C-racked
H-eads
E-very
V-alve
R-attles
O-il
L-eaks
E-ngine
R-attles

 

I have to say that the real reason I don't like chebbies is because they are -------- ugly. There is no other word for it. Yes, a 68-72 Chevy pickup is a nice looking machine, it would look better with a 460 in it, but after that, they are crap. I saw a new van today- living proof that Avalanches bred with Silhouttes. That ugly chrome bar, that ugly nose profile- Give me a Ford any day! But chevy also has had some good ideas. I am running an HEI distributor on my 300-6, but it is highly modified. This was one of their half-assed ideas. It is a cool and convenient system, but it breaks down way too soon. I liked the coil sprung rear ends on the 68-72 trucks, but why did they stop making them? Too good? The Great Mistake company has a history of halfway attempts, and poorly executed designs. I think that should be GM's new motto: Great ideas, poorly executed.

 

Poopey said;

The fact is that chevrolet and dodge make good trucks too,


Ranger said;

I got to see your cards on that one. I owned a Chevy truck and I'd never make a statement like that. How many chevy and Dodge trucks have you owned? How many total miles have you driven on them? What was the cost per mile considering fuel and repairs?

I got my hip boots on.

 

I don't think everyone on the site hates Chevys, but in general on a Ford enthusiast site you'll probably find more people that like Fords.

I've owned a fair number of cars and trucks over the years (perhaps 40-50) and pretty much buy whichever brand appeals to me at the time - and right now that happens to be Fords. However, I've owned perhaps 10 Chevies, a couple Dodges, and a fair number of Jeeps and AMCs - my only guidelines are that I don't buy imports and don't buy cars with front-wheel-drive.

From my experience, all automakers make some good products, some bad products, and some outright lemons - part of getting a good vehicle is luck of the draw, and some is doing a lot of research before you buy. I've had both Chevies and Fords that ran well past 200,000 miles with no major problems, and I've had both Chevies and Fords that barely lasted beyond the warranty.

I certainly don't hate Chevys, but right now I do prefer new Ford trucks to new Chevy trucks - partially because of the styling (what is GM thinking?), and partially because I think the Fords are better suited to actual work. Since I own both a Ford and a Chevy right now, I'm not going to be very critical of Chevy owners...and let me tell you, if my 2002 F150 lasts as long and is as reliable as my old Chevy I'll be a very happy man.

I guess I never really understood the whole brand loyalty thing - I don't care what people buy, as long as it's made in the United States. Well, and Canada I suppose - I'll make them the honorary 51st state.

LK

 

LK: When you say you won't buy anything that is'nt made in America, of which Canada, Mexico, and the S American countries, are all part of, I assume you mean just what is made in the US and Canada. I knew that's what you meant, but I could'nt resist.

My real question is related to cars like Honda made in Marysville, Ohio. Would you buy a foriegn car, made in the US, but owned by a company not based on US soil. But of course, you would have to be inclined to buy that car in the first palce. Would that violate your ethics?

I personally prefer to buy that which is made in the USA, but I am not married to that concept. I want the best product that I consider money can buy within my budget. If it happens to be made by Germans, rather than Americans, then I would buy German. It is a global economy, and the Unions in this country, as well as management, need to understand that they have to compete in a world market place. The 50's are gone and the sooner that manufacturers in the US realize that their products must stand upo to the test of the world market, the better they will position themselves to compete in that market.

The US manufacturers can mitigate the tide of foriegn dominance in markets, here and abroad, simply by producing quality items. China can mass produce all of the widgets they want, with all of the cheap labor they want, yet if the quality is better as produced by the US manufacturer, then they will survive in the marketplace by carving a nitche for quality known products. The US producer may not dominate the market in quantity, but they can surely dominate the market in quality. Thein lies the secret to their success.

 

Remember, I made Canada the honorary 51st state - so they don't count as imports anymore.

Yeah, I count Canada as 'domestic' but not Mexico - partially because I happen to like Canada and visit there occasionally, and partially because I'm close to the border and don't want to be attacked by rogue Canadians. However, from the sound of other posts I probably own more guns than the Canadian military, so I might be safe.

What makes you think I have ethics?

Seriously, that's a good question - 10 years ago I would have said that a Honda made in Ohio was still an import, but now I'm not so sure. I do design parts for Honda in addition to the Big 3, so I know that some of the engineering is also done here in the States. Plus, most of their plants here are non-union - and since I dislike unions that is an added bonus. That's a really difficult decision to make...I guess if there was an import that I was really interested in, I would at least check it out. I might not buy it, but I also wouldn't eliminate it outright just because it was produced by a foreign company.

I actually did drive a Porsche for a while as a company car some years back, and it was pretty darn impressive...but so were the maintenance costs! Spending $500 for a water pump just doesn't appeal to me...luckily I wasn't the one paying for it.

I do think foreign competition has driven the domestic automakers to produce a better product, which ends up benefitting all of us no matter what kind of car or truck we buy.

