One of the little pleasures I have in coming to California for a couple weeks (besides knowing that my wife will enjoy the peace and quiet of the house in Michigan during the same period) is insisting on an American brand car at the rental counter.
I sometimes get an odd look when I say I prefer driving only American brand cars, but they will always accommodate you. Today, I'm driving a Pontiac G6, which for all I know was assembled in Bangladesh, but it stands out on the freeways here which are filled with Hondas, Toyotas, Hyundai, KIAs and any number of other foreign manufacturers.
It's my little protest for buying American in a sea of "I'll buy whatever I want."
As an aside, the brand name KIA is one of the most curious names for a car. As any Vietnam veteran will tell you KIA, means and will always mean, Killed In Action. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for a vehicle.
Just a thought for today. (And for my former editor friends (I'm talking you SC), I originally spelled Bangladesh - Bangledesh, but because I don't have you for a backstop anymore actually looked it up myself to make sure it's right. See an old dog can learn a new trick.)
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4 comments:
Rest comfortably; your G6 was assembled in Lake Orion.
That makes me feel very good! A local plant. Pretty nice car too. The one I have has only 4,000 miles on it. It'll have more than 5,000 when I turn it in.
Jim
I give you mad props for choosing an American-made car. American cars get a bad rap for what they are. Technology is universal; I would find it hard to believe that automotive technology and manufacturing differs *that* much from country to country, what we perceive to be a "good car" is much more related to the marketing that the different auto companies use. Companies want to make good products, and ideally, stand behind their products. American-made cars are just as good as foreign ones, and are even perhaps a better choice for the American consumer, as purchasing domestic products keeps American dollars in America.
There's an interesting blog about American-made cars (and other American-made topics) you might like, it's at http://americanboom.com/blog/.
Thanks Paloma (I'll check out your blog and the website).
Honestly, I've never owned a foreign car that I thought was better than any of a number of American cars that I have also owned. (I have exclusively purchased American since I came to Michigan in 1977) Previous to that I owned a VW bug, a VW bus and a Honda motorcycle.
As to foreign cars, one word:
Yugo
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