Geography is a bitch.

"Spanfeller is a twat" (theaspiringengineer) 04/26/2018 at 12:06 • Filed to: None

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A wall divides the cities of San Diego and Tijuana.... but despite San Diegonians getting all of our shitty water, we getting their CARB air, and both living near a fault, we don’t share most things... one of those is cars.

Think about it this way, were it not for the border, a trip from San Diego to Tijuana would take, at most 20-30 minutes, but since there’s a border, it takes closer to an hour. While I don’t mind that and each country must live their migratory truths, why do this to cars?

I mean look at these precious little things:

Those are sold here with EU approved engines, and running on the MQB platform found in the Golf.

Think about that, these cars are more than qualified to pass Federal regulators in the US (as petrol engines at least) and less than two miles from the border there’s a VW dealer that will gladly sell you either, thses also come with

I know Americans don’t like small cars, it’s the stereotype that has been told for years in marketing meetings, but we have these just two miles away! If the Golf passed federal regulations and it’s sold in the US with similar if not identical engines to these cars, why not certify these cars and have them as perhaps a special model? Sure, we have them with KM/H in the dash but that’s probably the least of the problems. It’s not a case like Citroen that would need new infrastructure in the country and import the cars through the sea; we make the many of the parts for these cars, their engines and we already import them through the port of Veracruz in the case of the SEATs. How hard and expensive is it to federalize a car?

How much money would VW make by selling these cars? I mean, not as a showroom model, as a specialty model of sorts for the niches of internet peoples who like these cars? I remember a certain scheme to import grey market GTRs was making money before the Feds shut it down.... these are NAFTA cars in many respects, we shuffle them around all the time!

So what gives?

Ash78, voting early and often > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:14

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Marketing. VW is struggling to consistently stay above 3% market share nationwide, but thanks to national pride (thanks, Puebla!) they’re a lot more popular down there than they are here. I just don’t think they could afford to cannibalize other VW models here by adding more to the portfolio yet (be it SEAT, VW, Skoda) and they absolutely would never want to encroach on Audi territory — that’s their cash cow, and the “brand parent” for SEAT.

Spanfeller is a twat > Ash78, voting early and often 04/26/2018 at 12:21

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Oh that’s true! But I’m talking about the Cars and Coffee crowds that want a polo Gtior a Cupra.... I don’t think other models would sell.

I think this could hurt Mini and Fiat but Audi? But I have a biased perspective, audis here are status symbols and people buy into the brand, not the product... Which means that despite having two identical models with the same engines being chepaer, Audi still sells a shit ton of A1s here.... And no one cross shops a3s with golfs.... Because#brands

fintail > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:21

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Can’t get an A hatch or C wagon in Murka either, when they are just fine for the 50-somethingth state Canada. Marketers and product planners - CUVs have higher margins.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:23

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Federalizing cars is a lot more work than it looks like on the surface.

I hate that our regulations are so oddball relative to the rest of the world. We should be able to get cars that are absolutely identical to their EU counterparts without changes, but there are a huge number of things that must be done, including adding reflectors in oddball places, different light assemblies, etc. They also love to decontent like crazy to earn more profit on the cars they sell in the US.

There’s a lot more to it, but that is a good starting point. You also have to go back to when a certain car company lobbied for and won the 25-year import ban to keep the stupid Americans from avoiding giving that extra profit to the automakers...

Spanfeller is a twat > fintail 04/26/2018 at 12:26

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Spanfeller is a twat > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 04/26/2018 at 12:31

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The lights could be a massive issue... but I’d have to consult NOMs here in Mexico because something tells me we’d be closer to American regs than Euro regs in that sense.

NOM194 says all new cars after MY19 and all cars produced today which continue being produced through MY20 will require retroreflectors alike the american ones.

jimz > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:31

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How much money would VW make by selling these cars? I mean, not as a showroom model, as a specialty model of sorts for the niches of internet peoples who like these cars?

none.

putting money into such a small run of cars like this would have to be recovered in the sale price, and amortizing it over a small number of units would likely push these up to Golf pricing. At that point, why not just buy a Golf?

Spanfeller is a twat > jimz 04/26/2018 at 12:37

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I wouldn’t sell the normal cars, only Cupras and the Polo GTI; Mini and Fiat have proven Americans can buy small cars in good amounts specially with a sporty pretense or heritage. A Cupra more expensive than a GTI? I bet many would buy it! Special styling, more aggressive engine, tested at the Nurburgring... cheaper than a Golf R? It would be a crowd pleaser over at C&C

Sure it would eat up Golf R sales, but I don’t think the Golf R has such a big profit margin, as it has to be imported from Germany and has a haldex stuck inside, in the case of the Cupra sure you need to import it, but its a simpler car otherwise!

Svend > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:43

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If the SEAT Leon got federalised because the VW Golf did, then they could have the 3 door, 5 door and estate versions but then by that logic they could also get the Skoda Octavia 5 door and estate.

Same engines, platforms and many parts shared around them.

But non of this will happen.

I mean America got the 4 and 5 door Fiesta, but they didn’t get the 3 door because it would have to go through all those crash tests again.

It’s something with the U.S. that will never change, they can price gouge their own people at dealerships and take money from the big corporations to maintain the status quo.

jimz > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:44

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I bet many would buy it!

time and time again the market says otherwise. Niche small cars just aren’t that popular. The only reason the Fiesta ST made it here in the first place is because it was almost entirely a “parts bin” project. The car already existed, the engine already existed (in the Fusion/Mondeo/Escape/Kuga,) the manual trans already existed, etc. and that’s pretty much the only way we get them, they piggyback on existing cars and hardware. Fiat is in dire straits, the entire brand has fallen off a cliff.

Ssfancyfresh > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 12:49

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I would buy that tomorrow.

Spanfeller is a twat > Ssfancyfresh 04/26/2018 at 12:51

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Worry not, many here bought it when they saw it too, it’s becoming popular

Spanfeller is a twat > jimz 04/26/2018 at 12:55

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Come on, VW is more parts bin that 80s chrysler K bodies! Those engines find their ways in low end audis and VW in the US, so do transmissions in golfs, everything front of the bulkhead in MQB cars is pretty much the same.... plus, you have one of the world’s biggest parts maker as your free trading neighbor. The infrastructure is there, the market, as you say, probably isn’t-

fintail > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 13:00

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I suppose if you’re into that kind of thing. No thirst here for a CUV yet.

OmerCarrothers333 > Spanfeller is a twat 04/26/2018 at 14:41

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Seeing Puegots, Seats, and the occassional Tsuru in Chula Vista makes me miss living there.