Jap crap?

Photo courtesy of Adclassix.com

Now I know the title is politically incorrect but that was the real thinking back when I was a kid about Japanese cars I grew up as a kid in the 1970's when almost everyone had American built cars. About the only exception to this was VW Beetles which it was hard to sneeze without hitting one. I believe sometime after the first gas crisis in the early 70's my mother after our late 60's Ford Station wagon bit the big one bought a 1970 Toyota Corolla. I don't remember the exact details of it but what I do remember about it was that it was a white 2-door model with a manual shift. I also remember it was small.

What brings me to this subject is that I've been taking a class on Lean Manufacturing. Toyota pretty much invented it with there much talked about Toyota Production System(Aka: TPS). I'd have to admit through the years I've been an American automobile fan and I still am. I can now see where though where domestic auto makers lost there edge. A very interesting book on the subject called "The machine that changed the world" by James Womack,Daniel Jones and Daniel Roos. Though it's close to 20 years old I think the principles still stand about Lean Production methods. It compares Lean Production vs. Mass production.

The book and class have been an eye opener and I've slacked off on my distaste of Japanese automobiles in general. I do respect the quality in which they come out with. I'm not even sure where my original prejudice against them came from. Be it from cheering on the home team mentality or perhaps old school mentality. I do realize though it was perhaps the American automakers who who stuck in the old way of doing things that made them fall behind. Does it mean I'm trading in my Impala for a Toyota? Nope. I still like American automakers styling better and the quality has improved since the days of my childhood. I'm not as likely to bash Toyota's or other Japanese automakers as much (as far as quality is concerned) in the future.