If Japan had completely decimated Western car markets, had conflicting values with the US and posed a geopolitical rivalry, I would still have preferred crappy cars for the Western societies. After all, West didn't strengthen USSR via trade when there was a cold war.
Also, if the long term cost is "Western lifestyle regressing to mean" (original context I replied to), I'd still prefer crappy cars to preserve well-paying jobs.
My belief is that "isolationist economies fall well below the mean" in the long-term. If you want a comfortable Western lifestyle, you don't want to isolate yourself from global trade, but global trade means you aren't isolated from global competitive pressures.
Also, if the long term cost is "Western lifestyle regressing to mean" (original context I replied to), I'd still prefer crappy cars to preserve well-paying jobs.