On 1/31/06, Hendrik Riessen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Yeah the Japanese have come a long way since the early days of the corolla > but seriously would you trust a little tin box with your life? > The problem with Lexus is that it does not have the brand recognition factor > of a Mercedes. It's all about perception. > > Hendrik
This is actually an interesting statement, and one I feel compelled to blindly answer upon. What I'm about to say is heresay from an expat that has been around the world through Uncle Sam's dollar. What he has said is that each country not only has different auto specs, but different legal abilities. American, for example, you have the legal ability to sue the manufacturer of the vehicle in the event of a catastrophic event. Ala the SUV flip over, the Ford/Firestone tire issue, etc. So American automakers tend to make their vehicles well enough to protect occupants to deflect some of this ability to file suit. It has to be a problem with a whole line, not just a single car. In Japan, the only person that has the legal ability to file suit against a manufacturer in the event of a catastrophic event is the driver of the vehicle. Not the family. This is an important distinction. The whole statement that a Japanese vehicle is a "little tin box" that you would not "trust with your life" is an engineering decision. No driver, no suit. Germany, on the other hand, grants the legal ability to not only file suit against the company that manufacturers the vehicle, but the lead design engineer as well. Hence all the old German vehicles that are still on the road. Slightly rusty and a bit beat, but still mostly intact and road worthy. Please accept this all with a few grains of salt, as I have never tried to verify or deny any of what was told to me. However, a little applied logic added to the tale helps to clear a bit of fog, at least to me. Yet, I own three Japanese vehicles. Hope an MB is in my future. -- Knowledge is power... Power Corrupts. Study hard... Be Evil.
