Toyota tops GM as No.1 automaker

Toyota does build quality cars, but every time I have tried one, I can't stand it for some reason. They are not built for the driving enthusiast.

Sad but true.

I've never found them interesting. For me, it would be like driving a toaster.

Forgive me for this long story, but it's a clear reason why GM is on government life support. I own a 99 Camry. It's not the fastest or sportiest car I could have bought, but after ten years I still love it and have no intention of trading it in. The ride quality, interior quality, low noise levels, ergonomics, efficiency, etc., the Japanese get all the details right. There have been minor incidents, like that darn squirrel that chewed on one of my engine wires, but otherwise it has had no major problems EVER.

Now, what do you get with domestic cars? Overpowered gas hogs that fall apart. Growing up, my parents always bought GM cars. Three GM cars -- all three were junk. Car 1: An '80 Buick Skylark - the floor rusted through after seven years. My old man got one more year out it by putting sheets of plywood on the floor (hey, we were poor). Car 2: an '88 GMC van. The engine block cracked after one year. GM replaced it. The second engine blew up seven years later. Car 3: Another GMC van '95 (don't ask me why). About three years in, transmission problems arose the rear differential. When we drove it, it sounded like grinding metal. The van made no less than three visits to the GMC dealer for major repair work over the next several years, each time the same problem. After failing to fix it right the third time, the dealer, a certified GMC truck specialist, explained that it was a design flaw in GM's trucks that they couldn't correct. They ended up jerry-rigging some other model's rear differential onto our truck to get it working adequately.

About five years after I bought my car, my parents finally gave up on GM. So what do they drive now? Two Toyotas. Go figure.