Rating: 
Summary: Maynard is full of imports thats were it ends
Review: I bought this book and it was a major down blow.She made several mistakes and was clearly right up into the import comanys butts.She took no time to properly go through the lineup of american cars and pretty much came to the conclution hey are all junk.She also faild to mention the fact that american automakers own large shares in more then one import company.She is clearly a big fan of imports and knows very little about what goes down in the real world.Construction sites are full of GMC,FORD,and dodge trucks.They have the torque and displacement to work ,import trucks are light duty.She failed to mention just how fast north american roads disolve the sheet metal found on import cars.The book is clearly an example of how ignorant people can be.The book makes an incredible 4 cup/can coaster.
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Summary: The Book I Was Waiting For
Review: I bought this book because I wondered why everybody I knew owned a Toyota or a Honda. I found it to be a very fast, very enjoyable read, perfect for a long plane trip. I particularly enjoyed the story of the Honda Odyssey minivan. And I also was interested to read aout the development of hybrid cars, since I'm thinking about buying one. This is actually less of a business book and more of a public policy or history book. People who are interested in the auto industry will enjoy it, but so will people who just what to know what happened to a very important industry. I'm also glad to see a woman writing about the car industry!
Rating:
Summary: Good title, disappointing content
Review: I bought this book on-line because I thought the subject looked interesting and I expected the book to get inside the auto industry to reveal the strategic issues. Unfortunately, I found it superficial,a bit naive and lacking in investigative depth.
Much of it is based on interview anecdotes and reports that have appeared in the press, together with a few visits to transplants/Japanese auto companies' plants - resulting in the same observations that were made 15 years ago when the world started to look at Japanese manufacturing methods.
The slant is pretty much that the overseas manufacturers that have entered the US market are smart and insightful (particularly the Japanese), while the Big Three get everything wrong.
If you already know that overseas auto companies have entered the US market, that they build some of their product in US transplant facilities, that the Detroit Three have become dependent on SUVs/light trucks/pick-ups for the bulk of their revenue and that the domestic US manufacturers suffer from uncertain quality, then you are probably not going to learn much from this book.
I expected to see analysis of the business models in play and some thoughts on how these would develop over the coming years, on a global basis - the Detroit Three may be based in Detroit but they are global companies with global strategies.
The book more or less concludes that if all companies carry on doing what they do today (which they won't), then by 2010, Toyota will become the number one auto company.
Rating:
Summary: Meandering and Simplistic
Review: I felt like I was reading a first year business school case with big business words, but small business ideas. The chapters meander and rehash well known stories (the introduction of Saturn).
Rating:
Summary: Very Informative
Review: I found Ms. Maynard's new book to be highly informative. I have followed the auto industry with some interest for 10 years and have not found a book like this that was so detailed, insightful and balanced. Beyond auto industry executives, leaders in other industries such as healthcare and airlines would benefit from a read of this book as there are great parallels, and pitfalls to be avoided. Congrats!
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Summary: Sometimes, the truth hurts
Review: I found this book to be very readable and very interesting. In my opinion, the author offers an unbiased review of the Big Three and the UAW. I sympathize with the unions (I'm in one) but a different approach will be necessary to make the Big Three competitive with Detroit South. I can relate to her statements concerning the Big Three cars to the imports. I've found my European and Asian car far more ergonomically sound and reliable than my Ford Explorer. Sometime the truth hurts....
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Summary: Maynard Gives Detroit A Reality Check
Review: I grew up in Detroit. My family and friends worked for the Big 3. When I saw Micheline Maynard in an interview on CNBC talking about her book, "The End of Detroit", it peaked my curiosity. Was it possible that the driving force behind my home town, "The Motor City", was running off the road? Could the Big 3 in 2003 really be GM, Ford, and Toyota? I had to buy the book.I'm glad I did. "The End of Detroit" isn't about bashing U.S. quality versus the imports, the American nameplates have worked to put that issue to bed. The book is not about cookie-cutter models shared by different divisions of the same company. It's not even about manufacturing techniques and efficient new plants, the Big 3 have those too. No, what "The End of Detroit" is about is a wake up call for anyone who thinks the status quo of GM, Ford, and DaimlerChrysler will always anchor the world's auto industry. Maynard's insight into the evolution of the global industry is a profound reality check. It explains a lot to those who may even stop to question why the top selling cars in America year after year are from Toyota and Honda, not Ford and GM. "The End of Detroit" is a look behind the gleaming front grills of the Detroit machines. It questions some of the strategic decisions the Big 3 have made, and offers a signpost for travelers wondering about the road ahead.
