My reply to the first question answers the second. The best car I have ever driven is the Ford Five Hundred.
What? Am I crazy? I have the opportunity to drive BMWs, Cadillacs, Porsches, even an exotic now and then, and I believe the Five Hundred is the best car I have ever driven? It can't be. Heck, it is a domestic car for crying out loud!
Ford's Five Hundred may
just be the perfect sedan for the American Family. Why are auto
journalists lukewarm when reviewing it? Probably because it
can't beat a Porsche to 60 mph.Unlike
my horsepower-junkie colleagues, I see a car for what it is, and
judge it on how it fulfills its mission. In that equation, the Five
Hundred has no equal. Ford designed the Five Hundred to be the
prototypical American sedan: roomy, comfortable, smooth riding, and
economical. Based on those criteria, the vehicle has no equal.
What Ford didn't do with the Five Hundred is almost as impressive as what the company did. Ford didn't try and make the Five Hundred into a sports sedan. It didn't shoehorn in a big gas-guzzling V8 and compromise interior room or mechanical simplicity. And the boys at the Blue Oval didn't try to make the Five Hundred a techno-cruiser--a navigation system isn't even available.
The Five Hundred won't satisfy the automotive enthusiast or the horsepower nut. It won't satiate style-conscious trendsetters. The Five Hundred is simply the best full-size sedan sold in America for the average American family.
Based on this vehicle and many, many others, it is my opinion the domestics easily match the rest of the world in technology and reliability. However, the perception of that technology and reliability hasn't caught up with reality.
A large part of this problem lies at the feet of automotive journalists who just haven't realized this fact yet.
A perfect example came in a Reuters article that found its way on to CNN.com. Titled "Sales of hybrid, diesel cars seen rising," the author makes the following statement: "Japan's Toyota Motor Corp., which sells the popular Prius hybrid car, is a world leader in the [hybrid] technology along with Honda Motor Co. Ltd., which sells the Insight and hybrid versions of its Civic and Accord cars."
Hybrid technology powers both
this Seattle transit bus and the Toyota Prius. Which do you think
has the most potential to save fuel? GM bets it is the transit
bus.That simple assessment of the state of
hybrid technology couldn't be more inaccurate. The fact is,
General Motors is a world leader in hybrid technology as well, but
the author would have actually had to either a) known what the heck
he/she was talking about, or b) done some actual research.
Since 2003, General Motors has been selling hybrid-powered busses to municipalities across the nation. Through June 2005, GM has delivered 361 hybrid busses to 23 cities. General Motors claims these hybrid buses offer a 25% to 55% fuel-economy improvement over conventional buses depending on the route and driving conditions. In Seattle, which employs a fleet of 213 hybrids, the municipality is seeing an average fuel-economy improvement of 55%.
[Ed. note: This technology will be adapted into GM's large and midsize SUVs and pickups starting in 2007.]
Consider the hybrid everyone is raving about, the Prius. Toyota claims that the Prius can offer up to 40% improved fuel economy--about the same as the General Motors buses. Now tell me again how Toyota is the "world leader in hybrid technology." But that's the media for you, oversimplifying to prove a point.
Take a look at some of the world-class products coming out of Detroit: Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Corvette, Chrysler 300, Ford F-150, and Mustang. Each of these vehicles matches any import in quality, performance, and features, and, in most cases, beats them on price.
Part of the problem is that the motoring press in this country prejudges domestic product. These journalists hold domestic models to a higher standard and vigilantly scrutinize every detail. Then when something does go wrong, the domestics are criticized for poor quality.
Ford Freestar (above) has a
padded dashboard surround and door panels; the Honda Oddysey (top)
does not. Ford also locates the Freestar's gearshift out of the
way on the steering column, while Honda blocks interior controls by
placing it on the dashboard.Recently, both
GM and Honda had reliability issues--GM with intake manifolds on V6
engines and Honda with automatic transmissions on V6 models. Each
authorized that any defective parts would be replaced free of
charge.
However, the automotive press hammered General Motors on the intake manifold problem, claiming this was just another case of shoddy engineering and penny pinching. Honda, on the other, hand got a free pass from the media.
Recently, I attended the long-lead press introduction for Honda's new Odyssey. I came away impressed with the vehicle as a whole, but unimpressed with the interior materials. The only surfaces with padding were the carpet, seats, and headliner. Yet, in each article I read about the new Odyssey, not a peep about cheap interior materials.
In the publication I work for, Consumer Guide, we criticize the Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey, saying the "cabins abound with budget-grade plastic." I argue that there is no more plastic in a Freestar than in an Odyssey. In fact, the Freestar has more soft-touch surfaces. Yet, our review claims assembly is "top-notch" in Odyssey. Biased? You be the judge.
I consider myself a very specialized journalist. Not only do I have to report on automotive news, assess market trends, and evaluate new automobiles, but also I have to educate buyers. In that role, I must put aside personal biases, check my ego at the door, and open my eyes to new ideas and innovations.
An auto manufacturer is only as good as the last car it sells. As far as I am concerned, the domestics can match the best the world has to offer. Too bad journalists can't see that fact.
