Why doesnt the US make decent cars?

[Vorenos]

OP, this would have been true 5 years ago. American cars are much better now than they have ever been in the past.

also, the cars you listed as being good cars are all just expensive nonsense... what American car compares to a ferrari or lambo? better to compare a normal italian auto maker, such as fiat or alfa romeo, to an American car manufacturer, and you'll see that American cars are far superior. Hondas and what not are probably still better in a lot of ways, but the gap is much narrower than ever before

[Deleted]

These came to mind instantly. + The dodge viper is my dream car and has been since Gran Tourismo 1 and im English

I'll save you some money with your dream. The Dodge Viper is one of the worst constructed cars ever. Nothing fits together, incredibly poorly made interior and useless dash.
The money went on the Engine, the shape and the branding - nothing more.

[Wolfshark]

You know why they are gone? GM Interference. Saturn barely turned a profit for so long, then GM was like okay you did your own way for too long, your going to do it the way we say you should. 1990-2002 model S-Series, generally very cheap, easy to maintain, and when maintained would last quite a long time. Then GM comes about says to hell with them, make platform cars, produce these more expensive, more complex, less reliable cars that we already probably sell with slightly different bumpers as a chevy or pontiac, or both in case of the Cobalt/Ion/G6...

My saturns were among the best cars I've owned.

They just build awesome rep and milk it by selling shit labeled as gold, that's the way a lot of business is...

Older Saturns are greatly reliable and cheap and easy to fix.

[HotSauce]

I have a 2006 mustang, and I LOVE it. It's what you would call a "decent" car. I have the v6, with some minor engine mods that give me some nice fuel efficiency and the fact that im at 118km's on the car, and never needed to buy any major parts for it, I would say it's a decent car. Look at the 2013 mustang gt's that are coming out. For 40,000 they will challenge cars even near the 100,000 range(for both power and comfort)

[Wolfshark]

I'll save you some money with your dream. The Dodge Viper is one of the worst constructed cars ever. Nothing fits together, incredibly poorly made interior and useless dash.
The money went on the Engine, the shape and the branding - nothing more.

can almost guarantee that the shape and engine are the main reason ANYONE would want that car...

[jaimelannister]

This thread would have been appropriate in the 80s, 90s, and even into the 2000s, but today it's just simply not the case. Ford has undergone a significant transformation in the past 10 years (in both styling and quality) and now makes some excellent cars, and GM is finally getting it's shit together as well (though in my opinion they are still behind Ford).

Edit: And comparing Ford/GM to Lexus, BMW, and Mercedes is just wrong. The latter three are luxury brands, and don't compete at the same price points, at least here in the U.S. You can't get those cars for $20k, which is where Ford/GM position most of their models.

[Tradewind]

better to compare a normal italian auto maker, such as fiat or alfa romeo, to an American car manufacturer, and you'll see that American cars are far superior.

Wut?

http://www.caranddriver.com/news/201...00-abarth-news

then there's the Alfa 159, 8C, GT and the Spider...

[tiporispit]

Thread is a joke. I worked at MGS Express Courier Service and they fielded a fleet of Ford Focuses (about 10 of them). The lowest mileage Focus in the fleet had 220,000 miles on it. There were others over 300,000. At the time, a brand new one ran under $10,000. That price to longevity would make any foreign auto company jealous. It's not exclusive to Ford, either. It's pretty standard that Buicks and Olds from the 90's with the 3800 engine broke the 200,000 miles barrier.

[Tripl]

I absolutely love the european Ford models like the Focus and Mondeo (pref. the station-cars). Extreme comfort combined with raw power and efficiency. (my Dad's Focus Stationcar could do over 1000 km on one fill)(I don't know if these models are also distrubuted in the US, just know that ford makes them in Belgium for the european market)

So no, not all US cars are crap. I don't like Chevvies or anything that comes close to an SUV of any brand.
Sure, the german cars are better than the fords I just described, but they are also a hell of a lot more expensive. It is only fair to compare what you get for the same price, and with that, atleast for ford, the US cars in Europe offer a good price/quality balance.

Focus:


Mondeo:

[Stanton Biston]

It might have been mentioned in the middle six pages, but what about Chrysler?

