At 01:59 PM 4/15/2010, Arkady Mirvis wrote:
>  German quality sucks since the end of Beetle era.

Not to mention the decision to build the most expensive instead of
the least expensive cars in a given type.

They were so far ahead of US automotive quality that they sat on
their hands while the Japanese zoomed past, then still sat on their
hands while US quality caught up and passed.  Then they went (I've
heard) from 40% world market share to 10% in ten years.  Which
reminds me to mourn the recent death of NUMMI, the Toyota-GM
partnership in California that let the Japanese learn how to deal
with unions and the Americans learn how to build a good Toyota (Nova/Prizm).

>I wish the handtwisting [and] neckgrabbing [that] Americans are
>enjoying doing to Toyota [would] be applied to german made cars
>which for a long time are far
>qualitywise behind cars of Japan in Consumer Reports.

Me too!  I wish VWAG had taken the Vanagon to Toyota and said "Don't
touch a thing -- just make it reliable."  There's my dream vehicle right there.

>I've seen japanese cars where rubber
>parts look new after 25-30 years.

Yep.  Although in fairness, every Toyota I've had has a little rubber
drain on the back of the front-corner marker lights, and they've all
rotted in 3-4 years.

>  In my 87 Westy all bellows are cracked.

Yes!  It's disgusting.

>Pay attention to JAPANESE electrical work.

Especially Toyota.  They seal all their electrical plugs airtight
with O-rings and gaskets.  But they all do pretty elegant work, and
aren't stingy with relays.

And another thing -- on Toyotas, anyway, fully-inserted bolts usually
come unstuck with a bump and then are immediately removable with the
fingers.  However they're getting them to seal, it's working.

Yours,
David