Would you buy a Detroit 3 product?

[michaelgt]

I have heard some percentages discussed for this question. I know that I am posting on a forum dedicated to owners of a GM car, but just want to see the results here.If you were going to buy a new car, would you:

[joatmon]

at this point I would only buy form the big 3, and am hoping GM lives long enough to sell me a volt, but I don't really plan to buy a new car anytime soon unless something terrible happens to the one I currently have

[808 Vibes]

Quote, originally posted by joatmon »at this point I would only buy form the big 3, and am hoping GM lives long enough to sell me a volt, but I don't really plan to buy a new car anytime soon unless something errible happens to the one I currently have+1. I have never owned anything but a GM...all Pontiacs in fact (my mom & I have owned 2 at the same time, so 6 back-to-back.)

[BlueCrush]

Let's see:1) '64 Chevy Impala2) '86 Chevy Cavalier3) '93 Saturn SC24) '00 GMC Jimmy5) '04 Pontiac Aztek6) '05 Pontiac VibeI'll re-invest in an american company in the future.

[Whelan]

I couldnt vote because I don't ONLY buy Detroit and I don't ONLY buy non Detroit, I also don't ONLY buy what is the best value. I buy what is appealing to me and what I want after my own personal research.I've had an '84 Escort, 92 Saturn SL1, 94 Saturn SL1 (which were built in Tennessee, Spring Hill). An '02 Civic, and now an '05 Matrix. If I had a choice now it would be between 3 cars if I was in the market.-Mercedes C300 Sport w/ 4Matic in white-Jeep Liberty Limited 4x4 w/ skyroof in white-Pontiac G8 GT loaded in whiteAll brand new, and at good prices right now, and yes one is very different from the other, but I would need to see how I felt behind each.

[northvibe]

I would buy a gm or ford...dont touch chrysler products though.

[scherry2]

always bought D3 except 1 time I bought a 1976 Datsun pick-up. bad Idea on the pick-up

[NUBlackshirts]

We just traded in my Wife's 1995 Sunfire for an '09 Ford Fusion V6 AWD. Got a great deal on it and we love the car (she really wanted the AWD). I have always been a Pontiac fan, but with her discount via her Grandfather, we couldn't beat it.Of course, if it was my car, we would have a G8 right now. Oh well, I can dream.

[Raven]

GM only (and Subaru of course).

[prathman]

All four of our cars at the moment are Toyotas - but three of them have GM nameplates (two Vibes and a Nova). But I do think GM and Ford have closed most of the previous quality gap and wouldn't hesitate to consider one of their products if it seemed to offer the best value for our needs. Haven't been as impressed by recent Chrysler products.

[Silversn95]

I will support two of the big three only, GM or Ford. There isn't much to like at Chrysler now or from what I've seen of future products. I very likely won't consider an import since I'm a firm believer in supporting the north american economy. Also as people are starting to realize, GM and Ford are just as good as any import for quality and design and in some cases better!

[jake75]

Those who know me know that I am a "value" buyer. Value does not mean the lowest price. You have to consider what you get for your money. That GM Card earnings perk has certainly been of importance to me on the purchase of both my '03 and '09 Vibes. I also have bought five Chrysler made minivans -1. 1987 Plymouth Grand Voyager 3.0L 6 cyl2. 1996 Plymouth SWB Voyager 2.4L 4 cyl3. 1998 Plymouth SWB Voyager 2.4L 4 cyl4. 2004 Chrysler SWB T&C 3.3L 6 cyl5. 2007 Chrysler SWB T&C 3.3L. 6 cylAll 5 of those were very satisfactory in terms of quality, comfort, and performance. The '07 T&C was an extremely good value at $7,500 off MSRP. My son is still driving the 1998 Plymouth Voyager - close to 180,000 miles.The most trouble prone cars I have ever owned were a 1971 Lincoln Continental I bought used in 1976 with only 21,000 miles, a 1977 Buick Estate Wagon I bought new to replace that Lincoln, and a 1986 VW Golf bought new - thank God I bought the extended warranty on that one. [It just dawned on me that the Golf was a lot like the Vibe in terms of functionality.]

