Japanese vs American made Toyotas
filed in 89 Supra
Question: Although I wanted to believe that my American made 94 Corolla would be every bit as good as a Japanese made one, I now have serious doubts.
I have three Toyotas, an 86 Supra, an 89 Camry, and now a 94 Corolla. The Supra and Camry were made in Japan and I have never had to repair anything on either cars until about 120,000 miles (besides oil changes, brakes, and tires). The 94 Corolla (made in Fremont, California) , which I’ve had for 3 weeks now has been nothing but a pain in the ass. I’ve been to the dealer *7* times since I’ve owned the car to fix the defective driver’s side window, the crooked trunk, and the buttons on the radio and vent/heater controls. And I STILL have problems. There’s an annoying whine coming from the handbrake area (sounds like the airbag sensor is having problems), but the dealer is shrugging it off as being normal. I don’t think a constant whine whenever the electricity is on is normal.
The ironic part is that there’s a big round sticker on the car window that says “Passed Final Quality Inspection, Nummi Plant.” This is the plant in Fremont. Somebody in quality control needs to get their vision checked.
Can anyone direct me Toyota’s customer support line or some number where I can complain about my dealer? It’s Melody Toyota out in San Bruno, California. They really, really, suck. They even tried to BRIBE me with $20 to give them a good evaluation on their customer service report. “HELL NO”, I told the lady from Melody Toyota. Don’t ever trust these people!! They have a second location in Vacaville, California that’s just as bad (for those of you who live around there)! They charged me $100 for a radiator drain plug because I couldn’t buy one anywhere else.
I would really like to call Toyota and tell them what ^&@$#*! incompetant people the folks at Melody Toyota really are. Please help. Thanks.
Back to the original subject of this message, I’ve had much better luck with cars imported from Japan, confirming my belief that Americans can make anything as good as if not better than the Japanese manufacturers, EXCEPT for cars!!!
Answer: I owned a new 1989 Accord for 4 years that was made in America. Recently, I bought a 1994 Accord that came from Japan. In both cases, I had 1 or 2 minor quality problems! Ask other Toyota Corolla owners if they have similiar problems. It might be a part defect or a recall or just a bulletin. Maybe you got the only bad one???
Try a Saturn. They are exceptionally reliable. Made in America, by Americans, and with American parts. ^^^^– (Engineered+Designed+Assembled) Todd, do you have Saturn stock or do you work there? I’ve seen other posts that you’re planning on dumping the Saturn. Why not keep it and drive the wheels off it?
I wonder, would GM invented Saturn had they not had the quality bug put on their back by the the Japanese? (that comment probably should go under the “demise of GM” thread).
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