid $18 and hour.

Maybe 20 years ago. Try $30+ an hour. I believe that assemblers here (building minivans) are in the $32-$34 an hour range. Skilled trades is close to $40. I'm not sure what the wages are in other cities, but I would think that the contracts would keep it pretty consistent.

It's not difficult work, because the union won't let it be. You don't need an education, and you don't need to be particularly smart. So why is a guy putting wheels on a van worth substantially more then a guy who breaks his back every day shingling roofs in the hot sun for $9 an hour?

Since I'm all fired up, let me continue. The US auto companies are lamenting their drop in sales. At the same time the price of gas is going up, up, up. So why don't they stop making a dozen different $40,000 SUV's and make some small efficient cars that people will buy? The reason is that they can't. The overhead is so high that they couldn't turn a profit on a $12,000 car. The small efficient cars that are reasonably priced from GM are made by Daewoo in Korea. (Yeah, that's right. Your good ole' made in the US GM car is an import!!) Ford has the Focus, but by the time you drive it off the lot, you have paid substantially more than you would have for a Kia Rio or a Hyunda Accent.

Until these ridiculous wages are reigned in, the US auto industry will struggle because they cannot build the cars that people need (but not necessarily want).

Dan

 

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[Danimal]

I am a purchasing agent in a Tier 2/3 auto component manufacturing plant. I have been there 8 years. Our employees were recently told that our plant will close this December so that the work can be moved to Mexico. This decision was made based upon the REQUEST of our customers who want the parts cheaper. Their margins will improve while ours errode.
These seating components go in GM SUVs.
GM will be importing Chinese made "Cherry" subcompects next year.
These issues have been CREATED by the same "good ol'USA" companies that try to relate their product to baseball hot dogs and apple pie, etc.
Before that, two years ago, we lost a HUGE program making third row seats that went into Ford and Lincoln SUVs.
Guess where the work went...Mexico.

I have just accepted an offer with a new company and I start in November...making better money...and NOT in automotive (thank GOD)

I own a Honda Element. It was built in Ohio.
74% of the components in my Element are made by US companies. Honda and Toyota source US components to keep THEIR margins high because of decreased freight costs and reduced delivery times which results in lower $$` value of their on-hand inventory and increased inventory turns.
When each Element is sold....don't tell ME that the $$ goes to Nippon. A LOT of that money goes right back to US workers for all the companies that manufacture Honda parts in the US. Honda is also the largest employer in Ohio.

Sorry to hear about how far it's gone in Detroit, but I am not surprised. Most of those displaced Chevy and Ford workers need only to look back at the Union bosses and the GM and Ford executives to see where all the money went.

 

[midnightcaller]

Yes buy American, and for sure drive no rice......................Brought to you by the proud sponsors of Pearl Harbor......

I Was going to by a ford before I bought my Toyota, but the American car that was equal to the Toyota according to Consumer Reports, was rated very low and had a lot of mechanical problems. The Toyota was rated the best car to buy.

America needs to get their act together when it comes to their cars and make improvements

 

[Michigander2005]

http://www.uaw.org/uawmade/auto/2008/index.cfm


reading material a lot of vehicles made in North America not big 3

 

[re-tek]

Re: If you park your foreign car near a park in Michigan, you can find it damage

ok.. here's comes mister unpopularity (me)

i drive rice. why? because its built better. i'm born in USA and trained with general motors for 2 years to be a mechanic. i worked on buicks, chevy's and oldsmobiles for about 4 years. the things i saw wrong with some cars where just plain embarassing. screws through harnesses, loose camshafts, missing bolts just to name a few. i attribute them to people on the assembly line not giving a darn and letting quality issues just roll past them.

i owned a japanese built (J as the frst character in the VIN number) toyota pickup that i offroaded, caught air in many times, drove through salt water quite a bit and overheated 3 times which resulted in me having to replace the headgasket (shtuff happens). i beat the living crap out of that truck and still put 100 miles a day on it driving to another county to go to GM school. NOTHING ever broke on that truck that wasnt my doing. i now own a suzuki SUV that is canadian made but with jap assembled engine and transmission. 7 years running and aint nothing broke that hasnt been my direct fault except for the radiator. wanna guess who made the radiator? harrison division of GM!

