Originally Posted by reeves
I don't care what the magazines or consumer reports say, from my experience, in my family growing up (me, my parents, and my 2 brothers) we've had 1 Ford, 1 Chevy (truck), 3 Dodges (all trucks), 1 Mitsubishi, 5 Hondas, 6 Toyotas, and 1 Subara (my BRZ).
On average, we DID have the LEAST problems with the Hondas and Toyotas. Which made us buy more of them. The Dodges and Chevy was 'ok', but the interiors basically fell apart after a few years (radio knobs, door handles, shift lever, fabric, panels, etc). I don't see myself buying another Chevy or Dodge again.
The first car my dad ever bought was a Ford sedan. I was too little to remember what model it was, but I just remember him cursing that car to death over all the problems it gave him. Sorry Ford, you lost a TON of customers from my family off that one car 40+ years ago. We never came close to even going back to a Ford dealership since.
The 2nd car my dad bought was an '82 Toyota Corona. I only remember it because 10+ years later, I became old enough to remember the cars my parents drove, and it was still running strong (until my uncle wrecked it).
My '94 MR2 N/A lasted me 20+ years (original tranny & engine), and I finally gave it to my brother to use as his DD to work.. but only because I'm tired of dealing with the leaky T-tops.
Personally, I would never buy a Chevy, Ford, or Dodge no matter how 'cool' they design it, or how much horsepower they cram under the hood from the factory. Doesn't matter how "reliable" they claim to be these days, I just feel like I'm being hoodwinked with American cars.. it's a new body covering up the same crappy car my dad cursed at 40+ years ago. Perception is reality, and it's gonna take a few more decades of having a proven track record to convince me to buy American.
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