DOTS: Germans and their Color Problem Edition

"Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available" (whoistheleader2) 06/06/2020 at 13:25 • Filed to: Dots

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The Germans have a problem, examples of which were out in full force yesterday, with one notable exception.

It’s this: German car manufacturers are very good at making fantastic colors but they never use them. The only time they use them are when they are making a car that is supposed to be from a different country.

Exhibit A: A couple of Bavarians hanging outside a high end wheel and tire shop. Not a single solitary point of interest among them. It’s all just so dreary. The cars are brilliant but they don’t look it in this depressing sea of grayscale.

Ah, but here’s one BMW that is painted a great shade of red. I mean Rolls Royce. Same difference.

I can’t exactly expect them to put polka dots on the Spirit of Ecstasy but I approve of this color combo.

When you’re this rich, it’s no longer Arrest-Me Red but Escort-Me-Home-Pig Red

But the Rolls has Volkswagen wheels! Twice the pattern, but still VW esque.

As much as I like backwards opening doors, this car’s big butt is not the prettiest.

Can we get a color version of this photo? Oh, that’s just it. This interior seems a little sterile for my tastes. The sheets are probably just there to keep the unclean sweat of the proletariat off their expensive real leather thrones.

As we all know, the Zupra is just as much of a BMW as that Rolls. In this case I blame Toyota’s aversion to standing out in any way other than copious fake vents. Porsche has that teal locked in though. Beautiful.

Here’s the exception that proves the rule. I believe this exquisite turquoise is special order only through some sort of color studio, since I sure don’t recall seeing this shade before. I rest my case

I’m really close because the drive through was spilling out into a major road.

What’s this? I’m thinking Mazda but that fender badge looks like too many letters.

I recognized this as a Dodge Diplomat. Wow, I’m sad. Fintail pointed out this is a Pontiac Bonneville. Yay, I’m one twentieth less sad!

In more cheery news, here’s some classic Americana. I always like to document things like this because these sort of places are rapidly disappearing.

There was also the remnants of the base for a gas station in a really annoying place. Not pictured, sadly.

Sunset was nice though. You can see Little and Big Kennesaw Mountains in the background.

WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAnowbacktoGTI > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 13:43

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I’ve always wondered what came first, people not buying colorful cars, or brands not selling them.

From my car sales experience, it is very clear buyers do not want fun colors. Whether that’s because they’re lame, or because they’re worried about resale is a bit blurrier.

My car is black, so I recognize tha t I’m a hypocrite.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 13:46

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Cars from Stuttgart are Swabian :)

Bring back blue cars, and I don’t mean dark blue. Blue interiors, too. The R-R is very “Atlanta”, and I don’t mean that in a tasteful self-aware way.

Dodge Diplomat is a G-Body Pontiac Bonneville, 1981-86.  Pickup is a Mitsubishi.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAnowbacktoGTI 06/06/2020 at 13:48

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Studies keep finding that certain non-colors have much better resale value, which has probably created a feedback loop until nobody wants color because they’ll stand out and likely have a hard time unloading it.

dogisbadob > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 13:50

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The pickup is a Mitsubishi Mighty Max, which was also rebadged as a Dodge Ram 50 in the 80s before the Dakota came out

WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAnowbacktoGTI > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 06/06/2020 at 13:51

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I know which one I’d rather drive:

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAnowbacktoGTI 06/06/2020 at 13:58

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But some people very much want a fun color that will stand out, and some (like me) place an undue importance on it. They have to offer some sort of different color, almost always red, to cater to those weirdos .

CB > WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAnowbacktoGTI 06/06/2020 at 13:59

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I wanted a colour but it wasn’t available at time of shopping.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > dogisbadob 06/06/2020 at 13:59

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That might explain why I had no idea what it was. Mighty Max was an ambitiously foreign name at a time when most small pickups weren’t even named and I love it.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 14:04

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Dang it, so close. I guess I’m not quite as sad as if I had recognized it. I was really getting mopar vibes from it. I’ll correct, t hank you.

German and the greater Bavarian area, maybe.

I don’t see many Rolls. A whole lot of Bentleys, though, because they are more driver focused and you must do a lot of driving to live here.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 14:09

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That Bonnie even more resembles the 80s Diplomat, I think - the confusion is understandable, and these formal somewhat pretentious designs were popular at the time:

Some Germans would take offense to that Bavaria thing :), like saying Alabama and Georgia are the same. Audis and BMWs are from Bavaria.

