they need to get that chrysler sign off the building and stop crying about it. they have no one to blame but themselves, and their greedy ways, and their poor record customer service.

This may have changed with the production with the new 2010 production models, but last year the car with the most American made parts and labor was the Ford Taurus which had a 99% American made parts and assembly. I just did a Google search and found reports that the Toyota Camry is now the top American made car followed closely by the ford F series trucks, but I haven't researched those findings for myself, but if it's true, It's a surprising fact.
Here is the URL to one of the articles I found.
Copy and paste in your address bar:

http://voices.kansascity.com/node/5047

DW,

What makes you think these cars are made here... almost all are assembled here... NOT MANUFACTURED here... the parts are made overseas and shipped here by the boat loads...

I am not a dooms dayer... but one who can see the light...... and I ask you just how many steel mills are still open? How many aircraft manufacturing companies do we still have... Think about it... we will have a hard time defending ourselves in event of a national emergency..... add to that that most of the countries that hate us are the ones with most of the oil and manufacturing plants and the UN is out to bury us.... stop and think about what is going on......

RE: "Well, lets be real. Our entire suite of trade policies are a mess. Our government is writing trade deals that benefit foreigners more than us. Correcting that, something that is loooong overdue, is not what I consider 'government meddling in private affairs". If our trade policies worked for us, I would agree with you. But they don't."

Don't let this go to your head Peter, but I actually agree with that statement.

Peter, which American cars have padded dashboards and consoles? I admit my 1974 Pontiac has them, but which modern cars? I'm curious...

Uh, Jhonny Bravo, the Volt is still undergoing development work. They want to get it right, instead of foisting some half-baked piece of junk onto the buying public like they have before.

I don't fully agree with your take that the Volt is going to save GM. Sure, it will be a major development because no other mainstream manufacturer produces a vehicle that is identical to the Volt's method of operation. The price target is about $40,000 and even with tax credits you are looking at the low $30,000 range. While I am not sure about the Volt, in most cases companies producing hybrids have lost money on every one they sell because they cannot recoup their investment.

If GM is banking their survival on one car, then they are making a huge mistake, IMO. They need to have world-class competitive cars and trucks across the board, with cars such as the all-new Buick LaCrosse and the upcoming Regal, also all-new (based on an Opel design from Germany).

Big oil paying GM off to delay the Volt? Come on now...this car is not going to make a dent in oil company profits due to its fuel-sipping characteristics.

"US cars interiors feel cheap. Asian cars are a little better, but pretty much all European cars are top notch."


I say the exact opposite. Whenever I looked at Honda or Toyota, all I saw were hard plastic interiors. Nowhere near the level of padded dashboards and consoles I see in American cars

"It's funny to hear you people say you don't want government in your business, but you are also wanting the government to set limits on exports/imports, say who gets to buy what with cash for clunkers, etc."


Well, lets be real. Our entire suite of trade policies are a mess. Our government is writing trade deals that benefit foreigners more than us. Correcting that, something that is loooong overdue, is not what I consider 'government meddling in private affairs". If our trade policies worked for us, I would agree with you. But they don't.

D.W., I'm excited about Fiat's involvement with Mopar. I hear they are bringing their Fiat 500, rebadged Stateside next year!

It's funny to hear you people say you don't want government in your business, but you are also wanting the government to set limits on exports/imports, say who gets to buy what with cash for clunkers, etc. You can't have it both ways! Pure capitalism dictates the people will buy the best value product, and those that are not up to par will fail.

"Chrysler, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection a month ago, is now under the control of a new company called The Chrysler Group LLC, which is jointly owned by Italian automaker Fiat, the United Auto Workers' health trust fund and the U.S. and Canadian governments."

Who would have ever thought that Fiat would ever be part owner of an American auto company. So much for buying American.

Ronald Fields is predicting Red Dawn in the immediate future. Not sure why you'd attack a country that owes you hundreds of billions of dollars but he's warning us all now. That earns this article bonus points for "ridiculous predictions made with utmost sincerity". Don't think it's enough to top many of the red light camera articles, but it's a start. Does anyone want to offer up how the democrats have been plotting this for decades or start a nasty slanderous attack against another poster?

We have two Chryslers and I wish we could get two Hondas. We can't trade them in because we owe much more on them than what they are worth! They just don't hold their value like the imports.

