Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

Deutsch...while Toyota is a good company, all the products they make are just bland. I don't think I've ever been in love with any toyota in the US besides the Supra. But even then the supra hasn't been that high on my list of Japanese Favourites. Even though Toyota sells more cars than Honda, the press has always praised the Honda more. I rarely ever seen a Toyota car rank higher than it's Honda counterpart in magazine tests. Case in point the Honda accord...for many many years now it has been getting more awards than almost any car out there. The only reason Honda doesn't get as much press as Toyota is because they aren't as big as Toyota and don't have as many models. But technologically, no japanese company can touch honda. Honda in involved in bikes, boats, cars, jets, electronics, technology (asimo robot), various different types of racing (f1, motogp, etc).



Example: This is from honda.com



"The Accord has been named to Car and Driver's "10Best" list—again. This marks the 21st time in the last 25 years that the Accord has won this prestigious award—more than any other vehicle in the award's history. The full lineup of Accord vehicles was honored by Car and Driver for always being at the top of the charts in fit and finish, ergonomics, road manners, reliability, and resale value."

Originally Posted by Osnabrueck

I'm with you guys.

I've always felt that Honda produced cars that felt comfortable in their own skin and had a sense of fun to them.

To me, cars like the Civic are authentic. They answer their own questions and aren't a response to concerns about cultural adaptability. They are Honda Japan through and through, just like Volkswagens are very German. Yes, they steal design riffs from every corner of of the earth, but the execution is always very Honda, stolen or not.

Toyotas, on the other hands, are excellent cars with perpetual identity problems. I'd write 3 paragraphs about this but I have to get back to work.

In short - Toyota has done a much better job of carving out an authentic identity for their trucks than they have with their cars. There's always a spark of brilliance, like the Celica, but that brilliance is never related to anything before, after or current in the Toyota range. They're always one hit wonders. The "brand feel" has never come together for them (although in Europe Toyota is doing much better with this).

Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

I'm happy that someone other than me gives honda credit. I'm not a die hard honda fan but honda's typcially handle better and are safer than toyotas, whether they are trying to or not, but when honda wants to make something actually sporty, they do one hell of a job...example. Integra and Civic Type R, S2000 and of course NSX.

Originally Posted by Osnabrueck

I'm not really a Honda fan either, but being a 3-time Civic owner, I have a soft spot for the things they do right.

I admire that they're a company with a unique set of convictions, and they like playing to their own strengths. This is in contrast to Toyota, which often approches product development from a "Who do we want to tackle" point of view.