|
Cyrezar posted:I'm not sure if I agree with people when they say that about Toyota. My understanding is that some think they let their quality slip because they got too comfortable. Did this actually happen though, or is it a consequence of the bad press from the unintended acceleration debacle? See also: GM. This was being discussed in the news thread but I felt it would just be better to have a dedicated thread for it. Look at any toyota made in the past decade versus the ones in the 80s and 90s and it becomes pretty clear that the quality got lost somewhere down the line. By mid 00s the toyota interiors were garbage. By all accounts their engines were still great but it just became clear that they started cutting corners. That's not to say it was just them, its near impossible to find anything made in the early to mid 00s that had decent interior build quality and wasn't a luxury brand. The problem was Toyota used to be built solid and so when they cut corners just like everyone else the reason to buy them sort of went away and they rightfully attract criticism.
|
#
¿
Sep 27, 2014 02:24
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 05:00 |
|
|
Subaru's problem is that its become pretty obvious that all decisions are corporate decisions looking at their model range. I find it really hard to see Subaru in its modern form willing to approve something similar to their past models like the XT, Justy or SVX. They used to be willing to gamble but in the context of Subaru their current range is extremely conservative. I think their problem is the fact that they're tied to the Boxer engine, they aren't enough of a luxury brand to justify the extra costs associated with these engines. And while a longitudinal set up for AWD was superior back in the 80s/90s transverse engine setups have long since caught up and offer better packaging and weight distribution. If they change though they're going to upset the subaru fanboys.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 27, 2014 17:06
|
|
|
Seat Safety Switch posted:I recently read Where The Suckers Moon, which is a book about how Subaru of America figured out how to actually sell a loving car around the late-80s period of when the Legacy was introduced. Subaru's core customer (New England) is effectively permanently assured. You can start to see how the balance of power in decision making slipped away from Subaru of Japan (an engineer-driven approach that gave us the XT and SVX) and moved towards SOA (the sales and marketing approach that produced the Forester, Outback, and crack-dealer levels of profit). I've actually been meaning to pick up that book for a long time and you just reminded me. Does it talk much about the SVX, I actually own one so if it talks alot about the disaster that surrounded that car I'd probably order it today. The SVX is a great example of the the Japanese giving the Americans a product that only really would work in Japan and the Americans fundamentally not understanding it. My understanding is the SVX was supposed to be a GT car and in japan GT cars always came with a four speed automatic in that period. Subaru of America quickly disregarded this and tried to sell it as a performance car. You can find some really laughable footage given to dealers where they put the SVX through performance tests with other cars that they clearly manipulated to make sure the SVX won (The most memorable one was a dead start acceleration in snow against a Dodge Stealth that lasted all of something like 10 feet).
|
|
#
¿
Sep 27, 2014 18:38
|
|
|
Powershift posted:This wouldn't have happened if the BRZ had a turbo. How did Toyota and Subaru gently caress up that car so bad. They want it to be so many things its not even funny. If they just stuck with one direction it would've been a lot better.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 27, 2014 23:34
|
|
|
Phone posted:Yeah, they hosed up the formula of a simple, back-to-basics sports car with 200hp on tap and RWD. God, what a bunch of idiots. Let me be clear, I'm not attacking the car itself as I think its a great car at its core. I think Toyota competely hosed up the rollout. Everybody was expecting that car to be some super car that was going to spit in the face of an M3 and make Mustang owners weep with its super drifting skills. And then they started making some strange decisions like putting a Scion badge on it and slapping on Prius tires. It was almost as if they were backing down from all the concept cars we saw leading up to the production model. I have a little theory, if they somehow shoehorned that drivetrain into a corolla shell like the original AE86 it would've been a smash hit even if it took a hit in performance. The decision to market it as a distinct sportscar kind of built up expectations to an unreasonable level that it never could meet.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 28, 2014 18:37
|
|
|
Wow guess my opinion is wrong then.... I'll just go out again and state that I do actually like the car. Sorry for the hurt feelings.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 28, 2014 21:14
|
|
|
BrokenKnucklez posted:Honestly, I have no desire to own a BMW any newer than an E60/E90. I always chalked it up to tastes changing. The average person couldn't tell you if their car was FWD or RWD, BMW probably correctly guessed that they were wasting their time making a drivers car.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 30, 2014 02:53
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 05:00 |
|
|
Powershift posted:Nobody needs anything larger or more powerful than a honda fit. While I would agree with you there is something rather irritating about a soccer mom who uses her one and a half ton Ram to get groceries and drop her kids off at school. Having said that I live in Alberta and the same people give me infinite joy in the snow when I go zooming past in my 30 year old Scirocco on studded winters and they're terrified in a giant 4x4.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 10, 2014 03:24
|
|