PROUD TO BE AMERICAN AND SUPPORT OUR PRODUCTS. First off yes I am not a fan of foreign cars.... but my main objection is that there are no quota's as there is in Japan.... we need equal trade but it is lopsided.... Japan only allows 2% of their gross auto industry to be imported.. yet they have no limits here... this is one of many reasons this country is in the mess it is in.... Toyota Camry's are only assembled here... NOT manufactured here... the parts are shipped in from overseas. It is not limited to the auto industry but about everything you buy today is imported... everytime I go into Walmart or Lowes I always say "welcome to chinatown" to the door greeters.

The public is brainwashed by magazines and media on quality.... it is not as big an issue as they lead you to believe... actually in my circles the most problem car I have come accross is Honda..... where I worked years ago 5 Hondas all had to have transaxles replaced at 70000 - 75000 miles... in 2007 a new Honda Odessey Van went on fire in North Carolina with less then 200 miles on it... and Honda did not even want to see the car... I would think they would be interested in what went wrong... they told the customer to turn it over to his insurance co... it went to court... what I am saying is there is no perfect car.... I do believe the Foreign cars may give you the best package off the showroom floor but not necessarily the best package for the life of the car.

I only buy auto's with the vin number starting with a 1 (US) ,2 (Canada) or 4 (US)... I include Canada as they have been our manufacturing partner since these countries were born. vin starting with #3 are made in Mexico and I will not support them either.

I have had 5 Dodge Caravans that performed flawlessly for 150000 + miles. I talk to people about their cars before I buy one... I shy away from consumer reports and other magazines as I feel they are biased and over rated.

I agree with your freedom of choice to buy what you want.... but why can't you buy something that is made in your own country... why do you give your money to foreigners.... are they paying your taxes? .... are they paying your salary? I personaly feel I should have the right to refuse to pay my taxes if our corrupt government is buying foreign item and cars. I don't want my money supporting foreign countries except for humanitarian aid. Big business and corrupt government is the reason for all this mess ... and yet we are to blame because we let it happen.... WHY???

War is coming and we are shutting down our industries while asian factories are going full blast.... I ask you... how long do you think it is going to take to reopen all these factories and retrain these people??? When you hear planes and other piercing screeches look up and as you watch the bombs falling perhaps you will have time to say to yourself.... I could have prevented this....

Oh by the way I bought 2 cars from Alley's and had great service and got a good deal ... but will admit I purchased most of my cars in Knoxville because you save $2500 - $5000 and have a lot less hassle....

Kevie-poo: Trust us... we're still not impressed with 90K on a minivan, intended or not.

Perhaps some people are wiser than your parents, sending the ol' car to the used car place with a whopping 50,000 miles on the odometer. Perhaps if that type of person isn't disposing of a perfectly good car just because it's "not new", then our manufacturers wouldn't have the implicit approval of the consumers that they need only make a vehicle good for oh... 60,000. Then it's someone else's problem.

I'd rather deal with an occasional repair on my reliable honda, than a monthly car payment for eternity... just to keep that "new car smell".

Oh... my financial concerns for the automakers are nil. I don't feel obligated to purchase a new vehicle every 4 years to keep them afloat.

I think we have reached a KTN Forum consensus that Alley's customer service leaves much to be desired.

I didn't speak about our van to "impress" you. And if some of you want to keep granny's foreign car for 300,000 miles, good for you.

But when you look at the average ownership cycle (300,000 miles is not 'average'), the domestics of today are right there with the foreign makers.

When confronted with that competitive reality, some of the 'cult members' went on to cite extraordinary examples of foreign superiority well outside the norm of ownership.

In my parent's generation, 50,000 miles was considered "high mileage". Keeping a car for 300,000 miles, effectively buying one car for every 6 cars my parent's bought, is more of a financial problem for automakers than union costs or the narrowing quality differences of today.

DW comments: "We have a Dodge minivan with 90,000 miles and ZERO problems, only replacement brakes and tires from normal wear and oil changes."

It amazes me that in this day and age people think that this is impressive. Guess what? ALL properly maintained modern cars should go over 100,000 miles easily without major problem.

