Honda Car Forum

You must have missed the part of my post that said; 'an opinion based on
your particular experience.' The facts, as I know them from serving
thousands of corporate and government fleets in six states, are quite
different. You are entitled to you own opinion, based on your personal
experience with ONE vehicle in ONE fleet, but not your own facts pertaining
to fleets in general


mike hunt


"N8N" <njnagel@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1154702724.309526.159150@h48g2000cwc.googlegr oups.com...
>
> Mike Hunter wrote:
>
>>
>> "N8N" <njnagel@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:1154653572.621516.98080@75g2000cwc.googlegrou ps.com...
>> >
>> > Mike Hunter wrote:
>> >
>> >> You have no idea what you are talking about. Fleet buyers do a far
>> >> better
>> >> job of maintaining their vehicles than the average owner. How may
>> >> owners
>> >> do you know that do things like changes brake fluid do pressure tests
>> >> monthly, take off door panels to lubricate window actuators, take
>> >> apart
>> >> and
>> >> clean electrical connectors etc?
>> >>
>> >> To a corporate fleet a vehicle is a 'tool' needed to run their
>> >> business.
>> >> Down time costs money. They generally keep them in service for five
>> >> years
>> >> or 300K WOF, because of federal deprecation tax laws. Many keep them
>> >> even
>> >> longer.
>>
>> >> To government fleets, maintenance is primary as well. To a police
>> >> officer his patrol car is as important as his weapon, it has to work
>> >> properly or it could cost him his life One state police department
>> >> that
>> >> we
>> >> serviced, has Jeeps Cherokees from the eighties, with over 200k on the
>> >> clock
>> >> and still in tip top shape, in use in mountainous parts of the state.\
>>
>> >> The only high volume buyers that don't care about their cars are most
>> >> of
>> >> the
>> >> rental car companies. Top fluids and get it back on the road. The
>> >> difference is to a rental car company vehicles are NOT a tool, but
>> >> their
>> >> product that they get rid off in a year or less.
>> >
>> > IME the fleet services treat the cars exactly like rental cars. When
>> > they are turned in at 70K miles they are just about smack wore out
>> > (well at least the Impalas the company that services the company that I
>> > work for uses are!) >
>> > nate
>> >
>> At least you prefaced your post as your opinion because that is all it
>> is,
>> an opinion based on your particular experience. The facts are as I
>> presented them, but you are free to believe whatever you chose.
>>
>> mike hunt
>>
>
> IME = "In My Experience" not Opinion. Opinion begins with an "O." It
> is a fact that MY fleet vehicle will be turned in at 70K miles, and it
> is a fact that the only maintenance it gets is an oil change every 7K
> miles and whatever extra service that I personally request.
>
> nate
>

At least two; the last company I worked for had a similar vehicle
program. Oddly enough we're talking about two of the very largest
corporations in the entire world.

nate

Mike Hunter wrote:
> You must have missed the part of my post that said; 'an opinion based on
> your particular experience.' The facts, as I know them from serving
> thousands of corporate and government fleets in six states, are quite
> different. You are entitled to you own opinion, based on your personal
> experience with ONE vehicle in ONE fleet, but not your own facts pertaining
> to fleets in general
>
>
> mike hunt
>
>
> "N8N" <njnagel@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1154702724.309526.159150@h48g2000cwc.googlegr oups.com...
>
>>Mike Hunter wrote:
>>
>>
>>>"N8N" <njnagel@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>>>news:1154653572.621516.98080@75g2000cwc.googleg roups.com...
>>>
>>>>Mike Hunter wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>You have no idea what you are talking about. Fleet buyers do a far
>>>>>better
>>>>>job of maintaining their vehicles than the average owner. How may
>>>>>owners
>>>>>do you know that do things like changes brake fluid do pressure tests
>>>>>monthly, take off door panels to lubricate window actuators, take
>>>>>apart
>>>>>and
>>>>>clean electrical connectors etc?
>>>>>
>>>>> To a corporate fleet a vehicle is a 'tool' needed to run their
>>>>>business.
>>>>>Down time costs money. They generally keep them in service for five
>>>>>years
>>>>>or 300K WOF, because of federal deprecation tax laws. Many keep them
>>>>>even
>>>>>longer.
>>>
>>>>>To government fleets, maintenance is primary as well. To a police
>>>>>officer his patrol car is as important as his weapon, it has to work
>>>>>properly or it could cost him his life One state police department
>>>>>that
>>>>>we
>>>>>serviced, has Jeeps Cherokees from the eighties, with over 200k on the
>>>>>clock
>>>>>and still in tip top shape, in use in mountainous parts of the state.\
>>>
>>>>>The only high volume buyers that don't care about their cars are most
>>>>>of
>>>>>the
>>>>>rental car companies. Top fluids and get it back on the road. The
>>>>>difference is to a rental car company vehicles are NOT a tool, but
>>>>>their
>>>>>product that they get rid off in a year or less.
>>>>
>>>>IME the fleet services treat the cars exactly like rental cars. When
>>>>they are turned in at 70K miles they are just about smack wore out
>>>>(well at least the Impalas the company that services the company that I
>>>>work for uses are!) >
>>>>nate
>>>>
>>>
>>>At least you prefaced your post as your opinion because that is all it
>>>is,
>>>an opinion based on your particular experience. The facts are as I
>>>presented them, but you are free to believe whatever you chose.
>>>
>>>mike hunt
>>>
>>
>>IME = "In My Experience" not Opinion. Opinion begins with an "O." It
>>is a fact that MY fleet vehicle will be turned in at 70K miles, and it
>>is a fact that the only maintenance it gets is an oil change every 7K
>>miles and whatever extra service that I personally request.
>>
>>nate
>>
>
>
>


--
replace "fly" with "com" to reply.
http://home.comcast.net/~njnagel

In article <9aqcnXVTyP0U1E7ZUSdV9g@ptd.net>,
"Mike Hunter" <mikehunt2@mailcity.com> wrote:

> That is true a recall simply means they have discover a problem and are
> offering to fix it for free. However Ford has sold many million more
> vehicles than Toyota, for the past eight years, and Ford is not under
> indictment for trying to hide things for those eight years, as is the case
> with Toyota
and mighty GM!

