mac@eisx.UUCP (James McParland) (02/19/85)
> From spuxll!whuxlm!whuxl!houxm!ihnp4!drutx!mas > > I have be evaluating cars on the lots of Japan's finest... > > My Analysis is: I would buy an American car over ANY Japan has to offer. > > Buy American you can't go wrong > > Mike Schwarz First of all, you can go wrong buying American. You can go wrong buying anything if you don't know what you're doing. OK, Mike. What criteria were you using in evaluating the cars? You can't go and dismiss all Japanese cars without saying WHY. Did you look at Mitsubishi's? I would rate my Starion higher than any available American car on my standards: performance per dollar. Full description of car later. I could have bought a faster car (Z28, Vette, etc.). I could have bought a roomier car (Caddy, Lincoln, etc.). I could have bought a cheaper car (Chevette, etc.). But show me any American car that can match the Starion's performance per dollar and I'll be shocked. I'm serious about this, Mike. I challenge you to find ANY American car that would match these features for this price. The 1984 Mitsubishi Starion LS has a 2.6 litre engine (largest 4 cylinder engine made at the time) with a twin shaft dynamic balancer (proprietary Mitsubishi design; also leased to Porsche for the 944). The engine is fuel injected and turbocharged. (Produces 145 horsepower, not too far from the magical 1 HP per cubic inch). It's a relatively light car, giving you a good HP/weight ratio. Other performance features include 15" wheels, steel belted radial tires, lockup-sensing brake modulating system (the same system that Mercedes and Ford are bragging about on their cars - Mitsubishi had it first), five speed manual transmission. Accelerates very smoothly up to a top end of 125 MPH. Rides very nicely that fast, too. Creature comforts: Power steering, Power brakes, Air conditioning, cruise control, intermittent wipers, 6-way adjustable seats, AM/FM/Cassette w/6 speakers, Digital speedometer, tachometer, and boost gauges, rear wiper/washer, etc. There's a 5 year warrantee on the turbo. The new '85 top-of-the-line Starions include power mirrors and power antenna, lighted vanity mirror; also touch-sensitive stereo controls on the steering wheel. And as with most Japanese cars, excellent fit and finish. ALL OF THIS (except the 15" wheels and anti-lock system) WAS STANDARD EQUIPMENT. YOU GET ALL THIS FOR A $15,000 LIST PRICE. Go ahead, Mike. Take that list to any AMERICAN car dealer and try to find a car that will match those features. Most American cars don't even offer options to match this list. Then watch the poor dealer choke when you tell him you're expecting it to cost less than $15,000! "The one who dies with the most toys wins!" Jim (Mac) McParland / Cap Gemini DASD on assignment to: AT&T Information Systems South Plainfield, New Jersey
mr@hou2h.UUCP (M.RINDSBERG) (02/20/85)
> > From spuxll!whuxlm!whuxl!houxm!ihnp4!drutx!mas > > > > I have be evaluating cars on the lots of Japan's finest... > > > > My Analysis is: I would buy an American car over ANY Japan has to offer. > > > > Buy American you can't go wrong > > > > Mike Schwarz > > First of all, you can go wrong buying American. You can go wrong > buying anything if you don't know what you're doing. > > OK, Mike. What criteria were you using in evaluating the cars? You > can't go and dismiss all Japanese cars without saying WHY. > > Did you look at Mitsubishi's? I would rate my Starion higher than any > available American car on my standards: performance per dollar. > Full description of car later. I could have bought a faster car > (Z28, Vette, etc.). I could have bought a roomier car (Caddy, Lincoln, > etc.). I could have bought a cheaper car (Chevette, etc.). > > But show me any American car that can match the Starion's performance > per dollar and I'll be shocked. I'm serious about this, Mike. I challenge > you to find ANY American car that would match these features for this > price. > > The 1984 Mitsubishi Starion LS has a 2.6 litre engine (largest 4 > cylinder engine made at the time) with a twin shaft dynamic balancer > (proprietary Mitsubishi design; also leased to Porsche for the 944). > The engine is fuel injected and turbocharged. (Produces 145 horsepower, > not too far from the magical 1 HP per cubic inch). It's a relatively > light car, giving you a good HP/weight ratio. Other performance features > include 15" wheels, steel belted