Does the car you drive depend on your moral opinion of the company?
 

Does your opinion of a car company impact whether you drive their vehicles or not? This is unrelated to any quality perceptions. For example, do you even consider driving a VW/Audi because of the dieselgate scandal? Or dismiss them altogether because you perceive them as corrupt? Or do you only consider a Ford or Toyota truck because GM and Chrysler were part of the bailout? Or vice versa, do you consider a Honda because the one you're looking at is made in their Ohio plant, which is on US soil? Or buy a Subaru because they're the "little guy" in the vast Asian car market?

Oh sure very much so.

For example, I wont drive a VW because it was started by Hitler.

No. It doesn't affect what I'll drive.

But it can affect what I buy to some degree.

Interesting question. I don't have a real moral beef with any car manufactures, but I imagine if I were Jewish, VW Group would be a problem. I am an American taxpayer so I should be furious about the auto bailout and corporate bonuses thereafter, but somehow I'm not. Why? I suppose I'm just another shallow car enthusiast with a selective memory. I'll never forget how much my out of warranty Beemer costed me though. For that reason I'll never buy another one.

I drive a VW so no.

No,
Or maybe I just don't believe any large companies that answer to investors gives a damn about me over a ledger. Nissan certainly doesn't and I have plenty of those.

Guess not.

VW did right by me as an owner of a diesel VW, albeit legally compelled. They came out with what is for me now the best car at my price point, so now I drive an Audi.

Acura always treated me pretty well (after they admitted the original 3G TL tires had a design problem), but I don't drive one because the current TLX is not an outstanding product.

Funny you brought this up, we were having this conversation in my masters class this past week.

It makes no difference to me. Remember when that passenger on United Airlines got dragged off the plane? I bought a ticket from them the very next day.

A part of me does enjoy buying things that are made in the US such as dress shoes, tools, etc, but they do come with a pretty hefty price tag.

Well it is more to me the dealer which is what I am concerned about. Unethical dealer means no sale to me.

Nope. Just drive what I like.

No, I'm not going to judge a car company based on political associations of nearly 80 years in the past, that they too, would like forgotten. It would be different if Nazi's were still operating VW.

Deiselgate I could care less about, and I bought my first Chryco product right in the midst of their near bankruptcy/bailout...so no again.

Now, if these companies started doing things such as coming out against abortion, or anti-lbgt, etc...yeah, that would most likely influence my decision.

I don't believe Owdee or Infiniti supports Dennisov. So, I'm good. If they did, I'll sell both or drive them into a wall. :O

Like Sarlacc and Yumcha, I would only care if a car company started to take political or social positions antithetical to mine. I have no problem with car companies staying neutral on such issues.

Nope. Audi owner here. Wife has a Tojo...oh I mean Mazda.

Some interesting responses. I used to care more than I do now. What I realized is that the vast majority of people who work for auto companies are just regular people like you and I. It's not as if they're making crucial decisions for the company. They do what they do for a steady paycheck and would likely work for any other auto company providing the same level of service and quality if they had the opportunity. I mean, how many people were involved in the scandal at VW? From the news, I believe it was a small handful of engineers and a few exec's. Yet according to Google, VW employees 656,000 people worldwide.

I'm doing some homework on different vehicles to figure out what I want after I retire the TL. There's a chance I might stick with Acura. Maybe the RLX Sport Hybrid or if they come out with a competitive TLX (3.X turbo 6MT :wish:). Otherwise, Lexus and Audi are on the radar. We'll see.

Interesting responses on the social policies opinions. I probably still wouldn't care since again, that's going to be the decision of a select few at the very top. I wouldn't hesitate to shop at Hobby Lobby or Chic-Fil-A anymore than more "liberal" companies like Starbucks or Ben & Jerry's.

Is it bad, that what VW did, makes me want to buy one more????

Bad? No.

Kind of weird.........yes. :sure:

Just buy used.

I was incensed by the VW scandal and the GM ignition scandal (literally letting ppl die over fixing parts) but I realized that pretty much any large corporation at those sizes are gonna have some scandals or immoral history/past....you can try to avoid 1 or 2 or just buy used.

Otherwise not much affecting what I would buy in the future.

I agree with the buy used argument. If you really want to experience a car from vw/audi, or maybe even Mercedes (coach builder for Hitler back in the day), but do not support the companies core values just buy it used.

...and never take it to the dealership for repair, and insist on aftermarket repair parts when you take it to "All Imports Repair".

Ha, I do all that stuff already. Just because I'm a cheapskate :tongue: