Foreign cars versus American.?

Question

Pretty soon I will be in the market for car buying. My question is where can I find a web site about Foreign cars versus American cars? My brother in law who is a car salesman does not go for all the hipe about Honda and Toyota. He says for the past few years because the demand has been so high for these cars, that the quality for building these vehicle is not the same anymore. I don't know if I totally agree but I'm no car sales woman. Well take a vote I say if I go Foreign it will be Honda or Toyota but if I go american it would be a Saturn.

Agree or Disagree with my theory or brother in law. And what is the best foreign or american car for your money?

Answer 1

I have one of each- a Honda Element and a Saturn SL (basic sedan). I have to say that I love them both, and have not had any problems with either. The Saturn is nearly 5 years old and the Honda 1 1/2. I would make sure that when you go car shopping, you are well informed- get a Consumer's Report book, and also SHOP AROUND to find what you like. I would not recommend listening to your brother in law, primarily because he is a salesman and no matter what facts may show he is going to be prone to want to push his own brand. Good luck to you in your shopping adventure, getting new cars is so much fun!!

Answer 2

You may have seen the Tesla electric sportscar http://www.teslamotors.com
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You may have even seen the T-Zero electric sports car

http://www.acpropulsion.com/ACP_FAQs/FAQ_cars.htm
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These two cars show that it is now possible to build electric cars that can out-accelerate a

Ferrari, and go 250 - 350 miles on a single charge. But both these cars are very expensive.
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So who else is working on electric cars?
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Would you believe China? They have to work on EVs. There won't be enough oil to support

China's future economic growth.
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I drive an old electric vehicle. I also have friends with electric vehicles. Some of them

have recently been able to buy some amazing, cutting-edge EV batteries from China - example:
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http://www.everspring.net/product-battery.htm
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These batteries are better, and cheaper than the ones in those $100,000+ sportscars above.

If you look at the chart, you'll see they are as cheap as lead-acid batteries, and they hold

up for 1100 charges, twice as many charges as the other LI-Ion batteries on the chart.
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Now, look at this car:
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http://www.milesautomotive.com/products_xs200.html
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It's a Chinese electric car, which will be imported into the USA next year. The driving

range is almost as good as those sports cars above. But it only costs $28500. And that price

could get a lot cheaper.

Answer 3

believe what you want i here foreign cars are built in america but does anyone think where does the money go? Ohio. nope japan. and people wonder why our county is going broke. if you have to buy a foreign car make sure it is used that way an american can still make a living even if it is selling foreign stuff.

Answer 4

I've had both. Foreign cars last longer and are much more forgiving. If you know how to take care of a car you can get an American made to last just as long. I wouldn't recommend domestic for the first time car buyer.

Answer 5

My vote is for a VW TDI. They are the only car maker making diesel powered passenger cars in the USA, with the exception of the $50K Mercedes CDI. Diesel burns relatively clean, diesel cars can run on fuels made from domestically grown crops, can run on (processed) waste vegetable oil called biodiesel, they get 30% better MPG than a gas car, the VW's typically get 200K plus miles on them before they die (search TDI on Ebay) My Passat gets 5-600 miles per tank on a mix of city and highway driving, 700 miles per tank for all highway and (unlike a Toyota Prius) is one of the safest cars on the road.
My routine maintenence basically is change the oil every 5K miles, and change the timing belt every 100K miles. There are no spark plug wires, distributer, etc.
VW TDI all the way.
Sticker prices are around: 20K for a Beetle, 21K for a Golf, 22K for a Jetta. No diesel Passats until 2008 model year. There were no 2007 TDI's produced because of the transition in the US to ultra low sulpher fuel. Pickings are going to be slim at VW dealerships until fall 2007. Expect to pay close to sticker price.
It would be nice to have a choice of cars with diesel like they do in Europe, they make up 40% of the market there, so you've got Honda, Toyota and everybody making diesel cars.
Good luck in your selection, I say VW, but whatever you choose, buy something that YOU like driving. Forget all the ratings and all that junk, everyone makes a good car, and everyone makes their share of lemons.

Answer 6

Hondas, Toyotas, and Nissans are built in America...

Actually the foreign cars are now more American than the American cars which are mostly built in Canada and Mexico....

Answer 7

Actually my worst experience was with a Civic and my best with a Pontiac. I like Saturn and they are easy to buy. Buy the one you like the best, most of the people tell you things "they have heard" with no experience at all.

Answer 8

I have had both US, Japanese, German & Swedish cars. So far, my best experience has been with the Japanese cars, Infiniti. My worst, Ford. Second worst was Volvo, and my present car, my mercedes, has been trouble free... so far.

Go to edmunds.com as they are the best all around info site on ALL cars.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Your brother in law is wrong again.And you are also wrong about getting a Saturn.May I suggest you try a Volvo S40 or V50

Answer 10

you do not want a saturn. if you want to keep the car long after it is paid for get a civic or corolla. dont get a korean car yet. the quality is just not there yet.