Exactly right. With maintained cars, I've gotten approximately 160,000 out of my domestic vehicles before trouble- and nearly double that for my foreign cars (Hondas). My wife's car is well north of 200K, and my mom's is nearing 300K-- both Hondas.

So, I *will* look out at my driveway and be glad for the quality of my cars, and won't care one iota that they're "foreign".

The reason the American Auto industry is in such sad shape is because Union labor refuses to give on it's royalty minded demands. They are payed over $75.00 per hour in pay and benefits and have huge fringe benefits and yet they continually ask for more.GM's union leader refused to give an inch to keep the company out of potential bankruptcy or to avoid the Govt. bailout They even have labor pools that are staffed with fully trained employees getting paid to watch television and play ping pong while waiting to see if someone calls in sick.
The reason Ford is the last viable American Auto maker is because their union made just enough concessions to help the company avoid the short term issues. Toyota has a non union plant here in TN that is fairing very well when compared to the Big Three. The employees at the Toyota plant receive about $45.00 per hour in pay and benefits and their company is much more viable in the long run than any of the union strangled competition.
Organized labor has seen it's last day as an effective entity. What started as a way to improve working conditions and to create fair wage practices, has become bloated and corrupt. They demand far more than they deserve for the service they provide and some union leaders now sleep in the bed's of the very people they are suppose to guard against. Just let GM build a non union plant here in TN and watch the industry's rebirth explode. Without organized labor to hold the company hostage with huge demands under the threat of production stoppage, the company will prosper once more. Anyone who thinks I am wrong, just ask anyone who has been hired into a union run business and has been told to stop being so productive because they where setting the bar too high and could ruin the "good thing" they have going by reducing the amount of overtime hours that unions needlessly force out of the companies they work for. Just join a union company and work hard and see how long it takes for someone to approach you and tell you to slow down "or else". I've been there and I won't go back.

I tried to deal with Alleys on three different occations and they did not want to deal with me. All three times I went to other dealerships and got great deals from dealers that were concered more about me. I will never ever try to deal with Alleys again. I am sorry about them possibly losing their dearlerships and livlihoods but they should treat there potential customers like they desearve to be treated, with respect.

No, I am not saying that at all. Americans are going to buy some kind of car reguardless. I remember when Looneys only sold Chevys and Caddys, Cox sold Oldsmobile, etc. Just because you don't have toyotas does not mean that people don't buy cars. There are enough American brands available to keep people employed. I would much rather have my Pontiac and Corvette than any import. They are faster, cheaper, and provides a luxury ride. Made in America. It is that easy. My truck is also Made in the USA.... FORD...


disclamer: Just because I support American made does not mean I support anyone in government

Grumpy Old Man, what about the profits of the dealerships such as Toyota of Kingsport, Lexus of Kingsport, and Rick Hill Imports? How about the families that rely on jobs there? How about the contributions to the local economy? Tax revenue? Mr. Hill has already lost Pontiac and Jeep...do you suggest that they do the patriotic thing and drop the rest of their businesses?

What about Saab and Jaguar, the two remaining Alley businesses? GM will likely sell Saab to a foreign company, and Ford already sold Jaguar to an Indian company last year. You want to totally put them out of business, too?

The volt is the only thing going to save GM and they need to release it now and half the price a couple times, and quit taking payoffs from big oil to delay it.

Why did people gravitate to foreign brands?

Here...I'll let General Motors explain it themselves; this was published, I believe, in December of last year:

"While we’re still the U.S. sales leader, we acknowledge we have disappointed you. At
times we violated your trust by letting our quality fall below industry standards and our
designs become lackluster. We have proliferated our brands and dealer network to the
point where we lost adequate focus on our core U.S. market. We also biased our product
mix toward pick-up trucks and SUVs."

(Source: www.gminsidenews.com. Google "GM violated trust" and look for the link to the article on this web site)

And, from a 2003 GM ad campaign:

"Thirty years ago, GM quality was the best in the world. Twenty years ago, it wasn't."

"The hard part [was] breaking out of our own bureaucratic gridlock" and "learning some humbling lessons from our competitors."

(I found these excerpts from Salon.com)

You may ask, "How did you find the term 'captive import'"? Well, I'll tell you.

From searching for foreign-sourced vehicles that Chrysler also sold through their dealerships.

