I Want It Cause It's Not From Here
Americans like foreign food, foreign destinations, foreign accents and, in ever increasing numbers, foreign cars. Our affinity for all things foreign has overcome a once-strong Made in America' trend and the best efforts of domestic manufacturers and their marketing departments. The phenomenon is not uniquely American. The person with whom I talk about cars the most hails from the U.K. He and I can spend hours chatting about nothing but cars. It's always fun, because he is an astute observer and he's been schooled as a product designer. He attended the same school of design in England as Jonathan Ives, the Brit who is behind the design of the IMacs and IPods. What makes it especially fun for me, though is that he's not from here. He spent his formative years, car-wise in Great Britain. We often agree on cars and car-related topics, but, just as often, we disagree. He is not a fan of British marques. He says they are mostly crap' and they always have been. He makes exceptions for the current Bentley GT and all of the recent Aston Martins, but otherwise he's not interested. He drives a Chevy conversion van. I once new a recent immigrant from Bulgaria who loved Camaros.
I love British cars. I've had two Jaguars, two Triumphs and an MG and. I currently drive a Saab and my wife drives a VW Beetle, but I really want another Jaguar.
In the U.S., the imports are kicking the domestic car manufacturer's collective butt. There are, no doubt, engineering, marketing and financial reasons for the domestic automobile industry's lackluster performance, but I have an idea that just might increase sales of domestic brands in this country. Start selling the cars you make for other countries here, in the U.S.
Think about it. A lot of us like stuff that's not from here. I think it's human nature. It is part of what makes us tick. If car buyers were offered genuine Ford and GM products with a distinctly foreign flavor, I think the American car-buying public would ignore the Ford' or Chevrolet' emblem and buy them. I'm willing to bet that there are Ford and GM cars for sale right now in Europe that would be a success here in the States. And the extra showroom traffic wouldn't hurt sales of existing models made for the domestic market. After all, that Jaguar I've been lusting after is really a Ford, as my friend from the U.K. likes to point out.

Learn more about this author, Wayne Mckenzie.
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