Same for Bentleys here, I think the often lower price of entry helps, too.

dogisbadob > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 14:10

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I wish Mitsubishi would bring their new small truck over here. Even with the 25% coward tax, it might still be cheaper than the Ranger and Colorado

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 14:23

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In a quick Google search I glanced at the roofline of the waterfall grille car and the grille of the earlier car I think. Considering I wasn’t born until after these had left the road, I got pretty close. Cars also had less ability to look different from each other back then because of head and taillight shape and stamping restrictions. People think cars used to have so much more style (which may be true) but there was less ability to be different compared to modern cars.

I wonder how people long in the future will mix up today’s cars? Does a Corolla look like an Elantra? Maybe. I think that most of today’s CUVs are particularly similar, but I think things may get more similar still when electric cars are all built on one of four or so skateboard chassis.

I’ll admit, my European geography isn’t great. Somehow I still know much much more than many of my peers who would say “Europe” drives on the wrong side of the road (funny but annoying). 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > dogisbadob 06/06/2020 at 14:25

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Unfortunately I don’t think they have the resources to manufacture them here. A small truck might be the only thing they could sell here that could compete. I see a lot of Mitsus. Suzukis, and even Isuzus and other struggling makes because Atlanta had a pretty good dealer network compared to the rest of the country. I still see loads of Suzukis in particular. 

RPM esq. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 14:27

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As the owner of two silver cars, a black one, and a gray one, and the four black leather interiors that go with them , I don’t see a problem here.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > RPM esq. 06/06/2020 at 14:33

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Grayscale colors are great. . . when every car also on the road isn’t the same color. Some cars just look really good in white, gray, black, etc, but I’d just rather not have such little diversity in paint choice.

Interiors are also a much different story. I like lighter interiors but tan and gray show dirt too easily but black leather in a hot climate can get annoying. I think m y two tone black and tan cloth is a good compromise.

You are free to like whatever combination of colors you like. 

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 14:36

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Like with modern cars, the key is the fine details that enthusiasts don’t notice. To the average person in 2020 , a Corolla is an Elantra is a Civic, and CUV potatoes are even more lookalike. Just like a 58 Chevy and a 57 Ford and a 59 Dodge might as well be the same thing to people today, and were similar to many even then. People have a much harder time with prewar cars, but if one examines the right details, they can be differentiated.

I think modern cars are no more or less differentiated than old cars. All eras had copycat styling themes and lookalike shapes, but fine details to differentiate them.

I’ve been to E urope many times, and I receive some fun questions too, regarding driving on the left etc.  And although everyone knows about the Autobahn, people are still amazed by it.

RPM esq. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 14:37

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I was making fun of myself , chill out. Color choices are good!

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 14:46

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Modern technology may allow cars to look more different than ever before but impact (especially pedestrian, thank God most cars are also sold in NCAP countries ) regulations and consumer tastes preclude most options. No more torpedo shaped cars because it turns out people puncture easily.

I have a hard time with pre war cars but I believe recently someone here confused a Model A for a Model T and I was quite surprised. Despite being terrible at dates I recon I usually can pin a manufacturer and within 5 years of the production date just based on the styling norms and level of technology (unless it’s a Checker or something).

I think the ability to make headlights crazy shapes (especially with DRLs) is one of the easiest ways to identify a car nowadays. Most of it is subconscious though unless you are really stumped.

With me being almost as interested in why something, however mundane, is interesting as with the thing itself, I get a kick out of going places sufficiently different from my normal haunts. I think I would really enjoy traveling to a different country. 

dogisbadob > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 14:50

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They could use CKD kits

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > RPM esq. 06/06/2020 at 14:58

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Yes, choices are good, but I didn’t get your joke. Sorry.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > dogisbadob 06/06/2020 at 14:59

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That’s a good idea.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:01

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At the same time, there’ s a lot of copycat/sycophant mentality in design studios I think, and with the regulations you mention along with aerodynamics having a finite limit, there might be only so much that can be done. As you mention, lighting is probably the key differentiation point in modern cars.