I'm sure you remember the Dodge Stealth. It was sourced from Mitsubishi; its twin was the 3000GT.

Dodge Colt? Plymouth Champ? Plymouth Arrow? Eagle Summit? Dodge Conquest? Eagle Talon? Plymouth Laser? All heavily sourced from Mitsubishi; some of these were born from the joint venture between Chrysler and Mitsubishi known as Diamond-Star Motors

I just learned a new term: captive import.

It's definition, per Wikipedia:

"Captive import is an automobile marketing term denoting a foreign-built vehicle that is sold and serviced by a domestic manufacturer through its own dealer distribution system.

The foreign car may be produced by a subsidiary of the same company, be a joint venture with another firm, or acquired under license from a completely separate entity. The brand name used may be that of the domestic company, the foreign builder, or an unrelated marque entirely (this is one type of badge engineering).

This arrangement is usually made to increase the competitiveness of the domestic brand by filling a perceived "hole" in its model lineup, which it is either not practical or not economically feasible to fill from domestic production. Captive imports are often aimed at the lower end of the market, but this is not always so."

Mr. Fields, your words are indeed noble yet you and others with similar sentiments would seem to want to limit or take away the very freedom that you otherwise would be cheering as one of the benefits to being an American. That is, the freedom of choice.

I understand that you have a bad taste for foreign goods, yet let's add a little perspective and context to the story. These mighty "all-American companies" that you speak of, in recent history, have been just as guilty of supporting the Japanese and Korean auto companies as the people in your neighborhood have.

Do you recall the Geo brand sold at Chevy dealers? These were re-badged Isuzus and Suzukis, apparently marketed by GM because at the time they themselves could not design and build a quality vehicle to compete with the imports.

Remember the Chevy Nova sold from 1985 to 1988? It was a re-badged Toyota Corolla that was built in a GM/Toyota joint-venture factory in California.

The subcompact Pontiac LeMans, sold from 1989 through 1993? It was a Daewoo built in South Korea. The Pontiac Vibe? Another joint-venture with Toyota that was also sold as the Matrix at Toyota dealers and was based on Toyota design and engineering (i.e. again, the Corolla platform). But, from reading reviews of the Vibe, Pontiac did have major input in designing the interior. Big whoop.

Even as recently as a few years ago, the Saturn Vue had a Honda V6 under its hood.

Finally, let's look at the Aveo, currently available at your local Chevy dealer, and its twin, the Pontiac G3. These are also built by Dawoo which is now owned by GM. But...are you going to refuse to buy one because it is built in a South Korean factory by foreigners, or are you going to do your patriotic duty and buy it to support its American owners?

For all of you who would eliminate all foreign competition from America, would you also eliminate American car companies from producing and selling cars in foreign lands? GM is selling Buicks like hotcakes in China and it is my understanding they also have a lucrative market in the Middle East; would you eliminate thoses markets, or are you going to say, well, GM can sell in China and other foreign markets, but the foreign companies can't sell here? And, isn't that Japan's take on things when it comes to their companies?

Well, I do not blame Obama, but Joe, if you think that buying a Toyota is American you are wrong. We are talking about profits here and you can bet your rear that the profits do not stay in this country, but go overseas, to overseas investors, who spend it overseas. If there were no foreign cars, there would be a lot more production and sales of the big 3 and that money would go to support our economy. Even if it is built in Mexico, it pays retirement benifits, health care, etc, here in the usa. How many of you have Toyota stock?

We have a Dodge minivan with 90,000 miles and ZERO problems, only replacement brakes and tires from normal wear and oil changes. I'm sure there are foreign car owners that fail to get that maintenance record out of their purchase.

I do think there is a cult in this country that sincerely believes American cars are inferior and imports are more dependable. Sure, in the 1970s, I probably would have agreed too. But not today. Not by a longshot. And the people who still propagate that 1970's opinion with no experience with recent domestics are a cultural problem for US automakers today.

Yes, foreign cars are made here (in southern, low cost, non-union states) and domestics are only being engineered up north and assembled in Mexico to compete with that.

With quality about equal today, buying a car that is foreign only because its foreign is a mostly a status symbol. But it never was for me.