radial tires, lockup-sensing brake > modulating system (the same system that Mercedes and Ford are bragging > about on their cars - Mitsubishi had it first), five speed manual > transmission. Accelerates very smoothly up to a top end of 125 MPH. > Rides very nicely that fast, too. Creature comforts: Power steering, > Power brakes, Air conditioning, cruise control, intermittent wipers, > 6-way adjustable seats, AM/FM/Cassette w/6 speakers, Digital speedometer, > tachometer, and boost gauges, rear wiper/washer, etc. There's a 5 > year warrantee on the turbo. The new '85 top-of-the-line Starions > include power mirrors and power antenna, lighted vanity mirror; > also touch-sensitive stereo controls on the steering wheel. And as with > most Japanese cars, excellent fit and finish. ALL OF THIS (except > the 15" wheels and anti-lock system) WAS STANDARD EQUIPMENT. > > YOU GET ALL THIS FOR A $15,000 LIST PRICE. > > Go ahead, Mike. Take that list to any AMERICAN car dealer and try > to find a car that will match those features. Most American cars > don't even offer options to match this list. Then watch > the poor dealer choke when you tell him you're expecting it to cost > less than $15,000! The 85 Ford Mustang GT performs and lists at $9,800 (With D & D it is $10,212 ). With all the options except for the sunroof or t-roof it goes for $11,900. Mark
review@drutx.UUCP (Millham) (02/20/85)
> But show me any American car that can match the Starion's performance > per dollar and I'll be shocked. I'm serious about this, Mike. I challenge > you to find ANY American car that would match these features for this > price. > > The 1984 Mitsubishi Starion LS has a 2.6 litre engine (largest 4 > cylinder engine made at the time) with a twin shaft dynamic balancer > (proprietary Mitsubishi design; also leased to Porsche for the 944). > The engine is fuel injected and turbocharged. (Produces 145 horsepower, > not too far from the magical 1 HP per cubic inch). It's a relatively > light car, giving you a good HP/weight ratio. Other performance features > include 15" wheels, steel belted radial tires, lockup-sensing brake > modulating system (the same system that Mercedes and Ford are bragging > about on their cars - Mitsubishi had it first), five speed manual > transmission. Accelerates very smoothly up to a top end of 125 MPH. > Rides very nicely that fast, too. Creature comforts: Power steering, > Power brakes, Air conditioning, cruise control, intermittent wipers, > 6-way adjustable seats, AM/FM/Cassette w/6 speakers, Digital speedometer, > tachometer, and boost gauges, rear wiper/washer, etc. There's a 5 > year warrantee on the turbo. The new '85 top-of-the-line Starions > include power mirrors and power antenna, lighted vanity mirror; > also touch-sensitive stereo controls on the steering wheel. And as with > most Japanese cars, excellent fit and finish. ALL OF THIS (except > the 15" wheels and anti-lock system) WAS STANDARD EQUIPMENT. > > YOU GET ALL THIS FOR A $15,000 LIST PRICE. > > Go ahead, Mike. Take that list to any AMERICAN car dealer and try > to find a car that will match those features. Most American cars > don't even offer options to match this list. Then watch > the poor dealer choke when you tell him you're expecting it to cost > less than $15,000! > > > "The one who dies with the most toys wins!" > > Jim (Mac) McParland / Cap Gemini DASD > on assignment to: AT&T Information Systems > South Plainfield, New Jersey > The match has been met! '85 Chrysler Laser XE: Same as the Mitsubishi exept: 2.2L Turbo @ 146 hp. (> 1hp / cubic inch) Does not have anti-lock brakes Does not have Stereo controls on steering wheel Top speed 137 mph. Electronic Dash (all gauges are electronic) Trip Computer (Econ, Range, Trip, etc.) Voice Alert (Moniters fluid levels, doors, engine, even tells if brakes are worn, or if a light is out somewhere) AM stereo/FM stereo/Auto reverse cassette/EQ/Ambience sound/36 watts/ 6 speakers. 6 way power Leather seats with adjustable lumbar and thigh support. The '85 Turbo starts boosting at 1200 RPM, you can't even tell when it kicks in. I guess for 14,888 I got ripped if I could have had a Mitsubishi with less for more! :-) -------------------------------------------- Brian Millham AT & T Information Systems Denver, Co. ...!inhp4!drutx!review
heneghan@ihu1m.UUCP (Joe Heneghan) (02/20/85)
