Runaway Prius Clocked At Over 90Mph.

[Gavin]

I smell hoax too. At best the driver was a moron who couldnt think through a simple solution to their problem. Worst case, someone trying to draw attention to themselves.

[Gilly]

Eric I have to agree with you. Patriotism includes consumerism. My wife drives a Subaru.....made in Indiana. But we caught a world of crap when we first bought it because it has a Japanese company name. It is so hard nowdays to buy just about anything we wear, tools we use, our fishing gear, electronics, that are made in America. Hell, even my beloved Vise Grips moved out of Nebraska last year and is now made elsewhere. I endeavor on a daily basis to buy American. There are American companys that make rods and reels and I am getting better at buying those products. It's just so easy to walk into Bass Pro or Cabelas and buy what I can see/feel. Better awareness and distribution by these companies is sorely needed.

[ness]

Freedom to choose is at the very foundation of our country.

A car buying decision and patriotism are pretty far removed. You may have a soft spot for American workers, and that's just dandy -- I like us too. But selecting a crappy product with a Made in USA sticker on it is just a bad decision. There are far too many variables in the equation (parts, distribution, sales, etc.) to even come close to knowing whether your purchase of a Chrysler over a Toyota helps more Americans. Patriotism is not even in the equation.

BTW -- I didn't blame assembly line workers for anything. I said the companies were poorly run and produced a product that didn't sell well enough. And the wages are too high and the benefits and pensions are far too generous. Those things (and others) broke Chrysler and GM, and they're still broke despite billions in cash infused, and billions of obligations erased. So we just kicked the can down the road with that one. We took their failing businesses, wiped out the investors (which is as it should be) and then made the rest the taxpayer's burden. Nice.

Ford managed to steer through this without a bankruptcy or taxpayer dollars, so maybe it is they just know how to build and sell cars better than the others? Maybe that's the guy you pick if you want to buy American?

BTW, if 'corporations' are the problem, I wonder what the alternative is.

To the original issue, and to steer this away from politics (which is hopeless, I know):

Why the hell can't anybody figure out that you just pop that bad-boy into neutral and pull over? How can it be that this guy needs a highway patrolman tell him over the loudspeaker to put on the freakin' brakes to slow the car down, which is the wrong approach anyway?

Unfortunately for Toyota -- there are millions of folks out there, and a few are gonna try to milk this thing.

[Mo Mac Man]

Jongoism toward American products isn't patriotism. I don't understand conservative, pro-America capitalist chest thumpers who then say we should buy American instead of the best product. If we truly believe in capitalism, then we should always buy the best product for the money we have. If companies want to compete, they will.

Eric, you aren't putting your neighbors out of work by buying a foreign car. American car companies put their own workers out of work w/ poor products and not producing what people want. Ford has been the only American car company that truly has it all--fuel efficient compact cars all the way to the guzzling Excursions. I drive a 95 Mitsubishi Mirage. The most I've done to is replace some gaskets. It get 32 mpg and drive 50-60 miles a day. I don't know that I could get a American car that does that.

[Gatorjet]

Worst case driving scenario: BE DRIVING A PINTO IN FRONT OF A TOYOTA!!!

[fozzie.]

Not to completely hijack the thread, but along the vein of made in America vs elsewhere...

I'm due for a new vehicle in the near future, and have been researching my options. Which is better for the American economy: buying a Honda built in the US, or buying a Ford built in Mexico?

[Wayne SW/MO]

1. It was a loan (with extreme limitations and a good return to the taxpayer) that GM and Chrysler have paid back already, not a BAILOUT.

Huh?

[eric1978]

But selecting a crappy product with a Made in USA sticker on it is just a bad decision.

Since when are GM vehicles a crappy product?

BTW -- I didn't blame assembly line workers for anything. I said the companies were poorly run and produced a product that didn't sell well enough. And the wages are too high and the benefits and pensions are far too generous.

Tell that to all the folks who worked their whole lives for a company then were forced into an "early retirement" and totally screwed. I know some, do you?

Jongoism toward American products isn't patriotism. I don't understand conservative, pro-America capitalist chest thumpers who then say we should buy American instead of the best product.

It's not jingoism, it's loyalty. And again, I don't get where you guys think American vehicles aren't in the ballpark of "the best product." They are at least comparable. I think GM and Ford make great trucks...the cars you can make an argument for due to the poor gas mileage (in comparison to some foreign cars), and that's something American companies need to work on. But there are greater forces involved in the lack of production of fuel-efficient cars. Ever seen "Who Killed the Electric Car?"

By the way, I'm not conservative, and I'm not a capitalist chest thumper. I think unrestrained capitalism causes a lot of problems.

[ness]

Since when are GM vehicles a crappy product?

Read my post Eric. I didn't say "GM", now did I? And I didn't say 'assembly workers' earlier. If you want to discuss this, how about you respond to what was said, not what you wish was said. It's a fact that, in general, Japanese cars rate higher for reliability and resale value.

Tell that to all the folks who worked their whole lives for a company then were forced into an "early retirement" and totally screwed. I know some, do you?

What -- you're calling me out because you know some and think I don't? What difference does that make, and why make it personal? It's well-documented that a major cause of Chrysler and GM's woes are the out-sized labor costs. Sh*t happens, man. A great income, retirement and lifetime health care were never a sure thing. Sorry for the individuals that are affected by that, but it's narrow-minded to think this is purely an auto maker thing, or the result of unpatriotic citizens. Take a look around you -- I'd bet from your lofty perch upon the soapbox, you could see some other folks that didn't hit the jackpot.

I think unrestrained capitalism causes a lot of problems.

I'd venture a guess that 'unrestrained capitalism', or even slightly-restrained capitalism, has, on balance, been pretty good to you.

[eric1978]

Forget it, ness. We're not gonna resolve this one. I see it one way, you see it another. That'll have to do.