'Out of a job yet? Keep buying foreign!'

[Bullseye]

I've been seeing that bumper sticker a lot lately, always on Fords. Are they handing them out at the Ford factory here in Oakville, I wonder?

If this statement applies to cars, then we as Canadians have no choice but to buy foreign, as there is no Canadian automaker that I know of.

My guess is that this is a CAW union ploy, to try to ramp up sentiment for buying domestics. Rings pretty hollow when there are Toyota and Honda plants right here in Ontario as well, though!

Anyone know the story behind this?

[Andro]

There is a reason why people buy foreign.........unless they can come up with something in similar style, built quality, reliability then i'll continue buying foreign.

[untaka]

I'm still confused, I know the history of the terms "Import and Domestic" how ever they do not apply anymore. Hondas and Toyotas are not imports, since they are not imported. I believe if its IMPORTED from another country then it can be considered an import. If we go by the old ruling and say the location of the head office, then technically every car is an import.

[new_vr]

Honda and Toyota actually do provide a lot of Canadian jobs, so that's cool.
The bad ones are Korean and European cars.

[cwb27]

The bumper sticker SHOULD read...

"If your Vehicle Identification Number, AKA VIN, does not start with numbers 1 thru 5, you're potentially jeopardizing the North American Automobile Industry"

[Bullseye]

The bumper sticker SHOULD read...

"If your Vehicle Identification Number, AKA VIN, does not start with numbers 1 thru 5, you're potentially jeopardizing the North American Automobile Industry"

Doesn't have that same ring to it, though, eh?

[boyoflondon]

You can tell that the not the brightest bunch at CAW are the ones behind the stupid stickers ...

I guess they didn't get the memo that Toyota and Honda both contribute to our economy and employ people and continue to create jobs (new toyota plant in woodstock + all the spin-off jobs) ...

[KawaiiTentacleBeast]

I care as much about their jobs as they care about mine (i.e. fsck 'em), so I am getting a kick out of these replies. Come to Calgary, Tim Horton's is hiring. Ontarians are too rich anyways.

[seftonm]

Have you seen any of the stickers on the Ford Fusion, which is built in Mexico? That would make me laugh.

[Bullseye]

I Googled the bumper sticker, some funny blog entries about this.

Looks like the UAW union in the US is endorsing it. At least it makes some sense there, where they actually have automakers! Looks silly on Canadian cars. I also notice that the 'UAW' logo is not on the Canadian stickers/magnets, so someone must have copied it and is distributing it up here.

[ItemFinder]

Out of a job yet? Design better domestic products!

[themanfromvlad]

I just had the "pleasure" of being in a Chrysler 300 today. The interior materials, design and quality was abysmal. US auto companies need to step it up, or I'll continue to buy Japanese cars.

[gherikill]

At least the domestic comapneis are headquartered in North America. And as Canadaians we are tied to the the hip of the US. If the US sinks we will follow soon after.

It is still in Canadians interest to buy big 3 to stimulate the local economy.

You also have to look at all the parts manufacturers like Magna, they primarily build parts for the big 3.

So if you are happy with a few assembly line jobs from honda and Toyota - keep on buying.

That is like saying that Malaysians should buy Nike shoes because they make them in sweat shops locally.

[BartBandy]

I'm still waiting for an apology from US automakers for foisting such crap on us for so many years. Until I get an apology (especially from Ford), I'm not setting foot in one of their dealerships again.

[new_vr]

So if you are happy with a few assembly line jobs from honda and Toyota - keep on buying.

In my area, Honda employs approx 4200 employees directly (according to wikipedia). There are also a lot of businesses around here that do work for honda, not to mention the spinoff economy from having that many well paid workers.