my father came to america in 1950, when we still built cars that were the standard for the world. when i was a kid in the 70s, my dad would look at all the new cars in great sadness, stunned at the build and finish quality. he declared the big 3 to be diseased and dying.
i don't think my dad saw anything that millions of others didn't see. it was obvious. except the caretakers of the US auto industry, the men paid huge sums to money to see and correct such thing, didn't have a clue. same thing at benz today, no? things just repeat themselves. no one learns anything. there was once this foreign adventure in a place called vietnam where i was told we learned some great lesson, but now we see we've learned nothing. the emperor never has any clothes and is always the last one to figure it out. On 1/14/07, Bob Rentfro <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
That's exactly how it happens. Very eloquent, Hursty. Bob R ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gary Hurst" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Mercedes Discussion List" <mercedes@okiebenz.com> Sent: Saturday, January 13, 2007 3:03 PM Subject: Re: [MBZ] Mercedes Quality > "junk" may not be the right word (except, well, in the case of MLs). > consider the question in these terms. are they like the mercedes that > we drive and love or are they something quite different? say you were > a fairly affluent fellow in the market for a "luxury" car 35 years > ago. you go to the cadillac dealer because that is where everyone > goes to buy a luxury car. the salesman sees from the cut of your wash > and wear leisure suit that you are a man who will settle for nothing > but the best, so he busts out that brand new 1972 Fleetwood Brougham. > > my, what a car! you wish your living room sectional sofa were this > nice! the car is just huge, announcing your presence. it cruises the > highway in serene silence and comfort, the huge massive torque motor > effortlessly gliding you through any situation as the AC blows ice > cold air on you and your 5 passengers. you ARE a pimp, young man! > > you think about checking out a rolls royce, but the price is just too > high to justify for a car, so you check out mercedes. so you go down > to the benz dealer and look at a 280SEL 4.5. hmmm, it's a bit more > money than that cadillac and isn't quite as well equipped or > appointed, but you notice something. the paint just looks better and > hte body panels all seem to fit with great precision. suddenly, the > cadillac's snazy interior looks flat cheap. was that plastic in the > cadillac or wood like here in the mercedes? you look under the hood > and you see a thorougly modern overhead cam V8 with state of the art > electronic fuel injection. > > and then you drive and it all comes together for you. no creeks. no > rattles. the steering and suspension feel much heavier than the > cadillac, but it is just as comfortable. you can actually get a feel > for the road as you drive and increase speed. you hit the brakes and > the car actually slows raplidly in a straight line. the car is of > one complete piece, a unity, a whole. it is a precision machine and > you are now converted to a new way of looking the automotive world. > > could it happen like this today? is mercedes now a special car or > just another expensive status car? is the build and materials quality > really still the best? can all the advanced electronics be trusted or > is bosch just flat committed to being the new lucas? will you still > be driving it in 20, 30 or 40 years or do you see yourself running > back to the dealer the day before the extended warranty expires? > > they are not "junk" in the sense of a yugo being "junk." I'd go as > far as to agree that they are really, really nice cars and an absolute > pleasure drive. but i'll also say that they are NOT the mercedes cars > we know and love. > > for the sake of getting along, i'm just going to leave with some of us > just prefer our mass in latin, i suppose. but there is more there to > our disatisfaction. _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
