Surely this is a repost by now, but I can't find it anywhere.

Auto sales tumble as housing slump weighs
Big Three see share of U.S. market fall below 50 percent for first time

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20073193/

"One industry analyst said the U.S.-based Big Three accounted for less than 50 percent of total sales for the first time ever, down from a peak of about 77 percent in the mid-1980s."

I dont like the sound of this. You'll never see me driving a foreign truck, that's for sure. A lot of interesting info in the article.

 

x2, People make me laugh. They sit here and complain about the U.S. economy, complain they cant find a better paying job then go buy a Toyota. Wars between countries like China, Japan & the United states are not fought on battle fields, but now fought on Wall Street. Unless the American public smartens up the future does not look good, economic control is still control

 

I think you missed the point.

 

you can choose 1 platform and draw a lop sideed comparision that way. The simple fact is that Ford has put more food on American tables that Toyota ever will. Do some parts/assembly get outsourced to save money? Hell yeah they do. Ford has had to make such decisions because of the terrible economic shape they are in from people with no national loyalty. Ford has plants thet employ hundreds of thousands of American workers and the profit from the company goes back into the U.S. economy. Toyota is the most profitable automaker in the world, think those profits are spent over here? Yes toyota built a couple plants here and hired some American workers. The thing is though they dont care about the American people, they care about the American profit share. If making the company seem american by thowing up a few plants here helps then so be it.

 

Toyota imports 40% of their production already assembled, is that better? Remember that ship full of cars that almost flipped over going to Canada? It was full of Mazda's coming over from Japan. How many plants to the big 3 have in Japan? Their goverment won't let them in. They kill the compition here then can make them wherever and charge what they want. Compitition is good, one side heavily slanted compition isn't.

My F-150 was built in Missouri, my Ranger in Kentucky. They are not 100% US, the engine for my Ranger was put together in Germany and the tranny is of a French design, and so far the hostilies live on and Germany is still beating France, 1-0.

 

Taken From

http://www.ford.com/en/company/about...ufacturing.htm

"Contributions of the U.S. auto industry
Motor vehicle production is the largest manufacturing industry in the United States. It directly or indirectly employs more than 6.6 million Americans, or about five percent of all non-government jobs. Almost 90 percent of all American autoworkers have jobs at Ford, GM or the Chrysler Group of DaimlerChrysler. These three employers build 75 percent of all the cars and trucks made in America, and operate plants in 20 states."

 

AND, for the lefties that poke how Toyota has plants here, and that US automakers are going south (mexico) and north (Canada), realize that is is onl because they literally habe no choice financially. I would bet my life that the bigt three would keep all actual vehicle production in the US on principal alone, (not to mention the business upside of being able to say they are American made) if the had a choice...but because soo many americans choose japanese vehicles over our own they have to cut costs to even stay in business.

Remove overly aggressive unions, and unappreciatiave anti-American Americans and the US automakers will return to building in America.

 

I completely agree, killing the unions could return Ford to a profitable company almost overnight. I cant grasp why something the remedy this situation has not been done

 

People die like that, thats why.

Unions are simply legalized mafias with not always legal nor ethical tactics to protect thier business.

 

This has to be one of the most inane things I've read this week. First of all, the big three are in the position they are in because from the 1970s onward the quality of their product was less than that of its foreign competitors. That is the main reason. The others being poor business decisions / bad management. As for the national loyalty thing, what planet do you live on? Since when is a company's financial well-being predicated on National Loyalty? This is a free market. Consumers are free to buy - or not buy - whichever product they want for whatever reason they want. The American consumer bought Japanese cars in droves because those manufacturers built better cars and offered better service and did so at a better price. You can wrap yourself in the flag and swear only to buy American products (if there is such a thing left) all you want but that doesn't mean anyone else is obligated to do so. The very thing that made America great, the free enterprise system, is what allows any company to succeed. The foreign automakers played the game better and the American car companies have noone to blame but themselves. THey don't get a free ride just because they are American Companies and Americans certainly are not obligated to buy for the same reason.

Wait. I take back that comment I made earlier about the above quote being the most inane thing I have read this week. THIS is the most inane thing I have read this week.
"I would bet my life that the bigt three would keep all actual vehicle production in the US on principal alone"
Would you like to kill yourself or would you prefer one of us to do it for you? Wait . . . I can't type any more . . . I'm still laughing.
. . . OK . . .
The big three, and any other company, are businesses. They will do anything to cut costs. That's the way they have done it in the past, that's the way they will do it in the future. It's a business, and they will run it in such manner.Bottom line, they don't care about you, your love of country, the American worker, or anything else except what's the profit margin and will they meet analyst's expectations, and will the share price rise. This makes me think of big corporations always telling their employees that they are one big "family". They're not your family and they'll fire you faster than you know what hit you if it helps the bottom line.

 

Edit... Self centered post. Changed.

Have a good day LOL.

 

How did this happen?
I bought a brand new Ford in 1995 and turned around and bought another new one in 1999.

I haven't purchased a new Japanese vehicle in over 20 years.

Somebody gimme some of that Flag. Stop hogging it all.

 

I see we have nothing to agree on here, no sense in arguing about it

 

You will never understand it, but yes, you are very self centered. the posts above say it all in spades. Be an American, buy American.... until the japanese trade fair. Simple as that. It isn't like the American companies aren't building quality vehicles. That is OLD SCHOOL. They got the hint. They are dealing with the unions. Cut the American companies some slack and support them now that they are changed for the best. Take your toy and drive it off a cliff. Don't tow to much with your turd... the frame may flex so bad the rear passes the front. Weak kneed wanna be

 

IMO Japanese autos quality is WAY overrated, and I say this from experience.