This is a guest post by Ben Rozema from a San Diego auto repair center, robertsautoservice.com.
By any measure, the US is one of the biggest and most prolific users of automobiles in the world today. Despite popular misconception, America didn’t invent the automobile. That recognition goes to German Karl Benz, who took out the first patent for a motorcar in 1885. Americans did, however, industrialize the love of the automobile. America loves big, fast cars, and for many decades American car companies shared the biggest slice of the auto industry pie. In the 1980s that began to slip as Japan and Germany introduced affordable cars that had high quality. The American car industry has seriously eroded over the last 2 decades, nearly becoming its own landslide in the last year. Just why do Americans prefer foreign automobiles to their own homegrown vehicles?
Fewer Errors on the Assembly Line
Although this has become less true as many foreign cars have begun to be produced in the United States and many American cars are made outside US boarders, American cars have a reputation of being problematic when they first role off the assembly line. Typically, you drive an American car home from the dealer and you spend the next few months figuring out what’s wrong with it and getting it into shape. These can be small problems like a faulty air conditioner or malfunctioning CD player, but the list tends to be a lot longer than a Honda or BMW for example.
In the 1980s, the American auto industry faced considerable construction problems with many flaws in the resulting production. It’s gotten better, but in general American cars remain problematic, a reputation the American auto industry won’t easily shake.
American Cars don’t Tend to Last as Long
American cars generally aren’t designed for longevity. The car companies know that you will come back for a new car sooner if the car doesn’t last as long. Why sell you a car every decade when they can sell you one every 4 years? The problem is that you can easily get 200,000 to 400,000 miles off a Toyota, where you’ll practically be throwing your American car a retirement party if it comes close to 100,000 miles. American cars just aren’t built to last like some foreign models. Instead of buying the next new American car every 4 years, many American consumers save themselves a headache by getting a foreign car they’ll get more use out of.
Granted, some foreign car companies have realized they may be able to sell more cars too if their cars didn’t last as long, so many of the newer foreign cars might not get the same longevity as they did a few years ago. Still, they will generally last longer than most American models.
American Cars Lack Efficient Design
For years, American automakers marketed their most expensive cars more extensively in order to make a bigger market. These were the gas guzzling fuel hogs so popular at the turn of the millennium. The problem is that gas prices surged beyond $4, but American car companies didn’t listen to demand. They continued to market the gas-guzzlers, even though research showed that car consumers wanted more efficiency. Foreign automakers, sensitive to a global market that better valued fuel efficiency, were better on board with marketing efficient cars. Many Americans gave up on homegrown models and went with the more fuel-efficient foreign alternative.
Loading ...By any measure, the US is one of the biggest and most prolific users of automobiles in the world today. Despite popular misconception, America didn’t invent the automobile. That recognition goes to German Karl Benz, who took out the first patent for a motorcar in 1885. Americans did, however, industrialize the love of the automobile. America loves big, fast cars, and for many decades American car companies shared the biggest slice of the auto industry pie. In the 1980s that began to slip as Japan and Germany introduced affordable cars that had high quality. The American car industry has seriously eroded over the last 2 decades, nearly becoming its own landslide in the last year. Just why do Americans prefer foreign automobiles to their own homegrown vehicles?
Fewer Errors on the Assembly Line
Although this has become less true as many foreign cars have begun to be produced in the United States and many American cars are made outside US boarders, American cars have a reputation of being problematic when they first role off the assembly line. Typically, you drive an American car home from the dealer and you spend the next few months figuring out what’s wrong with it and getting it into shape. These can be small problems like a faulty air conditioner or malfunctioning CD player, but the list tends to be a lot longer than a Honda or BMW for example.
In the 1980s, the American auto industry faced considerable construction problems with many flaws in the resulting production. It’s gotten better, but in general American cars remain problematic, a reputation the American auto industry won’t easily shake.
American Cars don’t Tend to Last as Long
American cars generally aren’t designed for longevity. The car companies know that you will come back for a new car sooner if the car doesn’t last as long. Why sell you a car every decade when they can sell you one every 4 years? The problem is that you can easily get 200,000 to 400,000 miles off a Toyota, where you’ll practically be throwing your American car a retirement party if it comes close to 100,000 miles. American cars just aren’t built to last like some foreign models. Instead of buying the next new American car every 4 years, many American consumers save themselves a headache by getting a foreign car they’ll get more use out of.
Granted, some foreign car companies have realized they may be able to sell more cars too if their cars didn’t last as long, so many of the newer foreign cars might not get the same longevity as they did a few years ago. Still, they will generally last longer than most American models.
American Cars Lack Efficient Design
For years, American automakers marketed their most expensive cars more extensively in order to make a bigger market. These were the gas guzzling fuel hogs so popular at the turn of the millennium. The problem is that gas prices surged beyond $4, but American car companies didn’t listen to demand. They continued to market the gas-guzzlers, even though research showed that car consumers wanted more efficiency. Foreign automakers, sensitive to a global market that better valued fuel efficiency, were better on board with marketing efficient cars. Many Americans gave up on homegrown models and went with the more fuel-efficient foreign alternative.
