Merkurwwu (?translation), you are right about people that like their Explorer. A friend has one that is 10 years old and nothing works except the stuff that makes it go and stop. Everything else is broken or has fallen off but he just loves it. He takes it to our hobby mine and drives it all over the mountain trails and then drives it every day to work and back. It's got some bad rust probems and the exhaust has fallen off twice, or to be fair torn off twice and still he loves that Explorer that he calls an Exploder. It gets synthetic lubricants and brake fluid and mechanically it is well taken care of, starts every time and has never left him stranded. This summer he said that he is even willing to consider washing it. He has washed it before and thinks he can remember how to do it. His other project is going to be replacing the alternator, but he is having a hard time finding a replacement good enough to suit him.
Think we'll ever see this at a Cadillac plant?
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I am not saying they have to look new especialy when you work with your hands for a liveing. I am just saying that they should fit and be clean. Any tear's or holes should be properly patched. For crying out loud I am talking about a people that make $24 an hour plus all benifitts a man can have wareing a shirt tht exposes half of their torsso, pants full of holes and hanging off their butt,no belt or suspenders, shoes soles flapping like castinets as they walk.Bathing is a huge issue with me as well. Their is never a good reason not to take a shower or bath after your shift ends and you go home. Most plants have locker rooms and shower's in them so that you can freshen up even if you are not going home.Some people simply choose to look like slops and go through life stinking up the place.
Sometimes boring is good.
Oilbabe suffered at the hands of Ford driving a few Escorts and Taurus' that were "fun" at around the 100K mile marker. So back in 2002 she bought a boring Camry.
It may have cost more, but with only one repair in 165K miles, a torn CV boot, she will stick with boring for a while.
If you are a single mom, worried about taking care of kids, finishing grad school, etc, boring is exactly what you want when it comes to your car.
Oilbabe suffered at the hands of Ford driving a few Escorts and Taurus' that were "fun" at around the 100K mile marker. So back in 2002 she bought a boring Camry.
It may have cost more, but with only one repair in 165K miles, a torn CV boot, she will stick with boring for a while.
If you are a single mom, worried about taking care of kids, finishing grad school, etc, boring is exactly what you want when it comes to your car.
The Explorer does have very high owner loyalty. I know people who bought one Explorer, and their spouse loved it so much they bought another one.
4Runners are not bad SUVs either though. Like the Explorer, they have high owner loyalty.
One thing I have noticed is that the average Explorer tends to lead a rougher life than the average 4Runner. When you look at a lot of used 4Runners, it is obvious they were cared for. It is not difficult to find one that was regularly waxed, perfectly maintained, etc... A lot of Explorers are run into the ground, poorly maintained, and just generally not treated kindly. I see a lot of Explorers with faded, scratched paint, dents, mismatched tires, and a spotty maintenence history. When cared for, an Explorer can last a very long time. I have seen one with over 300,000 miles on it, still running strong and in great shape. The ONLY thing wrong with it was the driver's seat, which had become very mushy over the years/miles.
This may be true in North America, but the 4Runner, or various other iterations of it (LandCruiser 120 platform) is used around the world in some very extreme conditions.
Standing up to abuse in the mountains of Afghanistan or the Australian Outback is a "rougher life" than the average grocery-getter duty performed by the Explorer in North America.
Explorers are also sold around the world. They go to many of the same countries as the Toyotas do, except the ones that are hostile towards US based companies.
I toured the Explorer plant in St Louis when we installed some computer gear.
They build RH drive Explorers for Japan. When they came off the line, these vehicles went through extra QC steps the domestic sold Explorers did not have to endure because the Japanese consumer would not accept the level of quality the American consumer was willing to accept.
My question was if they were going to build to a higher quality specification for Japan, why not make that the global standard?
The St. Louis Explorer plant is now idle.
They build RH drive Explorers for Japan. When they came off the line, these vehicles went through extra QC steps the domestic sold Explorers did not have to endure because the Japanese consumer would not accept the level of quality the American consumer was willing to accept.
My question was if they were going to build to a higher quality specification for Japan, why not make that the global standard?
The St. Louis Explorer plant is now idle.
Probably because what they were doing for domestic models was good enough, and the bean counters decided that it would cost too much money to inspect all of the Explorers and dealing with a few warranty claims would be more cost effective. They are running a business.
Oh, I understand that.
However, it seems there are a fair number of folks who will pay for what they perceive to be higher quality.
When I look at the numbers, it looks like Ford is closing more plants and selling fewer cars during the same period that Toyota was opening more plants and increasing sales, not to mention, they have been profitable.
I can certainly see where it is cheaper to deal with domestic warranty claims compared to overseas warranty claims.
I really do hope all the domestic automakers survive. I believe competition is good for the industry.
However, it seems there are a fair number of folks who will pay for what they perceive to be higher quality.
When I look at the numbers, it looks like Ford is closing more plants and selling fewer cars during the same period that Toyota was opening more plants and increasing sales, not to mention, they have been profitable.
I can certainly see where it is cheaper to deal with domestic warranty claims compared to overseas warranty claims.
I really do hope all the domestic automakers survive. I believe competition is good for the industry.
Go for boring. I had Dodge trucks. You name it trannys,
lifters, axle seals, transfer cases, fuel pumps. Yes I was nuts and had three of them. I wanted to believe that they
could not be that bad. Now I have a Toyota Tacoma. It
might not be a real truck like my three 2500 4x4 dodges.
But it is boring. I like boring!
lifters, axle seals, transfer cases, fuel pumps. Yes I was nuts and had three of them. I wanted to believe that they
could not be that bad. Now I have a Toyota Tacoma. It
might not be a real truck like my three 2500 4x4 dodges.
But it is boring. I like boring!
I don't care what you drive. The highways around NYC are anything but boring, death defying is much more like it.
I know New Yorkers take pride in how bad their roads are, but in all honesty, having driven on both the Cross Bronx and through Atlanta, Atlanta is worse than NYC. In NYC, things are pretty smooth unless there are a lot of cars out, then you just sit there. In Atlanta, it is pure insanity 24/7. In Atlanta, getting creamed by an F-250 doing 85 MPH is a legitimate concern, and the roads are not only packed, but everyone is doing over 70 MPH.
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