Prewar cars generally have distinct radiator shells/grilles, and sometimes proportions are a givea way. To my eyes, a 30s Ford is easy to distinguish, even from the side or rear. GMs and Mopars had their own proportions too. The cars might just be so quaint and alien to modern eyes that non-obsessives don’t see it.

I’ll recommend traveling while you are still in your physical prime rather than waiting til retirement like some do - you’ll enjoy it more.

dogisbadob > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:14

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Sprinter cargo vans sold in the US use the CKD method. The passenger versions are shipped straight from Germany complete

Mahindra was considering importing some of their trucks over here via CKD

Ford should repurpose one of their US factories for CKD Transit Connect. It would be easi er than the method they tried to use to avoid t he tax but ended up having to pay it anyway

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 15:17

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That’s good advice, but sadly physical prime rarely corresponds with excess cash and time off.

A widow’s peak radiator is pretty easy to spot and the roofline was fairly distinct on Fords too. But I am also not most people so I can understand. But every once in a while I hear something so incredibly wrong it takes all my strength not to rudely correct someone. I once had a history teacher say the Model T was Henry Ford’s first car. Hahahahaha. He also once marked me wrong for saying Rome was a dictatorship because he had used it in class as an example of a Republic , so I knew better than to bring up the Quadricycle . That same reasoning is also why I found Leonardo DiCaprio film of The Great Gatsby to be intolerable. In particular the famous car crash scene showed what’s-her-name thrown over the hood (a safety feature that wouldn’t come for a long time), shattering SAFETY GLASS , which irrationally annoyed me.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:23

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 Those wheels look like shite.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > fintail 06/06/2020 at 15:24

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Cars from Stuttgart are Swabian :)

Pedant.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:25

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If it were in the condition of this red one, I’d take the Diplomat over anything else I’ve seen here. You probably can’t change the oil in one of those other cars for less than $1,500. Though given any of those German rides, I could price it to sell, sell it, then buy a few used cars of my liking and put the rest in my savings account.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > fintail 06/06/2020 at 15:26

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There’s a glorious blockiness to that car. I’d daily it.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:27

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Things will get better in time, I’ve been there too. The several years immediately following school can be a bit rough, but eventually you’ll end up with a little time and a little money. Think 35 rather than 75.

People get a lot of car stuff wrong, I suspect some think the Model T was the first car, period.  Anachronistic cars in movies can be annoying and funny at the same time.  Speaking of glass, I am pretty sure I have seen modern car crash scenes where it looks like they used plate/window glass, just for dramatic effect.  I think there was a more old fashioned laminated glass possible in the 20s, but safety style glass wasn’t mandated until around 1940, I believe.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > dogisbadob 06/06/2020 at 15:30

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The Transit Connect only has one major competitor and it’s a Nissan. Manufacturing domestically would really improve their profits and competitiveness. Didn’t know about the Dodge/Freighliner/Mercedes Sprinter. I think it should never have been sold as a Merc here because the brand perception isn’t there. Sell it as a Smart :)

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/06/2020 at 15:32

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Dat ass though. Also terrible.

It’s like two VW wheels crammed together in an unholy matrimony. 

fintail > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/06/2020 at 15:32

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Angular cars can be pleasing

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/06/2020 at 15:35

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That is my reaction to almost every “which car” question. Most expensive, then flip. Buy Veloster N or Miata. Rinse and repeat.

If I had to daily one, I’d take the Mustang in the sunset photo. I can’t afford a free Porsche. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 15:41

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I’m just trying to imagine explaining to someone that the ability of a car to throw someone in the air rather than mow them down (the book had it correct where the car was not damaged) is a safety feature. I can accept some suspension of disbelief but that was too far.

Speaking of that, I recently spotted a 1920s Mercedes roadster where the driver appeared to have both hands on the wheel through stop and go traffic **shudders**

The thing about me is that I pride myself in being able to carry on a conversation on just about anything, regardless of how little or how much I know about the subject. I once talked to the care takers of a GM Futureliner and the conversation consisted almost entirely of the evolution of the headlights and blinkers. I just like the why over the what. 