I find many of the comments here that blame President Obama and try to make people feel guilty about buying foreign cars hilarious. It is the American car companies themselves that caused their own destruction. Import cars have been coming to America since the 1950s and At the time American car companies arrogant and bloated with profits did not fear the small fry from overseas and ignored them. As the years passed and imports improved and became better than the American brands many people switched to them, yet the American car companies living in their little managerial fantasy world still produced substandard cars and expected consumers to happily buy them. We bailed Chrysler out in the 1980s and they've been staggering from one foreign owner to another for years. In a truly capitalistic society companies survive and prosper or fail based on whether they can produce a product that people want to buy and the government will not step in if it fails. Ford has been able to make a comeback of sorts on its' own without bailout money. I say let Chrysler and GM either live or die based on their ability to make a car that consumers are willing to buy.

It is indeed sad when a local business suffers for any reason, and I do not cheer for the failure of the Alley family of dealerships.

Having said that, I too was the recipient of bad customer service from this dealership. In 1998 after much deliberation, I decided to purchase a Dodge Neon R/T. I went to the Alley dealership about purchasing one, and after a test drive and brief negotiatons, a price was agreed upon. Since this was my very first new car purchase and thus a big step, I told the salesman I would have to think about it and would be in touch.

He called me the next day at work and told me that there had been a "mistake" in the price he quoted me. The price he quoted me (with the approval of the sales manager, by the way) was "what we have in the car" and they couldn't let it go at that price. He then gave me a price which was $700 higher. I tried to negotiate but he would not budge. After work I went to the dealership and again tried to negotiate a lower price, offering to meet them halfway between the first offer and the second offer.

No go. Finally, I asked the salesman point blank if their word meant anything. Without hesitating, he said "No." So I went elsewhere and purchased my Neon.

As a side note, the dealership from which I did purchase, in Bristol, tried their very best to convince me that the owner of the place wouldn't be able to afford to put dinner on the table if they agreed to my price offer. And this was the sales manager who said this! Who says buying a car is not an enjoyable experience??

Maybe instead of building below average cars for so many years, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, and Chevrolet should have built what the Import cars did; a dependable, affordable car. The business practices of these franchises are what put them in this situation. Take a closer look at where some of these "so called" American vehicles are built, then look where some of the "imports" are built. These imports are being built on American soil with money going into American laborers' pockets, while some of these "domestics" are built in Canada and Mexico. Do some homework before you start throwing around your ignorance and looking foolish.

Wilbur, I'd love to see your "evidence" that the closed dealerships were (1) RNC contributors and that (2) that was the primary reason for their closing.

Mr Rhoton, when you criticize Obama for not signing the legislation, you are saying that Obama should support legislation that interferes with private business transactions that these franchise agreements represent.

You have criticized him for interfering in the private sector, and now you criticize him for not interfering.

Maybe the problem is not him, but you.


Excellent points Messrs. Evans, Fields and Reynolds.

And the "cash for clunkers" deal should have applied only for buying American cars not Japanese or German or whatever...

I have been a big fan of Chrysler for many years. I have never bought any cars from Alley's and probably never will. There is no way I could do business with them. On 3 different occasions, I priced vehicles with them and all 3 times I got a much better deal in Knoxville. Alley's was always very arrogant with me. Forget these little crappy dealerships that make large profits from people that don't shop around. Buying local is a great idea if it works for to your benefit, other than that it charity. When I buy a large ticket item such as a car, I look to make it easy on myself. I will give charity to charities not an arrogant car dealer. As far as I have been concerned , we never really had a decent Chrysler dealer anyways. I am concerned about Don Hill though. Here is a decent dealership with a quality product . Hope he makes it through this mess.

Look in your driveway and your neighbors driveway... If it says Honda, Toyota, or Nissan, YOU put GM, Ford, and Chrysler in this shape. Where can you buy american now?

The founder of Alley's took care of his customers. When the son/grandson, etc., took over, they tried to squeeze all they could out of customers. Of course the Cox dealerships were worse.
For years, you could go to Johnson City or Knoxville and beat any Kingsport "deal".

I'm personally tickled to death that Alley's is in trouble. As I've stated before, they wouldn't take care of me on a customer service issue for a car I purchased there. It was really their fault and their unwillingness to do the right thing cost me around $100 - $150. Guess what goes around comes around.

