Breitbart/// Donald Trump pointed out on Wednesday that the best selling vehicles made by U.S. automakers have been protected behind a tariff wall for decades.
Trucks are covered by a 25 percent tariff known as the “chicken tax” because it was put in place in 1964 retaliation for European tariffs on U.S. chickens.
This runs directly contrary to a narrative popular among free-traders that the U.S. automakers were making bad cars until competition for foreign imports forced them to improve the quality of their products.
Without a doubt, the 1980s were a bad time for U.S. automakers. Product quality of cars declined and Japanese carmakers captured a huge part of the market.
But if the lack of competition from imports were the problem, U.S. trucks should have been laggards because of the protective tariff. Instead, they have been market leaders in innovation and consumer favorites. If anything, the high margin has allowed manufacturers to pour money into R&D that has improved their entire fleets.
The biggest problem with American made cars in the 1980s was that they were off-market, still largely based on designs developed at a time when oil prices were high and the government was pushing for higher miles-per-gallon standards. When the price of oil fell and the dollar strengthened, these simply were not cars consumers wanted.
My Lexus was built in Canada and Ram Truck in Mexico. American made?
My Nissan was “assembled” in Tenn and probably like most vehicles from parts made in many different countries. I bought it because it was much cheaper than a Toyota made in Japan. So yes Trump is right.
I drive F150 Lariat SCREWs, used to drive Ford Rangers. Have never had any serious quality issues with American made vehicles. I maintain my vehicles according to the manufacturer’s recommended schedule though.
Had a Blazer years ago and hated it. We’re Ford folks. Hubby has a F150 and I have a Flex. Love that vehicle. But, won’t be able to buy another new. Never caught on. Sad.
I had a Chevy 1/2 ton. Real problem with oil consumption. At 8 years after I bought it, rust took over the bed around the wheel wells and the front end all went to hell. Plastic parts breaking off and electronic issues. I take good care of it but finally had enough of my made in Mexico Truck.
Got a Toyota Tundra this year, made in Texas.
And I’m still pissed about the GM bailout to the unions.
I never had any luck with GM products other than 2 early 70s Coupe DeVilles. They were solid and dependable.
We have a 1993 Acura Integra, 1994 Camry and a 1994 Land Cruiser. All in decent working order! Looking for an old Mercedes diesel wagon, if anyone knows of one for sale in the PNW. I like cars made of metal. Come from a Ford family. When my son has enough money saved to buy his truck, that’s what we’ll look for.
Thank you Mr. President for being smarter and better than everybody else 😘😘😘
I refuse to buy a GM bailout vehicle — the unions and weak kneed GM executives sold this consumer out of the market.
Screw ’em.
I run a 2004 Honda Accord LX (the cheap one with no features).
Cars today with their all seeing autonomous crud and complex electronics is forcing you to buy something you don’t need and the automakers charge a whole bunch for it.
The basic concept of a car hasn’t changed in 100+ years, but over the past 2 decades prices have roughly doubled for an average new car. What they’ve invested in with their “technology” is being passed to the consumer. I thought the tech was kinda cool, but then did the math and figured that with failure and upfront cost and reliability, new cars should actually be cheaper than what they were pre-2000 sans “technology” you don’t need, but the automakers spent the money for you.
Anyway, I forgot where I was going with that LOL.
Have 2005 crv. Best made engine around. Dependable. The new ones not only cost more but your insurance will too to cover all those fancy gadgets. Also GM is Government Motors!!!
66 Ford. Kansas City assembly plant. Made when the mob ran the unions. Nuff said.
My last F150 was purchased in the States but built in Ontario, Canada. My recent purchase was made in Canada but built in the States. Why did I buy it from Canada you ask? My stepfather (Canadian) heard about it and let me know it was for sale. 2006 F150 Supercrew (full size 4dr cab) 86000 kilometers which if I remember correctly was just over 50000 miles. With exchange rate I purchased for just over $3000. Laughed all the way home. The hassle of the required documents wasn’t that big a deal though it took almost a week.
2010 F-150 XL regular cab. Because it is a plain jane, rubber floor mat, manual door locks and windows vehicle, I was able to save it in spite of being flooded during Hurricane Harvey. It runs beautifully and looks good after putting a set of fancy take-off wheels on it. I’d take that truck to the moon and back. I could have any new F-series Ford truck out there but I like this one because I’m a simple man with simple needs. All I really need is for the air conditioner to blow cold because I’m from Texas.
Currently in the market for a new vehicle.
Sorry to say American cars tend to look & feel like cheap crap compared to most imports in the same class/price range..