American car makers...with a focus on management...have lost the car market. Toyota and Honda make cars that have lower maintenmave cost and better miles per gallon.

Perhaps, "Detroit" ought to have engineers come up with a NEW combustion engine that gets 75 over the highway, 50 in town. That would reclaim the market!

Forget the hybrid stuff. We can out a man on the Moon but can't come up with a new engine???

Maybe Americans should stop assuming so much about the foreign cars and actually compare the numbers. Unless you buy a hybrid, American cars have as good or better mpg. Also, believe it or not some American cars are more reliable than their Japanese counterparts.

Let’s face it a camery gets about 29-30 mpg by the EPA estimate. Chevy makes a 400hp Corvette that gets 28 mpg, and their trucks and SUVs can get 20-22 mpg or more.

The comment of 20-22mpg for gm trucks and suvs is not even close to what it should be. The American cars getting as good as the imports is only possible if you drive 55-60 miles per hour like my sister does and she says she gets 28mpg with her Chevy Impala V6.The imports will achieve this at 65-70 miles per hour maybe? Does anyone else out there drive 55-60 miles per hour also like my sister does? If so what mpg do they get?

Nobody can accuse me of not giving American cars a fair try. I've owned 3 Fords, 1 Chevy, 1 AMC, 1 Eagle (Chrysler).

Foreign cars I owned include BMW, VW (Bug), Audi, Toyota and Honda. The best of all of them were, without question, 2 Toyotas and 2 Hondas. You can't beat their quality, reliability and the trade-in value.

The worst: Fords. Both my Taurus and T-Bird blew intake manifold and head gaskets right around the 3-year, 36,000 warranty. Trade-in value was about nil. Neither one of these vehicles came close to Kelly Blue Book used car estimates.

My worst foreign car was the BMW -- major overheating with air conditioner on. Eventually, the head itself got a crack which allowed water to seep in. The repair cost was astronomical. The head was replaced with a later model BMW because the original had a design flaw in the routing of the water jacket.

In my opinion, BMWs way over-priced and overrated. A lot of vehicles can outperform them, both foreign and domestic.

The best car: Honda. Hey, it's just my opinion.

I used to drive a Ford Ranger (small truck) and usually got around 18 mpg (regular driving which included highway and city driving). One reason I opted to go foreign for my current car. My brother drives a Tahoe (in Phoenix) and gets around 20mpg. He's started looking to get a smaller foreign car b/c his gas costs are too expensive.

Plus I will never ever buy a Ford again. Not because of reliability (my Ranger was fairly good to me) but how many stories have you heard of some Ford vehicle going up in flames?

I personally know two people that this happened to (one friend purchased her Focus, drove it off the lot, had it break down a few blocks down, was on the phone with the dealer across the street, when her car started to go up in flames).

Just my $0.02.

Of course we won't mention how Japan has been manipulating currency to gain martket and at the same time closing borders to goods that are superior to theirs.

Protectionism works, exploitation of a market and security for the homeland is great.

Of course if it causes record amounts of bankruptcies and foreclosures while you destroy the economic base of the market you are screwing with, who cares, you don't live there.

If you think that a Toyota Tundra weighing 3,000 lb. can lift a container weighing 10,000 lb. dangling over a cliff then you need to go back to high school.
Toyata says they have cables to support the load so that the whole thing doesnt plummet, but is that being honest? If the cable takes the weight then the Tundra is doing nothing. I would like to see a Tundra pull 10,000 lb. dead weight I dont think my 400hp GMC Duramax, that incidentally gets 23 mpg, could do that.
Oh, and the Prius Hybrid, all parts of that are made in Japan and shipped to the US for assembly, on a huge container ship that takes 15 days to reach the US, burning 53.2 tons of fuel oil per day, and the emmissions from shiping is exempt from the Kyoto agreement.
How "green" is that.
Maybe we could ask Al "the sky is falling" Gore.

It's really very simple and I don't know how many times it has to be said to get through: Toyotas and Hondas are better cars than Fords, Chevys and Chryslers. This is not rocket science (Consumer Reports shows this over a multi-year span as well). They get better mileage, they are more reliable and they last longer. But Americans are still in the grip of the American mantra: "Bigger is better." Fine. You get what you pay for.

I bought a 2007 Impala and it gets 30 mpg.....fully loaded with On-Star........$21,000.00 I love it.......Never had one thing wrong and 5 yr., 100,000 mile warranty on the power train.........