Mike Hunter wrote:
>Just a note, the manufacture
> with the most vehicles recalled so far for 2006 is Toyota.

Why should that be a surprise -- since Toyota sells more than most
others?

Ancient_Hacker wrote:
> Mike Hunter wrote:
>
>>Toyota and Honda sales are bolstered by the midget cars that are in vogue
>>today. GM and Ford do not offer midget cars. Seems to me that is
>>temporary. Midget car buyers are not generally the average US new vehicle
>>buyers that buys a new vehicle every three or four years. Fords hit was the
>>F150, but it is end of the model year. Major F150 buyers will soon be
>>buying 2007s, not leftovers.
>
>
>
> The main F150 assembly plant in St. Paul is just coming back form a
> many-week furlogh, with discussions of going to just one shift instead
> of two, and mgmt hinting of more furloughs later this year.
>

The US large personal truck/SUV market is going to contract by about 50%
from it's peak. That is what it will take to get back to the 20-25%
share of sales which represent the people who have a real need for
trucks and are not simply buying them because it is a fad to do so.

Fads come and go, and the every man, woman and child needs a Suburban
sized vehicle to sit in stop and go traffic with fad has run it's
course. Who is going to go to a party and brag about their new
Expedition today? Nobody. But, drive up in a tres chic Toyota Prius
and you have something to talk about.

The genius of Toyota is that they have strong contenders in every market
segment of consequence from the Prius on one end to the Land Cruiser on
the other. Why can the world's second largest auto maker field a more
competitive line-up world wide than do GM or Ford?

Hula hoops, beanie babies or Razer scooters anyone?

John

John Horner wrote:

>>
>
> The US large personal truck/SUV market is going to contract by about 50%
> from it's peak. That is what it will take to get back to the 20-25%
> share of sales which represent the people who have a real need for
> trucks and are not simply buying them because it is a fad to do so.
>
> Fads come and go, and the every man, woman and child needs a Suburban
> sized vehicle to sit in stop and go traffic with fad has run it's
> course. Who is going to go to a party and brag about their new
> Expedition today? Nobody. But, drive up in a tres chic Toyota Prius
> and you have something to talk about.
>


Yes, fads come and go but some actually are worthwhile. Remember how hot
the minivan was and how many times it took Honda and Toyota to finally
get it right. Ford and GM still can't. But in the end the minivan is a
practical vehicle and while not as popular as before they will still be
here when the other fad vehicles fade. Remember the "personal luxury
coupes" of the seventies. The only who left is the Monte Carlo (the
Grand Prix is sedan only now).

Dave wrote:

>
> Yes, fads come and go but some actually are worthwhile. Remember how hot
> the minivan was and how many times it took Honda and Toyota to finally
> get it right. Ford and GM still can't. But in the end the minivan is a
> practical vehicle and while not as popular as before they will still be
> here when the other fad vehicles fade. Remember the "personal luxury
> coupes" of the seventies. The only who left is the Monte Carlo (the
> Grand Prix is sedan only now).

The minivan will be around for a long time, but it's peak volume days
are over (at least for the full size type).

Pickup trucks are usefull as well and will be around for a long time
just as they have been ever since Model T versions were once made, but
the days when people would buy them for long commutes to office jobs are
probably over as well.

I'm not saying that the large truck / SUV market is going to disappear.
I am saying that it is set to contract by about 50%.

John

> On 8/3/2006 2:02 AM ... 80 Knight wrote:
> "Edwin Pawlowski" <esp@snet.net> wrote in message
> news3eAg.2026$gY6.479@newssvr11.news.prodigy.com ...
>> "80 Knight" <80_knightREMOVEMEPLEASE@rogers.com> wrote in message
>>
>>> I do see your point though. As gas prices rise, I may one day want a
>>> smaller car. I just don't want to be forced into doing that.
>> If we, as consumer, keep the demand for oil (in any form) up, prices will
>> stay up. Smaller cars are only a portion of what must be done.
>
> I can't really agree with that. I think it doesn't really matter if we all
> drove Sunfire's, or each company's version of it (Honda's Civic, etc), gas
> would still be where it is now. They know we need it, and that we will pay
> for it.
>
>> Cut use by 5% to 10% and prices will drop over night.
>
> I don't see that happening at all. See above. They know we need it, and they
> will charge whatever they want.
>
>> But no one want to be first, no one wants to be inconvenienced.
>
> I can agree with that. I myself, don't use much gas at all. I mainly stay
> in-town, and when I go out, I usually wait until more people have to go out,
> and we all go in one car, at the same time (I live with 5 other family
> members and friends).
>
>
>

Clearly you need to read up on how commodities markets work.