11/2 http://tinyurl.com/dlcu5
SUV sales in free fall. w00t!!
\_ "Detroit relies on SUVs for about half its unit sales, a much higher
percentage than foreign automakers." Stupid fucking moron assholes.
The penalty for idiocy *should* be failure. Too bad the assembly
line workers have to pay the price for the fucktards who run the
Detroit auto companies.
\_ Detroit still hasn't figured out how to make a dime on a
passenger car, SUVs were their lifeline.
\_ They simply didn't try. I feel nothing but contempt
for companies who in the presence of a strong competitor
move to a different market segment to avoid the
competition. Such companies keep being driven out of all
profitable market segments until they have nothing left
(witness how Detroit's SUVs are still mostly truck based
while Japanese and Europeans have plenty of newer
car-based and cross-over SUV models which seem to become
more popular). A cure to their problem is to spend more
money on R&D of new models instead of hoping that 10 year
old gimmicks like Chevy Cavalier will continue selling.
Detroit seems to have had learned its lesson though I am
not sure whether that'll be sufficient for them to
maintain their market leadership position at this point.
\_ I dunno. Saturn, for instance, defies this idea.
Remember, too, that makes like Jaguar, Land
Rover, Saab, and Volvo are also 'American' now.
Cadillac also has been reinventing cars, as has
Chrysler (which is not American now, I know).
\_ Saturn is just one GM brand and I am not sure
how it defies that idea. I still see a lot more
Hondas, Toyatas, VWs, and whatnot on the streets
compared to Saturn. Yes, my understanding is that
foreign aquisitions might help with certain areas
of expertize. Some of Ford's platforms rely on
Mazda designs and GM designated its German Opel as
the division responsible for designing car
platforms. M-B might have had a hand in the success
of the Chrysler 300C.
\_ You said they didn't try. They did try. They've
failed, but they've tried. It's not like they
are rolling out the same old cars. Look at,
for instance, Ford's new Mustang and T-bird.
No one is buying them, but Ford is trying. If
anything, it's been Honda and Toyota rolling out
similar Accords and Camrys for years now and
dumping cool cars like Prelude. I think
it's reputation for reliability rather than
R&D on new models.
\_ Actually, Mustang is supposedly selling well.
It's now the most sold sports car in the US.
The new T-Bird looked pretty slick but it's a
little on the expensive side. Maybe that's
why it's on the way out.
\_ The Mustangs certainly are everywhere. And
I think the T-Birds were really only bought
by people who had one or wanted one back in
the '50s and were after that nostalgia
factor. Actually, the new Mustangs take
advantage of nostalgia in their styling as
well. -gm
\_ I am not sure how Saturn is just one GM brand
and I am not sure how defies that idea. I still
see a lot more Hondas, Toyatas, VWs, and whatnot
on the streets compared to Saturn. Yes, my
understanding is that foreign aquisitions might
help with certain areas of expertize. Some of
Ford's platforms rely on Mazda designs and GM
designated its German Opel as the division
responsible for designing car platforms. M-B
might have had a hand in the success of the Chrysler
300C. |
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