Originally Posted by pylon
1: Go take a close, a real close look at a Genesis Sedan or Equus before you make that statement. The new Elantra for gods sake. What a beautifully put together, and appointed car in that segment. And you can look at any review or rating you want, that car is running neck and neck with all the big hitters in that segment. And the experts absolutely agree. Toyota and Honda are good cars, but they are running off of past reputation, and nowhere near what they once were in terms of product superiority.
2: I have absolutely nothing against Toyota. They build good Maytag Cars. Reliable, dependable, appliances to get around in that have zero passion and mediocre at best performance. They are good at getting you around, and not letting you down. The best analogy I ever heard for Toyota came from a guy who is pretty high up in the Toyota world. "Toyota's are for people who hate driving and hate cars." They are not my bag, but not everyone wants a performance car, and I get that. Just like Peter12 would dump $3000 on a Bespoke suit, I feel like I am paying too much buying a $300 Boulevard club suit at Sears. We all have our priorities. And I want my cars to haul ass, and look awesome doing it.
Toyota 20 years ago however, with the MR2, Supra, Celica, and Japanese production.... that Toyota was AWESOME. However, go take a good close look at a Camry, next to anything, and that car is an utter embarrassment compared to what they used to build. It is so cheaply put together, and so poorly finished it is kinda sad in a way Toyota tarnished their legacy so much. Bare wires in the trunk and under the hood. No shrouding on the seat frames. Radios that sound like they should have a 'Electrohome' label on them, interiors that look like they were produced in a Tupperware factory..... the list goes on. I have been in comparison panels where they have 1 of everything from a category. A Camry, Passat, Accord, Mazda 6, Legacy, Altima, etc.... and every single time the car that is rated at the bottom is Toyota. Not because they are necessarily 'bad' cars. But because they are so frikking boring, plain and uninspired, and these things are usually attended by enthusiasts. I always laugh my ass of, at how you can without fail, every single time, get in a Toyota anything, and make the power steering pump fail on an autocross course if you know how to really push a car. That and basically destroy the brakes by the end of a single day.
They are good cars.... just not if you enjoy performance.
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