i would love to support an american vehicle manufacturer but dont think i should have to do so at the expense of quality. dodge does have my attention though with their "lifetime powertrain warranty". that takes guts for an american manufacturer to offer. we design great cars, something happens though when they get put together...

i collect collins amatuer radio equipment which is still the standard by which other classic raio gear is judged and it was made here in the USA. click here to take a looksey..
http://www.wa3key.com/collins.html

i listen to altec lansing voice of the theater speakers (made in USA) and i also collect McIntosh audio gear which is still made here in USA by hand. i'm proud of owning some of the best audio gear out there and its made here.
wanna see some beautiful audio gear made by americans?
http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/

i still would carefully consider buying an american car though. if these guys are angry about losing their jobs, maybe they need to step back and look at why the american consumer is buying foreign cars.. quality.

okay i'm ready for the floggings!

 

[thompy]

I,m a union ship builder, and from what I've seen, much of the poor quality is managements problem or fault, we built ships built to certain specs, and management is always trying to cut corners, i work in the Quality Assurance DEPT and it a constaint battle, ISO certified and have yet to see where this improves our final product, just added paper work, problems on the floor are the same as before, this yard has been in business because of high quality in the past, but has really slipped in the last 7 years

 

[jeffinflint]

I'm near Flint, mI

Here in my area, I find that many of the historical areas are now overridden with ghetto. Many of them are so dangerous, I wouldn’t go there ever with my S&W 357. As soon as I retire, I am out of this darn welfare state. Now, that taxes have went up again, it’s a done deal for me. I am gone ASAP.

Good luck, Jeff in Flint, MI

 

[EDDE]

Re: If you park your foreign car near a park in Michigan, you can find it damage

my brother has been a mechanic since high school, certified for 10 years now
he tells me the American cars ,90% are sh!t
14 year old "foreign" made cars hold up better then 14 YO American made cars

 

[gregl01]

The "US" auto makers should wake up( and so should we ) GM Ford and Chrysler are consistently moving production and jobs out of the US and telling consumers and shareholders that they can't make any money blah blah blah. In the meantime, Toyota and others have spent $$$ moving operations HERE!!!! Many Toyota vehicles are made here by US workers. So when you look at new vehicles "foreign" really applies to all manufacturers. So I support the US by working for and driving Toyotas !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Greg

 

[Mike Silver -gold]

My dad and me both worked for Gm. We both retired after 40 and 36 years for me. Until you have worked your heart out SHUT UP. He died at 66 from a massave heart atack. Don,t tell me auto workers are paid too much. How much is your life worth? How would you like to work in an oil smelling,deafining hellishy hot plant all your life? Both of my uncles fought in WW2. Their minds were shot. I,ll ride a bike before I,ll drive Jap crap. Mike.

 

[Real de Tayopa Tropical Tramp]

