Note from John-Mgr Sportsmans Warehouse Woodbury

I would say the “hate” is for Chev, Ford and Dodge, from the foreign auto drivers. Every guy, whos azz is now in a Tundra, had an “issue” with a Chev, Ford or Dodge in the past… you know why ??? Cause they were the only ones making a fullsize truck !!! The day will come, when the perfect foreign made truck will have “issues” too, then what will they do ??? Who knows. I can hear something like, $8000 more, and it breaks down too !!! I don’t hate the Japanese, had I been in Pearl Harbor, I might…

big g

I figured using the word hate would be too strong. I was just curious because you always (not just on this thread) here the bashing on Japan and not Europe. I’m guessing the foreigners never got into the big trucks because they have always been more fuel conscious and compact. We don’t think that here (picture the house wife driving an Excursion).

So yes there never were options in the past besides the big three but now there are two more, which I think is great. Better for the consumer. There will be more competition for the truck builders to come up with better designs and better ‘toys’ in the truck. Although I wonder with the huge losses at GM and Ford if they have the money for R&D to keep up? There are always going to be problems with every truck or car. You have your ‘big three’ loyalist who will never change not matter what the company puts on the road. Then you have the guys who change because their needs change or something was ‘wrong’ with their previous truck.

As for the price, is there really a difference? I looked at the fully loaded crew cabs from both Chevy and Toyota and they were basically the same price. I’m sure with different combinations and such the foreigners are higher, plus you usually don’t get the huge incentives from the foreigners like you do with the American trucks.

So it sounds like buying Japanese cars is ok? We are only really talking about the truck market. So that doesn’t involve the European guys, although I would bet they could put out some pretty mean trucks if they wanted (and spendy!).

I always ask myself why are the imports so popular? As I drive through the SW Metro every day I may have found my answer. Is it as simple as because they are fashionable or trendy? It is amazing to sit at a stop light in Eden Prairie and Chanhassen while observing vehicle types. It is hard sometimes to not see a Honda, Toyota, Lexus, Acura or Mercedes sitting at the lights. There is a reason those vehicles often cost more, I don’t think it is be because there are night and day differences in reliability, I think it comes down to the target market, upper middle class to upper class. On average are “import” vehicles more expensive than “domestics”? Is a situation where the Andersons down the street are prosperous and beautiful and drive the latest imported vehicle, so the Olsons that are striving to be the Andersons purchase their own. I might be way off, but just my observations and questions. Has a lot of it come about because of marketing and word of mouth? I would assume the domestics may have lost a lot of ground in the 80’s and 90’s due to quality and dependability, but I was a kid so I don’t know.

I drive a 99′ Ford my wife drives a 04′ Pontiac Grand Prix. The ford launched a plug out and had the alternator go bad around 80k, but the Grand Prix has been flawless. Odometer is at +/- 102,000 and has no problems. Next vehicle will be a used GMC Envoy I believe. I can’t afford the imports, but I looked just to make sure I didn’t miss anything.

I see Hondas and Toyotas every where. I would guess that is the case since they are the most popular cars in this country. Just like I see F-150s all over the place. Sure, you go to Eden Prairie you will see more Mercedes and BMWs. There is more money there. The high end cars, no matter American or foreign, blow away the ‘average’ car.

I can tell you as an owner of both a German car and American truck, there is a big difference. No offense to you service guys out there and I know not all places are the same, but we get treated like royalty at the Audi dealership. I get treated like a piece of dirt when I take my Ram to Dodge of Burnsville (I don’t go there now but Jeff Belzer isn’t much better).

Some of the pricing isn’t that different. Yes, go look at the price of a BMW and it is insane what they want, but I think it is insane what they want for a loaded chevy crew cab. We looked at a fully loaded Milan vs. a one-year old certified Audi A4. The Audi was cheaper and has a bumber-to-bumber warranty to 100k and even normal services (oil changes) are covered. The Milan warranty is to like 50k. It was a no-brainer for us.

For me, I don’t find any ‘average’ American car appealing. I think the coolest car is the Charger, but I already have one hemi, so I don’t need another.

I don’t think you can blame the manufacturer, for poor dealership service, thats on their head. Expectations, play a HUGE part in service. My Mitsubishi customers, expect to have to maintain and spend money on their vehicle… My Dodge customers, think everything should be free… In my humble opinion, Import customers are better informed about whats expected of them, hence, maybe their vehicles run/last better because of regular recommended maintenance.

big g

True about the not blaming the manufacture for the service. So G, you calling Import owners smarter than Domestic owners? Just kidding. I keep up the maintenance on my Ram because I know I am stressing it out more by pulling the boat so I want to keep it in good working order.

I can’t really explain it, but when we did our ‘testing’ the last couple months, the A4 (and even the Passat we tested) blew away the American cars we looked at. I tried to force my wife to go Amercian because I can get discounts through work, but we didn’t find anything in the price range that compared to what we got.

You telling me she drove the 300C ?

big g

Quote:

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You telling me she drove the 300C ?

big g

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Nope. For all the gadgets she wanted, that was out of the price range. Plus the same as the Charger, we don’t need another Hemi (sure you can get different engine options, but then what is the point). I already about pass out when I fill up the Ram. I don’t need that with the car too!

Hello Everyone,

I just want to give you a couple of heads up on some additional markdowns Sportsman’s Warehouse is doing this weekend.

Starting Friday all shotguns and rifles will be an additional 5% off. This does NOT include any clearance firearms. Clearance firearms and all handguns will be prices as marked.

Also, starting Friday you will have the opportunity to “Buy More to Save More” on all Men’s Camo and Blaze Clothing. If you purchase four or more of any combination of Men’s Camo and/or Blaze Clothing you will receive an additional 20% off!

Additional markdowns have taken effect in different areas of the store so please stop in to take advantage.

Thank you for shopping with Sportsman’s Warehouse.

-John

i was at SW in St. Cloud over lunch and it’s only 3 items to get the additional 20% which sucks because i bought 2 items yesterday and would’ve saved $25 if i waited until today and i would’ve bought a 3rd item to get the extra

It is getting pretty cleaned out already. The wife came home with dream season jacket and pants and I of course got a $14 dollar t-shirt to make the 3rd item. Only thing left that fit me! The money you would save if you were a medium