I might be starting a war with this, but there really is not such thing as "buying American". If its a service, yes, as far as a tangible product, no. Regardless of where its assembled, most products are MADE overseas.
Its our capitalistic way to ensure we are maximizing profits, every company wants to make the most money they can... can you blame them? Overseas labor is very cheap, heck even some places we outsource to even outsource so they can get cheaper labor costs.
The Toyota Camry is actually the most "American" out of any car in the US, my truck is actually built in Texas. The engineering, design and such is done overseas but the actual manufacturing process is done here in the states.
Also do not forget, the dealerships are all here, the service work when done is here. So there is still a lot that comes back to the US as far as jobs, income, etc.
I understand we should have pride behind "our" brands, however I feel my money should be spent and invested wisely. A vehicle is the WORST investment you can make, well maybe a house if you bought right before the "bubble" popped (ouch). It will undoubtedly depreciate in value year after year. Some brands depreciate faster because of reliability statistics, because of popularity, whatever. So factoring in all these different things will sway my buying decision.
Show me statistical evidence, not anomalies, of reliability, build quality, good resale value, good service (yeah I know thats a relative term but as good as you can get), good styling, features, etc and I will show you where I am standing in line to purchase. I, like anyone else, will stand behind a product that has shown its worth. Some people have had better luck with some brands vs others and are therefore die-hard. I am no different, however I am willing to listen and appreciate different styles and brands because I am a car fanatic through and through. I will not however be succumb to the mentality that I can only or should only "buy American" because its the patriotic thing to do, in reality its a facade to push people to buy certain manufactures, its a sales pitch in my eyes and I will not stand for that.
Wow... sorry for the long rant! lol
Buying American means buying from an American Company from which Americans derive the profits, instead of a Japanese company, for example. American companies have things made in other countries so that there are more profits for Americans. I think more profits for Americans is good.
I also think that even more importantly, you are getting American ideas and engineering when you buy an American product.
As far as cars go, I simply do not care for the Japanese design philosophy as a whole. Japanese designs are almost never flowing or organic looking. They are small cars with sharp angles, or they have such a blob shape it has very little character at all.
I realize that a lot of Japanese cars are made in the U.S., which is to save on import costs, but that does not change the fact that those cars still represent Japanese ideas. I don't think I can say what I really think about Americans buying Japanese products, other than that I am disappointed that they are not more patriotic and supportive of American inventions and Ideas. Yes, I am very disappointed that American cars are made elsewhere, but those people just assemble the cars, they don't DESIGN them. They just put parts together. They don't determine the concept.
I drive American cars made when they were still made in America, as an aside.
There are very few good looking Japanese cars, the best looking being the 1965 Toyota 2000GT, and THAT is because they copied the Ferrari 250 GTO as closely as they could without copying it exactly or blatantly infringing upon the design.
That is what the Japanese seem to do best. They take someone else's ideas, and then refine them. If the have an original design, it looks like that nightmarish new Celica.
On the other hand, since the Japanese have a different culture, maybe that design really appeals to them. I don't know.
I grew up around American cars, going to car shows since I was born, and seeing all of those beautiful 30's, 40's and 50's cars. Some nice 60's cars, too. By comparison, most cars look like ugly boxes that people just drive because they need cheap transportation.
Out of all of the new designs that come out, about 5% of them are actually good looking IMO, and the rest are plain or just plain ugly.
There seems to be a small following for almost every kind of car, but there are some cars that always are more desirable, because of their design. They have a shape that is simply very appealing, and that design was simply changed for change's sake at some point, simply because people like to buy things that are new, and the obession with newness blinds them to the realities of design aesthetics of a car, and then, years later, they wish they had not sold that car they had, because it increased in value so much, while the ones they bought later just depreciated. They just had to have the newest.
That said, once again, I do think that the new Mustang GT350 is the best looking Mustang ever made, because it's design flows together that the earlier ones, while still looking sleek, stylish and aggressive, or sporty. I guarantee you that someday the Mustang will be worth much more than the Subaru. If you wait long enough, maybe 6 times as much. I see cars as investments as well as transportation, so what about long term appreciation? Most people don't keep cars long enough to realize that. Just watch the Barret Jackson auctions, and pay attention to what kind of cars bring the most money.