There is other criteria to be considered in buying a car besides nifty gadgets: 1. Can you find someone to fix it right and quickly ? 2. Can you get parts readily ? 3. Are there lots of dealers to fix it in other lands, i.e. Nowhere, Montana which has one Chevy dealer. 4. Is it expensive to maintain ? 5. Can a 6'3" American sit comfortably in it ? I'll bet I can't. ******* I'll buy American anytime ********
hrs@homxb.UUCP (H.SILBIGER) (02/20/85)
My (imaginary bumper sticker): _______________________________________ | When better American cars are built,| | better Americans will buy them. | ---------------------------------------
bcdoody@wateng.UUCP (Brian C. Doody) (02/21/85)
In article <313@ihu1m.UUCP> heneghan@ihu1m.UUCP (Joe Heneghan) writes: > There is other criteria to be considered in buying > a car besides nifty gadgets: > 1. Can you find someone to fix it right and quickly ? > 2. Can you get parts readily ? > 3. Are there lots of dealers to fix it in other lands, > i.e. Nowhere, Montana which has one Chevy dealer. > 4. Is it expensive to maintain ? > 5. Can a 6'3" American sit comfortably in it ? I'll > bet I can't. > > >******* I'll buy American anytime ******** In June 84 I bought a Mazda GLC sedan and have been VERY pleased with it. Let's take each of your points separately: 1. There are a very large number of Mazda dealers across Canada, I imagine it is the same in the USA. Neither I nor my my brother (who has owned 2 mazdas), my sister (who owned a Mazda truck 8-9 years ago), or my brother in law have ever had any trouble getting competent service on their cars. And they know what they are doing. 2. I recently had the rear bumper replaced on my car, and it took less than 2 weeks to get the bumper, 45 minutes to install it while I waited. 3. Last summer we did a lot of travellin across Ontario, where there are many little places no one knows exist except for those who live there, and we were AMAZED at the number of dealers in some of these small places, some with populations well under 10,000. 4. There is no reason to believe it is more expensive to maintain - oil, filters, other maintainance items, cost no more than for a chevy... 5. I am a 6'4" Canadian and I can sit comfortably in it (in fact, my back hurts me when I drive for 2 hours in my Dad's Mercury Marquis ('79) and I feel great in my GLC after 6 hours. 6. The good fit inside (something sorely lacking in small NA cars) and the extra features (firmness adjust on seats, 5-way seat adjust, velour interior, remote trunk and gas cap releases, rear seat folddown to extend trunk (it's a sedan) make the car a lot of fun to operate. I'm not saying there aren't NA cars to match this; I'm saying there a lot of good Japanese cars out there and service and parts just aren't an issue anymore. Look around before you buy - and don't disqualify a car because of it's country of origin! --- Brian Doody (bcdoody@wateng) University of Waterloo Dept. Elec. Eng. Ontario, Canada ---
chu@lasspvax.UUCP (Clare Chu) (02/21/85)
In article <> hrs@homxb.UUCP (H.SILBIGER) writes: > >My (imaginary bumper sticker): > >_______________________________________ >| When better American cars are built,| >| better Americans will buy them. | >--------------------------------------- When??? In the past month, GM has recalled its whole line of X-cars for braking problems, American Motors recalled its Alliance and Encore lines for steering problems, and now Chrysler is recalling 68,000 assorted cars and trucks for fuel leakage problems. How long do we have to wait???
heneghan@ihu1m.UUCP (Joe Heneghan) (02/23/85)
> > > >******* I'll buy American anytime ******** > I'm not saying there aren't NA cars to match this; I'm saying there a lot > of good Japanese cars out there and service and parts just aren't an issue > anymore. Look around before you buy - and don't disqualify a car because > of it's country of origin! In reply: The only Japenese car I comfortably fit in was a Mazda 626, in fact, I was ready to buy one. But I didn't for 3 reasons: 1. The warranty would be voided if I put a trailer hitch on it. 2. A freind bought one and was paying over $100 for tune ups from the dealer. 3. The dealer seemed to think he was doing me a favor by letting me look at the car and would not consider negotiating. So, I bought a car that has 3' of headroom and was as
mat@hou4b.UUCP (Mark Terribile) (02/23/85)
Regarding Jim McParland's Starion:
> 5. Can a 6'3" American sit comfortably in it ? I'll bet I can't.
