IMHO, this may in fact be the only thing which will save the American auto industry - being pestered into changing.
Without any outside nudging, Detroit would continue to turn out virtually unchanged, oversized, too-heavy low performance boats, as they continue to lose market share and eventually just go out of business.
People increasingly WANT small efficient cars. I want a couple. One single-occupant super efficient rechargable hybrid something, perhaps along the lines of the Venture One tilting three-wheel motorcycle-handling “car”, which flies into curves just like a bike.
Something then, bigger for actual trips. Still energy efficient, but capable of carrying gear, and standing up to some weather and some dirt. I’m happy to have noticed recently, Jeep seems to have gotten the message, and has a couple smaller new 4x4’s in their lineup.
Saturn has a new small car, but the other manufacturers, are still stuck in the past.
American car companies are doing NOTHING to tap any of these markets - and I’m certainly not the only person out here, looking for something new from Detroit. Frustrated at their blindness and lack of initiative.
They continue to, year after year, make each model slightly bigger (dumb), heavier (dumb) and have even tried to create market hype for a re-launch of that 60’s guzzling Camaro.
Come on Detroit.
You are lost. Sleeping, and every foreign car company is eating your lunch.
This is needed. Next, let’s pester Detroit into moving at least one design studio each from deep-midwest Detroit, to Southern California - so they get at least some idea of what the competition is doing. And what people are actually ... BUYING.
You don’t know much about the car business, do you? Every major automotive manufacturer, foreign and domestic, has a design studio in California and has for years.
Toyota was the first, to my knowledge, with their Calty facility in Newport Beach. Nissan has theirs in La Jolla. Mercedes, Mazda and Hyundai/Kia have studios in Irvine. Honda R&D Americas is in Pasadena, Mitsubishi’s is in Cypress, BMW owns Designworks in Newberry Park, while VW/Audi’s is in Santa Monica.
Ford has a center in Irvine, Chrysler has one in Carlsbad, and GM’s is in North Hollywood.
“Next, let’s pester Detroit into moving at least one design studio each from deep-midwest Detroit, to Southern California - so they get at least some idea of what the competition is doing. And what people are actually ... BUYING.”
Almost ALL of the foreign brands have design studios in SoCal—Toyota since the 70s (Calty).
Most companies are now designing “world cars”—Ford uses the same chassis for Fords, Volvos and Mazdas. (Derived mainly from Volvo designs).
GM is reaching to Europe and Australia for more and more chassis designs. Holden, Opel, Saab, etc. The recent successful Cadillacs were heavily influenced by European testing during development.
The Chrysler 300 (one of their few successes) was derived from Mercedes basics.
It appears Detroit effectively gave up on designing passenger cars in the US.
The simplest way to increase fuel economy is turbo-diesel. Comes close to or even beats hybrids. About 50 percent of new vehicles sales in Europe today are turbo-diesels.
And guess what? Mercedes, BMW, Audi-VW market such vehicles now, and will be introducing 50 state versions in the next year.
GM is coming out with Tahoe-Yukons with hybrid, giving up no performance in this light truck based SUV, compared to last year’s gas only versions. About 25 percent increase in fuel economy.
After all the complaining by vehicle makers passes, they can and will do it.
As for size, weight and safety: A BMW designer in SoCal recently told me that crush zones matter as much or more than weight. Mercedes, BMW, Auudi, Volvo and Saab were doing safety before the US imposed requirements. So again, they are out in front with this.
Japan: They too are out in front. Toyota and Honda have a big head start on hybrids; Toyota with its 3rd generation now.
If the US Big Three are falling behind in sales and technology, it is due to the US corporate tendency to think short term profits, over long term market leadership. It has been what stock markets expected.
Toyota’s corporate philosophy and culture take a very long view, and will likely reap long term rewards.