Which is better, a 2010 Prius III made in Japan or USA?

If you want to be a prick then just say so. Prius is made in Japan ONLY.

My 2000 Trans Am has had less recalls. However, they both have a place and time to be driven and you can pry my Trans Am from my cold dead hands. I can't say that about my wifes or my Prius. But you can't really compare them either.

Oh wait....if you really want to be specific, my TA was made in Canada.......

DOH!

 

Except the ones that are made in Thailand.

 

If you have some time, I HIGHLY recommend listening to the former podcast at NUMMI | This American Life of the now defunct NUMMI plant in Fremont, CA (Tesla bought it after it closed) and how things were when GM ran that plant (before GM closed it) to afterward when it was resurrected as a GM/Toyota joint venture operating under the Toyota Production System.

It was amazing to hear the accounts firsthand from the workers despite that fact that the most of the NUMMI workers were previously GM employees at that plant. I wrote some more at http://priuschat.com/forums/other-cars/78530-great-story-nummi-nprs-american-life.html#post1097941. They went from being one of the worst GM plants in quality to producing cars that were equivalent to their Japanese counterpart. The stories were amazing and the podcast actually struck w/an emotional chord w/me.

Seriously, w/the right philosophy, empowerment, discipline and principles, American auto workers are capable of building cars w/as high a quality as the Japanese. Perhaps if GM had woken up earlier and forced their plants to adopt these philosophies earlier, they might've never gone bankrupt and needed a bailout.

FWIW, I've taken a tour of NUMMI and was impressed. But I've also toured 4 other auto plants, 3 of them in Japan.

 

I read a article online about this and are some of them being made in Thailand now? Can anyone confirm a Thailand made Prius where Vin number does not start with a "J".

 

There are a few Thai members here, ones handle is sparkieblues maybe he could answer that for you.

 

No Prius made in the USA has ever needed a repair.
No Prius made in the USA has ever needed more gas.
No Prius made in the USA has ever been wrecked.
No Prius made in the USA has an unhappy owner.
No Prius made in the USA has ever rattled.
Dealers do not charge more for a Prius made in the USA.
The Wait List is really long and slow, though, as
No Prius is made in the USA.

(Aside from not exisiting, it is perfect!)

 

I live in Bangkok however I am in Kobe Japan right now so I couldn't check the VIN of my new Thai-built Prius. So I called my wife and she called back. The VIN starts with MR. According to the Wikipedia listing for "Vehicle Identification Number", ML-MR is assigned to Thailand.

By the way, as you would think, the Prius in Japan are a dime a dozen. They are everywhere. Also, I have seen several Honda CR-Xs and Insights. I think the Insight looks better in person then in photos and the CR-X is a great looking car.

Leo

 

I'll buy that one

 

It's not always that cut and dried. But if you choose to be blind, then so be it.

Not all American cars are bad, not all Japanese cars are great. But if you choose to insult ALL of you American co-workers that build cars...go for it.

I hate ny Prius brakes and will not get another simply because they do not work right.

FWIW, WE HAVE 2.

 

I prefer the Prius made in Hoboken. It just has more VAVOOM.

 

Many Japanese vehicles are made in the US, however when it comes to hybrids or many of the very small imports they are "imports" from Japan.

 

Although my comment is offpoint re Japanese v American manufacturing let me say that two years ago I had two higher end Nikon cameras break down the first week. The first was replaced by the second and that one also broke down. The third finally worked. All three were manufactured by Nikon in Japan. Three months later, I bought another Nikon body, this one made in Thailand. No problems since. My point is that I thought the quality of the product coming out of Thailand was inferior to one made in Japan. I was wrong.

 

Anecdotes are very interesting and I enjoy reading about actual experiences, but it would also be nice to see some more objective figures. For example from J.D. Power:

2011 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study
2010 U.S. Initial Quality Study
2009 Initial Quality Study
2008 Initial Quality Study ​