Here's HJ's handy list:
tinyurl.com/BritishBuiltCars
Doesn't amount to much, does it?
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Back in the 1970's and 80's, I "supported" Britain by buying mainly Rootes and British Leyland. I thought I was jolly noble spending every weekend fixing something. It was a common thing to buy, say, a water pump and have
to "fettle" the thing in order to make it fit correctly.
Then my dear brother got done for drink-driving and was banned. I bought his Honda Accord and oh, the bliss of a properly made car. I could not believe difference.
So I still endeavor to buy British, but not at the expense of quality.
As a point of interest [or not] I have just purchased an item of electronics, American brand, manufactured in Ireland - and it seems to be faulty.
Oh, dear.
screwtape
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i had forgotten the art of buying something like a water pump that didnt fit or a wheel cylinder where the bolt holes didnt align or new pads were too big for the caliper etc
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Rolls Royce British?
The engine is derived from BMW's N73 V12 powerplant. The engine is assembled by BMW.
The aluminium extrusions that are used to construct the aluminium spaceframe are produced in Norway using hydroelectric power, shaped and machined in Denmark and finally hand-welded in Germany. ...a six-speed automatic transmission... is sourced from ZF of Germany. The vehicle electronics are sourced from BMW.
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it is more by luck than judgement that most of us still have a job.
Not me. I've worked damn hard to keep mine. No luck there whatsoever
Your very lucky, many people (like myself) working for large companies, can be made redundant at any moment (if the corporate headquaters in Houston, London, Bejing etc etc decide our facility is no longer economic).
Edited by GIM on 11/04/2009 at 16:48
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I hope anyone in the market for a Mercedes E Class, BMW 5 Series or high spec Audi A6 will also consider a Jaguar XF.
Not because it's British. But because it's at least as good as the Germans and many would consider it better (I do).
Recent Audis, BMWs and Mercedes have not been more reliable than Jaguars, so by buying them rather than Jaguars people have not been buying superior German reliability.
HJ
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Will Jaguar offer an estate version of the XF? Audi, BMW and Mercedes estates must form quite a high proportion of their cars sold, particularly in the UK.
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Yes. There have already been some spy pix of an XF wagon.
HJ
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If I had the money I would definately buy a Jaguar XF. My favorite car out there at the moment. I love the MINI and would probably consider one as a replacement for my current car. I feel very sorry for anyone who is unemployed. I have been there myself and it is awful. Having said that, my financial position is tight and so I have to look for reliability, running costs, quality and resale value in a car and have to buy what suits me no matter where it came from.
Going back to the XF, I think Jag have a world beater on their hands there and it is a car that it's British designers and engineers can be justly proud of.The press have been rapturous about it as well so I cannot understand why I still see so few of them on the road, especially considering their value for money?
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To be honest the XF is the only British car I think as any credit. It is truly wonderful car which in terms of looks alones makes the Germans look a bit silly with all their clone stuff.
Its a pitty I won't be able to afford them until they are unreliable bangers :(.
One of my neighbours has one, they have a £500k house and drive a nice XF makes me very jealous!
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Ha - you must be joking, no way would I buy a British built car! Its Jap all the way for me!
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i was forced to endure British cars as company cars through the 1970s to 1990s. After my third Rover 800 (no choice) kept breaking down - again - like the prior two, I stopped buying British when I next had a choice. Then after an excellent Audi I bought a Fiesta (Dagenham) The paint quality was ABYSMAL .
I then switched to Toyota. I see no reason to change...
Edited by madf on 11/04/2009 at 20:38
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I have just bought a Nissan Qashqai 2 litre CVT Petrol model and I must say that this is the best vehicle that I have owned. It is made in my home town Sunderland and I am aware that the engine and gearbox are Japanese but the quality of the fit and finish are first class and it is a pleasure to drive. I would have no hesitation in reccommending it .
Hoseman
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One of my neighbours has one they have a £500k house and drive a nice XF makes me very jealous!
Mild envy is fine. Jealousy is like Cancer. DON'T go there.
Best reg's.....MD
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Your very lucky many people (like myself) working for large companies can be made redundant at any moment (if the corporate headquaters in Houston London Bejing etc etc decide our facility is no longer economic).
Absolutely. Made even more likely by the fact that it is far easier and cheaper to fire workers in this country than in most of mainland Europe where statutory redundancy payments are eye watering, and expensive, compulsory social support packages, retraining packages, and counselling have to be funded by the company cutting the jobs.
