Toyota, Honda cars outsell Ford pickups

Only a matter of time... gas prices will continue to rise. American car companies need to make smaller cars better - like their European counterparts - otherwise, they will continue to lose market share. They need to ditch the old Cavalier, Escort, and Neon mentality and make cars like/better than the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. Furthermore, American car companies need to think towards the future and match Honda's new Hydrogen vehicle. Stop wasting time on the 'Band-Aid' fixes like hybrids and go for something that will take them into the next 100 years. Kinda like when the four-stroke piston engine first came out.

i still love the trucks and suv's but with Gas prices it ishard to afford to drive them. on the other hand it would not be such a problem if they all were not so stupidly expensive to buy. no truck ever used to be 30,000 to 40,000 + dallars. these trucks need to be around 15 to 20,000 dollars to buy and then it would be easier to afford the gas for them cause you would not have to finance such a huge amount. no car or truck should ever be that expensive to build and sell, no matter what you put in it.

It's a sad day in America when the heads of the quote unquote Big 3, after all this time have finally come to the conclusion that the day of the gas guzzler is over. WHAT PLANET DO THESE PEOPLE LIVE ON . OH THAT RIGHT YOU GUYS ARE LIKE THE NUT THAT DRIVES A HUMMER AND COMPLAINS ABOUT THE PRICE OF GAS. (YOU NUT'S DESERVE THE DEAL YOUR GETTING LOST MARKET SHARE) GOOD!!!

It's a sad day in America when the heads of the quote unquote Big 3, after all this time have finally come to the conclusion that the day of the gas guzzler is over. WHAT PLANET DO THESE PEOPLE LIVE ON . OH THAT RIGHT YOU GUYS ARE LIKE THE NUT THAT DRIVES A HUMMER AND COMPLAINS ABOUT THE PRICE OF GAS. (YOU NUT'S DESERVE THE DEAL YOUR GETTING LOST MARKET SHARE) GOOD!!!

To use some words from an old 1970's song..."It's only the beginning..." As long as the American love affair with the auto...especially the ones with an unquenchable thirst for gasoline continues.... Folks, we ain't seen the last of this yet....

I don't understand why American companies in general are so hardheaded. Did they not see this coming? It was only a matter of time. When I run my company I am actually going to "get it", screw all this nonsense.

Well if Ford, and GM made good and long lasting , fuel saving vehicles , like Toyota and Nissan, then you wouldnt have this problem.

I cant stand Ford vehicles, they always seem to have something wrong going on with them.

Every Nissan or toyota i have owned have has incredibly high mileage on them, 200k plus and still go dtrong as day one, but a ford or chevy is lucky to see 100k with out some major break down.

Nissan + toyota are just built better hands down, by people who are dedicated to their work, and not by spoiled americans who are just there for a nice juicy paycheck.

Toyota has had the right idea, right up to the point they sold the technology for the Prius to Ford, which Ford buried it for five years. This all took place right before the gas prices started going up faster that ever. I'm a Ford master certified technician and had a inside track on this, even though the general public was kept in the dark, and the sale of the technology was done behind closed doors. The Prius was the ONLY Hybrid that actually worked the way it was supposed to, they all get better than 50mpg, I know because I own one, and there is a website out there that a lot of Prius owners tell their story on. It has been and always will be a conspiracy between the government and OPEC and our own oil companies. Our own president has his own oil company in Texas, do you think he will cut oil prices?

The technology to develop hydrogen burning engines, with all the power of gas and diesel engines, has been around for over 30 yrs, but has been quelled by the oil companies and our own government. It is time "We the people, for the people, and by the people", take back our government and restore it to the glory and honor it was designed to be.

Keith,

I hear you. We just can't get it right. Unfortunately, when people are purchasing foriegn vehicles, they are putting themselves and their families out of work. When do we wake up. I was much younger and really didn't understand when I was seeing all of the made in america and buy america signs back in the 90's but I definitely get it now. I know not all american companies are the best, but we can push for better, reality is we have to start buying our own if we expect this to country to improve. We also have to start holding goverment/politicians more accountable.

No mystery to this. The more gas prices increase the more the Big Motor companies lose. Gas has always continued to rise and our narrow minded thinking that the world crises' would not affect us has gone full circle. We are now leveling to a world economy and are forced to equate ourselves with the rest of the world. I just wish Bush had not accelerated the pace, a slower adjustment for the American people would have been nice. Please let us never elect another arrogant President. Many of us see him that way and I am sure much of the world sees him that way also.
At least we are being humbled which can only benefit the American people's character.

A letter sent to Ford over a year ago....still holds true today.

Dear Ford Motor Company,

I hope this gets within viewing range of someone with a brain. First, please forgive me if I exhibit a bit of consumer anger and/or frustration in the paragraphs to come. I am just one of many millions of people in this country who would not even consider buying (or leasing) an American car today. That is a very sad statement. Most of us can remember a time when American companies had the edge over every other manufacturer of just about any product you could name. There was pride, sure, but there was also sound thinking, purpose-driven manufacturing and a solid direction that was in line with what consumers wanted. Not any more. The dated-looking, inefficient, gas-guzzling hulks coming out of Detroit today reek of arrogance and look like they belong in an antique show. Every time we hold out hope for something refreshing, another turd rolls into the showrooms. Japanese and even some Korean companies on the other hand, are proving their salt by introducing cars that offer more bang for the buck and look and feel like they were designed for THIS century.

What amazes me (and others), is: How could a great American company like Ford, with a solid history of innovation have allowed this to happen? Now, if the Japanes companies didn't send you all a wake up call in the 70's, 80's and 90's, they're certainly sending one now. The message is pretty obvious: Build cars that offer a vision of what the future of personal transportation could be: sleek, efficient, reliable AND environmentally friendly- and they will come.