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:44

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When I was shopping for my Mazda5 I found out that if you wanted the manual transmission you had a choice of three colors, not the eight or nine that the automatic version came in. And two of those three  colors are similar - silver and dark grey. I also found that you generally don't have a lot of vehicles to choose from when you want that rare manual transmission, and you take what you can find. I got lucky and bought mine in dark red; it wasn't my first choice (I wanted the dark grey like my 525i) but now I'm glad I went the red.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 06/06/2020 at 15:46

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The Kia Soul only comes in white and black if you want the base model, the only one with a manual. I’m sure they’ll wonder why no one bought them. Shame. I do love that dark red on your 5 though. Subtle and classy.

dogisbadob > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:58

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Fiat also sells the Doblo over here as the Promaster City

Mercedes also sells the Metris minivan here, too, and it’s made in the US. It is the cheapest Mercedes sold here. It’s bigger than the Transit Connect and Promaster City, slightly bigger than the mainstream minivans like the Sienna and Pacifica, but smaller than a Sprinter or Transit.

facw > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 15:59

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I’m torn... Yes there should be more cars in color, but on the other hand that silver Porsche looks pretty stunning.

Personally I drive a silver car, but silver is at best the 3rd or 4th best color for it. Unfortunately buying used limits your options...

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:23

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I have to tell myself most people aren’t really into cars, and don’t get it. Many want a fancy car and consider themselves car fans, but it usually ends at what they can be seen in.

That roadster you spotted is likely a “Gazelle” replicar, popular in the 70s and 80s. I think most were Pinto-based.

I can fixate on little details, like door card patterns, steering wheel textures, and radio head units on various years of MBs, and when they changed. Also, any car I have owned or had been in the family, I have studied the obsessive little details .

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:31

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There are very few cars I’d rather have in black than any other color... Namely Dodge Chargers. Yeah, it’s basic, but it just wears black so well. Ain’t nothin’ more sinister than a black Charger. Otherwise, I tend to feel like black hides too much of the car’s shape.

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:37

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The issue is that German cars aren’t actually designed by Germans. A l ittle- known secret is that they’re actually designed by highly-trained German Shepherds.

German Shepherds can only see black, white, gray, yellow, and certain shades of blue, so fancier car colors are just another gray to them. It might be a really interesting gray, but still gray. B ecause it takes so much more effort for them to design and produce non-gray colors, they focus primarily on the gray. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 16:40

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I considered that it might be a kit car but it was a pretty good one. What really made me suspicious was how quiet it was.

Pretty much same here. Gotta go, but it's been nice talking.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller 06/06/2020 at 16:41

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Lincoln Continentals and Cadillac XLRs also deserve black. Sinister cars wear it well.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:43

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The key with those kit cars is that the real cars aren’t actually so small. A lot of the replicas had Ford 2.3s - some also had VW engines, you’d definitely hear those.

See ya

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller 06/06/2020 at 16:43

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What if what they perceive as a nice dark gray is actually just a dark green that they can’t see? Some of my color blind friends have created some. . . interesting. . . combinations when seen in their true colors.

And German Shepherds from Norway no less. The worst kind of 'Way.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail 06/06/2020 at 16:50

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I only heard tire noise a slight rumble. Weird.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:51

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Just like Skoda, VW Group, so German controlled yet they have colours.

Green is the Skoda theme colour.

Take the Kamiq and the Fabia,

Yes it looks yellow gold but the Superb below is Dragon Green Metallic, if you get up close you see the green.

But the likes of VW weren’t always bland, take the now discontinued VW Scirocco in Viper Green Metallic.

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:55

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They can smell the difference.

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 16:56

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True, as anyone who’s seen The Matrix can tell you, black is a good color for a Lincoln Continental.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/06/2020 at 16:58

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Skoda seems to have more free reign than most subsidiaries. I love that yellow-green. That combo is hard to pull off but that is superb (hehe).

Out of the cars I see in the parking lot I’m currently in, I see an orange Bummer, a blue bike, blue Elantra, blue outback, my reddish orange Chevy, a red Del Sol, a red Toyota Highlander, a blue Clubman (the good one),  a red Accord, a blue Prius. Maybe this is a fluke, since it's not a big parking lot. Most of those are Japanese and Korean mainstream brands. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller 06/06/2020 at 16:59

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Synesthesia must get annoying.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 17:16

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They have to be so light, a smallblock conversion would be a rocket.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 17:25

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It’s not just Skoda, SEAT has s ome colour too.

