Kartoffelsalat ist lecker, or, "I Don't Speak German and I Advise Buying American."

What comes to mind when you think of German engineering? It's probably something along the lines of "reliable", "well-built", "fast", and "precise." For years, these have been the reasons that compelled people to buy German luxury cars. This obviously made sense as, for several decades, most American cars were mass produced death machines that would fall apart after their first 10,000 miles.

But that is all in the past. Today, companies like Ford are gaining traction on their platforms of safety, reliability and, most crucially, fun. It's hard to deny the appeal of a car named Fiesta, especially when it's compared to one named 128i. The first one sounds like something that would have lots of piñatas. The second sounds like a chemotherapy drug.

And this is the most important detail. American cars are now just as good as their German and Japanese counterparts. But crucially, American cars now have something that the foreigners lack. A sense of fun.

At this point, you might be shaking your head and asserting that the Americans just aren't up to par yet. I would disagree. M3? Meet the new Chevrolet SS. Bugatti Veyron? Meet the Shelby Tuatara. Lamborghini Aventador? The upcoming Corvette can teach you a thing or two. Range Rover? Thanks, but I'll pay half the price for a Jeep that looks just as good and works the same. C63 AMG? Just give me a Shelby Mustang. Koenigsegg Agera R? I raise you one  Hennessey Venom GT, and so on and so forth.

I truthfully don't know if American cars will ever regain the total dominance that they enjoyed post-WWII. However, I do know that these cars are now just as good as their European and Asian counterparts and you should give some serious consideration to them if you're in the market for a new car.