LK

 

&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp I've never enjoyed the thought of owning and driving anything but a Ford. The general take on Blue Oval trucks appears to regard them quite highly as durable and reliable working-class machines. Experience and first-hand information leads me to agree. The impression made by Dodge and GMC trucks is quite poor, in my opinion. I see far too many arrogant, obnoxious drivers from those crowds who believe their vehicles are all divine and mighty. They fit their junk with thousands of dollars in gaudy aftermarket accessories and drive around with their noses to the sky, as if they think everyone respects them and the pile of bolts they're in. If you wanted an oversized $30,000 Matchbox toy painted like an easter egg, you'd probably own one of those. That's about how they're used, too.. like toys. I observe MANY more Fords doing heavy service and contractor work than anything else.

&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp As for aesthetics, GMC has always had a cheapish, corny interior. Their trucks have always been ugly, and seeing the newest models it is apparent that nothing changed. Dodge has a more appealing interior, but they're eyesores just the same. I sometimes wonder how many workers with drinking straws it takes Dodge to blow those bulbous, cartoonish body panels into shape from the molds. And what in God's name do they need all that wheelwell space for, anyway? I think if someone hit a Ram just right, the whole thing would deflate and settle on the tires.

&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp That's about it. Hey LK, was that $500 for the water pump alone or was installation included?

 

Speaking of being to hard on Chevy, I saw a wonderfull site yesterday, a Chevy truck being towed away on a flat bed lol The I thought, what if my truck broke down, and that was my truck on that flat bed? Then, I re-thought, and said, thats impossible, I drive a FORD HAHAHHAHA

 

Ford Chevy or Dodge they will all run great if the mechanic knows what he is doing. All car guys will raz the other brands but a true car guy will apreiciate the others too. I like my chevy becouse its small and gets 20mpg and can go anywhere off road, i like my ford becouse its big and can haul stuff and i got it for $500, but i havnt taken this one off road yet (it needs performance mods first). Both of them run realy well both have about 200000 miles whith 2 rebuilds(one at 100000 and then a recent one), but i take great care of my trucks, mechaniclyt anyway bodys get thrashed off roading

 

LK: Man who did you work for that provides a Porche for a company car, Porche? Which model? I always admired the Spiders. James Dean knew what he had, just did'nt know what was coming down the road.

 

Brien: It was a privately-owned company, and the guy who owned it was the same one who decided on what company cars to purchase - so he bought whichever ones he thought were "cool", in case he ever needed to borrow one of them. We had a Porsche, a lifted F150, a restored '65 Mustang (the owner's personal company car), and a couple Jeeps for when the roads got bad. I liked the cars, but I wasn't a huge fan of the job - which is why I'm not there anymore.

The car was an '84 Porsche 944 - which is either considered the "poor man's Porsche" or just a fancy VW, depending on who you talk to. Still, it seemed pretty nice to me - 'course, I'm a redneck who usually drives old pickups with hay on the floor so I'm easily impressed. It wasn't all that quick, but the handling and braking were downright amazing...it was a little like driving an oversized go-cart.

Thoseapples: That was just the cost of the water pump, with installation it came to about $800. We ended up taking the car about 200 miles away to find a decent Porsche mechanic, as there aren't many of them in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Later the tranny went out on it (manual, of course) - I slowed down and coasted through a little town, and when I got to the other side and tried to accelerate the engine just revved up like it was in neutral. That was a more expensive fix, but I don't remember how much - at least a couple thousand dollars.

Like I said, I'm glad I wasn't paying the repair bills.

LK

 

I've hardly seen any bad comments for dodge or chevy. But its ok to talk good about the brand that you have!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Who cares? In my family there is:
2 chevy cars: A CAPRICE CLASSIC and a Monte Carlo and 2 ford cars: A Probe and escort

 

Buy Ford, Chevy, and other made amrerican cars, to Disrupt the Japs

 

I like GM cars better than Fords. Ford has never made anything that approached the Corvette, and even Camaros have always been better than Mustangs in both performance and appearance (just my opinion). Of course, that doesn't do us much good now that it's out of production.

My last car was a Pontiac Grand Am. I put 130,000 miles on it in less than four years. That car took me through all 48 states. The only problem I ever had with it was with the front axle, which developed at around 120,000 miles. It was a two-day, $250 repair. I can't comlain about that. I loved that car, and the only reason I sold it was because I was leaving for Iraq. If I was going to buy another car, another Grand Am would probably be on top of my list.

But since I've gotten a little more redneckified in the past few years, I've developed an appreciation for trucks. And Ford makes the best trucks and SUVs hands down. I wouldn't own a Chevy or Dodge truck (and I'd kill myself before I owned a foreign truck). I do kind of like Chevy Tahoes, but for $40,000, no thanks. Even if I could afford it, I'd rather buy a new Explorer or F150 for half the price.

I'd like to see GM turn itself around, but for the time being, I'm a Ford man.