The SEAT colour is red.

The new SEAT Leon.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/06/2020 at 17:32

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Nice. I’m less of a fan of arrest-me-red over a subtle red but those look very nice. SEAT is basically unknown in the US, so even I don’t know too much about them.

A man who paints cars for a living came up to me to compliment the Cruze's color, so it's officially Very-Fine™

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 17:46

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‘Twill be expensive curb rash when in inevitably happens.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 17:48

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I can’t afford a free Porsche.

Pree Cisely.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 17:59

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It’s their customers’ fault. At least Porsche offers colors, and BMW offers some. Mercedes really doesn’t, except maybe red. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/06/2020 at 18:17

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Not on a doordashers budget

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 06/06/2020 at 18:19

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MB is definitely the worst offender, but it is in response to their customers.

I had a auto paint guy come up to me to compliment the color. I bet that has happened exactly zero times to a late model MB owner.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 18:22

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Nice.

You do see SEATs in America, driven up from Mexico.

Also forgot SEATs ‘performance’ brand, ‘Cupra’, which used to be the performance name but has now been made into a brand of it’s own.

Ford do some good colours.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/06/2020 at 18:52

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Not in my neck of the woods on the other side of the Gulf of Mexico. I see a few illegal imports though due to my proximity to Florida.

Ford may be good at picking colors but I hear they have a hard time making it stick to a luminum. Actually they have a hard time making any two things stick together, since the build quality of every First I've been in has been absolutely horrible. 

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 19:16

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I think other than some special editions, you got your Fiestas from Mexico.

I’ve not heard any issues with our German or Spanish built Fiestas, other than some gearbox issues later in life of the Mk6 Fiesta.

Earlier in the Mk6 life, up to 2011, there was sporadic issues with some Fiestas, but nothing really recently.

It’s like America with the VW Golf, it got a bad name in America for being unreliable but known for reliability over here. The difference being North American ones were built in Mexico while ours were built in Europe. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/06/2020 at 19:30

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Seriously, every Ford I’ve been in, including brand new F150s, the car they absolutely have to get right, has had glaring build quality issues. Trim falling off, water leaks, and in the case of my brothers 2012 Fusion, absolutely ludicrous amounts of interior UV damage. Entirely unacceptable quality control.

Never been in a Fiesta but they also had the seats that would permanently and irreversibly stain from water, as with many other 2010s Fords. Just terrible.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 19:55

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Lol. I’ve known minor things with some Fords, but by and large nothing as bad as those.

The Mk4 or Mk5 Fiesta had an issue where the B pillars trim would come unglued and fall off, but that was like eight years into the cars life.

Here’s our recalls, etc... on Fords. 

https://car-recalls.eu/common-problems/ford/

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/06/2020 at 20:07

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My Lordstown Ohio manufactured car has the best build quality of an American assembled car I’ve been in of that era. RIP Lordstown.

It appears whatever factory assembled your Fords had a sembla nce of quality control.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/06/2020 at 20:27

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Ford moved a lot of car production out of the U.K. while many petrol engines, all diesel engines and transmissions are made here.

Ford was seen by many as being British here in the U.K. and Ford Germany as German because they were very independent from Ford America.

We’ ve a great history of Fords here in the U.K. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/07/2020 at 01:11

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I’ve always been fascinated by how Ford just let its European divisions do what they needed to to sell cars while GM saw that and thought nawww let’s just give them leftovers. They did let the Aussies do their own thing for a while though.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/07/2020 at 08:17

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There were some good Vauxhall and Opels. Again, operated for some time as separate entities like Ford with the U.K. and Germany.

Just looking at what’s on Autotrader U.K. going up until 1995,

we have the Vauxhall Carlton

which was worked on by Lotus to make the Vauxhall Lotus Carlton, a 1991 360bhp , 3.6

Then there was the staple 1995 Vauxhall Astra, 1.6 with 59bhp

Given a bit more pep with a 2.0i 16v GSi. 1995 Vauxhall Astra.

1993 Vauxhall Cavalier, originally an executive car used primarily for business up and down the motorways, doing long distance journeys, but also ferrying families around at the weekend later a bit more performance with a 2.0i Turbo 4x4 201bhp.

The 1995 Vauxhall Calibra Turbo 4x4 2.0i 201bhp.

