Consider buying American!

You don't half write some bollocks.
(old English term for shite)

 

BMW don't make their transmissions.

 

If you look into the web reports on these failures you'll find they're
made by your very own GM...

 

More bollocks. No machine works 'indefinitely'.

 

cam timing, not ignition timing!!! you can adjust the ignition timing
so it looks right, even when the cam's way off.

so why are you arguing that chains are better? belts don't wear
["stretch"]! their timing never changes!

and with a belt, you don't have to bother! a much superior design concept.

no, chain wear is pretty much linear. it's twice as worn at 150k as it
is at 75k.

if so, it's not because the cam timing has drifted!

no, the catalyst takes care of it. for a while. and cam timing is
nothing to do with oil consumption.

 

You expect parts to be readily available and cheap for an uncommon import?
Try looking at the spares prices of old US cars in the UK...

 

http://www.racetoretirement.org/
http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2005/01/11/001220.html
http://www.aerodyn.org/History/dc-3.html


but the point i'm discussing is whether an end life is part of the
design criteria. in this case, it is. "bathtub curve".

http://www.weibull.com/hotwire/issue22/hottopics22.htm

it's the hot ticket in production technology and vehicle manufacturers
have been fixated by it for about 25 years.

 

but they do write their own specifications!!!

 

to make it fit!!! once done, it stays - it's not an ongoing issue like
a chain. belts don't stretch.

 

There are a couple problems with American car manufacturers in general,
and GM in particular:

The workforce gets bored easily. Bored workers do fair work.

The Management is more interested in making shareholders happy than
customers.

And the biggest failure of the system: even if your people are building
the cars the best they can, the car is no better than the quality of the
parts that go into it.

This is where the Japanese really kick ass. The parts are far more
reliable than their American counterparts. Remember what happened when GM
sytarted making Corollas (Geo Prizm)? They put Delco parts into them! The
highest failure components on a Prizm are the alternator and the radio.
Smart people who realize they have a Corolla in disguise go to a Toyota
dealer and buy a rebuilt Denso alternator and drive for the next 150,000+
miles without even thinking about it.

Once GM starts thinking Customer over shareholder, and quality parts
rather than cheap parts, GM will again regain it's composure and move back
to the top. And I don't mean in sales. You give people a large enough
incentive, they'll buy the car no matter how crummy. I ALMOST went to look
at a Cobalt, because a new one was $3,000 less than the Scion I bought
with 11,500 miles. Bit based on the reliability figures of the Cavalier
the Cobalt replaced, the idea left my head in 5 minutes.

If GM can get their parts manufacturers to approach the quality and
longevity of Denso, Hitachi, etc, GM might once again become #1 in
QUALITY, and not just pushing cars to rental agencies to boost sales...

 

How does this affect GM workers more than other workers? Or Ford and
Chrysler workers more than the workers for the foreign automakers?

Chrysler does not have shareholders.

This is true for US-made Hondas and Toyotas, too.

GM and Ford have decreased sales to rental fleets.

Jeff

 

the difference is the spec the auto maker writes for the parts. honda
and toyota specs are very high. domestic specs are way lower.

 

It's really staggering to think about it. IIRC, one rationale for
"market driven" health care is to eliminate what they call "frivolous"
doctor's visits. I don't personally know anyone who drops by the
doctor's office just because he has decent health coverage. Most people
are too busy.

 

In other words, no, not a scintilla.

 

I worked at a Chevy dealer at the time the Prizm was around. Chevy even had
a letter out to replace the failed Delco alt. with a Denso unit. GM and
Ford dug their own graves buy giving us piles of junk. Time for them to
crawl in their holes and die. Scott

 

Sounds pretty interesting, any chance of a link or 2?

 

I was happy to start with, but you're still wrong. Sorry.

 

You pretty much called me very dumb, I'm surprised you forgot me so
easily. You must think everyone is pretty dumb

 

Phil it doesn't matter about the grammar being right or wrong - we ENGLISH
invented the language so we can do what we like with it. Anyway,
the way ENGLISH has been diluted by US immigrants over the years who is to say
what is the correct grammar
--

Sir Hugh of Bognor

The difference between men and boys is the price of their toys.

Intelligence is not knowing the answer but knowing where and how to find it!

Hugh Gundersen

Bognor Regis, W.Sussex, England, UK