Originally Posted by bronze

Toyota owns 5% of Mazda (also 20% of Subaru). Perhaps more importantly, they have a $2.3 billion investment in a joint venture with Mazda in Alabama...called Mazda Toyota where they plan to make several models. I do know the launch gear was first introduced by Toyota in 2018 and I believe Honda followed up with something similar. As far as I know, no one else has introduced a launch gear CVT. I'm always wary of surveys and consumer reports and the such to be honest with you. There always seems to be ways that interested parties influence those things. Most of my opinions come from mechanics I know. And they wince as well when they admit Toyotas and Hondas are the best made cars on the road today. However, they also say Mazda has made a very solid comeback after slipping for awhile. As for the other Japanese carmakers, Subaru is a decent car, Nissans and Mitsubishi are horrible. Once you get away from the Japanese cars the quality takes a nosedive for the most part.

Originally Posted by ol' grouch

5% is not any more than just an investment. Automakers cooperate with production all the time. GM and Toyota worked together to build the Geo cars. Where I used to work, we used several generations of Toyota 9000 pound lift trucks. We went with Lisle (built by Porsche) when GM dropped the 4.3 industrial engines. Mazda works with Stellantis to build the MX-5 and Alfa Romero spyder.

Originally Posted by bronze

Those GEOs were a flop.

Originally Posted by HeyYou

The only one that wasn't, was the Tracker. Those were actually kinda fun. (if a bit underpowered....) I think chevy still makes 'em, sorta, they are just called the "Trax" now. And not nearly as capable off-road as the originals.

Originally Posted by bronze

I was seriously looking at those Geos for my wife. It just wasn’t doing it for me and I ended up doing something even dumber and got her a Saturn instead. Biggest heap of garbage I ever bought. Burned oil faster than I could pour it in. Couldn’t get rid of it fast enough. Sold it in 2007 and got her the Jeep. A Daimler-built one. Not too bad of a car really. The Germans did better with it than Chrysler. Then Fiat/Stellanos bought them some 7 or 8 years ago and they’ve gone back to junk again.

Originally Posted by HeyYou

Yeah, you didn't see Fiat's in the US for quite some time for a REASON..... and given the reception the "Dart" got, (and few other Fiat iterations) nothing has changed with them. They still build crap. Saw one in the junkyard once, a fair bit of paint was peeling off, and you could plainly see the 'budweiser' logos on their 'sheetmetal'.....