Hounddog

The UAW and others obvisiously still thinks the big three are mainly American.I bet overall lots of the big three dollars end up benefiting the USA more then Toyota/Honda/Kia etc.Curious if you followed the money trail from the very start on building/selling a American made vehicle and ONE of those that SAY they are 80% plus American made what the ratio really is.I might be surprised that the ratio is not what I think it would be.Then again it might shock others to how much of American owned/designed and out sourced really benefits American economy.I'm somewhat surprised at MY attitude on the subject.But I truly am trying to watch where my money goes in this era.BUDGET Rent a Car using imports really irritated me.In fact I'm going to THEIR WEB site and tell them so.

tcr

Has anyone tried to wheel and deal on a Toyota; are there any deals on a Tundra? I drove a Megacab Tundra and while the truck was nice, it seemed under powered and the suspension seemed soft for a truck with HD towing capabilities. When I saw the sticker price of the only Toyota truck I liked(Limited 4x4/$52000.00) I didn't figure they could take enough off for me to be interested so I moved on. I would put the Tundra I drove in a close second place to the Dodge 1500 I bought, right there w/ the GMC denali. Nice trucks but Dodge has made enough (1500) changes to get my vote on an awesome truck.

mdbrown

Honda is much like Toyota - most of what is sold in America is built here. My Dodge truck was assembled in Mexico!! While I can appreciate the inclination to buy American when possible (and I do), I think I owe it to myself and my family to purchase the best vehicle for the money that serves my purpose the best. If that's a Dodge; great. If it is a Toyota, that's the way it is.

Years ago I was in a Ford showroom in a suburb of Los Angeles. I was ready to purchase and knew the best deal I could get in LA - I wanted to give the local dealer a chance at my business. He couldn't come within $500 of the deal on the identical vehicle in LA. When I told him he was $500 from doing business he said, "you should keep the money local where you live". I told him what I believed then and still believe - I owe it to my family to keep as much of my money "local" and in my pocket as possible.

Hounddog

In the state things are in we owe it to OUR COUNTRY to do whats right which will benifit your family and others.Toyota may assemble trucks here and Dodge uses Mexico for some but I'm not talking about just assembly but the WHOLE money trail from out sourcing to the sale and then where do the moneys go.

mdbrown

Do you think Dodge does not pay Mexican workers in Mexico to assemble trucks in Mexico, who spend that money in Mexico. That too is part of "the WHOLE money trail. I like competition - it has worked for America. All things being equal, I'll buy "American", understanding, of course, that now few vehicles are actually manufactured (parts), assemled and sold in the USA. But, if I can get a product that better suits my needs and my pocketbook, I'll buy it whether it is built here or not.

It is precisely the competition I speak of that required "Detroit" to radically upgrade their products in order to compete.

93-12Smoke

I bought my Tundra crewmax (megacab) 4x4 fully loaded, but not the limited out the door for 30,000 (stickered at 45,000). And the statement under it being under powered is way off. Awesome power and handles loads well. But that is besides the point of the discussion.

tcr

So I probably could assume I was looking at a $37000-$38000 truck based on the deal you made, still more than what it was worth to me. I meant "under powered" in comparison to the GMC and the Dodge. Seemed like the Crewmax had alot of body roll and wasn't as "quick handling" I guess. Just my opinion, don't shoot It was a beautiful truck. I just had a bad feeling all the way around the Toyo dealer as I just about had to beg to drive it and it just wasn't all that. Seems like the salesman thought the Tundra was leaps and bounds above the big three....... little did he know....

93-12Smoke

Sounds like you got rubbed the wrong way by the dealer. The only complaint I have about the Tundra is the fact that it just hit 30,000 miles and the **** poor stock tires are bald!

tcr

Yeah, I think your right. They didn't seem very hungry then; I bet today they would sing a different song.

Hounddog

I have been out of the car business since 01.Up till then at least no matter WHAT the economy the import end was always not as friendly as the domestics.Out of warranty issues,dealing on price,incentives,rental/loaner cars,interest rates etc.were on a MUCH tighter string then the domestics.Also when tracking the amount of LABOR on repair orders the IMPORTS were always about 1.5 labor hours PER repair order HIGHER.Always.The amount of WARRANTY per repair order from import to domestics was only about a 1 to 2 percent differance.Domestics being that 1 or 2 percent higher.But imports were always more labor intense and we took in more money per repair on imports plus the import crowed spent a LOT more on maintenance then the domestic group.I think that's one reason the imports held up better.Whatever you buy watch out for MAZDA.Parts prices and labor per repair order is still outta site on them.The middle class buys them,when out of warranty get faint at a repair,trades them in and a some what lower end buyer buys them and then goes broke trying to keep them on the road.The Average labor per repair order on imports was in the 2.5 range and on domestics was in the 1.8 hour range.It was tracked for years and years and stayed about the same month in and month out.

quicksilvr

I'll tell you where your dollars spent on Toyota go, in my families bank account as an American tax paying citizen employed by Toyota. Folks its a "global economy" today, you ever look at the source/paper trail of a John Deere lately?

In all fairness to answer your question, I've beat the doors off every truck mentioned in this thread and they all have their issues. I will tell you this though; if money means anything to you, look at the residual values of the different makes and let me know who's going to put more back in your pocket at the end of your ownership.

Cheers!

LeonT

You make some valid points. This Ford I bought seems to be a very well-built truck. I liked the Toyota and the Dodge too. I don't really think you can go wrong with any of them.

I just put a leveling kit and a set of wheels and BFG ATs on it today. Next up is a sprayed-in bedliner, then a bed cap, and then....

Hounddog

What are th specs on the Ford truck? engine,trans,gearing? What fuel mpg is it getting off the jump street etc.

mahdey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWjTbiYo3x0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRfE_...eature=channel

these two videos was enough to sway my two friends from buying a yota pos and buy an f-150. I know they are gassers but a frame should not have that much flex in it. My mouth dropped when i saw how much the yota frame flexed.

LeonT

It has the 5.4 with 3.55 gears. It cruises about 80 at around 2,000 rpm. It is averaging 16 mpg so far with just over 800 miles on it. I have to get a programmer now to adjust for the larger tires I had installed yesterday. I'll snap a picture of it and try to post it if I can figure out how to get it up here.