Consumers "win," while the "Big Three" carmakers (Ford, General Motors and Chrysler) suffer. This article basically states that these major automotive companies are declining; and have been for the past three decades. However, the contestable claim to be examined is not that they are in fact declining; rather that this decline will prove to be an advantage to the average consumer in search for a more reliable, better designed and more fuel efficient automobile. The author presents this claim along with several pieces of evidence. The following is a thorough analysis of the evidence presented and an indication of its overall effectiveness at proving the claim.
Accuracy A major piece of evidence which is used by the author is the statement that imported cars, especially those from Asian countries (for example those produced by Korean automakers,) prove to be more reliable and better designed. The anomaly of critical thinking is that each piece of evidence supporting a contestable claim is actually a claim on its own. This claim, however, that imported cars have proven unsurpassed reliability is one that I too, can support. I, myself, own an import car and so do many of my family and friends. I can say from experience, that my family's cars along with all my friends' imported cars have definitively proven their reliability and fuel efficiency. So if this particular claim is true and we know that the three big carmakers have recently been experiencing declining sales because of this fact; this proves that major innovations have in fact been made in the past few years, resulting in a better position for the average consumer. Although I might be inclined to believe his contestable claim due to personal experience, I still feel the author should have presented recorded ...