I do believe GM stock will double within the next 4 to 5 months. Watch! The "new" contract will allow GM to move forward at a very fast and aggressive pace.

Considered to buy a Toyota Tundra 2 months ago but found out through blogging that the engine is having problems and is not what it is cracked up to be....bought a GM Silverado and have no problem ----- I love it!

I drive an Electric Car!... And I have not paid for gas in over 3 years!!!

I also do not plug in to the "Grid" So I do not use Coal or Nuclear Power!
I run everything I own on Solar Panel Roof Tiles!!! Even if you did plug into your home. The cost for Electric Cars are around 1 to 2 cents a mile compared to Gas that is 10 to 15 cents a mile! (Do Research)

Even if I only spend $30.00 a week for Gas for one year = (a savings of $4,320.00)
Not counting Oil Changes, Fuel Filters, Air Cleaners, Smog Checks, Spark Plugs, Tune-Up's...and lots more! (Over $12,000.00) so far! - My Car Paid for Itself!!!

The average person drives less then 29 miles a day. Do you really need an oversized SUV or Hummer to go to the store? So why not buy an Electric Car?!

We can recharge new ni-cad batteries up to 200,000 plus miles on an Electric Car without just throwing the batteries away! (9000 cycles on some new electric cars) Batteries can also be recycled!

Electric cars can also be recharged from the heat from the Sun...They are called "Solar Panels" or "Wind Energy" or "Wave" or "Turbine" Energy!
You can get enough energy from the New "Roof Tile" Solar Panels ( http://www.premierpower.com/solar_energy_residential/roof_solar_tile.phpto ) (These are now as thin as normal roof tiles) to power All of the electric needs of your home But also power your electric car and then have enough energy left over to sell back to the Electric Co... (This is happening right now) They also make a car that runs on compressed AIR! www.theaircar.com


Please do some research! There are people in California and AZ. that will convert your gas car to Electric for under $10,000 (Look It Up)
Everyone could be driving an Electric Car if they wanted to right now!
Here are just a few places that sell electric cars Right Now! Just click on one or more of these links below and see for yourself!

www.zapworld.com www.teslamotors.com www.littleradioev.com
www.keystonecarts.com www.phoenixmotorcars.com www.ecarco.com
www.electriccars.com www.eaaev.org/eaaevsforsale.html http://www.sonyclassics.com/whokilledtheelectriccar/ www.electrifyingtimes.com
www.voltagevehicles.com
And there are So many more!!!

So you can keep buying and paying for Gas as it continues to Up and Up in price while I and other electric car owners Pay Nothing!

Are you caught in the "quality" flap? Consider rhis, for the better part of the 2007 year the most recalled cars in Amersica were Hondas, Toyotas, and Nissans. For various reasons these cars were recalled but for some reason you didn't know it unless you were went to the government site that covers recalls. Hmm, quality in foreign cars. How about the fact that for many years if you owned a foreign car you had to return it to the dealer at given mileage intervals for maintenance under fear you would void the warranty until the government stepped in and said no, maintenance can be performed wherever you like without voiding the warranty. If you perform routine maintenance on most cars, foreign and domestic, you will get very good distance on your vehicle. Poor maintenance by owners is the problem with most cars not poor quality. Domestic cars are quite durable and for the most part are cheaper. If an Impala gets 30 MPG and a Camry gets 34 MPG, how much more gas can you buy for $4000? That's about what the price difference is between equally equipped vehicles. Hmm, makes you wonder about the ol' sales pitch doesn't it.

Well first I have to figure out what a 'foreign' car is anymore. A Dodge Charger is made in Canada, 95% of Toyota Camry is made in the US, a Hyundai Sonata is made in Mississippi, A subaru is made in Michigan, etc etc.. So, do we go by brand name or actual place made or what ?? This is really a BS discussion considering how intertwined the whole automotive production process is. LIke a Nissan hybrid is a Toyoto enginerrs design and product so is it a Nissan or a Toyota.... Who cares !!!! A Ford Fusion is made in Mexico..so what !!!!!

