Friday, December 12, 2008



Ford dealer airs "racist" radio advert

We read:
"A Ford dealer in Hardeeville, SC has begun airing an ad that contains what many consider a racist remark against the Japanese. O.C. Welch, the dealership's owner, claims in the ad entitled "Wake Up America" that Japanese vehicles like those made by Toyota are "rice ready... not road ready." OK, we don't even know what that means, but it's clear that many Japanese-Americans are not pleased with the dealer's remarks. Welch, however, apparently couldn't care less and claims the ad, which is one of five new promotions launched by his dealership yesterday, have a 96% approval rating. Referring to Japanese cars as "rice" actually began in the tuner culture, and usually refers to highly modified Japanese sport compacts that have more show than go.

Welch also asks in his advertisement why vehicles made by Toyota don't have that new car smell. We didn't know this was the case, but someone should tell Welch that the smell he loves so much actually comes from plastic dashboard pieces giving off toxic gas. Perhaps he should stop sniffing glove boxes before he makes marketing decisions. You can check out a video after the jump from a local TV news station that features clips from the ad in question as well as an interview of Welch, who comes off as just the greatest guy ever

Source

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Anon, it really has nothing to do with quality. It's all about PC a**holes claiming he's being offensive. And the result? He's gotten TONS of free advertising! Mmore power to him!

Anonymous said...

I heard on the news that he sold a ton of cars the first day the ad ran.

Anonymous said...

anon2, i understand what's really behind his tactics, but there's a lot more to it, as i've stated. It may help him sell a few more cars, but the real problem is much bigger than his bottom line. Going out and buying junk is NOT patriotic. Building quality and old-fashioned pride into American products is. If they can't/won't do that, then good riddance!

Anonymous said...

"that new car smell" actually comes from a spraycan these days, not from anything the car itself produces.

People over the decades have gotten so used to that smell of new leather and plastics which modern construction techniques and long transport routes no longer give that dealers had to find a way to reproduce the smell artificially and they have.

Like most car sellers this guy is dishonest and not too bright, but knows how to make a salespitch stick.

Anonymous said...

Back in the day when I rode Harley's, it was common to call Jap bikes rice rockets. That's probably offensive too, I suppose. Anon #1: I drive a Ford As I can't get under the wheel of jap crap. I'm happy with it and will drive it till the wheels fall off. And who knows, maybe if they build enough parts mfg. facilities in Mexico some of the Mexicans might go back.

Anonymous said...

sadly, as a native life long Detroiter Anonymous #1 is absolutely right

Anonymous said...

Every year Consumer Reports surveys thousands of car owners on their repair history. Japanese cars are usually the most reliable, even though most "Japanese" cars are actually built in American factories. That illustrates that the problem isn't primarily due American workmanship.

The good news is that the reliability of American cars has actually been improving over the last several years.

One of the biggest surprises I've had in the last couple of years was when I discovered that the Lincoln Town Car has one of the highest reliability ratings among all the cars covered by the Consumer Reports survey. I would have expected it to be one of the least reliable. Good for them!

One of the ironies in this situation is that when we were rebuilding Japan after WWII, we actually taught them the methods they've used to outdo us in quality.

Anonymous said...

A union worker doesn't have to build a good car as long as their is no danger if being fired. I used to be a DIE HARD chevy man and would still use a chevy motor if I was still racing, but the cars turned to crap in the 70's and don't seem mush better today. One of the new chevys will never be restored like they do the older ones. Stormewaters

Anonymous said...

"One of the ironies in this situation is that when we were rebuilding Japan after WWII, we actually taught them the methods they've used to outdo us in quality."

Isn't that always the case? That's why the world sees us as a nation of fools. Fortunately for the Japanese, we didn't teach them about labor unions, one of the main reasons they're always so far ahead of us. Another reason is that they still take pride in what they do, something that has disappeared from American society.

Anonymous said...

"And who knows, maybe if they build enough parts mfg. facilities in Mexico some of the Mexicans might go back."

Ford and GM have been making their parts in Mexico for a long, long time, simply to reap more profits because of the lower wages. Of course, not 1 cent of those savings was ever passed along to the consumers.

The only sensible solution here is to let them go into Chapter 11, the same way any other business would. And in spite of the fear tactics being used by the Democrats and the media, that doesn't mean they'll go out of business. (becoming leaner and stronger doesn't mean you're dying, it means you're getting better!) They could then do a " very badly-needed" restructuring. That move would also force the "pro-left, pro-Democrat" unions to finally deal with reality!

Understand that the only reason the Democrat congress so badly wants to throw more of our BILLIONS into Detroit is simply to pay the unions back for their political support!

Anonymous said...

"Understand that the only reason the Democrat congress so badly wants to throw more of our BILLIONS into Detroit is simply to pay the unions back for their political support!"

The unions are so sure of themselves they rejected the plan the Senate proposed because they didn't want a wage reduction. Well, if they don't like a wage reduction then maybe they ought to have a wage elimination via being umemployed.

Anonymous said...

There's one thing you can bet on. Between the labor-owned democrats in congress and the moron in the oval office, the UAW will get exactly what they want, and to hell with the tax payers!