I am totally and irrationally attached to my old car. We just got a "new" one - a 2008 hyundai santa fe, but I am already thinking about what to get next when we sell this one. We got a killer deal on a low mileage used one and could probably even make money if we sold it today (and would make money if we totaled it). I love having a bigger car with a toddler and I love AWD in bad weather but I do not really love the crappy gas mileage so hoping in a couple of years our options are better for a CUV with better fuel economy (some of the models coming out this year look good so we'll see how good they really are and then look for a good deal in a couple of years). But we just put a lot of money (where a "lot" is relative to the value of the car) our 2001 Honda Accord. NOTHING special about it at all but I just love that car. It needed a new CV joint, 4 new tires, an expensive 100k mile service and new brakes. Somewhat recently it had the timing belt done and a new clutch. It runs like new now and even though it's nothing luxurious or sporty and never was, if I am going somewhere by myself and the weather is OK I will always take the old car. To me it's like that perfectly faded, broken in pair of jeans that are just starting to get good after 10 years. yeah there are a couple of frayed edges but oooh so comfortable. DH wanted to sell it when we got the "new" car and go back down to one car again (we have shared a car for the last 10 years or so that he has been working from home) but it's really much harder to do that with a child... and I just could not bear to give up the old car.

Why I'm not impressed by numbers stats when viewed in perspective: GM offers 48 models in the US; Toyota offers 16. If GM doesn't outsell Toyota, they're even more pathetic than I thought. Ford outselling Honda is not a surprise. Honda is a very small mfg in Japan, hardly anyone drives one. The company long ago made the decision to concentrate on the US market: they were one of the first to introduce models that were US-designed and aimed solely for export, such as the Accord and the entire Acura line. JD Powers survey is INITIAL car quality (first 30 days only). It has nothing to do with reliability. The reliability of US cars has improved, but they still lag behind the Japanese. Depending upon where you live, you may indeed find a Toyota or Honda shop full - because their dealer/repair network is much smaller than the Big 3, so they tend to concentrate where the sales are. IOW, the coastal areas, especially in the West, you have no problem finding repair shops who will take you quickly. In our experience, we've had far more trouble with the 1996 Buick Regal than with any of the Fords we've owned over the last 30 yrs, including the original Escort, the original Contour, and a 1995 Taurus. Our 2003 Hyundai has been almost trouble-free, and the few minor things (door lock failed, seat cushion got stuck and wouldn't fold down) were quickly fixed by cheerful service reps or covered under the extended warranty we purchased. If I had more money to burn, I'd go back to Acura, because our old Integra was the most fun to drive with fabulous Recaro-like seats - but the Hyundai has been a great compact SUV and reliable performer. Plus, it came, as Hondas/Acuras do, with virtually everything on the mid-level model: tinted glass, intermittent wiper, air conditioning, luggage rack, an outrageously good stereo system, etc. etc. The only option I purchased was ABS with traction control, a necessity for a 3800-lb. vehicle - all of which came in well under $20K. Neither the Honda CRV, the Toyota RAV4, nor the Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute could be purchased for anywhere near that price. I'd judge the Hyundai and the Ford to be equal in quality, but Hyundai wins on features for equal price. We plan to replace the Regal next year - we always keep two cars. I'd love half a dozen different cars, ranging from a Mini-S to an Acura MDX to (should I suddenly win the lottery) a Bentley Continental GT. But in terms of return for the money, the best bet will be a used 2005/6 Ford Taurus, when reliability was fairly high and of course, resale-wise it's a steal because nobody wants one any longer. Plus, they don't sell well in San Francisco because the car's simply too big to park anywhere; garages are at a premium around here. I have test-driven the Focus and really like it, but let's face it, a V4 just does not have the pep and durability of the standard Detroit V6. Living in the hills and possessing a "lead foot" makes a V6 the minimum to keep me happy.

As far as buying American-Toyota has a mfg plant in Georgetown Ky, and it my po dunk town there is a factory that makes the interiors for Toyota-this plant employs over 4oo people, and no telling how many the plant in Georgetown employs. You can't get much more American than something that comes from Kentucky.

Along the lines of what Funky said, in 2015, I bought a used Lexus RX350, with low mileage that looked new. Its been great to haul dogs, compost, small trees, you-name-it. Brace yourself - I bought it after seeing it on Craigslist, and doing careful researching and having it checked out. It's incredible. A friend has a Toyota 4Runner that he loves, but he says the Lexus has more zip. It's called a crossover, meaning "the difference between the two is simple: A crossover is based on a car's platform, while an SUV uses the chassis of a truck. The result is that crossovers use "unibody" architecture, meaning the body and frame are one piece, while SUVs use a "body on frame" design." I also have a WONDERFUL place in Maine that services it for much less than the local dealership. They are all former dealership employees and do not try to up-sell anything like the dealer. I wish everyone had access to a place as nice as this one.