Date: Sun, 17 Jun 2001 16:10:54 -0700
Reply-To: Charles McGehee <chasm@ELLTEL.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Charles McGehee <chasm@ELLTEL.NET>
Subject: Re: ?? SA Engine Conversion ??
In-Reply-To: <5.1.0.14.2.20010617103221.02813220@gemini.tntech.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed
American car makers have resisted making little cars for exactly that
reason. They make more on bigger cars than little ones. They have been
forced kicking and screaming into the small car market. But it's also
important to note that former small-car-only manufacturers, such as,
Toyota, Nissan, etc. finally "saw the light" and joined the big car chase
as well. Even BMW started small after the war. Remember the Isetta? Audi
was Auto Union which made the DKW and even Mercedes has gotten
progressively bigger. Of course the market was more limited fifty years
ago, still, big is where the profit is. The Crosley and Nash Metropolitan
of the 1950's were way ahead of their time here were laughed off the road
and fell on their economic faces. I must say, though, the auto-buying
public was also not much interested in little cars in the 1950's even as VW
and Toyota appeared. It took a while before they took hold.
Charles
'85 Westy
At 10:32 AM 6/17/01 -0500, Chris Mills wrote:
>All models that we don't get here in NA...
>
>After spending 3 years in Italy I think the US car market must be very
>different than anywhere else with folks much more casual about what they
>buy since apparently lots ok folks don't seem to expect to keep their car
>past the end of their payments.
>
>Their are some wonderful cars out there that wouldn't have a chance here
>(why???) - Opel sporty cars made from the same shell as the fatally boring
>Cavaliers here, and some wonderful utility vehicles (4 door small trucks)
>that we have only recently begun seeing on the roads here.
>
>All I can figure is that the car companies here know they can make more
>money on the big carsthan the little ones and if they start selling (or
>the public starts learning how wonderful the) clever little cars are (and
>their small utilitarian cousins) the market demand will change and their
>profits will fall.
>
>Anyone able to elaborate on the topic?
>
>Enjoying the conversation.
>
>
>
>At 08:31 PM 6/16/01 +1200, you wrote:
>> >By the way, the story of the Eurovan that Ari Ollikainen put us onto was
>> >interesting. The T2 was introduced in 1967 and had its best year in 1971
>> >just four years later. After that it was downhill all the way to
>> >1978. Every year a successful car is produced and remains on the road
>> >makes it harder to sell the same car in the future. In that regard the
>> >Vanagon was its own worst enemy just as the Beetle was its own. I'd like
>> >to see similar stats for the Vanagon and the Eurovan. You can bet that VW
>> >has been tracking such stats closely.
>>
>>Funny, the current Japanese van bodies (all forward-control/cabover
>>designs) were all introduced in 1989 and are still selling like hotcakes.
>>The only competition are the Frod Trans*it, very rare Fiat and Renault,
>>"Mercedes" ?MB100 and VW T4 Transporter (+Eurovan), none of which are any
>>danger saleswise or otherwise to the Nipponese, cheap as the Frod is. The
>>only real competition is the Hyundai H100, which is a Korean-made
>>current-model Mitsubishi Delica...
>>
>>My feeling is that VW should have kept the rear-engine/IRS layout (or done
>>a midengine/IRS job) for the T4, but used a NEW DOHC engine design with a
>>flat full-length floor, with forward-control cab. Instead they screwed the
>>pooch and brought out a characeterless and totally anonymous poor-handling
>>FWD lump.
>>
>>On another note, does "cabover" refer to the cab being over the engine or
>>the front wheels?
>>
>>
>>Andrew Grebneff
>>165 Evans St, Dunedin, New Zealand
>>ph 64 (3) 473-8863
>>fax 64 (3) 479-7527
>><andrew.grebneff@stonebow.otago.ac.nz>
>>www.goingplatinum.com/member/vw1
>>www.highyieldcrusaders.ws/ref.html?ref=vw
>>www.aciimoney.com/index.shtml?vw1
>>VW & Toyota vans, Toyota diesels and Macintoshes rule
>
>Chris in Tennessee
>
>'78 VW Westy
>'65 Beetle (type IV powered)
>'99 CR-V
>'81 Honda CB900 Custom (FOR SALE)
>
>ICQ# 5544649
>
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