TOD 03.20.08

In the process of buying a new car recently, I noticed something fascinating about car discussions. When it comes to American cars, the battle lines are deep and heated. Ford people hate Chevys. GM drivers despise Ford. And so it goes.

But it’s just not this way with Japanese brands. Honda owners will agree that Mazdas are also good. Camry drivers might prefer Toyota, but they’ll acknowledge the value of an Accord as well. In short, people who own Japanese cars usually have nothing but good things to say about other Japanese makes. You’ll just never see a window sticker of Calvin disrespecting a Mitsubishi symbol, unless it’s on an American truck.

So, if you were buying a car and the only thing you had to go on was this one difference, would you be more likely to buy American or Japanese? And what I wind up wondering is whether we are willing to learn a lesson from this that might influence the way we publicly discuss Christian brands other than our own.