Now I can assure you-I'm no tree hugger, but I do take responsibility for my own actions and my choices as a consumer. The sheer concept of spewing uneccessary garbage into the air (we breath this stuff by the way), is simply unacceptable. Also, if I didn't know better, I'd say you had the CEO of Exxon sitting on your borad of directors. C'mon, Fellas! What's with the 15mpg Soccer-mom tanks? Perhaps you haven't heard, but gas is freakin' $3.00 a gallon! Honda and Toyota didn't need their arms twisted to realize that cars don't have to be toxic or inefficient to be practical.

The other thing that really has people P.O.'d is the games going on with the Detroit lobby and Congress. Every time someone tries to raise CAFE standards, you all raise bloody hell. This really is laughable and it's at the American driver's expense. But guess what-we're not waiting around for you all to get your collective act together. Other companies have choices and solutions we need TODAY (and have frankly needed for the past 30 years). What we've all seen introduced as "alternative" transportation (i.e.-hybrids) by yours and other American comapnies has been nothing more than redressed production cars, offered up as appeasement- a desperate stop-gap measure to prevent consumers from considering real alternative vehicles. Frankly, I'd be embarrassed to even bill one of these polished pieces of recycled scrap as a hybrid. Nice try, boys. And as for what you've presented as your "vision" for the future...well, we hope we actually get to see it and that it's actually what we want. Somehow, I get the sinking feeling it'll be too little, too late.

Truly, I don't what you to feel I am singling out Ford, here (GM & Chrysler are equally negligent). Most of us really do want you all to succeed, but there seems to be a tremendous disconnect with the driving public. I don't think people buy your vehicles because that's what they really want (OK, perhaps a few do), they are simply trying to be loyal to American industry, but they have no good choices. They just buy what they're "sold". The last new American car I purchased (I was REALLY trying) was an unmitigated disaster. Never again. I realize you have to answer to your shareholders, but I don't believe they are so short-sighted as to think you can continue on the current path (unles you want everyone shorting your stock). I for one would want to invest in a company with a future (need I remind you of the fate of American stallwarts like PanAm?).

So, the next time you're all perched in your ivory tower discussing how best to separate the consumer from his or her hard-earned cash for one of those clumsy-looking or HUGE hunks of metal you call an automobile, perhaps you ought to revisit some of the creativity you've trudged out at auto shows over the years (only to never let it see the light of day). A friendly word of advice-despite what I think, if you don't want your collective carburators cleaned in the NEXT ten years...Gentlemen, wake up and smell the millenium! It is no longer hi-octane and is not the size or shape of a dump truck!

I've said my peace. Good luck and God speed.

All you sissies....look at the MPG's on the wide range of comperable vehicles trucks to trucks and SUV's to SUV's. The Jap crap doesn't get across the board any better mileage. Change your tampons and move.

My 1998 Ford Escort SE is still running well and achieving mileage well into the mid 30's. The paint still shines, the interior looks like new and the assembly quality exceeds anything being offered by the big three today, as well as any foreign makes. If I had to replace it today, I would look for another used Escort with low mileage. Ford should have continued to evolve the Escort instead of concentrating on it's larger vehicles.

My 2006 Chevy Impala is another story. The interior already looks 5 years old, the paint scratches and chips if you look at it wrong and I have serious doubts about it's longevity.

The American manufacturers have made their own beds.

The American auto industry is in deep trouble. What happened to the ingenuity and drive that produced a man on the moon? The writing has been on the wall for so long now about the demise of the gasoline guzzling engine, but where are America's creative forces? This is a golden opportunity to revolutionize the transportation world for the sake of the future, and replace gasoline power. Who is gonna' do it? Remember back in the gas crisis of '73, when we all waited in long lines to buy gas? What kind of cars were being built and marketed by America's big three auto makers? HUGE CARS WITH HUGE ENGINES!!! We made fun of the cheap little Japanese cars. You know what? After years of being out of sync with the real future, the US auto industry rode the waves of gluttony and built BIG SUVs and 4-door TRUCKS that have no mission to be a truck ( just giant luxury cars). Oh, yeah. We still make lousy small cars compared to Japan and even Korea. Even if some of the technology is quality, the general vibe is below the imported thikers and designers' output. For GM to have to close four plants, all those jobs lost, all that family pain, all because the auto makers have been unable to lead transportation into the 21st century with new power sources--not oil. As a nation we need to rediscover the vibrant resourceful ingenuity that our nation once had. If we don't adjust soon, then the advantage of being a diverse and "free" society will no longer be of significance.

Poor Dave,

You are still holding on to the past. It doesn't really matter what you say about how competitive American cars might be; the reality is that they look inferior. People don't buy cars for their country of origin- they buy for looks and value. Both of those are categories that were formerly led by US companies-not any more. Before instructing others to return to their third world countries of origin, check with the Native Americans about your country of origin--get with the 21st century.

Ok, most of you are missing the point here. The technology already exist for hydrogen fuel, hybrid vehicles that get 50+mpg, and all electric vehicles. You can find any of these in just about any style you may like. The problem is our government and the oil companies and the auto makers aren't willing to give up the income from fuel sales, and until we as a country join together and form a united front against these people, the future of our economy is doomed. These people live off of six and seven figure incomes, and some even more. What do they care if it cost 4, 5, or even 10 bucks a gallon.

I challenge everyone to do a web search on water fuel. FOX 26 news has done a video on this. People this has been around for thirty years and our government doesn't want anyone to know about, as well as the oil companies. There has been several people that has developed this technology, the news has been squelched and the people have been suppressed. This will always happen as long as we as a collective group refuse to say or do anything.