Both Jim and I are over 6'. I'm also FAT and I am quite comfortable in it.
(Jim used to work down the hall from me...) Oh, and the gauges are NICE.
They are electroluminescent horizontal bar-graphs (z-shaped) whose intensity
is varied with the dash lighting, and more brighter with the lights off
(for daytime). The fit and finish IS excellent, and the car turns corners
very nicely.
I'll buy American if I can get what I want. I did last time. But next time,
unless Detroit can come up with the equivalent of a good foreign ``sports
sedan'', I'll buy overseas.
--
from Mole End Mark Terribile
(scrape .. dig ) hou4b!mat
,.. .,, ,,, ..,***_*.heneghan@ihu1m.UUCP (Joe Heneghan) (02/24/85)
> > In the past month, GM has recalled its whole line of X-cars > for braking problems, American Motors recalled its Alliance and > Encore lines for steering problems, and now Chrysler is recalling > 68,000 assorted cars and trucks for fuel leakage problems. > Could you please indicate your source and date of publication, I have an x-car and haven't received notice, although I've never had a problem with my breaks in 75k miles. Joe Heneghan ihnp4!ihu1m!heneghan
wilfs@clan.UUCP (Wilf Sullivan) (02/25/85)
Ah, I'm 6'2" (188 cm) and when I went car hunting up here in Canada I looked for a car with room to sit in comfort speed etc etc... I checked out all types of cars. I started with Pontiac because that's the type of car my father's always bought. I next checked on Chevrolet. Then I went to the Japanese makes. My friend has an RX-7, a very nice car, but I can't get behind the wheel. As a friend of mine said after seeing me in one: "You look like you're driving one of those little go-carts!" And let me tell you, it felt like that too!! I tried the 300zx, the 200sx (not considering buying this ugly piece of metal, just looking at it) but couldn't get inside. Tried Japan's so called "Family Sedans." What kind of family can fit in those tiny cars?? My family averages 6' in height and there's no way we can get a family in there (two people barely, four ha!). In case your wondering, I bought a fully equiped Trans Am, so I wasn't looking at the 300zx and Camaro and RX-7 for nothing. Since I can only get into American (Canadian) Built cars, I'll only buy them. Besides, I have yet to have any problems with my car, it performs beautifully and blows the doors off the 300zx. The only car that I know equals mine is the z28 and the new RX-7 GSL SE (I don't know what its called in the States). (Note, my car can't come close to the new IROC Camaro however!) So, my priorities are: Comfort, ease of repairs, reliability, handling... The first never seems to exist for me in Japanese cars... By the way, I got into the Fiero no problem, a very comfortable car. Fits like a glove (the suspension could do with a bit of work though!). Eugen Bacic Cars in Canada don't have all that Emission control junk of American cars, and thus they go faster!
chu@lasspvax.UUCP (Clare Chu) (02/28/85)
In article <> heneghan@ihu1m.UUCP (Joe Heneghan) writes: >> >> In the past month, GM has recalled its whole line of X-cars >> for braking problems, American Motors recalled its Alliance and >> Encore lines for steering problems, and now Chrysler is recalling >> 68,000 assorted cars and trucks for fuel leakage problems. >> > >Could you please indicate your source and date of publication, >I have an x-car and haven't received notice, although I've >never had a problem with my breaks in 75k miles. > > Joe Heneghan ihnp4!ihu1m!heneghan > I got my information from the Wall Street Journal. I don't remember the exact date, but the information on the three recalls were on different days some time in February. In fact, the Journal article states, as I remember that some agency of the government is asking GM to recall the X-cars. Oh well, just trying to be helpful...