Actually, a great deal of the design work on these cars is done in America as well as the assembly. And vehicles designed in America are now designed for the world market, often using design firms from other countries, and can be assembled anywhere in the world. “Branding” has muddled the lines even more, as have corporate acquisitions. Who could argue that a Chrysler is still an “American” car?
I truly believe that the terms “American car” and “foreign car” have become totally obsolete. To its credit, the automotive industry has become a truly global industry.
That depends… well actually in this specific scenario it doesn’t.
I’d chose the Camry built in Kentucky by American workers.
But I’d chose a Japanese design over an American design, and I would also choose American workers over Mexican workers, so there wasn’t any thought necessary
It shouldnt bother me,but it irks me a bit-for someone to come to this country for its percieved benefits and buy and display everything that showcases were they come from-Kevin
Vehicles plastered with Harley Davidson stickers while the owner of the vehicle may not even own an HD, has never owned an HD, or possibly never owned a bike at all.
Regarding HDs and “American made…” (often noted with pride by HD people) most of the HD stickers, T-shirts, and even replacement parts are farmed out to Asian companies.
Even further, HD has been going out of country for many decades to source parts. Mikuni carburetors, electrics, bearings from Japan, Showa front forks since way back when, and on and on.
I think a new HD dealer is going up in Arizona somewhere; reportedly the largest in the world. A 140,000 square feet of bike dealership is going to require the sale of a lot of stickers and T-shirts…
To me anyway, this is overblown idiocy…
@db4690 This in the 70s, was long before Toyota had their plant in Kentucky. At that time, Hush Puppies were made by Wolverine Shoe in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The US shoe industry was still thriving. Florsheim was a good make; later I bought a pair made in India and they fell apart.
The only US made shoes I own now are S.A.S, (San Antonio Shoe) and they are very comfortable walking shoes.
“Florsheim was a good make; later I bought a pair made in India and they fell apart.”
I hear you, Docnick!
My family was the first retailer of both Florsheim & Bostonian shoes in NYC, and they apparently made a decent amount of money and built-up a small chain of stores. Unfortunately, we lost everything in The Great Depression, but our family connection with the American shoe industry goes back to the 19th Century, and Florsheim WAS a great name in shoes until recent times.
I bought a set of Wolverine work boots several years ago, based on the recommendation of a colleague
They were the most uncomfortable work boots I’ve ever owned. After several weeks of pain . . . they never did get more comfortable . . . I threw them in the trash and got something else
A few months ago, I bought a US-made pair of Red Wing work boots (they also have boots made elsewhere, which are less expensive). After a few days, they were extremely comfortable. And the soles appear to be much higher quality than any other work boots I’ve owned over the years
I have a pair of Red Wing low top work shoes with a fiberglass toe shield. They look good, feel good, and are light for that type of shoes. I even got them for around $60. Good deal all around.
I used to be a casting fanatic,I always marveled how much better the castings made in the US,looked compared to the Eastern Bloc and most third world countries-Kevin
@jtsanders Red Wing still makes good stuff. Unfortunately in other countries the quality gets compromised. I was in Tampico, Mexico on a project that required safety shoes. I went to shop that was “Red Wing” and bought a pair of Mexican made low safety] shoes for about $35. They were very uncomfortable, but did the job. This shop also sold US made safety boots at an astronomical price.
Does anybody else have any add-ons? I think the discussion’s looking like it’s drifting off for good. When I was a kid in the late 80s, my dad had a deep green Mercury Marquis wagon. He went through a phase where he bought those fluorescent windshield wipers with square “blades” (don’t know how to describe them, maybe wings) that were perpendicular to the windshield. Sometimes they’d wear out and he’d switch the yellow ones for the pink ones. I can’t find a picture of them, but they were mortifying to a grade-schooler. He claimed the perpendicular blades served as an enhancement to the function of the wipers, but I think they only made him feel cool. I just called him about them now, and he said, “What the [heck] made you think of those?”