[ragingfish]

as long as pontiac keeps building cars that i like, i will be a loyal customer. (note i said pontiac, not GM. if they axe pontiac, my loyalty to the general may wane.)

[mspalmer]

Just bought the Saturn Outlook 2 weeks ago. It is our third Saturn but I've also owned an S-10, Monte Carlo, Trailblazer, and Vibe so it seems I'm pretty much a GM kind of guy. Plus I live in metro-Detroit so I like to support the home team. I figure I should support the big-3 since my job indirectly is impacted on how they are doing. If no one has a good-paying job (or a job at all) then medical care will be put-off until it is too late. Preventative care is much cheaper than someone who comes into the E.R. due to a stroke or heart attack because they couldn't buy their medications. Our hospital already has a large portion of uncompensated care and our finance people are predicting pretty dire straits for the next couple of years.MikeDetroit

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »as long as pontiac keeps building cars that i like, i will be a loyal customer. (note i said pontiac, not GM. if they axe pontiac, my loyalty to the general may wane.)Pontiac doesn't build cars - GM builds cars - or not. In any case the trademark they put on them is arbitrary. In the case of the Vibe - NUMMI (assume 50% GM 50% Toyota) builds them. The Aveo and G-3 are built by Kia I think.

[michaelgt]

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »Pontiac doesn't build cars - GM builds cars - or not. In any case the trademark they put on them is arbitrary. In the case of the Vibe - NUMMI (assume 50% GM 50% Toyota) builds them. The Aveo and G-3 are built by Kia I think.The Aveo and G3 are built by GM. They were designed and engineered by GM Daewoo Automotive Technology (GM DAT) in South Korea. GM is the majority owner and has management control of GM DAT. The Aveo and G3 are built in several different plants across the globe, including a plant in Mexico.

[Vibe_dude]

Quote, originally posted by northvibe »I would buy a gm or ford...dont touch chrysler products though.+1Would NEVER touch a Chrysler even if they gave it to me.And I really dont care for the imports all that much.Toyota is lacking in there new products.Honda I would look at if it was s moking deal.

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by michaelgt »The Aveo and G3 are built by GM. They were designed and engineered by GM Daewoo Automotive Technology (GM DAT) in South Korea. GM is the majority owner and has management control of GM DAT. The Aveo and G3 are built in several different plants across the globe, including a plant in Mexico.Thanks for the education. I had forgot all about Daewoo - thought they were gone. CR doesn't have much good to say about the Aveo, not that they are always right.

[Neouka]

Have owned:1. 87 Honda Civic2. 90 Honda Prelude3. 96 Sunfire4. 03 VibeThe Sunfire made me not want to buy an American/Mexican GM for a very long time (The Vibe doesn't count.. I wanted a Toyota but couldn't afford it at the time!)Would I buy a GM? There's a select few I'd consider, but they're not at the top of my list. Vibe, Astra, G8, Saab 9-3. Notice none of which are true American GM cars...Ford? They're almost there IMO. I really like the look of the new Fusion. Needs to be more like the Mondeo, and have the V6 with a manual transmission. I don't like hybrids, but the Fusion Hybrid is kinda neat.Wouldn't touch Chrysler with a 10000 foot pole.No Korean cars either. They're not there yet, IMO.That being said, I'm waiting for a diesel car that really catches my interest. Better than a hybrid IMO. Not a huge fan of Jettas/Golfs. Audi A3 TDI is high on the list, but no stick trans is a dealbreaker for me. Next up is the Subaru Legacy diesel. Mazda just announced they're going diesel instead of hybrid. I like the BMW diesels, but automatic only

[scherry2]

Quote, originally posted by Neouka » (The Vibe doesn't count.. I wanted a Toyota but couldn't afford it at the time!)you mean the Matrix was so much higher priced than a Vibe that you couldn't afford it? I find that hard to believe, considering how Imports are so much cheaper than the D3 vehicles according to the news and most people on this site.