We grew up in Chevy families, and always bought Chevy's ourselves. Then we bought a Buick. My husband drove Chevy pickups until 5 years ago. But we were not happy with the ratings of any of the American cars, and listened to our friends complain about their new American cars, so when we needed a new car we checked around, checked out Toyota and bought a Camry. After a few years we bought another Camry. Then my husband's truck was stolen, so instead of a truck, which we didn't need any more anyway, he bought a Toyota Corolla. A few years later he bought another Corolla and we also sold the Camry and bought an Avalon XLS. The Avalon was now 6 years old, and we do put a lot of miles on our cars, so we bought a new Avalon Limited. We have never had a problem with any Toyota we have owned. All the American vehicles we owned over the years were in and out of the garage to be fixed for one thing or another. Other than routine maintenance, not one Toyota has been in the garage for any repair at all. We kept our American cars about the same amount of time we keep our Toyotas, and we drive them the same too. The Toyotas get much better mileage than any of our American cars. Besides there is no real true American car anymore anyway. And my Avalon was built in the good ole USA. So tough, American car manufacturers, but you did not keep up with the trends, you build inferior products, and if you are losing the car race, it is your own darn fault. We don't know anyone right now, not a friend or family, who owns and American car, all for the same reasons.

The Americans lost the market share because of the unions. Plain and simple.

one of the least improved parts is the spark plug. do you know how much of your unburned gas goes out the exhaust pipe? enough to get you 10 more miles per gallon.

Ah, yes, electrics are great. Pay nothing though? What about disposal? Let your children pay for that? Someone needs to look at the big picture, the entire lifecycle. That's something the inventors of the gasoline engine didn't do. How green are the batteries you throw away? Gee, aren't they considered hazardous waste? And when it comes time to replace them (about every 5 years), what is your "maintenance" cost? I'm not saying don't tout electric: you just need to look at the whole picture, not just the slice you like. Same with "total solutions" like ethanol. Think about what the whole effect. Doesn't corn use a lot of fertilizer because it depletes the soil? And isn't fertilizer a major source of polution? Don't get me wrong, I'm far from a tree-hugger. I just would like someone, for once, to present an honest, unbiased, COMPLETE picture.

As for Toyota Camrys: the person who said 30 mpg must have been going downhill with a tailwind! The best we've ever gotten on our 2006 is 24mpg straight highway. And yeah, it as squeaks, and the tranny shifts funny sometimes. But hey, that's all part of the quality strategy I figure. I've had Fords, Chevys, and Chyrslers that were a lot better quality. But I've also had the same that were worse.

My major objection to Japanese cars is that I was in Japan in the mid-80s, and saw how they got their market share. While you could buy a Nissan Sentra here for $4995, the same car before safety upgrades and a 100% tarriff was on the lot for $13,000 in Japan. And no American cars in sight. Hmmm.... I wonder how that happens? Can you say "Protectionism"? However they got their share though, I agree that American manufacturers need to pay better attention to the consumer.

I have owned imports and domestics. Today's domestic cars have come a long, long way from their poor performance and economy of the 70's and 80's. I currently drive an '04 Impala with the 3.5 liter V6. On road trips it consistently gets between 30 and 31.5 miles to the gallon, driving at or above the speed limit. Of course, it's usually just two adults under 180 lbs each and luggage. An automobile full of people and luggage will not do as well. I figure the gas pump is NOT going to give me any more gas than it indicates on the pump. Maybe the Impala's odometer might be a bit optimistic? Although the familiar trip home is the same mileage as every other car I have driven there. But even assuming a 5% error in the odometer, it would still equal or top the mileage of most imports with four cylinder engines both in the city and on the highway. GM seems to have adopted an engine and transmission set up that uses low end torque and lets the engine lope at highway speeds. An engine turning 2000 rpm and developing good power at 70mph will surely use less gas than one spinning over 3000 rpm and near the top of it's torque curve, straining to move the car.

I'm no engineer, but that seems the only way to explain the mileage performance I get from the V6.

Americans have been and are being hoodwinked by the better advertising of Foreign Auto Makers and the media. I have been in the Auto Repair Industry for over 30 years and foreign autos require more repairs and maintenance at a higher cost than do domestic autos as a rule. In the long run you will spend less with domestics.
Besides a '67 Corvette and a '69 Camaro, I also own a current Generation Corvette that gives me better than 25 mpg on the highway, 500 horses, 12 sec. 1/4 miles and 0-60 in less than 4 sec. For $65,000. There is NO foreign car that can touch that performance at that price. My wife's '94 Z/28 has 184,000 plus miles with NO major repairs other than routine stuff. Have never been into the engine, trans, or axle. Asian crap, which keeps me in business, require routine t/belt changes, and Nissans with routine $1600 dollar timing chain jobs, not to mention distributor changes and Mazdas with electronic problems are my gravy. Keep them coming. I will retire soon because of the Asian junk that Americans keep on buying.