What Brands Have a Poor Reputation with Some, but a Great One with Others?
How many of us actively look forward to a trip to the nearby convenience store? How many of us would shine up our car for a gathering at such a retail establishment?
The answer might surprise you.
Hot dogs of questionable repute and sugary Slurpees do not apply here, as 7-Eleven has become a sensation with a younger generation of car enthusiasts for all the right reasons. It starts with the retailer’s well-deserved success in Japan, where premium quality food and beverages are readily available. One such Japanese 7-Eleven even has craft beer. The is why cars (especially modern Japanese classics) and 7-Eleven go together like peanut butter and jelly for enthusiasts of a younger class of classic.
It has come to the point that even die-cast car aficionados have their own 7-Eleven-themed building to make their own 7-Eleven dioramas. The yellow, green, and red signage of 7-Eleven is now synonymous with a specific generation, and a specific car culture.
At least among a certain subset of folks, things have certainly changed for this brand, one that used to be associated with low quality food, and sketchy activities in their lots. The 7-Eleven pivot might not have made it to your area yet, and the old reputation may still hold; a similar scenario likely holds true for several automotive and automotive-adjacent brands. So this is where you come in, as we want the Hagerty Community to answer this question for us:
What Brands Have A Poor Reputation With Some, But A Great One With Others?
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HAGERTY. Your publications, your insurance coverage and the passion of everyone associated with your brand. Although my retirement and subsequent relocation to Mexico and Switzerland necessitated selling the last of my cars, your electronic newsletter is still the first thing I open in the morning. Thank you, Hagerty, for contributing your passion to assist with my passion.
Moog suspension parts. Used to work in auto part sales about 30 years ago. Moog was great and even better than some of the OE parts. Especially the Problem Solver line. Used many of their parts on cars that racked up tons of miles. Still have a car 30 years later with Moog suspension parts. Now days I won’t use them. Had both lower ball joints start to fail within 10,000 miles in my daughter’s car. One outer tie rod end on a friend’s car that lasted about a year or two. Sway bar links in my van that literally fell apart at the ball. Sad part is, I’m not overly confident in the other brands out there. My cars tend to be so old OE parts are either non existing, hard to find, or insanely expensive.
I’ve had several Buick’s an Oldsmobile and a Chevy. They made me a GM hater. Had numerous problems with all of them. Carburetors, cylinder heads, ignition and rust. One Ford, had to get a new transmission, however, blame that on #2 son. Still kinda neutral about Ford. Had a Subaru that I really liked, Only issue I ever had was me. Waiting in line to board the ferry in CT to cross to New York and the car would not start. Waved everyone around me and as I saw the final car board, I realized I was trying to start it with the keys from another car. I just made it! I do have a love/hate relationship with Porsche. In 1967 I bought a 356B Cabriolet. Simple, reliable and very nimble. Able to do all maintenance myself. Love it! Later in life I bought a Cayenne S. I have had it for 13 years now and cannot recall a single day that there wasn’t something wrong. Its way to complicated for this old man. The ride is not even in the same class as my 356, its way to stiff and harsh, however, the power and handling has blinded me to the negatives. Not sure how I feel about it. I do hate the Porsche prices.
Lincoln. Once the epitome of luxury. Now just a Fancy Ford SUV.
Chrysler. Who didn’t aspire own a 300 letter car or range topping Imperial. Now, you can choose between a Pacifica and a soon to be discontinued 300.
Well, mention Coke and Pepsi and declare that one is better than the other and I think you can get a pretty robust debate going in most groups.
But.
The ultimate brand that has a poor rep with some, but great with others? Harbor Freight (or Princess Auto for our Canadian cousins).
So, with the exception of the additive package, you’re saying that mineral oils and synthetic oils are identical? Your ignorance is showing.
The bigger a company gets the worse the service and quality gets. Buy from local owned and operated businesses. Pay up, if you buy the best you will not be disappointed and you will not be buying the same item over and over, saving you money in the long run.
I pretty much agree, Paul S. Exceptions exist, to be sure, but overall, smaller, locally-owned outfits care more and tend to be more flexible than the big boys. We just had furnace & a/c replaced in our ranch house. I looked at a small company in a nearby town and found tons of positive reports about responsiveness, attitude, promptness, and pricing – so I gave them a call. I got higher-end product for less money than some big companies wanted for “off-brand” stuff, and the guys worked from 9:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. to complete the install (there were some hiccups along the way that delayed them).
I’m with Ray on the STP. My good bud and I rebuilt a 283 years back. He insisted on coating every moving part with STP and torquing every nut, bolt and screw to the specs we found. Start up day, we could not turn the engine with the starter nor a socket and bar on the crank. After towing the car for several blocks and popping the clutch in second gear the engine finally turned over and started. That stuff must have been like glue in there. Anyway the engine ran fine after we set the rockers and buttoned everything up. It sure was hard on the clutch and the back tires during the initial start up though. We were kids then, what did we know?
We live in a world where everyone has to be right. Most of us are easily duped into thinking we are the ones with all of the answers.