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There seems to be a never-ending debate on whether “home-made” domestics are better than “foreign” vehicles. Let’s shoot down the domestic vs. import cars battle right now and say that one cannot be absolutely better than the other, especially since in this day and age cars have gone multinational—for example, some Japanese-branded models are being manufactured in the United States for quite some time now (hello, Honda Accord from Ohio), and some US-branded models have parts that are made in Germany. Other than that, some automotive experts do acknowledge that there is a difference between domestic and import brands that’s worth looking into. We’ll tackle those briefly in this article. Meticulous manufacturing In the US, some “domestic” companies focus on meeting the day’s quota—for example, for parts completed within the day. On the other hand, foreign auto companies are more meticulous, taking time to test and run their products through phase-by-phase quality checks. Some domestic companies would simply check the wholly assembled vehicle. The problem with this is when something goes wrong, the engineers and mechanics would have no idea what exactly went wrong, or which part needs to be fixed. Expensive doesn’t always mean reliable One lesson you learn quickly in the automotive industry is that a costly car doesn’t always perform the way you expect it to. Remember that you are mostly paying for the name, prestige, and bragging rights, but little else. Luxury brands such as Audi and Mercedes-Benz perform poorly in reliability surveys (such as that of J.D. Power and Associates), disappointing its buyers and creating a reputation for these vehicles as “all glitz, but will leave you hanging—literally.” Here’s where the talk on domestic vs. import cars will come in: when it comes to customer satisfaction, the top brands to rely on are the so-called Japanese Big Three: Toyota, Honda, and Nissan. According to J.D. Power and Associates, these brands have topped dependability charts since the Nineties. Want a luxury brand that won’t leave you in the middle of the desert? Go for Lexus and Infiniti, the luxury vehicle divisions of Toyota and Nissan, respectively. These brands garner high points in vehicle reliability. Cost of ownership Another big factor for consumers to consider is a car’s cost of ownership, especially when you’re deciding between domestic vs. import cars. Take note that this isn’t just a car’s sticker or FOB price; cost of ownership includes ownership costs, repairs and replacement parts, fuel economy, and maintenance costs. Considering the state of today’s economy, it has become ever more important to have a well-built, reliable car that is inexpensive to maintain. Having a dependable vehicle will surely save you a lot of cash for repair and maintenance over the years. On the other hand, if you decide on getting an Audi or a Saab, you must be prepared to cough up most of your savings for repairs and replacement parts, not to mention the repair work must be done at certified service centers only. The verdict If you are in the market for a vehicle, whether new or pre-owned, it would be best if you don’t have the domestic vs. import cars debate in mind—rather, be firm on what matters to you and do your research on individual vehicle brands and models, because where a car is made isn’t so much a factor in the automotive market anymore.
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