Country of orgin = waste my time

[smileyeagle1021]

The biggest problem with the made in the USA thing is how many companies think we are suckers who automatically will equate it with quality... and this has been going on for decades now. My grandma bought a fridge in the late 80's, proud of the made in the USA label. In fairness, it does still run, so the quality isn't that bad... but, to switch which way the door opens, a process that took 5 minutes on the fridge I bought 5 years ago that was made in China, is an hour long ordeal that requires completely disassembling the front of the fridge... and apparently this isn't just a "well, of course things have gotten better in the last 20 years", because my mom also had a made in the USA fridge from around 5 years ago that requires extensive work even for something so simple as switching the door. Also, my mom has a 3 year old made in the USA microwave... it barely works. My 5 year old made in China is good as new.

[Pixilated]

At least in the outdoor industry a lot of companies are slowly shifting production back to the USA. Mostly due to the rise in shipping cost from other places. There was a "fact" floating around at my job that between 2015 and 2020 the cost of shipping from China would increase the cost of the item so much that it wouldn't make sense to make it there anymore. I put quotes on it as I never saw where said info came from other than a piece of literature from one of the company reps. I mean it does make a certain amount of sense with how expensive gas is that shipping will one day increase to much.

Possibly in a book called "Why Your World is About to Get A Whole Lot Smaller" by Jeff Rubin -- that's where I read it.

That's interesting about the Chinese-made appliances. I don't buy those as I've always been a renter.

[WIphone_lady]

Coffee, tea, and chocolate are definitely things to purchase the fair trade versions of if you can.

[DGoddessChardonnay]

People either want "Made In America" products OR products that are cheaply priced. Can't have both.

Call it champagne tastes on a beer budget.

IE, another form of "entitlement." No matter how one looks at it, it's still sucky behavior.

[Kisa]

My first car was a Mitsubishi. The parts were imported from Germany and South Korea. It was assembled in Tennessee. My second car is a Chrysler. The parts are from America. It was assembled in Canada.

NEWS FLASH PEOPLE: 100% All-American goods aren't very common. Even American isn't all American.

[dalesys]

NEWS FLASH PEOPLE: 100% All-American goods aren't very common. Even American isn't all American.

Me! Welsh, Scots, Irish, Manx, English, Danish, German, Dutch, French, Swiss, 1/128 Canadian First Nation... Left Europe 1620s-1850s... All in Utah before the Golden Spike (1869).

[plan9au]

Its an issue here in Oz generally (at least in my experience) when it come to food....and i find most people will pay more for the Aussie grown stuff, our problem is imports marketed as Aussie Grown when they are not....Otherwise clothing/technology and the like is normally bought on a whats best for what i can afford mentality.

[MoonCat]

Frankly, I can't see paying $94 for jeans, either. Or $50. But then most of my jeans came from the thrift store, which is the only place I can find jeans that (a) fit properly, (b) don't cost over $50 a pair and (c) aren't made of cheap, crappy, fake "denim". I know that some brands, like Lee, are still made of actual denim fabric, and their prices are reasonable, but they just don't fit right.

And for what it's worth.... this

..is a very popular place.

[shopgirl15]

Funny thing is that in China, American-made brands are seen as higher quality and there's a demand for them.

[Chromatix]

Behind the Iron Curtain, there was very low availability of "premium quality" goods, due to the Communist philosophy (though probably not the *original* Communist philosophy). Demand for them was practically limited to those who were "more equal" than the rest - from factory bosses upwards. It was for this reason that the Tatra factory was permitted to make a range of luxury cars, while Czech production of basic models for the proletariat had long since been shifted to the Skoda factory. Tatra is perhaps best known for inspiring the designs of a certain Ferdinand Porsche (with their pre-war models - signature features being rear-mounted, air-cooled engines and decent aerodynamics), while their Communist-era models are probably the *only* decent cars to have been made behind the Iron Curtain, still being technologically advanced for their time.

