"MegaSuper" (megasuper)
05/01/2015 at 14:10 • Filed to: None
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"MegaSuper" (megasuper)
05/01/2015 at 14:10 • Filed to: None | 0
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According to Wikipedia at least, BMW hasn’t done anything with the Triumph name since 2007…anyone have a clue as to why they bought it? I’m not sure what the business tactic is in buying a historic brand that’s not even really a competitor, and then not using it, but anyways…
It’s been shown there’s a market for “Glamour hatches…” think the Gucci edition Fiat 500, the Goodwood edition Mini Cooper, small city cars that are about style rather than driving performance. (I guess the Aston Martin Cygnet didn’t do too well, but I think that’s because you had to have already been an Aston Martin owner in order to buy one, right?)
So what if Rolls-Royce made like…a hatchback? Or a cross-overish thing? I realize this may seem like sacrilege, but that’s what people said about Porsche too with the Cayenne, and look where they are now.
They could make literally the best hatchback interior the world has ever seen, sell it for 6 figures. Maybe the wealthy classes in London, Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo, NYC, etc would just eat it up. Style, image, but still easy to park and dart around town. (The only recurring complaint I ever see in reviews of Rolls Royces are that they’re just too darn big…even in American magazines.) Maybe this is just a stupid silly idea lol
So then with that sweet new “Mega luxury hatch” segment created, BMW can do something with the Triumph brand they own, and maybe make it like the “old” M cars. Simple, lightweight, driver-oriented.
So yeah, just daydreaming out loud here. Maybe they’re already going down this path with the rumoured new Rolls-Royce SUV. It’d be interesting to see if any of those profits go towards Triumph.
Maybe it’ll be really big in China and then the Chinese owners of MG would be tempted to something with that!
Alfalfa Romeo
> MegaSuper
05/01/2015 at 14:15 |
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I honestly think it fits the Rolls DNA better than Porsche. In recent history they’ve been leaning much more towards luxury than performance. SUV and luxury seem to go together pretty well.
ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable)
> MegaSuper
05/01/2015 at 14:15 |
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Oppo like these discussions, but they tend to get lost when you post them so frequently. I would advise spacing them out throughout the week.
Short-throw Granny Shifter is 2 #blessed 2b stressed
> MegaSuper
05/01/2015 at 14:29 |
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BMW should just take the Z4, have an intern mock-up some new coachwork, plop in their 2.5L NA I6, and call it a day.
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MegaSuper
> ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable)
05/01/2015 at 14:35 |
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Gah, I wish it would just bump topics to the top of the page when there’s a new reply.
I saved this one for now because I figured it’s sort of lunch-time-ish in North America right now, where most of you are based I gather.
nermal
> MegaSuper
05/01/2015 at 14:38 |
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Screw all of that namby-pamby mega-luxury Rolls Royce crap.
I want a new TR7 or TR8. Bring back the wedges!
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MegaSuper
> nermal
05/01/2015 at 14:43 |
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Amen…but sadly everything I’ve read suggests that wedges are now literally impossible due to pedestrian-impact requirements ;_;
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ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable)
> MegaSuper
05/01/2015 at 14:44 |
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Yes, the vast majority of Jalopnik/Oppo readers and commenters are in the US, with many in the Eastern US time zone.
I couldn’t tell before, but now we know you’re not based in the US. That’s cool. Where are located?
Posting between 12-4 PM Eastern will give you the most views. After 6 PM is the next best time slot.
twochevrons
> MegaSuper
05/01/2015 at 19:17 |
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What I’d really like to see is a revival of Triumph’s mid-sized four-door model. Powered by the same six-cylinder engine as the TR5 and 6, with a bit of sportiness thrown in (the range-topping 2.5PI was a seriously quick car in its day, but they were all pretty decent to drive). While they were certainly not lacking in creature comforts, they weren’t overly plush either – just a good, honest family car with a lovely engine and plenty of driver appeal.
There’d certainly be a bit of overlap with the 5-series, but it’d be interesting to see it as a kind of half-way point between the 3- and the 5-series.
tapzz
> MegaSuper
05/02/2015 at 12:03 |
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To answer your first question: BMW got hold of the Triumph nameplate when they bought the Rover group in 1994. The Rover group had inherited everything that used to be Austin Rover, which used to be British Leyland, which used to be BMC etc, and so on. For that reason, BMW owned nearly all storied British brands for a while. When they got shot of “the English Patient”, they retained the rights to Mini (obviously) but also Triumph and Riley.
There’s always been a lot of speculation that BMW first bought Rover and then kept the Riley and Triumph brands later because Bernd Pischetsrieder, boss of BMW at the time, was an anglophile. There’s also the fact that he’s a first cousin, twice removed of Sir Alec Issigonis, the father of the Mini...
There was a lot of talk of Triumph being brought back for roadsters; a new TR to fight the MX5. That never happened, but perhaps more intriguing is the fact that Riley made very BMW like sports saloons in the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s and Triumph was a direct competitor to BMW’s Neue Klasse in the ‘60s and ‘70s. Maybe they just didn’t want anyone else to revive those traditions?
Alex Zapata
> MegaSuper
05/02/2015 at 15:10 |
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They bought the brand sort of in a package when they bought the Mini brand, I don’t think there was any intention of doing a new Triumph car, but considering the interest the Touring Superleggera Mini got, maybe they should consider it as a way of producing it without changing the identity of the MINI brand...
They will very likely won’t ever though, so don’t get your hopes up...