Hey Scotty,
You have consistently poo pooed vehicles made in Mexico, citing mainly the cheap labor (and quality) aspect of it.
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However, you are completely fine recommending Toyota Tacoma trucks which are also made there. What’s the difference? Cheap labor is also making those trucks, and one can argue Mexican workers don’t assemble vehicles as well as non-Mexican workers. Why the double standard for Toyota?
IMHO the difference is in the management - some companies prioritize profits, others quality.
Look at the difference of built-in-the-US vehicles, you will see the answer: Camrys are all assembled here, their quality is excellent, BMWs and Mercedes are assembled here, their quality is intermediate, Jeeps and Chryslers are assembled here, their quality is sus.
A devotion to craftsmanship and quality is contagious - and if management doesn't give a crap about their workers or product, the workers won't give a crap about the product of their labors.
So the culture (which is set by management) is different? Is that fair to say?
I don't think Scotty has a double standard.
When you pair a crappy company, with crappy Mexican manufacturing, like Volkswagen, then you get rolling pile of garbage.
Toyota still designs decent cars, but the Mexican made ones definitely won't be as well made as the US made ones, which will not be as good as the Japanese made Toyotas. I get the impression from the videos that it's Scotty's opinion as well.
This reminds me of the NUMMI plant in California. NUMMI was a GM plant prior, probably the worst managed and their vehicles quality showed in its management. GM and Toyota struck a deal to collaborate, and with Toyota's management, they were able to build quality cars like the Corolla and Vibe (and their GM counterparts) at the NUMMI plant. Sadly, GM got into some trouble and wasn't able to learn from the experience, so the plant had to close down. Now Tesla owns the space.
So yes, management and culture has a lot to do with it.
Aren't the parts for the Tacoma made in Japan and North America? I think Scotty said that the parts are not made in Mexico but are assembled there.