Companies with a pan-European presence who are looking to cut costs will always see the UK as a prime target, simply because it's easier. Ryton was a good example, and now watch what GM do in the coming months. It's sad, but true.
Cheers
DP
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Oh dear - The British dis-ease! If one goes to France, Germany, or Italy, you'll see they mainly buy their home produced cars!
Please stop harking back to B.L days, we've moved on a tad since then, I drive a Nissan Almera 1.8SE Auto MADE IN GREAT BRITAIN by British workers and believe me, its as good as any car of a comparable price range on the road.
THINK! it could be your job next.
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Thats probably because they build cars that the locals actually want to buy, P.... You show me a British equivalent of a Roomster and I'll buy one... but there isn't one, the nearest you'll get is some French thing... and I'd rather the Czechs have the money than the French...
The choice of home built cars (saloon, estate and hatch) is far wider in Germany and France than in the UK, and you wonder why they buy home grown and we don't...
I agree that British built is just as good as anything the Japs, Americans and Europeans produce, its just that we don't produce the variety of cars to give us a decent choice...
BTW if we are taking of buying British why just cars?....
Edited by b308 on 11/04/2009 at 22:20
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Plus there's the "identity" thing... the Germans assume that their VW/Merc/BMW is German built and the French the same for their Citreon/Peuguot/Renault and the Italians their Fiat...
How many Brits think their Nissan is??!
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I go on experience and in my experience the cars I want come from the land of the rising sun and will continue to until someone else can match their engineering integrity.
CBC says not right now.
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>when considering buying a new car, think 'British'
cant - the choice is too limited
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The British equivalent of a Skoda Roomster is a Nissan Note. By late summer the Honda Jazz will also be built in Britain.
HJ
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The British equivalent of a Skoda Roomster is a Nissan Note.
It has a boot half the size of the Roomster, solid (folding) seats that don't come out individually... sorry, HJ, its not, its just a small "estate" version of the Micra, like the Fusion is to the Fiesta.
If anything the Meriva is the closest but even that has a small boot compared with the Roomster... Skoda have managed to package a large car's interior, dimension wise, in a small car's exterior dimensions... its one thing that BMC used to be very good at and thus produced some excellent cars - the Mini, 1100 and 1800 were all streets ahead of the stuff Ford and Vauxhall were producing at the time...
Even my favourite, the Maxi, though compromised by having to share parts with other cars in the range made excellent use of its space... better than the R16... but other things compromised it - build quality and silly things like a crap gear change... Perhaps if the Company as a whole (management and workforce) had actually concentrated on building cars properly instead of infighting things may have been different!
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>when considering buying a new car think 'British' cant - the choice is too limited
Surely there must be enough choice among the offerings of Ford, Vauxhall, Land Rover and Jaguar though? There just isn't enough patriotism when it comes to buying cars in this country compared to the likes of France and Germany. It's staggering to note just how many imports there are on the roads here, anyone would think that we don't have a home grown car industry. Jap cars built over here don't count as British either IMHO
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In the UK we have a far more developed sense of choice than some other countries and we are all the better for it. Patriotism is narrow minded foolishness peddled by the BNP and it will be a cold day in hell before I adopt their principals when choosing a car.
You buy what you like and its up to the manufacturers to win your money from them.
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I've had a UK car in the past, fine and dandy it was too. From the current crop I'd struggle to think of one I'd buy.
However I disagree with the buy British cars argument and glad that most people don't agree with it. No matter which model/brand you buy, much of the price you pay will be distributed in the UK anyway. Advertising, dealers (sales person, cleaners, mechanics), logistics, importer, port, shipping line.
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In this instance the Jap cars built over here do count as British as we are talking about British jobs. I will be looking at a MINI, CIVIC and maybe even a Jazz as my next runaround so there is every chance that I will buy British. I can't think of a Ford passenger car that is still made here though.The Diesel engines are made at Dagenham though. Also don't forget that BMW's 4 ctlinder petrols are built over here as well so if you want a 3 series buy a 318/320i rather than the d with its Austrian built motor!
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After my Honda Accord years I went all patriotic again and bought Rover, thinking things must have improved. Wrong.
