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I'm An American, But Do I Trust American Cars Now?Aug 20 '00 Write an essay on this topic.The past two vehicles which I have owned personally have been Toyotas. The reasons for this were mainly because I did not trust the quality of American cars having seen my friends have difficulties with their vehicles wearing out quickly in all facets including exterior, interior, and mechanics. Not wishing to need to purchase a new vehicle before the original one wore out and more importantly before it was even paid for, I tended to distrust American cars with a passion and look toward foreign cars instead. My own car that I have at the present time is now eleven years old (1989 Toyota Camry), almost 180,000 miles on it and has outlived my expectations by at least four years has given me an even greater respect for the Toyota line of vehicles. When I first purchased my vehicle though, I received the typical insults about buying "foreign". However, if you look into the door panel of my 1989 Toyota Camry you will see that it was assembled in the United States of America. So, it's more of a hybrid than a true foreign car. Now that I was searching for a new car to replace my Camry, it is logical that I again look toward the Toyota brand because of its reliability factor. In addition, my father just traded in his ten year old Honda Accord, and many of my friends also have foreign cars which have surpassed the life expectancy of their American counterparts, so I had insurmountable evidence from the past that foreign cars make the mark. However, foreign cars do cost more in many instances than American cars so I have watched with increasing curiosity about the quality of American vehicles. This first began in 1995, when my best friend purchased a Geo Metro. From all accounts, my first thoughts on this car were that it was not going to last, but now it is in perfect condition with her totally satisfied and her vehicle going to be paid for within four months. Also, my boss has 1999 Ford Taurus which has a marvelous quality and I again began to rethink my thoughts on the possibility of even purchasing a Ford which many of my friends of my past had extremely bad experiences. However, there are some residual effects from my thoughts of the past that I can not shake. I can not fathom the idea of purchasing anything from the Plymouth, Chrysler, or Pontiac lines. I still see individuals having problems with those vendors and having to perform major repairs on their vehicles before their cars are even paid for. However, I've begun to realize that Chevrolet, Ford, and even Oldsmobile have increased their quality of workmanship on their vehicles and even though I feel better about these brands, it will probably take personal experience with them to help me overcome these prejudices that I still have in my spirit against American cars. Therefore, I have kept my mind open for all possibilities when shopping for a new car so that I can give both foreign and domestic brands a chance to appear on my list of options.  |
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