I grew up in a decidedly Alfa and VW house; 105 Alfas for Pops, and MKII Golfs for Mum.
My name is currently on 1 Alfa, 2 Fiat 850s, 2 B4 VWs, and e46 Wagon for the other half. Those are the only 4 names I've ever owned. I wouldn't say I have loyalty to them, I just don't find interest in other marques (well, at least as far as modern stuff goes. I do like just about everything sedan/coupe from ~1964).
My parents had zero brand loyalty, but they also had no car nut genes. It must be recessive because my brother and I both are.
I self raised myself on VWs, 3 of them but nothing newer than a MKIII chassis for a reason.
Now I have a Mazda 6 wagon that's making me loathe it's Ford components. My Miata now made the Japanese out number the Germans in my stable.
There is a PT Cruiser my step-son was gifted. But I disavow any association with my stables and force it to be parked on the street on the farthest end of the property.
If I had to pick one brand and stick to it for the rest of my life it would be FoMoCo, especially if all the brands that have gone through the Ford family are included. But in reality, nearly every manufacturer has made atleast one car or truck that I would like to own.
Ok, I really have no interest in a Rolls or Bently, and I'd take a pass on an excaliber too. I was about to rule out all the commie cars too, but Tatras and Zils both pretty darn cool.
Ian F
PowerDork
5/8/13 9:30 p.m.
When I was a kid I was all into Mopars, but anymore... nope... I can't imagine being tied to a single brand.
In reply to Flight Service:
There's actually nothing Ford about a Mazda 626, nor did Ford ever really own Mazda.
Shhhhhh don't tell your family.
Fun fact: there's almost nothing Ford about the Probe, either.
As for brands... I'm a Toyota fanboi at heart but I'll buy anything I like. I've only ever owned one domestic car that I can recall though.
As for brands that could do it all for me assuming I'm allowed to buy used, there's two.
Porsche and Toyota.
yamaha
UltraDork
5/8/13 9:55 p.m.
I come from a family that has a GM employee discount, yet always bought Ford.....
I have owned some chevys, a Saturn, a bakers dozen taurii, an international, and the pair of BMWs now. Brand loyalty is stupid, buy what you like/works.
The only thing we won't buy is Chrysler.....
I've had
Pontiac
Renault
Corvette
Toyota
VW
Rover (British Leyland)
BMW
Ford
Ford Truck
Dodge Truck
Chrysler
Mazda
Corvair
Buick
Range Rover (Tata)
and maybe some more I'm forgetting.
My only loyalty lies with cheap or cool. Preferably both at the same time.
i currently own a diverse collection of automobiles, spanning 27 years of production...
84 Buick T Type
86 Camaro
87 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4
'01 Pontiac
need to find a Caddy, Olds, Saturn, and Hummer to finish my domestic GM collection and have all the brands represented..
in the past, i've had a whole slew of other GM's, a handful of Fords, a couple of Mopars, and even a Mazda 323 and Subaru 2 door something or other that looked like Inspector Gadget's car just to prove that i'm not a hater of imports.... last count i was up to over 200 vehicles that have gone thru my hands over the last 23 years, with about half of them actually getting registered and driven...
Swank Force One wrote:
In reply to Flight Service:
There's actually nothing Ford about a Mazda 626, nor did Ford ever really own Mazda.
Shhhhhh don't tell your family.
Fun fact: there's almost nothing Ford about the Probe, either.
From 1979 to 2010, Mazda had a partnership with the Ford Motor Company, who acquired a 7% stake in 1979 and by 1996, owned 33.3% of Mazda.
Further financial difficulties at Mazda during the 1990s (partly caused by losses related to the 1997 Asian financial crisis) caused Ford to increase its stake to a 33.4-percent controlling interest in May 1996. In June 1996, Henry Wallace was appointed President, and he set about restructuring Mazda and setting it on a new strategic direction.
FYI
wholly owned? No, but enough
I'm cool with everything, so long as it isn't a Chrysler made in the last 30 years or a Subaru.
I am a eurosnob... aside from two hyundais, everything I have owned came from Europe
Brand loyalty is for suckers who buy into marketing hype
kanaric
New Reader
5/9/13 2:00 a.m.
me: mazda -> ford+alfa romeo -> nissan -> subaru
I grew up a Ford guy, and I wanted a Mustang my whole life. Everything else was garbage.