Troll thread to begin with though. There's crazy domestic competition between $40k-$75k. It's only once you get past $75k do American auto makers fall off.

[Porcell]

I absolutely love the european Ford models like the Focus and Mondeo (pref. the station-cars). Extreme comfort combined with raw power and efficiency. (my Dad's Focus Stationcar could do over 1000 km on one fill)(I don't know if these models are also distrubuted in the US, just know that ford makes them in Belgium for the european market)

Ford Focus is made at Michigan Assembly here outside of Detroit. EU has a Focus ST that will be available in 2013 here (with Recaro seats). Focus also has the Battery Electric Vehicle version that is launching right now in the US. There's an EU BEV, not sure if it's a 2012.5 launch or if it will come later.

The Mondeo used to be common with the old Ford Contour, but for the past 4 years there has not been an exact US model of it. In 2013 the EU Mondeo will be common with the US Fusion, which has been restyled (and I think looks like an Aston).

[scouser]

i drive a BMW m5 (company car) £75k worth of metal and if i was to buy one id gladly refuse.it costs me more in petrol than it would to buy the car on monthly instalments.
scousers top tip buy a mini

[Tradewind]

i drive a BMW m5 (company car) £75k worth of metal and if i was to buy one id gladly refuse.it costs me more in petrol than it would to buy the car on monthly instalments.
scousers top tip buy a mini

a 5L V10 is hardly a practical company car, especially with gas prices in the UK...

If you can't afford an M5 on your own dollar, you can't afford to operate one that's given to you. That should be obvious.

[scouser]

a 5L V10 is hardly a practical company car, especially with gas prices in the UK...

If you can't afford an M5 on your own dollar, you can't afford to operate one that's given to you. That should be obvious.

the car i can afford m8 but i refuse to pay £75k on a car when i have a wife 2 kids and a house id rather invest in.

[Meleti]

I absolutely love the european Ford models like the Focus and Mondeo (pref. the station-cars). Extreme comfort combined with raw power and efficiency. (my Dad's Focus Stationcar could do over 1000 km on one fill)(I don't know if these models are also distrubuted in the US, just know that ford makes them in Belgium for the european market)

I haven't driven the European/3rd gen Focus yet, but when I drove a 2nd gen American Focus on a trip a few years back I remember almost rolling it while trying to exit the highway at around 45mph. It was just awful.

It might have been mentioned in the middle six pages, but what about Chrysler?

The least reliable car I have ever owned was a Chrysler-made 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

[Bazgab]

This thread would have been appropriate in the 80s, 90s, and even into the 2000s, but today it's just simply not the case. Ford has undergone a significant transformation in the past 10 years (in both styling and quality) and now makes some excellent cars, and GM is finally getting it's shit together as well (though in my opinion they are still behind Ford).

Edit: And comparing Ford/GM to Lexus, BMW, and Mercedes is just wrong. The latter three are luxury brands, and don't compete at the same price points, at least here in the U.S. You can't get those cars for $20k, which is where Ford/GM position most of their models.

I didn't read the whole thread but I totally agree with you. I am a fan of all cars but have only purchased non-American cars in the past. Up until the late 90s though the early 2000s I would have said the major US car manufacturers all sucked bad, but this is not the case any more. Look at Ford for a shining example of this, pretty much their whole lineup is really well made now and they started the neo-retro trend with the muscle cars (which I still think they dominate). My twin has a 2005 Mustang GT, bought it new when they first came out and for the price at the time (high $20k range), nothing could touch it. Sure the interior is a little bland but it is not ultra cheap feeling either, but it is not a luxury car so that hardly matters. My little bro got a 2011 Fiesta hatch which again, for the price, is a great little car. I was surprised at the build quality of the car and it gets amazing gas mileage. Both the new Focus and Taurus lines are really nice, with the Focus now operating as Ford's electronic tech test platform. Ford Sync system is one of the best systems of its kind from any manufacturer.

The American companies do have their own style though so if someone isn't a fan than they are not going to change their mind, though it would be ignorant to bash a lot of them now for problems they have had in the past with lack of ingenuity and build quality. I know my twin will be extremely happy when he takes delivery of his 2013 Boss 302 in the coming months, those things are an absolute beast on a road course.