I have two stickers on my truck. The one on the back says bowhunting.com, the one on the front window on the passenger side says Norfolk and has the state of Virginia on it. I was raised to buy American by my dad and I intend on doing so until my time is done. The wife has a Chevy Trailblazer and a Chevy HHR. The Snailblazer was made here in the good ole USA in OHIO. The HHR on the other hand was produced in Mexico, hopefully they employed enough there to save us some immigration In the end the companies are American held and some guy named Toyoda isn't reaping the rewards of my purchase. To date I have had to replace the brakes rotors all around twice and install pads. A rear axle seal went out and a lot of oil changes. Luckily I have a friend that is a crew chief on a 7 second NMRA and IMSA driven Mustang to handle the labor for me Not bad for a 6 year old truck that has been beat to ****. As far as Degree's go, I think they can be a complete crock. I am back in school getting my Bachelor's because moving up in my company is near impossible on merit alone. Luckily my company is paying for the degree, but when it is all said and done I will be no better at doing my job Sam Walton had no degree and built the largest retail business in the world, makes you wonder if the school of hard knocks might not be underated
I've owned three Nissan trucks in my life and think they are all great but I would love to own a Tundra. So the answer is yes.
You don't have to worry about getting me bent out of shape. I do not argue politics or religion. Only state my opinions. I just do not agree with your outlook on this. Nothing more nothing less. To add, I have no problem with the paycheck they make at the auto plants. A person chooses their career path. If someone wants to be a teacher, they have an idea on the pay rate, and what they must do to attain the job. It is their choice to pursue that profession. Just the same for the auto workers. I am happy for each and everyone of them being able to take care of themselves and their families in a comfortable manner. I'd rather have 140,000 comfortable GM middle class auto workers than 140,000 beaten down and poor folks.... Just my opinion.
I was pretty die hard Ford guy, I've owned nothing but. However, here recently I've come to the realization that nothing is "100% made in the USA" anymore. Everything is outsourced to other parts of the country, whoever the lowest bidder is. I loved my FX4, but it was too much more wallet. So now I'm looking for a used 4x4 Tacoma, I could really care less about make anymore. As long as it gets me to the woods and out of a rut now then, I'll be good.
I probably stated my opinion poorly Duke, it had little to do with education (that was simply an example), and more to do with businesses being competitive in price and product offering to justify earning my $$$. I'm sorry but unless I've got a personal relationship with someone, I'm not spending $$$ with them unless they are offering me the best value for my money. This is the same standard I'm held to at my work, and I have competed with international companies my entire career. You need to be competitive in price, or have a game changing product that is highly desirable and in low supply. For the record, I myself don't have a 4 year degree. With that said, I did get a 2 year assoc degree and started my first "real job" with plans of joining a specific career path. After 3 years of realizing that my planned career wasn't ever going to produce the income or job security I wanted, and also seeing it was being commoditized by tons of qualified people overseas that were easily trained and would do it for less than I was willing to, I decided to change career paths to something better suited to the lifestyle I wanted to live. I didn't expect people to just pay me more just because I was American.
This says a lot. The "expected" wage of the american worker,(high) combined with the "expected" price for goods/services of the american consumer(low) = companies are forced to make products as cheap as possible, and that is more easily done overseas.
Interesting post, Jeff, and I'm not surprised in the least from the responses. In fact, this is a "mild" discussion compared to most when dealing with this topic. I'm young, and don't have many vehicles under my belt. I've only owned two trucks. Both Toyota Tacomas (96 and now my 05). To answer the question simply? Yes I would seriously consider buying another. Note that I said "consider." The recall has nothing to do with it. This recall/defect is a fraction of the vehicles in production. Is it unacceptable? Absolutely. You guys don't realize that ALL vehicles run multiple control systems through the ECM. It's not just throttle position. This "drive by wire" system is just one part of this closed loop system, and when you have literally thousands of possible scenarios that can trigger an event like these unintended acceleration issues, it's very difficult to diagnose, and certainly can happen (the malfunctions, not necessarily the throttle issue) on any number of modern vehicles today. Now, with that aside, Toyota has relied TOO much on their reputation of putting out quality vehicles that they're beginning to cut corners, and their customer care is taking a back seat to the bottom line. Their vehicles are still on par or above many vehicles on the market, but they REALLY need to step back to their roots of developing simple, reliable vehicles which was what allowed them to gain such a stronghold in the U.S. market. I won't get into the U.S. vs foreign auto manufacturer debate. It gets no where. I purchase what I feel is going to give me the most bang for my buck. I'm with RJ on this. The recall has no bearing on this decision, but that's not to say I wouldn't give everyone an equal shot. From a personal standpoint, here's what I've experienced. My 1996 Tacoma was lifted 6" on 33" mud tires with 500+lbs of armor hanging off it for most of it's final 100K miles. I ABUSED that truck offroad in ways most of your trucks will never see :D I sold it with just under 200K for ~$400 less than what I paid for it 5 years prior. I changed the cat, clutch, and front wheel bearing. That's it. My 05 at 87K miles has been relatively trouble free with a recent power steering pump change, but I can certainly tell the build quality is not on par with my 96. Then again, it's comparitevly speaking. My dad's 03 F250 is falling apart. The 4wd actuator has gone out TWICE (in the first 5K miles), he has rust developing at the back of the cab (garage kept and washed every week), exhaust manifold leak in the first 30K miles, drag link clunk that can't seem to be fixed, and every rattle/creak you can imagine when you drive it. Did he get a lemon? Possibly. In this indusrty today, IMHO, they (the auto companies) are ALL a gamble. Some may be more than others.
I get all that RJ.. and agree totally. Just didn't get the assumption that someone with a degree was more deserving... which your examples showed. Looks like we just misunderstood each other. And why is it everyone always thinks these internet conversations are said in haste is beyond me. I think people need to get out more. (this part is not stated towards you RJ).
Well... here's the real pisser.. it's on YOUR tax dollar. Money well spent wouldn't you say? You think if that job was in the private sector they would be making that much? It was an implied response towards RJ by the way. Word.
In her real line of work I'm sure she makes far more than that bro...:D To answer the title of this thread... I wouldn't buy a Toyota but that's only because they're not my cup of tea... Not because of their recent recalls or not because of them being a forgein owned company. Many years ago I would have straight up said hell no simply because they were all built overseas which took every dime back overseas after it was sold - what the dealer made off of it. Now, with Toyota, Honda, etc. having plants here changes my feelings considerably. They are creating jobs for many American's and paying them a fair wage. The money the U.S workers make stays in the U.S. and helps boost our economy. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for buying American and IMO these forgein owned car companies that are built here, are buying American. I'm not ever gonna get started on the whole Big 3 union thing... They're their own worst enemy... And besides... How many here drink beer brands that are made by Anheuser Busch? Last I heard they're now owned by a forgein company... http://www.anheuser-busch.com/press/ABInBev_Press_release.pdf