I currently own a Mazda3, an Audi S6, a Porsche 944, a MKIII Supra, and a 68 Mustang GT.
Lincoln
Mazda
AMC
Volvo
Honda motorcycle
and maybe soon a chevy truck
Flight Service wrote:
Swank Force One wrote:
In reply to Flight Service:
There's actually nothing Ford about a Mazda 626, nor did Ford ever really own Mazda.
Shhhhhh don't tell your family.
Fun fact: there's almost nothing Ford about the Probe, either.
From 1979 to 2010, Mazda had a partnership with the Ford Motor Company, who acquired a 7% stake in 1979 and by 1996, owned 33.3% of Mazda.
Further financial difficulties at Mazda during the 1990s (partly caused by losses related to the 1997 Asian financial crisis) caused Ford to increase its stake to a 33.4-percent controlling interest in May 1996. In June 1996, Henry Wallace was appointed President, and he set about restructuring Mazda and setting it on a new strategic direction.
FYI
wholly owned? No, but enough
Heh, fair enough, but there's still nothing Ford about the 626.
I knew I have been GM biased but did not realize the extent until I made the list. I do joke that I've "gone to the dark side" by getting a Mustang, so maybe there is something to that.
In the end though, I'll drive anything.
'77 Olds Cutlass
'78 Chevy Nova
'68 Chevy Chevelle
'70 Chevy Chevelle
'72 Olds Cutlass
'86 Pontiac Firebird
'87 Pontiac Grand Am
'82 Chevy LUV
'69 Chevy Impala
'86 Olds Ciera Wagon
'82 Isuzu PUP
'89 Honda CRX
'86 Pontiac 6000
'93 Buick LeSabre
'74 Datsun 260Z
'90 Honda Civic
'93 Geo Metro
'94 Chevy Caprice
'80 Mercedes 300 SD (#1)
'84 Mercedes 280SE
'80 Mercedes 300 SD (#2)
'78 Mercedes 280SE
'82 Mercedes 380SL
'13 ford Mustang
I have no brand loyalty except Triumph sports cars > MG.sports cars but I must admit that there are even a few MGs I would like to own...
I've never really understood brand loyalty. I buy whatever seems to meet my needs the best, regardless of what brand it is. As such, I've owned vehicles from most major companies.
amg_rx7 wrote:
Brand loyalty is for suckers who buy into marketing hype
Disagree. Sometimes, it just feels right!
That, and when you buy a car and it lasts for over 14 years with no major faults or repairs and the only reason you sell it is because it no longer meets your needs. That can build some brand loyalty. Yes, sir.
1988RedT2 wrote:
amg_rx7 wrote:
Brand loyalty is for suckers who buy into marketing hype
Disagree. Sometimes, it just feels right!
That, and when you buy a car and it lasts for over 14 years with no major faults or repairs and the only reason you sell it is because it no longer meets your needs. That can build some brand loyalty. Yes, sir.
Although at that point you are assuming that it's the only brand that will do that, and these days that's not nearly as easy to discern as it used to be. But what you state is really the only valid reason for brand loyalty. I know a woman who buys a certain brand because that's what her Dad always bought. He died 20 years ago, and as you know, things have changed dramatically in 20 years. She has constant trouble with the cars she buys, and always ends up bringing them to me when they break, but still she won't buy anything else. Unfortunately, that, and similar scenarios are more commonly the cause of brand loyalty than your reasoning.
Just the other day I stopped by a friends house in my Mustang. A friend of his eventually started spouting about how he can't understand why anyone would drive a Ford. "They run like drek, and leak oil all the time". Like a Chevy never ran bad and leaked oil...
In reply to bravenrace:
Yes, and I can assure you that the first Mazda that disappoints me will send me fleeing. Bad experiences with a few other brands have fostered an intense hatred of GM, Subaru and Hyundai, and it is unlikely that any of their vehicles will ever again occupy a spot in my garage!
i'm very diverse.
chevy(blue)
chevy(orange)
chevy(blue)
chevy(black)
chevy(red)
chevy(dark red)
chevy(red)
chevy(2 tone dark red/silver)
chevy(black)
AND.....
rambler