From: eoates@us.oracle.com
Newsgroups: rec.autos
Subject: Re: Im going to be sick...
Date: 8 Oct 92 18:03:03 GMT
Article-I.D.: us.1992Oct8.100303.1
Organization: Oracle Corporation, USA
X-Disclaimer: This message was written by an unauthenticated user
              at Oracle Corporation.  The opinions expressed are those
              of the user and not necessarily those of Oracle.

In article <1992Oct8.004800.3312@newsgate.sps.mot.com>, mark@wdcwdc.sps.mot.com (Mark Shaw) writes:
> In article <DP00RB4w164w@cellar.org>, blu@cellar.org (Dan Reed) writes:
> |> In (todays) USA today (Oct, 7th) on page 3A, there is a small article, "No 
> |> Foreign Cars".
> |> 
> |> Drivers of foreign-made cars in the Flint. Mich., beware.  Begeining Monday 
> |> only US made cars will be allowed in the City Hall Basement garage.  Flint 
> |> Mayor Woodrow Stanley said he issued the order to send a message to buy 
> |> American.  And he says he might designate other city lots for US only cars.  
> |> General Motors is the city's largest employer with 50,000 local workers, 
> |> whose taxes, Satnley says, help pay city workers' salaries.
> |> 
> |> (reprinted without perm.  All typos-gram errors be mine.)
< lots of stuff about the garage, buyers, etc. deleted>

> The majority of automotive consumers were fat, dumb, and happy with what
> Detroit was producing until the 70's when emissions, oil shortages, and
> rampant inflation made the smaller car finally attractive (or at least
> pallitable) to a majority of people.  
> 
<more stuff deleted>
--
Well, let's do some history here...

The first foreign car invasion was in 1959 for no apparent reason other than a
minor recession.  Remember the Iseta, Renault Dauphine, VW Bug, etc.?  Detroit
responded quickly with the Corvair, Falcon, and Valient!  Fine examples of
automotive design and engineering (actually, I liked the Corvair Monza, but one
of them never tried to kill me, either).  The foreign cars went away with the
recession and with Detroit's competition: only the bug was particularly well
made, and it stayed around.  It took Detroit only 2 years (until 1961) to
respond.

In the late sixties, the Japanese invasion started and was met with the Pinto
and the Vega!  Yee gads, man, no one who thought about it would buy a Pinto
over a Datsun 510 (its price competitor).  The Japanese cars were reliable,
well designed and cheap.  The price difference got fixed in a couple of 
years with Yen deregulation, but Detroit never got the quality message.  People
bought Japanese cars because of quality, not due to economy reasons alone. 
Detroit's small car answers were pathetic underpowered, exploding :), engine
warped nightmares (ever have a Vega?).

Apparently Detroit (or Ford at least) got the quality message in the
mid-1980's, and started producing better made and designed products.  The
American buying public is critical and doesn't trust Detroit irons much, so
they are slow to return to the fold.  Requiring American cars in order to
utilize a public utility (or avoid mischief regarding your paint job) is the
response of the GM type labor unions trying to avoid actually competing with
the Japanize and Germans (and Koreans, whoopie!) by intimidating the buying
public.  I suspect restrictions on public access based upon product purchase is
not legal and should be tested.  I likewise suspect that employment treatment
based on using the employers products is also not legal.  Let the courts
decide.

My conclusion: evaluate your automotive options and buy the cars/trucks which
suit your needs and are built to high quality standards, regardless of country
of origin.  If all things are equal, you may want to consider buying American,
if you can determine what that is (are US made Hondas allowed in the Detroit
parking lot?).  Me, I picked Ford Explorer when time came to replace my
Pathfinder.
-- 
Ed Oates (my opinions, not Oracle's)
 
*** Holy ozone, Batman, what a sunburn! ***
Newsgroups: rec.autos