What is the most important characteristic in a car when you buy it?

Question

I work for one of the Big 3 and people continually debate what YOU (the consumer) really want in a car.

Answer 1

1. safety
2. fuel efficiency
3. how sexy i look driving it ;)

Answer 2

a affordable car that looks like a car, not a bubble. it has speed, when i say that it can run a 15.3 quarter mile or less. 30 or more mpg on the highway is great. and a car that is EASY TO WORK ON. if you cant get to the oil filter, or spark plugs, then what the hell? also options. i drive a 01 grand am gt. there are none that are made with a 5 speed tranny. that sucks. options are always nice, and not paying extra for things like power locks in this day and age is a plus also.

Ford: make a car that isnt a focus, that looks like crap, affordable. but dont make it a granny car like the taures. give it a v6, and some power. and the more it looks like the younger brother of the mustang the better.

GM: make an engine that wont blow a head or lower intake manifold gasket in 75k miles. i think gm is making a comeback. BUT bringing back the gto and killing the camaro was dumb. and next time you bring back a muscle car, start from scratch. good god the gto is ugly. bring back the camaro, put in the vette engine, and make a speacial edition with the new 427, and sell it for about the same price as the new shelby mustang. also bring in a 40 mpg car that less then 15k and doesnt look like a bubble, and your money problems are over.

Chrysler: you guys are doing great. ditching the p.o.s neon was a great idea. so was bringing back the hemi. your trucks are awesome, and so is the 300c. the charger is ok, i would not have made it a 4 door, but oh well. you need a quick 4 banger or v6. also why dont you guys make a tranny that doesnt suck?

i hope this helps you dude. i consider myslef a car guy, and these are some of the problems i see in the car industry.

Answer 3

Safety.
Reliability.
Fuel efficiency.
Power.
Resale value.

In a word: QUALITY

I know the "Big 3" are on average just as safe as any car maker.
But.....
They're not as reliable.
They're not as fuel efficient.
They're not as powerful.
They have a much lower resale value.

Toyota, Honda and Nissan (others too) build plenty of vehicles right here in the USA that are much better than anything the "Big 3" can come up with.
And they're put together by American hands.
It's not the American worker's fault.
It's the American bean counters and engineers that are to blame.
Why is it that the latest best offerings from the "Big 3" are based on designs and cars originating outside of the USA?
BTW: Did you know that Toyota's market cap(company value) is larger than all of the "Big 3" combined?? How did that happen? Were they building better widgets?

Answer 4

I agree wholeheartedly with metalman56.I couldn't have said it better myself. Also the guys who design cars should actually have spent some time with a wrench in their hands working on cars. Just because it works on paper doesn't mean it works in what those of us who do work on cars like to call "real life". And stop using that dental floss thin wiring. With all the electrical crap they put in cars now they should still be using 16 ga. wire

Answer 5

i like options. i wouldn't buy a car w/o automatic everything. also gas mileage is big. i have an awesome factory stereo in my '05 Nissan Sentra 1.8S but the cup holders drive me insane. they block the cd player and they aren't deep enough to keep larger cups upright. i commute 75 miles (one way) to work everyday and it's the creature comforts that i enjoy.

Answer 6

My next car is going to be a "Muscle" Car
I really like the charger and Camaro concepts
leaning toward Camaro

Answer 7

good gas milage, made by a big 3

Answer 8

Gas milelage, and comfort.

Answer 9

For me, gas mileage and room.

Answer 10

buy car you can get fix easy or will get you laid easy