Between 1980 and 1990, there was no comparison with domestic brands. I worked at a Buick dealer that also sold Honda's. Brand new Buicks leaked oil on the carpeted showroom floor. The machine work was so poor with GM, they had to use High temp silicone on gasketed surfaces at the factory. Brand new parts (like crank shafts) were so bad ( coming from Flint) we needed to take them to a local machine shop to fix them. Honda, on the other hand, was just the opposite. Alot has happened since then, and the domestic brands have made quality improvements. As a general rule, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Isuzu have all been affected by partnering with domestic brands, and their quality is no longer anything to brag about. The thing about Toyota and Honda, the name was more important than making short term profit. I think when the big 3 start touting their quality as a reason to buy, and quit hiding behind the American flag, you will know there is parity. I am sorry if I offended anyone, but what I discribe if factual, I lived through it.
no youre right, the asian companies got a foothold in america cause the american brands were lazy and when the smog laws started they started killing their motors with emission reducing add-ons. We basically had crappy, gas guzzling large v8's that were no fun to drive. Then the gas crisis happened and people started noticing these cheap, great running, gas sipping japanese cars and started buying them...game over for american auto. Its our fault really, finally american companies are trying ( well some are, dont get me started ) to make cheap, reliable fun to drive cars, its going to be interesting to see if toyota, honda and nissan now that they are large can keep their production quality high while still delivering a good product. sorry for the spelling errors n other problems with my writing, im shooting from the hip
