Re: Consider buying American!

On 2/15/08 1:53 PM, in article 3vqbr31n031r8h9fkqdf1ig3l1sok3l233@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
"gfretwell@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
" <gfretwell@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:

> On Fri, 15 Feb 2008 06:25:46 -0800, jim beam
> <spamvortex@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> 
>> seems you're not very familiar with the situation yourself - there's no
>> complexity difference between the two.  and as stated by others, there
>> are many advantages to fwd for normal driving - that's why so many
>> vehicles use it.
> 
> The main reason companies build FWD cars is simplicity of final
> assembly. The whole drive train comes in on a pallet and can be
> installed in minutes. They also tend to be a commodity item so you can
> have Buicks, Chevy's and Cadilacs all using the same basic units.
> Swapping for another engine trans combo involves minimal changes to
> the rest of the car.
> 
> BTW anyone on a slippery road is using torque steer. Unfortunately in
> a FWD, once you lose one factor, you lose them all. Your life is
> hanging on the traction of 2 tires, not 4.
> 
> It is a similar argument to the reliability question. Hondas may run
> longer before they need maintenance but when they do you are not
> fixing them on the side of the road. They don't "fail safe". In the
> case of the timing belt, there is one skinny piece of rubber between
> running and total destruction of your engine. That was not true in the
> American OHC motors I have owned.

Newer Hondas use a timing chain in the 4 cylinder engines.  All current
Nissan engines use timing chains (and have for nearly a decade).  I don't
think you can easily fix anything on the side of the road anymore,
American,
Japanese or European.  The complexity is the same no matter what the
country
of origin.