Not only a good economy, but it still has industrial output. There are plenty of big German car companies. It's not just "services". Plenty of politicians want to "bring back those blue collar jobs"
Do they really, or is that a soundbite they can use to appeal to their demographic?
”We believe that working people should run both the economy and society democratically to meet human needs, not to make profits for a few. ”
Sounds pretty similar to the thinking behind the German setup.
These have poor reputations and are only getting worse.
The quality of Audi/VW and BMW are no longer the cutting edge. Their mechanical components are known to fail often and their beauty(the biggest feature) is on par with GM and Ford.
Every 15-20 years it seems like car companies get complacent and need to be affected by the market to 'wake up'.
German cars have always been about luxury and performance,not beauty (that would be the italians) and they are still top of the pile. The M3/M5 are the definitive sports sedans still, the S-Class is the definitive full-size luxury sedan, and Porsche is the go to brand for performance sports offerings (look at caranddriver's website, Porsche has 0 offerings with less than 4 stars).
New complicated features aren't as reliable as simpler old ways, but "breaking occasionally" and "expensive to maintain when old" aren't really turn-offs for the people who buy those cars, especially on short term leases with covered maintenance.