Reader Comments
| Mark Bilek is the
Editorial Director for all automotive editorial content on
the Consumer Guide® Website and has been an automotive editor
for over a decade. In addition, he is the used-car editor at
CG and in charge of print buying-guide production. He served
as president of the Midwest Automotive Media Association for
two years and is currently managing that organization's
Spring Road Rally. Mark has appeared on both ABC and Fox News
as an automotive consultant, and is a regular on WGN
radio's "Steve and Johnnie" show." Driver's Seat" is a continuation of Consumer Guide® Automotive's IMHO articles. Focused on the auto industry and written by Consumer Guide's® experienced editors, Driver's Seat editorials are intended to provoke thought and present opinions. They are not necessarily the views of Consumer Guide®. |
Haha. Nice try but even if American cars are cheaper than
import cars, they are just that: cheaper. They break down every 15
miles, properly earning for the title
"Fix-or-repair-daily." You state that the Chevrolet
Corvette doesn't have an imported peer? Try the Porsche Cayman
or Boxster. The Mustang doesn't have a peer? Apparently YOU
haven't been doing the research my friend. Try the Subaru
Impreza. You want a car with a legacy for power just like the
Mustang? Try the Toyota Supra. American cars are unfortunately
slipping behind in the consumer market. GM for example makes 500
new car designs and calls it the American Revolution. Now Americans
can go out and buy cars that are design-wise inferior due to
GM's lack of thought on each design and reliabilty-wise
inferior as well.
Finally, just because GM produced a
measly 361 buses doesn't mean that they are a world leader.
You're doing the same thing the critics you were criticizing
did. The Prius is in demand everywhere because it is fuel efficient
unlike most of the gas-guzzling SUVs and "Muscle cars"
American car companies live on. Also its reliable and I know that I
would much rather cough out a couple thousand dollars to have a
more reliable, more thoroughly thought out car. So, just as that
ridiculous American car slogan states, if I can find a better car
I'll buy it. And I CAN find a better car in the imported car
market. --Elliot
I have nothing but appreciation for Mark Bilek and his Driver's
Seat article, "Don't Count the Domestics out Just
Yet."
I am so sick of American cars getting
slammed by the media while the imports get all the praise. I sell
Chevrolets and we have picked apart foreign cars and found that
they are lacking in many areas where Chevys shine. No one would
ever know this, tough, thanks to America's biased
media.
For instance, did anyone know that the Chevrolet
Malibu received an 872 score in customer satisfaction from JD Power
and Associates versus Toyota Camry's (a supposed Best Buy) 853?
I'll bet no one realizes that Malibu gets better highway gas
mileage than Camry, has a better side crash test rating than Camry,
or that Malibu has sealed transmission fluid and EPS, which Camry
does not.
It's all about PERCEIVED quality, brought
on by our media. I can't believe we slam our own products as
much as we do, especially since the criticism is unfounded. We are
American, therefore we should buy American.
--Kim
The 6/30/05 article by Mark Bilek was, I believe
"off-base."
Japan's autos are usually
better made (fit and finish) and the interiors are also usually
better. I have owned both, I buy a car very two to three years
because of heavy mileage and the Asian cars always fair better. I
also go to major auto shows every year.
Not every
Japanese car is better, but generally speaking they have better
reliability and have stronger resale value. I don't think this
is a coincidence.
Of course, everyone is entitled to
their opinion. --Mike
Your article "Don't Count Out the Domestics" was
GREAT!!! It's about time someone in your field realizes that
the American cars are the equal (or better) than cars produced from
other nations. (Especially the Japanese, who seem to get WAY more
credit than they deserve.) I don't know why Americans keep
buying foreign made/owned vehicles! I don't think that they
realize how much it hurts our economy, by doing so, or how much it
HELPS the United States when they purchase a domestic car! GM and
Ford always get the blame for building big SUV's and not enough
fuel efficient/hybrid cars. And then the Japanese companies get
praise for building fuel efficient/hybrid cars, but apparently
people forget how big vehicles like the Toyota Tundra/Seqoiua and
Nissan Titan/Armada are! (And even Honda has a full-size truck
now.) Not to mention that folks need to stop living in the
1970's, and understand that the American cars are reliable,
dependable and well-built!
You should send this article to people like Bill Maher of HBO. He
is always speaking about the environment and about what good the
"gloating" Japanese are doing with hybrid cars, and what
evil GM and Ford are doing with big SUV's. The part of your
article about the buses should wake him (and a lot of people like
him) up! Just a thought. --Pete
Mark Bilek's piece about the quality of American cars did
not convince me. I bought the first year of the V-6 Ford Taurus,
used, with 62,000 miles, and it was a disaster. The transmission
failed completely just outside the warranty (65K miles). Then the
starter failed. Then, best of all, the head-gasket failed and
ruined the camshaft in the process (it must have been leaking
before it gave way completely)... necessitating a rebuild of the
top-half of the engine. That car was a nightmare. I received
absolutely no satisfaction from Ford. They did not stand behind the
product at all. Yes, it was used, but to fail utterly, in multiple
ways, before it hit 75K miles? Hell, my '94 Camry, which I
still own, was just getting warmed UP at 75K miles (it has 210K
miles on it now, and is still running like new, no joke, with NO
MAJOR REPAIRS required. Beat that, Ford ... but, then, Ford has
never built a car as refined, or as reliable, as a Camry at any
time in its history).
I would not touch a Ford again as long as I live, and I tell anyone
who asks that they're crappy cars and and a crappy company and
I wish them nothing but bad luck. They should be ashamed.
--C.
