Danko

I will not argue with the young and no one burst my bubble. I know of what I speak unlike some here. That last reply makes no sense at all and does not read right..... I have no Kia and never will and there ARE still vehicles made in the U.S. by Americans that use almost all American parts. Expect no further reply from me about whether supporting my country makes sense or not. Actions are what count and I am glad most of the parts in my wife's HHR are U.S. built.

mongo

Sorry, but I call BS

I have worked for suppliers to the Big 3 for 25 yrs and I still see no good reason to compromise what I need in a vehicle to support companies that aren't building what I need. Granted, my needs are somewhat of a niche market, but Detroit spent way too many years following the easy road, i.e. trucks are more profitable than small cars, than developing a small car that there was certain to be a market for. Instead, they BOUGHT their small cars from Korea as well (Aveo, anyone?) and although I have many friends who are now losing much of what they worked for due to the auto slump, I also have been telling them to get a job outside the auto industry for at least the last 5 years.

Only you can decide how much you get paid, if you want more, learn more. The days of high paying unskilled jobs are over.

hhrcrafty

Aveo is a good little subcompact built by GM's Daewoo division in Korea, and I don't see any of the Japanese building their "profitable" subcompacts over here, either.

Granted, if that's the attitude you want to live by, that's your right. Just know that eventually it's going to catch up with you and your job as a supplier. I think it's absurd to think that way when the Asian culture would never abandon pride in their country's workmanship over interior fabrics and a recall or two.

mizzouHHR

I think this is a response to my post, not Danko, just to end any confusion. Yes, our KIA does have the 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty, because we purchased that warranty at the time of sale. You are correct it only applies to the first owner, unless it is purchased at resale, which we did.

As to our reason for not buying a GM, I think we all know (or should know) about the problems with the head gaskets and dexcool in the 3.4 V6. It is a well documented problem, and has been for many years, so you can't say it is an isolated problem. Unfortunately I found out about it the hard way. It is a problem that GM has decided to ignore. Some of you may have heard about the lawsuit against GM that GM lost. I was contacted about this lawsuit, and declined to participate. Suing GM is not the answer IMO. We live in a free market, so I believe in letting the free market take care of things, which I did. GM does not build a quality minivan and IMO has ignored a major problem which bit us not only once but twice in a short time, with the same vehicle, so I shopped elsewhere. I'm sorry if that offends anyone, but as in any free market, people are going to buy the better product. As I said in my original post, I was one who swore I would never buy a foreign car, but after research, there was a big difference in quality and safety with the KIA over domestic minivans. This doesn't mean I won't ever buy American again, because I will, it just will NOT be a GM 3.4 V6, or any other motor with a known, widespread problem.

Cokeybill

Firewatcher, why blame the uaw, they are not the ones that design the parts...just build them. You are nearsighted if you think that is the problem.

And Mizzous(whatever)...get real

Cokeybill

mizzouhhr did you ever think that your driving habits and the used car theory of buying someone elses vehicle(misused) could be your problem.

Firewatcher

The UAW is part of the problem and we all know it. Higher wages mean higher costs. I understand the need for being paid what you are worth, but while wages have gone up, the quality has gone down.

Cokeybill

You are definitely in another world if you think quality has gone down in GM. They have outperformed the foreigners for at least the last 3 years. Check out the stats. You should make sure you brain is turned on before your mouth is engaged.

mizzouHHR

You have got to be kidding

It's my driving habits that cause dexcool antifreeze to destroy head gaskets? Funny how I've never had problems with my other cars, including my HHR (with 63,000 miles) which I would buy another today given the choice. I'm not the only one with the dexcool issue. Perhaps you should do some research before making such a statement. I think YOU are the one who needs to "get real".

Cokeybill

Mizzou... if you like you could join the Kia forum
And Firewatcher... there is a Subaru forum if you like also.