@VDCdriver- I hope you did not think I was trying to insult or be rude. I did not know about the Mazda Amati but was familiar with the Kia Amanti .
Mazda is trying the upscale market with the CX-9. Their Signature trim is essentially a 7 passenger entry level luxury SUV for the price of a 5 passenger ute like the RX350.
Toyota and Honda were able to sell small cars for a good profit because they had, and probably still have, a significantly less expensive life cycle for their cars than most if the competition. Their design turnaround was 3 years versus the Detroit 3s 5 years. That extra time allowed them to work the bugs out before distribution, while the others had to use the first couple of years to work the last bugs out. Spending $60 to Fordās $100 in no recurring costs put them way ahead and allowed them to control the market while making a nice profit. Their superior manufacturing practices also saved money by reducing rejects. All that added up to making a lot of customers happy and created a good recurring customer base.
No, I didnāt think that you were trying to be rude or insulting.
Back in the late '70s, Arthur Bellāa NYC newspaper reporterāreferred to me as āthe man who remembers everythingā, which was quite a compliment.
Interestinglyā¦about 30 years later, two different Deputy Attorneys General for whom I worked used the exact same words to refer to me.
Perhaps this means that I can avoid dementia for a few more yearsā¦
When gas prices ho up again. Small car sales will go up again.
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Small car sales certainly will increase when prices do. The āwhenā is an open question. There has been no end to the supply glut so far, I wouldnāt be surprised if it lasted a couple of more years, with slow increases afterwards.
Kia is selling the K900, a large luxury car similar to the Hyundai Equus.
Iām sure Trump is quite ignorant. That is all you needed to say! 
If voters pick him based on something he barked that resonated with them, ignoring everything else he has said (to say nothing of his questionable business deals and projects that cost contractors their livelihoods), then the country is in big trouble. Even if Congress puts the brakes on him, the disruption caused, not just at home but around the world, will set back U.S. diplomacy efforts for decades.
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Yes, the ease of depending on those big models has infected Toyota, leading them to become complacent in terms of innovation (hybrids notwithstanding) and quality at the factory. They arenāt building bad cars, but they have let others catch up, especially from their neighbours, the Koreans.
Honda has avoided this virus (so far) and seems to have a lot of innovation in much more than automotives - they have a lot in common with Apple in that regard.
Nissan has lost market share in North America, although they are still profitable. Perhaps they have been trying too hard to be like the Big 3? Their cars are well-made but have become invisible. I believe they have led the way in CVT technology, whether car enthusiasts like them or not.
No one āletsā other catch up. Other catch up on their own. Toyota has let themselves slip a bit on quality. Still good but theyāve lost some edge. And they and other Japanese car companies taught the Koreans a lot. The Koreans then learned the rest, for the American market, at least, by hiring experienced American engineers to Americanize their cars. And hired a German designer away from Audi to make them look good.
I donāt see very much innovation at Honda at all and unlike Apple, they canāt command a premium for their vehicles. So disagree on that one.
Agree that Nissan is invisible. Must be why all the cars in their adverts are red.
If ignorance is what got Trump to where he is today, the rest of us must just be too smart for our own good.
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Iām going to let stargazerās political views slide except ask yourself how a lawyer with a pretty nasty disposition has managed to collect millions from big banks and foreign governments. Canāt see how that will help the masses. Remember this year it is not a fight between the GOP and DNC it is between the elite insiders against the outsiders.
At any rate, simply building good cars is really not enough anymore. Cars are expected to be good now. I have no statistics but there have been quite a few posts here about the poor service they have gotten at a Toyota dealership. People expect that the entire experience with the product and the dealerships will be a positive one. I donāt know about Honda but Acura has been super. When I bought GM, I would go to a dealership out of town so as not to buy local. I never got a warm fuzzy at Ford either. They could save a lot of money on advertising and just concentrate on making sure people have a good experience when they go to a dealer. If your wife does not feel comfortable going to a particular dealer alone, they have a lot of work to do.
I have trouble seeing an outsider, Trump has busted unions, outsourced to foreign countries for his merchandise, has tax plans that benefit the 1%, assuming you meant trump as an outsider who will bring car manufacturing back, judge by past actions not current lies. Or as Huffington post so eloquently says after each trump article,
āEditorās note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims ā 1.6 billion members of an entire religion ā from entering the U.S.ā
If that is wrong where is the lawsuit?
OK Iāll edit. Well at least they are honest about their bias, unlike the Washington Post or New York Times. These are really just DNC talking points being spread around out of total panic. And this is from a guy that votes both ways independently but sick and tired of the high handed approach and audacity of the central government staffed mainly by unelected career bureaucrats.
Amazing what or who $50 million a month will buy. Where is she getting all this money?
From a news organization that is nearly as corrupt and dishonest as the Clintons.
By being dishonest and cheating people. Trump is a con man -pure and simple. Heās like the old Steve Martin joke on how to become a millionaire. First get a million dollars. Then cheat and crawl your way up.
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Since when are dealerships owned by the manufacturer? How would people be treated differently at a dealership that sells Toyotas and Fords and BMWs? Iāve seen good and bad dealerships from all the manufacturers. There is no corolation between quality of service and manufacturer.
They may have a slant - but they do report real news - unlike Fox that actually makes it as they go. This past year theyāve been outed for several dozen out and out lies.
If I were to rate dealerships (based on personal experience) in terms of quality and competence, I would rate Chevrolet at the very bottom. followed by Ford, then Chrysler. Of the foreign dealers we have had very good service from both Toyota and Mazda; a quantum leap up from the Big Three. Have only dealt with VW parts department and found them arrogant.
Iām no fan of Trump, but what does this have to do with cars?
Have you considered there are websites that cater specifically to those who wish to engage in petty partisan bickering?
I hope youāre aware the dealerships you visited arenāt owned by GM, Ford. or Chrysler. As far as I know, the auto manufacturers donāt manage the dealerships.