The Big Three

[JETZcorp]

Alright, this is the official thread to declare which side you take in the great battle of American Auto Makers, be it in NASCAR, NHRA, or just on the street. I've also included two options for foreign auto makers, but I didn't list them all because it would take forever and deviate from the spirit of this discussion, which has gone on for decades. Please try and keep things civil, but at the same time, feel free to tell us WHY you like the brand you do. Name calling (ex. Chrysler sucks!) does not count. Now obviously, this is a thread that's really America-centric, but that's because this debate has always been an American one. Very rarely have I seen a German and a Frenchman debating about Camaros and Superbirds. If you aren't American but still take a side in this one, don't hesitate, but let's try to keep the "My country makes better cars than yours" out of it. This is a brand vs brand thread, so let's drop the national stereotypes.

Alright, let's go.

[Voutare]

BMW > All.




I hate Japanese cars. Euro's are the best.


Now, to start it off: Australian cars suck.

[Voutare]

^ Probably should have read your post. I broke every rule you said.

[ShackAttack12]

First off, I am 100% american at heart.

I own a GM (1984 Buick Grand National), and i love the car. Its more of a very fast toy than anything.

We also have a 1996 Chevrolet Tahoe with 250,000 miles on it with original drivetrain, and its still kicking strong.

My primary vehicle is a 2003 Kawasaki Ninja 250 which i drive 99% of the time. The only time i dont ride it when its either storming really bad outside, streets are flooding, extreme winds (hurricane winds), or if its snowing. Any other time ill ride the bike. A little rain doesnt bother me.

As far as quality goes (with a disregard for price), i think the german auto makers win the title. German auto design is very solid and they make very reliable and well built vehicles.

As far as value goes, i would have to give the crown to the Japanese. Cars like the corolla, civic, accord, camry, etc are great cars and are the most popular cars in the world because of their reliability, fuel economy, and are sized correctly for average use. With the introduction of the Honda Insight and the Toyota Prius, we finally have higher than average fuel economy being marketed.

As far as cool factor goes, i think the American auto makers own this title. American cars are known worldwide as tough, strong, powerful, and pure muscle. Its pretty much what we stand for in America... "bigger is better", "no replacement for displacement" etc etc...

Having said all that, heres the cons. I absolutely despise GM, mostly because they are criminals and can care less about our country. I really wish we would have let them go under instead of giving them billions of dollars in tax payer money. My biggest pet-peeve with the company is the whole EV1 fiasco that took place in 1999 and a couple years afterwards. Go read up about it if you are interested. The entire world, let alone this country, needs to start getting away from fossil fuel burning vehicles. We needed to get away from it decades ago, and we actually had the technology to do it! In fact, there were electric cars even before internal combustion engines were made. The main reason the electric car never took off is because battery technology wasn't quite there, gas was cheap, and the big american automakers captured the industry and invested lots of resources in making sure the gas burning car was the american way. GM even bought out rail companies and put them out of business so that people would use automobiles instead.

[Pumaxcs]

voted chrystler because my dreamm car is the 300.

[Wilmx829]

Yeah I got an Isuzu, but it has a chevy engine in it so i'll go with that.

[JETZcorp]

And you did it in as few words as humanly possible, too. That's amazing!

Anyway, I'm a Mopar (Chrysler) fan. There's something about the good ol' Hemi-powered greatness that gets to me. And how can you not love the timeless look of the Charger Daytona and Plymouth Superbird? I'm stuck with driving a Ford mini-van now, thanks to my parents, but as soon as they let me I'm trading it in for a Dodge Dakota. My target engine is the 4.7L Magnum V8, though I wouldn't turn down the 5.9 Magnum, either.



Regarding electric cars, I'm still skeptical that they can work well enough. I mean, when Top Gear tested the Tesla Roadster, they found that it really doesn't work well enough to replace gasoline. It's got a fairly decent range of 120mi, but then takes a whopping 12 hours to charge again. You can kiss that road-trip to Disneyland goodbye. I think the future is in alternative fuels, like hydrogen. You can simply fill your car up, just like normal. With an electric car, I'd always be wondering whether I was filling my car up with power from the Mega Green Enviroplex dam, or the Smogg Industries Oil-Sucking Power Works.

[DJ99X]

I voted Japs. They offer the best quality to price ratio.

Reasons I did not vote for the others:

European: Most of the time, you are paying for a badge

American cars: You might as well be driving round in a coal fired powerplant factory


Voutare: Aussie cars are pretty much American cars. But better

I'd love a Maloo

[JETZcorp]

Not all American cars are bad on gas. GM makes more cars over 30mpg highway than any other auto-maker in the world, and that includes Toyota and Honda. Sure, if you think America makes nothing but F-350s and Hemi Challengers, it's easy to brand them as inefficient, but you can also go shopping for something like a Chevy Equinox, or a Dodge Caliber, or a Ford Focus which are right up there in mileage. Hell, even a Corvette can get insane mileage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtPwnsyGTxw

[yomo]

Voutare: Aussie cars are pretty much American cars. But better

I'd love a Maloo

Yeah I was going to say that!!

Check out the new car my dad just got a few days ago. HSV GTS E2 series


0-100 in under 5 seconds
Launch control
Bi-modal exhurst
Shown to be the 2nd best braking car in the world (Only behind the porsche 911 turbo)
etc..

Oh and only 1/3 of the price as the equivalent Euro car

[DJ99X]

Holy crap, that thing looks mean!

[yomo]

In case anyone didn't realise that is an Aussie car

Here is a demo of the launch control, is pretty scary the first time you try it haha - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw1FPm0z3vU

Check out this sick exhaust you can get for it, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6PE8pnxccw

[LuizH]

European for sure
Ferrari, BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Porsche pff i could put a list here
But i have to agree with DJ that Asian Cars have one of best cost to benefit in the market.
About Americans my brother has a chevy, Power Engine but drinks as much as factory says he does

[JETZcorp]

When it comes to a four-door sedan, the discussion for me personally ends with the Dodge Charger SRT-8. Even if it got 2mpg and had the horsepower of a 250F, I'd love it just for the styling it has. It looks like it's constantly snarling, and that it's going to forcibly remove your face and eat it like a shark.

http://www.chargertune.com/wp-content/g ... 09_red.jpg
"RAWR!!" he says.

[DJ99X]

Hmmm. The car looks too square too me.


@ Luiz: Hahaha, snap!