I have purchased cars fropm both Alley's and Harry Lane in Knoxville, also closed by this mess.... who is to blame?? I don't know but I strongly believe the Obama administration is at the root of all this mess.... but As an American Citizen.... I would really like them to rebuild with American made cars.... I will never buy a foreign car, especially a Japanese made car and if you Proud to be Americans, that is what you have across your trunks better start buying American products. Here is a letter I sent to Sen Bob Corker a few month ago and it sums up what is going on in this country:

This is my response to Bob Corkers article in the Greeneville Sun on the idling of the Spring Hill Saturn Plant....

Well Mr. Corker what do you expect? We have no import quota's, a government that is so corrupt that only does what it wants at the hands of big business and lobbyist's, citizens brainwashed by the Republican and Democratic Parties, the media and Americans not proud of their own products. Now I am not attacking you personally because this has been going on for years before you even got into office, but I don't see you getting off your keister to do anything about it either.

Why does Japan only allow 2% (source ALLPAR) of its gross auto sales to be imported yet they can sell any amount of autos here. WHY Mr Corker? Why are their no or few quota's on other imports? This corrupt Federal gov't and big business has sold us off, ruined the country, taken our jobs all for the greed of $$$. I am sick and tired of going into every store and 90% of everything you pick up says made in China, India, etc and in most cases of sub-standard materials. Bob, why does a company like Fleetwood campers move out of the US to Mexico... the result is... I bought a new camper in 2006 for $4050 made in Somerset PA. This same camper in 2008 cost over $7000 now being made in Mexico by workers making probably 1/3 the US worker and now the American consumer has to eat the shipping cost while Fleetwood makes more profit. Isn't something wrong here?

Mr. Corker and Mr. Alexander (he is our senator, silent as you hardly ever hear of him), Congressman Phil Roe how many steel mills are still open in this country? War is coming and our factories are closing while Asian factories are going full blast. In the event of a national emergency HOW long do you think it will take to reopen these factories and retrain the people to run them? You Proud to be Americans, well that's what you have across your Honda's trunk, keep buying these foreign cars? WHY? can't you support your own country? Every time you buy a foreign car you are sending approx 1/3 the total purchase overseas which supports the Asian country's people not the USA. Remember Dodge, Ford and GM, Willy's built the trucks, tanks, plane and ship engines and other parts that won WWII and is the reason you don't speak German or Japanese... Who is going to build the products we need to defend ourselves? Do you really think Toyota is going to build your tanks when war breaks out?

Many of you think these cars are made here but very few are. They are assembled here of parts made overseas. Personally I will only buy a car with the serial / vin number starting with a 1, 2 or 4 as these are mainly made in the USA or Canada, which by the way has been our manufacturing partner for close to a hundred years.. I believe that all foreign item's be charged at least a 10% additional sales, import or un-employment tax and this could be done immediately as the Country Of Origin is in the upc bar code.

I saw a Toyota van running around Greeneville with a TN State tag on it. If this is what is happening to my tax dollars then I should have the right to refuse to pay my taxes as I don't want to support Asia. I also believe that anyone that receives a government paycheck be required to purchase an Amercan vehicle. I have been buying American cars (mostly Dodge) for 45 years now and have over 2,000,000 miles of very few problems. I know of just as many people who have problems with foreign cars.

I gave 4 years of my prime life to this country back in the 60's for our peace and freedom but feel I have been kicked in the keister by our federal government and big business. It hurts even more when our citizens can't support the products that we make and then you wonder why you don't have a job.

Let me close with you politicians will have to make a decision: Support the American people or corruption of Washington and its lobbyists.... funny.... but Admiral Yamamoto once said of America after the attack on Pearl Harbor "I fear we have awakened a sleeping giant" ..... I think our people are waking up... and what our Federal Government is doing to us is far more devastating then what Japan did to us at Pearl.


Ronald Fields
Limestone, TN

Chrysler's decision to dump thousands of its' dealers sounds like not just a bad business decision, but verges on suicidal. If I were the Alleys I would get away form this company as fast as I could, because if Chrysler's management team continues down this road they won't be here much longer. Ford seems to be the only viable American motor company left. I'd start talking to them.

Instead of having an oh woe is us attitude how about working on establishing dealer partnerships with other auto makers. Kia comes to mind.