Stimulus Package?????

[Anonymous]

fish,

You know what the letters FORD stand for, don't you??

Fix Or Repair Daily.

Your experiences are a perfect example of something

called "planned obsolesence". This was something first

introduced in the 70's and 80's by US car manufacturers.

They intentionally wanted to build good cars..but not TOO

good. Otherwise, folks would hang on to their cars forever

and never sell them. Hence, the idea of planned obsolesence.

At about the 3 year ownership mark, things started to break

down with the cars. You get it fixed....then it breaks down again.

Eventually, you get disgusted and just buy a new one. Then

the whole cycle started over again... 

The ironic thing is that Ford and other carmakers were bold

enough to actually admit that they were actively engaged in

this practice. They figured, the US still makes the best cars

in the world, so where else are consumers going to go???

They thought they had us over a barrel.

My, my, how times have changed. In a strange sort of way,

you might call what's happening to the US auto industry right now

a sweet form of poetic justice...especially where Ford is concerned. 

CanDo

"The right attitude is everything"

[Anonymous]

i know american workers are the best in the world!  i am one!

but i'll never again buy another american car.  well, actually after the bailout i would have bought plenty.

we're setting a precedent here.  this 25 bill is just to get them through the end of the year.  we will be revisiting this.  this bailout nonsense will result in hyper inflation.

instead i'll buy a wheel barrel to cart my worthless cash around in.  i'll need $10,000 to buy a loaf of bread

i have a ford now.  does anyone know how i'd pop the emblem off?

[Anonymous]

We have a Buick & a GMC and I'm pretty happy with both. But I just had to replace the battery (bad cells) and the starter in my Buick, and it's only 3 yrs old, so I'm starting to get a little nervous... Luckily I bought the extended warranty. Right?!

All I know is, I will be very unhappy if I never get to buy a Ford Escape Hybrid. Planning to purchase in 2-3 years.

And, the argument that "people won't buy cars from a company that's bankrupt" is just silly. People fly on AIRPLANES that are owned by bankrupt companies, for goodness' sake -- hello!!!!

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

fish,

You know what the letters FORD stand for, don't you??

Fix Or Repair Daily.

---

or alternatively FORD= Found On Road Dead


DF drives a jeep and has had few problems with it (outside the front brakes)

I have a foreign car, I feel really guilty about it, but i searched long and hard for an american car and i just could not find one that met my needs. the next car i buy will be american (if they still exist).

Message Edited by dizzier on 11-18-2008 09:32 AM

[Anonymous]

My car is a Sable (Mercury, of course) and has had nothing but problems from day one. We've had it for five years and managed to get an amazing warranty package through our credit union and it sure came in handy. Before we'd had the car one year, the warranty paid for $5K in repairs (we had a $150 deductible).

And no, none of those repairs were operator-caused!

We will never, never, never, ever buy a Ford car AGAIN. Ever. It was my first foray into buying American - we'd always had Toyotas or Volvos. We sure learned our lesson.

[Junejer]

I am for the car that meets my needs, whether foreign or american. I just got rid of a Ford Expedition that had 186,000+ miles on it. It was starting to have some problems, so I dumped it. I now have a Ford Edge. I was never really a Ford guy, before.

I had a Dodge Durango that I bought brand new (1.5 miles on it). By 18,000 miles, I had to replace the engine. It died on me in the middle of a busy road that I was crossing. By 37,000 miles, I had to replace the engine again. It has jaded me against any Chrysler product, forever.

My next car will be a bigger SUV. Initially, I wanted an Escalade, but I have changed my mind and am interested in an Infinity QX56. It's not for the engineering that I don't want an Escalade, it's for the new image that it has garnered. I don't need to be a target as I drive around in the "family truckster".

[Anonymous]

---

ByrdMan wrote: I don't need to be a target as I drive around in the "family truckster".

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"If you think you hate it now, wait til you drive it!"

Sorry ... you said "family truckster" and it made me think of National Lampoon's Vacation!!

[Anonymous]

I'm with you, Wonderin.

The first brand new car I ever bought for myself was a 1987 Volvo 240 DL.

The 240 Series is one of the best selling car lines Volvo has ever produced.

What got me to buy the car was two things:

1) It stated right in the sales brochure that all Volvos are built to last a minimum of 17.5 years. 

Traditionally, Swedes don't buy new cars every 3-5 yrs like Americans do. Once they buy a car,

they keep it. So the cars have to be dependable and last a long time.

2) The warranty was the best in the business at the time: 3 years, Unlimited Mileage on

the entire car (except wear items like tires and brakes). That means I could have driven

my car a million miles and kept it for 2 yrs and 364 days. But if it broke down on the last day

of the 3-year period, I could take it to any Volvo dealership in North America and get it fixed

free of charge. Now THAT's a warranty. 

And of course, this was in the midst of the "planned obsolesence" with US carmakers, so they

weren't thrilled with Volvos or their warranty. In fact, Volvo owners very proudly used to display

mileage decals on their grilles..100,000 Miles, 250,000 Miles, 500,000 Miles and 1 Million Miles.

I used to wave at fellow Volvo owners on the road as I passed them and acknowledge their decals...

and they did the same for me.

So yes, I'm a huge Volvo fan. To a lesser extent, I'm also a Saab fan. But they're like BMW's....

kinda finicky, but if you get a good one they run forever. 

The point is: US carmakers need to take a page out of Volvo's playbook. Build cars that last

and you build customer loyalty for life. But jerk your customers around and you'll never see

them again...

CanDo

"The right attitude is everything"

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

All I know is, I will be very unhappy if I never get to buy a Ford Escape Hybrid. Planning to purchase in 2-3 years.

And, the argument that "people won't buy cars from a company that's bankrupt" is just silly. People fly on AIRPLANES that are owned by bankrupt companies, for goodness' sake -- hello!!!!

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On the FEH, I hear ya. It's in my mind right now to replace my 2000 Saturn, in the next 2-3 years. Unless I can find a PHEV hybrid. I tend to agree with some of the dispersions being cast upon the name F-O-R-D, but, the Escape hybrid remains one of the best hybrids on the road. The promised 2010 Ford Fusion hybrid looks like, for once, there will be real competition in the market between hybrids, and the Fusion hybrid is aimed straight at the Toyota Camry hybrid. Beats it in city MPG with 38, and it can hit up to 47 MPH in EV mode.

BK airlines and BK car companies are apples and orangutans. The airlines don't build the airplanes and they don't warranty them. If Boeing were to BK reorganize, I suspect the airlines might be wary of their products, but even then there are stringent federal regs where safety and maintenance are concerned. If a car makers goes BK, the key thing in my mind would be the warranty, service and recalls.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

BK airlines and BK car companies are apples and orangutans. The airlines don't build the airplanes and they don't warranty them. If Boeing were to BK reorganize, I suspect the airlines might be wary of their products, but even then there are stringent federal regs where safety and maintenance are concerned. If a car makers goes BK, the key thing in my mind would be the warranty, service and recalls.

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exactly.  besides, their incompentency and greed will be bankrupting the taxpayers.  they don't deserve my business.