Rating: 
Summary: It's ok, but bear with her if you can
Review: I must say, I'm not as good a writer as Ms. Maynard, but I think I actually may know more about the car business than she. In fact, if you're an enthusiast, you may very well know more than she does as well. The book is just fair. It gives some neat historical recounts on how the Japanese set up their operations in the US, and how their corporate cultures and history are in Japan. I must say, though, there were times when I just wanted to give up on this book. Why? Errors...this thing is full of factual errors. For example, she says that Nissan owns a large piece of Fuji Heavy Industries, the maker of Isuzu. This is not correct. Nissan does own a large piece of FHI (they were the largest shareholder before GM bought 50% of the company), but FHI makes Subaru, not Isuzu. They have ties to Isuzu, but the reason why Nissan owning FHI was an issue is because of the Subaru competition (Imprezza and Legacy go head to head with the Sentra and Altima). This specific point is discussed in the fabulous book "Turn Around" about Carlos Ghosn. There are other errors as well. Her recounting of timing is also often off in talking about when a certain vehicle was the top seller (Camry, Accord and Taurus discussion), and when each luxury marque was the top in the US. Another knitpicky thing is that she uses the word "dwarfs" a lot. However, she flips it's meaning. Dwarfs means that something that dwarfs something else looks much smaller next to it (i.e. A dwarfs B, and A is smaller than B). Sometimes she uses it in this correct way, and other times she uses it to mean the thing that dwarfs the other thing is bigger (i.e. A dwarfs B, and A is bigger than B). As a writer, she should know what she's saying, but should certainly at the very least be consistent. I would let the dwarfs thing go, but the automotive errors are not forgivable, and they smack you in every chapter. If she is wrong about so much in the auto industry, it's hard to accept her take in the book. I don't disagree with her notion, but, really, get some fact checkers, or get educated about your topic.
Rating:
Summary: A Missed Opportunity
Review: I was very excited about receiving this book as a gift and eagerly dug into reading it. Unfortunately, I am quite disappointed with most elements of the book and think that Ms. Maynard missed a great opportunity to dig deep into the downfall of an American-led industry. The book is written from a journalistic viewpoint rather than from a business strategist/analyst viewpoint. The proof of Japan's successes or Detroit's failures was recalled via anecdotes instead of concrete sales results and trends. The anecdotes provide nice human interest stories, but provide little business proof for success or failure. She does interject a little profit margin data over time, but doesn't acknowledge that profit margins in all industries decrease as the industry matures. Additionally, at different points in the book, Ms. Maynard contradicts her previous conclusions. For example, early in the book, she emphasizes that Japan's success is getting cusotmers to return and buy another Japanese nameplate; however, later she chastizes Detroit for the same thing, indicating that they are not focused on capturing additional marketshare (which is hard to do when you have greater than 50%). The book does provide a nice history review for those that are interested, but feels like a TQM book from 15 years ago.
Rating: 
Summary: Better than I expected
Review: I wasn't expected to much from this book but it was very balanced in what it had to say.It's all based on sound facts and figures the author has taken from the recent past as well as the not so recent 50's,60's,70's and 80's. The hardcore made-in-USA crowd may not want to read it or they'll refuse to acknowledge it,but it's very difficult not to come to the conclusion that the author hints at. The big three have talked the talk for too long while their products don't walk the walk.Serious car buyers are in many cases shunning Detroit products and it's getting worse, not better.
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