On a completely different note, I'm currently playing with a story that essentially wipes out the entire Western Hemisphere in a major natural disaster, leaving the protagonist trapped in Japan (hilarity ensues). An interesting if challenging exercise is then figuring out which high-tech goods would still be available subsequently (we can assume that low-tech goods and food are still readily available, as they are produced and owned locally). While a lot of high-tech manufacturing takes place in the Far East, some surprisingly major players are still heavily based in the West - Intel, for example. That alone would result in a major and immediate upheaval in the PC market, as suddenly the biggest source of x86-type CPUs is gone. I still need to figure out to what extent AMD would be affected, as I believe they own or use facilities on three different continents, but might produce only some of their product lines in each place.

[raudf]

My first car was a Mitsubishi. The parts were imported from Germany and South Korea. It was assembled in Tennessee. My second car is a Chrysler. The parts are from America. It was assembled in Canada.

NEWS FLASH PEOPLE: 100% All-American goods aren't very common. Even American isn't all American.

My dad about had a heart attack, because he was soooo proud that the Dodge truck he bought was "American Made," with parts from China and Mexico. I liked my Ford Fairmont better, because it at least said, "Assembled in America," which is more honest. Too bad I wrapped it around two trees or I might still be driving it today.

[drunkenwildmage]

Going along the lines of made in american, or not..

In the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.. a Supposedly 'All-American' sport, the street car equivalents of what they race are built in

The Chevy Impala (raced in 2012 ) Oshawa, Ontario, Canada.
The Chevy SS (Started racing in 2013) being based on the Holden Commodore is made in Elizabeth, South Australia, Australia.
The Ford Fusion built in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico.
The Dodge Charger (raced in 2012) made in Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Toyota Camry is built in Georgetown,Kentucky.

[RichS]

My dad about had a heart attack, because he was soooo proud that the Dodge truck he bought was "American Made," with parts from China and Mexico. I liked my Ford Fairmont better, because it at least said, "Assembled in America," which is more honest.

If I could find it, Car and Driver had an article a few months back on total country content of parts in vehicles.

That reminds me, the funniest thing I think I was ever asked while working at the computer shop was a guy asking for an American-made computer.

[EricKei]

My dad about had a heart attack, because he was soooo proud that the Dodge truck he bought was "American Made," with parts from China and Mexico .

While this is likely no longer the case, I seem to recall that, not all that long ago, a vehicle could be made up of as much as 90% imported parts and still called "American Made" as long as the parts, and the vehicle itself, were actually assembled in the US. I would guess that, these days, the % must be much more like "under 50%" imported...anyone have info or insight on this?

[protege]

Behind the Iron Curtain, there was very low availability of "premium quality" goods, due to the Communist philosophy (though probably not the *original* Communist philosophy). Demand for them was practically limited to those who were "more equal" than the rest - from factory bosses upwards. It was for this reason that the Tatra factory was permitted to make a range of luxury cars, while Czech production of basic models for the proletariat had long since been shifted to the Skoda factory.

I remember reading somewhere that the Skoda works actually built some Tatra cars for awhile. Quality was so bad...that outraged Tatra workers buried one of the products...in the factory courtyard. Can't say I blame them for that--quite a few Communist-era marques were crude compared to Western vehicles. Trabant, anyone?

Back on topic (somewhat), my grandmother flipped when I showed up at her house with a Japanese car some years back. Apparently, I should have purchased a "good American-made car...like a Taurus." It sure blew her mind when I replied that "the Corolla is American made. It was built at the (now-closed) NUMMI plant in California." That plant...was a joint venture between GM and Toyota

Seriously though, the days of 100% "local" (by "local, I mean "same country of origin") content in vehicles are long-gone. Years ago, everything was made nearby. Using my classic as an example, the tires came from Dunlop (UK), gauges from Smiths (UK), brakes from Girling (UK), electrics from Lucas (UK). All of this was brought together with the body, engine, transmission, etc. and assembled in Abingdon-on-Thames. I'm sure that the glass and steel came from somewhere else in the UK, and shipped in by train.