Dan Bennett;

Good post. I don't agree with very much you had to say, but I do appreciate the time you took to type that out and craft a counterpoint.

It is true that more than half of the "units" Toyota moved last year were built in Japan. Guess what, about half the "units" that GM/Ford/Chrysler moved last year were built outside the USA too, so we really shouldn't hold that against just Toyota.

It is not entirely true that all of Toyota's pofits go back to Japan. Toyota deemed long ago that Toyota USA must be self sufficient, so the "profts" that Toyota USA makes must cover racing, advertising, suppliers, dealer support, payroll, benefits and all other costs associated with being an auto manufacturer. Then whatever is left goes back to Japan, this is only fair because if Toyota USA came up short or didn't make a profit, Toyota Japan will be coming out of the pocket to cover the expenses. Business 101 in action right here.

We shouldn't hold Toyota's profitability against them just because US automakers do not make money, in fact they LOSE prodigous amounts of money. So much so they screw over their retirees by cutting benefits, or force active workers out of a job and future benefits using ambiguous terms like "early retirement packages".

Lastly, who says there would be no trickle down effect to the sportsmen? I am sure that if Toyota took the time and expense to develop a big block V8, they would try to recoup some of that by making some of the parts available via their TRD arm. We'll never know until we let them try. It would be up to NHRA to police this, just like they do with GM and Chrysler. Hold Toyota accountable, verify parts numbers and make those parts available to sportsmen/marine/offroad applications. Not very hard to do and as long as the request is made upfront to Toyota so they know what they are getting into.

I am of the opinion more is better, whether it be more cars or more manufacturer involvement. I am not trying to "put a PR spin" on Toyota involvement, but if they come in, fund 2 or 3 teams, make some of the parts available via TRD and play in the NHRA's sandbox via NHRA's rules, then what is the problem?

__________________
I am suspicious of everyone's agenda, especially my own.

Who is forcing people to buy the Japanese products? Who is holding a gun to the American buyers head and forcing them to purchase these products? Please do not use the phrase "because they are cheaper" cuz that ain't the case. You can pick up a Malibu a hell of a lot cheaper than you can a Camry or Accord. Maybe it's the fact that the big three are having a hard time building a product that appeals to the American consumer.

Here's the problem. A person buys an american car and is too stupid to maintain it. When that car falls apart, that person thinks "it fell apart because it's an american car!" Then that same person buys a japanese car and decides to baby the hell out of it and it last a longer time, and that person thinks "It lasts because it's a japanese car!"

__________________
Q: What do weather forecasters, mechanics and used car salesmen have in common?
A: They get paid good money to be wrong 50% of the time.

BTW, in my opinion other than the Infinitis' (not the rebadged ones) and some Lexus models, japanese cars are the prime example of BORING.

__________________
Q: What do weather forecasters, mechanics and used car salesmen have in common?
A: They get paid good money to be wrong 50% of the time.

BTW Samuel, I completely agree with you. I have never owned a Japanese car, and it is hard for me to imagine that I would own a Japanese car. Their styling is derivative or bland and their performance is normally a step behind other cars in the same price range. I just don't think they should be excluded from participation if they want to play by the same rules as everybody else.

__________________
I am suspicious of everyone's agenda, especially my own.

That was a joke, right?

I have seen it happen plenty of times.

__________________
Q: What do weather forecasters, mechanics and used car salesmen have in common?
A: They get paid good money to be wrong 50% of the time.

The cylinder heads and blocks aren't the issue. It's the rest of the parts! Where is the demand going to come from for companies like Jesel, CP, JE, T&D, and others to produce the internal parts in quantities that make them affordable to produce and sell?

You point out one S/C or S/G racer that is going to spend an extra $10,000 for a Toyota motor over a proven big block Chevy from any number of builders from around the country and I'll show you a S/C or S/G racer with more money than sense!

I don't have time to answer your other reply, but I can address this one pretty quickly.

I agree with you.

But, the problem is that they're NOT playing by the same rules. The present Pro Stock V8 engines have had 50 years of engineering, research, and development by all the manufacturers involved to get to this point.

It is blatantly unfair for Toyota to buy those parts, "re-engineer" them by taking all the best points from each, and then producing a race part with a Toyota number on it. That's not playing by the rules, that's exactly what they did in NASCAR, and that's one of the reasons I'm against their entry into NHRA (or IHRA, for that matter) Pro Stock.

I understand that Toyota has built a V8 for a few years, I'm guessing less than 10. If they want to take that block (and everything that bolts onto it) and redesign it to displace 500 cubic inches while producing competitive power under the current rules, then more power (pun intended)to them.

As usual, they WON'T play by the rules. They'll take the best efforts of decades of American engineering, add millions of dollars, and then bask in the glow of the PR bots typing "Superior Japanese engineering and quality above all else"

Honestly, I'm not angry or bitter. I'm just totally used up with all the spin.

I don't understand what you are saying. It sounds like you are saying that Toyota is infringing on every one's patent to compete in motorsports. i.e. Chevy block, Ford heads etc... If that was the case, then I would assume lawsuits would be flying around. Or are you just saying that they never have built a V8 and are just taking other V8 designs, modifying it and making it their own. If this is the case, then every manufacturer could be accused of patent infringement. Whoever built the first V8 internal combustion motor has been getting ripped off for years.

I never promised the parts would be "cheap", "affordable" or even "competitively priced". I just said they may make them available. In the scenario you describe, obviously there would be no incentive to use 'yota parts.

I am going to buy everyone in this thread a Christmas present this year ... a "Jump to Conclusions Mat". Everyone in this thread seems to know what Toyota are going to do and how much it is going to cost everyone ....

http://img274.imageshack.us/img274/4...lusions2xk.jpg

__________________
I am suspicious of everyone's agenda, especially my own.

Hey Chris, did I bump into another fan of "Office Space"?

Say Hi to Lumbergh for me !

__________________
I am suspicious of everyone's agenda, especially my own.

Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaay, that'd be greaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!

Excuse me, but I believe you have my stapler...