HI MIKE: You quoted_>

" How would you like to work in an oil smelling,deafining hellishy hot plant all your life? "

~~~~~~~~~~~

You must be living a sheltered life, there are many many far worse jobs, with far far less pay and benefits. If it was so horrible, why did you stay there?

Don Jose de La Mancha

 

[JOe L]

I think its hard to determine what is "Jap Crap" anymore. I don't believe there is ANY vehicle made that doesn't have something "Jap" in it.
I work just as hard and anyone for the past 28yrs and will never get the chance to retire, and will buy anything I please.
Thanks to my Father who was in WW2, I have the right to do that.

 

[Ima Swinger]

I find it interesting that people are so against buying "rice burners" or "jap crap". I don't own any myself, but I'll consider it on my next purchase. It's just better made, with better milage.
Oh, and you might want to add up all of your purchases from your local Wal-Mart, Target, Toys-R-Us, etc. for as long as you've been buying goods. You'll find that you've already spent more for there products than you would pay for just one "rice burner".
Why do people whine about car imports, yet buy all other imported goods without so much as a whisper (TVs, stereos, cell phones, furniture, appliances, the clothes on some of your backs....that's right, check the tag!)?
Automobiles are a large single purchase, so I guess that's why they get picked on, but if you are saying "no" to imports then throw out those TVs and stereos and stop being a hypocrite already.

Ahhhhh.....that's better.
Let the stones fly !!!!

Ima

 

[Real de Tayopa Tropical Tramp]

HI MIKE: For the record, I have two isuzu Trooper SUV's, The oldest one is an 86 Diesel,

I use them simply because they outlast GM & Ford products 2:i or more in the back country where I do my "earning a living" thing. I use an SUV because a pickup with a camper just won't hack it for my overall needs.

The latest Trooper has over 140,000 hard off road miles on it. It has yet to develop any squeaks or rattles, something that I cannot say for my competitors with American SUV's with far less milage' I agree the parts cost quite a bit more, but then they they last and last. The only basic work needed by the latest Trooper has been to replace the front suspension bushings, which considering the roads it travels on, is quite remarkable...

I did change the shocks to Rancho heavy duty adjustable ones since the factory ones were too soft, even for city travel, too much sway and dip..

Would I buy American ? Of course, "IF" they gave me anywhere near the same security and value.

I rather imagine that all of the UAW peeps buy strictly American made goods, no ?

IMA smooch right on.

Don Jose de La Mancha

p.s There are still quite few of us around from WW-2 heheheh., however, I don't think that the world owes us a living if we can still move around just because we did what we were supposed to do for our country.. By this I do not intend to take away or belittle any ones contributation to the war, no matter how it was done.

I am including a prelanding pep talk paper issued to me on 5 Aug., 1942 just prior to landing on Guadalcanal. also an acceptance letter from the new USAF for pilot training 7 years later, almost to to the date. As you can see, I do have a bit of time in the service of Uncle Sam, not counting time in the Border Patrol...

 

[Sandman]

It's our auto industries fault that they don't make cars that people want to buy and also have bland interiors. Myself, I like Chevy SS, but can't get any with red interiors. I also wouldn't mind fender skirts and pipes.

 

[Real de Tayopa Tropical Tramp]

Geeze SAND mi buddy: yer dating yourself hehehehh they WERE sexy no? Dual exhaust with white walls too?

Don Jose de La Mancha

 

[doozis]

Just be glad the " big three automaker's" don't build computers
or that thing you're staring at would probably cost 7000.00 and
lock up every five minutes
I have a 2000 Chevy Lumina 66,000 miles , the signal switch on the steering column went bad , and the automatic transmission has had to
have the main valve body replaced twice > all VERY expensive repairs.
My 1994 toyota pickup service truck has 231,000 miles and has had
the timing chain replaced once less than 220.00 and it still runs great. I would MUCH prefer to buy American but when it comes to my service truck I have to have the most reliable I can afford.

Doozis

 

[Ima Swinger]

Hey Doozis, I have a Chevy Lumina 1999, and the trans. went out with 11 miles to spare on a 100,000 mile warranty.
Thank God I had that warranty, it certainly paid for itself with that repair. Oh, and my "Chevy" Lumina was manufactured in Oshawa, Canada (according to the sticker on the inside of the door).

Ima

 

[rebelLT]

hhmmmm....Lemme see. In the past 15 years I have owned 1 kia van (horrible junk), I chevy van (more horrible junk), I chevy truck (lets not talk about that one), a ford ranger v6 (no problems, fuel milage sucked), Ford f150 (bad milage, no problems yet), ford bronco II (300,000 miles on original engine and trany, sleeps in the back yard because its not worth giving away), a saturn (ran ok for 100k than mysteriously fell apart), a hemi durango (no problems yet...), a porche 928 (My baby, never much left the garage till I sold it ), a ford taurus (not so good) and an 86 honda shadow that NEVER failed me!
I just realized that the good cars were all mine and the mechanical nightmares were all driven by my wife!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Maybe the lesson here is to drive reasonably and take care of your ride. And dont buy you wife an SUV that will do 0 to 100 in about the time it takes to break a transfer case!

 

[Mike Silver -gold]

Ten years ago,just before I retired,no foreign cars were allowed to park in our GM parking lot. That was fine none of the guys working there wanted that CRAP anyway. That all changed in the past ten years. I drove by the plant a few weeks ago,loaded with Jap crap. Oh yeah the plant is closeing this December, after about 80 some years. Eat your crap dummys.