are these cars just crap?

[SnowDrift]

not to piss anyone off, but i've always bought ford, and never had trouble. 4 different fords all over 200k, and no problems. i bought a cavalier that was a piece and fell apart at 100k. my gtp has 80k, and ive already replaced a tranny, and its in the shop now for a head gasket. im selling it asap and headed straight back to what i know works. ya i said it, now freak out.

So you made a bad choice in what you bought on the used market and bought two vehicles that were abused heavily before you got them and found four fords that were babied all their lives before you found them. It happens.

Just an added point, in my mechanical engineering program in college, the manufacturing advisors who worked with Toyota told us that it is common industry practice to engineer a car to last 7 years. Anything more than 7 years should be considered a bonus.

Toyota can blow it out their butts. The "advisors" told you that because they have spent too many hours in the presence of attorneys. If cars were really only designed to last 7 years, our economy would crumble overnight. That isn't directed at you at all, though, and it's not a personal attack on your comment. I have a beef with manufacturing in this day that things used to be designed by engineers. Today they're designed by attorneys and accountants.

[mechguy]

I have a beef with manufacturing in this day that things used to be designed by engineers. Today they're designed by attorneys and accountants.

I agree that the politics between the finance and engineering departments are excessive.

I would bet every performance engineer had a desire to put an intercooler underneath the M90, on our cars. The eng dept designed and proposed the idea to upper management and the financial people. Then the idea was shut down because the added cost was deemed to not equivalently increase sales.