First, it is Infiniti not Infitity.
Second, Japanese cars have comparable weight as domestic ones;
Third, if they used lower grade parts, how come their cars have a longer life span as the author acknowledged?
Weak engine: Maybe but more reliable and refined for sure.
Higher resale value: It may come even but did you count in the time spend in dealership? How much it worth for the lost time?
Group image: Performance is not just horse power. Fewer trips to the dealership are part of the performance for those buyers;
Wrong bet on gas mileage: What about environment?
"Currently the deviation within a manufacturer, domestic or foreign, is larger than the average difference between brands." - I guess the bigger than inter-brand variation is largely contributed by domestic cars. This is exactly the problem with domestic cars. The quality of Japanese cars are more consistent (small variation), which makes them a more confident buy. You may get a super reliable domestic car but you chance of getting it is much smaller. Don't get me wrong, I like to drive domestic cars more but new car purchase is also an important financial decision. People vote with their wallets.