[Neouka]

For used cars, yes.When I was shopping for a car in late 2006,An '03 Vibe with 80-100 km on it ranged from 9 to 11 grand (Mine was 10 even). A Trix in similar shape and mileage was 12-14. I test drove one at a local Toyota dealer, they were asking 17 grand.I would have preferred a Matrix, but either way it doesn't matter too much, it's the same car anyway :3 I wasn't making a lot of money at the time, so I opted for the cheaper car. Next car I get will be brand new tho, but I can get something much nicer than a vibe >.>everything is in cdn dollars..

[PopeyeFAFL]

The only American Car that I ever own, before my Vibe, was a Chevrolet Caprice Classic Coupe 1979, I had paint problem with it, and I promise myself of never buying an American Car again.When I bought my Vibe, I couldn't believe, I set foot into an American Car dealership, but I somewhat convince myself that I was buying a Matrix in disguise (but I grant Pontiac was the innovative design, something that often Japanese manufacturer lack of).Now, with everything going on, I will hesitate buying another American Car (GM & Chrysler definitely, a bit less Ford), but there are none that interest me right now (don't plan to change before 5 years).There are other products that interest me (Volvo, BMW, Audi, etc.) but in my neighborhood, the dealership are far and badly located, so that play into the picture.I don't think that I will have too much problem servicing my Vibe for 5 to 7 more years, hopefully after the situation will have settle some what.

[scherry2]

Cars.Com Names Three GM Models Best BetsThe 2009 Chevrolet Malibu, Pontiac Vibe and Saturn Aura have been named a Best Bet for Passenger Cars by Cars.com. To qualify as a Cars.com Best Bet, models must meet three criteria: a Good rating in Insurance Institute for Highway Safety frontal-offset and side-impact crash tests, average or higher reliability ratings, and average or higher gas mileage within their class. The Malibu was also named a Editors' Choices for Small Families by Cars.com. Here's some of what the editors wrote about the GM vehicles: Chevrolet Malibu"When General Motors wants to show off what it can do, it always rolls out the Chevy Malibu, which has the styling, refinement and interior quality that's been missing from American midsize cars for too long. While Honda and Toyota weren't looking, the six-speed, four-cylinder Malibu came and kicked their butts with an impressive 22/33 mpg city/highway. Midsize sedans are a staple of small families, and this is the most competitive one out of Detroit in ages. It has a quiet, quality interior, and you can get a four-cylinder without forgoing upscale features."Pontiac Vibe "For all the reasons its twin, the Toyota Matrix, is a Best Bet, so is the Pontiac Vibe. In addition to its good crash tests and exceptional reliability, the Vibe has the advantage of being a Pontiac, meaning it has an additional 40,000 miles on the powertrain warranty, plus five years and/or 100,000 miles of roadside assistance, which Toyota doesn't offer." Saturn Aura"Thanks to average reliability and passing crash tests, the Saturn Aura joins its sister sedan, the Chevy Malibu, as a Best Bet."

[jake75]

Unfortunately I think many car buyers are seeking "better than average" reliability. People are looking for a lot of red circles or at least half-red circles, and no black or half black circles, in the CR reliability reports. Of course "average" in 2009 is a lot better than "average" was a few years ago, and I believe there is some degree of owner bias in the reports for Honda, Toyota etc.. But can you image a car ad touting "average reliability"?

[ColonelPanic]

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »But can you image a car ad touting "average reliability"?As bad as a couple of the cars I've owned have been, "average" reliability would be an improvement. But yes, the general public would probably not find such a description desireable.Anyway, about scherry's post - glad to see the Malibu is finally a decent car.. The one I owned a decade ago sure was a terrible, terrible piece of crap.