As another poster has said, Japanese for me every time.
screwtape
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Maggie Thatcher convinced me to buy british, the slogan was "right first time ever time"
So i bought a Mini Metro, sure it went round corners like a go kart, the only car i ever had that i managed to put on two wheels going round an island, but i blame the mother in law on the back seat, she was fat, to put it bluntly, and her screaming "oh my goodness " didn't help matters.
Also i could get over 60mpg!
A part from that it was the most unreliable car i have ever had, broke down six times in the 2.5 years i had it.
Not bought "british" since.
The british car had french glass, german brakes (if i recall correctly). The point is it was a european car, not british.
But i take the original post, you can only buy in the main, cars assembled in britain.
Edited by Webmaster on 13/04/2009 at 01:23
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When I was young British was considered the bee's knees. We had motorbikes, carpets, cars, steel etc etc. We have little choice if you buy a British car. i don't agree that jaguar are better than Mercedes Audi or BMW. amate of mine bought a Jag a couple of years ago and although he loked the car he was not happy with the reliability and has bought German and is much more pleased with the reliability. I would love a quality selection of British cars and we are capable of this but it all seems to go pear shaped.
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No matter which model/brand you buy, much of the price you pay will be distributed in the UK anyway. Advertising, dealers (sales person, cleaners, mechanics), logistics, importer, port, shipping line.
You couldn't have put it better, Carl. The British have been a nation of shopkeepers for centuries. Make your profit on the backs of other (preferably poorer) nations. Now the bankers do it best (for a while).
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>Surely there must be enough choice among the offerings of Ford, Vauxhall, Land Rover and Jaguar
what fords are built here? vauxhalls? land rover is specialised and jaguar is luxury
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My point about the Jaguar, made earlier in the thread, is that the situation has changed.
Jaguars are now vastly improved. Audis, BMWs and Mercedes are not more reliable and are not 'better' cars.
Hondas, Toyotas and Nissans built in Japan are not more reliable than those built in Britain.
Forget old prejudices against cars built by angry British car workers in old British factories. Almost all those factories are now shut. Those that remain have been extensively modernised. And most cars built in Britain are built in new factories near Swindon, Burnaston and Sunderland.
If you buy a car solely on its merits, then you should be considering cars built in Britain rather than holding an out of date prejudice against them.
HJ
Edited by Honestjohn on 12/04/2009 at 12:54
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My point is choice.
what mainstream cars can you buy that are made in the uk
Mini
Astra 5 door
civic
crv
auris
avensis
micra
note
qashqai
Jaquar and landrover
That my friends is it. Unless you want to drive a van or you have mega money for exotica
Car making is global stuff
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caterham , atom , hardly exotic ?
Edited by Honestjohn on 12/04/2009 at 17:34
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caterham atom hardly exotic ?
>>
Or practical.
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Here is a directory with every car that is made in Britain
www.bestbuybritish.org/british_cars.htm
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And most cars built in Britain are built in new factories ...
.. and most cars built here will be built by robots, so the scope for botching is seriously limited.
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so the stories about the temp mini workers sabotaging the cars was lies then the other week
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Well i think i have made my contribution to the EU, and gordon brown, plus given a bonus to a salesman in sunderland, and employee a mechanic for a few hours.
At the same time a dock worker has been employed. etc.
Bought a X Trail in feb this year.
My contribution will be something like the list below.
1/ Renault engine = EU
2/ VAT to brown.
3/bonus to sunderland salesman, Gavin
4/ couple hours wages to sunderland back up staff.
5/ Dock worker 1 hour wages.
So my conscience is clear!
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Well I think I have made my contribution to the EU, and gordon brown, plus given a bonus to a salesman in sunderland, and employee a mechanic for a few hours. At the same time a dock worker has been employed. etc.
All true no doubt, Xtrailman. But when we Brits love to import almost everything we consume, we have to pay other countries something in return. For some time we have depended heavily on our financial wizards to balance the payments somehow. How do you see that evolving?
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I might consider the new Avensis next time around (a few years) but I did not like the previous model. And so might not like the current one. So in 2007 I got a Mazda.
I don't feel as guilty as I might as I work for a company that is Japanese owned. And they will have made parts for this car.
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How do the German models and the Jaguar's compare in the depreciation stakes?
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Not me. I've worked damn hard to keep mine. No luck there whatsoever.
What are you then? a bailiff or debt collector?
They seem to be the only careers that are relatively safe at the moment....
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