Post 1995 we have this 1998 Vauxhall Tigra, Vauxhall’s answer to the Ford Puma built on the Ford Fiesta frame is the Tigra built on the Vauxhall Corsa frame.

Later the VXR badge took over from the SRi and GSi badges that denoted something with substance.

There was of course the Astra VXR.

This one a 2005 Vauxhall Astra VXR Sports Hatch with a 2.0i 16v 237bhp.

the 2009 Vauxhall Vectra VXR 2.8i Turbo V6 16v 276bhp.

There was even a Vauxhall Zafira VXR 2.0 240bhp.

2010 Vauxhall Corsa VXR 1.6 190bhp.

later 2016 1.6i 202bhp.

2010 and 2012 Vauxhall Insignia VXR 2.8T V6 4x4 321bhp

Vauxhall Astra VXR 2.0T 276bhp (beautiful car, only discontinued in 2018-1 9)

Some of the standard cars, made into something more special.

If GM had adopted some of the other cars to take on the Ford Fiesta and Focus into the U.S. it may of been a little different.

Such as the Vauxhall Adam and Corsa for the Fiesta and

Astra for the Focus.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/07/2020 at 15:25

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We actually got the 2005 Astra as a Saturn, but predictably sold in small quantities given the poor marketing. Standard NA Ecotech parts bin stuff for the 3 and 5 door hatch with standard manual but if you can find one at all it will be a 5 door auto. We never got a hot version.

Adam and Corsa are too small to be big sellers and didn’t have the name to compete with the Yaris. I wish we kept getting the Astra, but the Opel and Daewoo derived Cruze was a runaway seller in the segment given larger size and premium aspirations were what Americans wanted. The Elantra and Forte are the biggest sellers right now.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/07/2020 at 15:34

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Sorry I had been typing with one hand while eating a messy snack. We got plenty of platform mates but GM kept refusing to give us premium and upscale small cars. The Cruze proved that people wanted a stylish economical car. The unreliable 1.4s could get crazy good mpgs for the time (38 or so) and their interiors are a nice place to be but they didn’t break the bank. If we had got some of those smaller executive saloons, theyy could have been a big hit if marketed to the correct demographic.

Americans can’t separate small and cheap without a visual aid. If it is economical and looks good, they’ll buy it but they have to experience it firsthand to get over their prejudices. Companies can’t seem to realize that they buy the most expensive thing they can afford that looks good. If you make a stylish economical commuter, you’ll sell them in droves. Even though CUVs aren’t as economical as sedans, they are “stylish” and cheaper than their full sized brethren.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/07/2020 at 16:45

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Ye’, though the Saturn Astra was 2008 and some of 2009 until it was replaced in Europe) , sorry.

I was never really a fan of that Astra, the Astra H (2004-09).

I did like the panoramic roof though.

That gen though came in the most bodystyles.

2 door coupe, 2 door twin top convertible, 3 door hatchback, 4 door saloon, 5 door hatchback, 5 door estate and 3 door van. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/07/2020 at 17:37

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Thats a whole lot more than we got here. Just the two varieties of hatch powered by a handful of ponies who weren’t in any particular hurry. The car was at least different from what we usually got. Different isn’t always better, as the early 2000s M alibu proved. That was a smallish Daewoo with a weird looking hatchback variant that was unbecoming of the name. The problem with these is that they were too small and felt too cheap. Big and cheap or small and slightly premium sells very well here. Coming from GM though you would expect them to sell more, especially given the competition.

That sunroof thing just looks like it would blind you with the sun at all hours.

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/07/2020 at 18:43

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Lol. No there is a blind that you can draw forward should the sun be too bright.

Like this one on the Vauxhall Zafira.

So you draw the blind forward, which also holds the regular sunblinds.

Just like in the back.

Another good option for the Adam, Corsa, Astra, Mokk a, Meriva and Zafira

Was the FlexFix . An inbuilt cycle rack, that pulls out and unfolds.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/07/2020 at 20:28

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That is ingenious! Especially how the sun visors move forward. I love that! The bike rack might excite me more if I had a bike or had experience mounting one.

Why does the Zafira in the bottom images have an Open badge?

Svend > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 06/07/2020 at 20:38

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Lol. You can also still operate the tailgate. Underneath the rack there is a pin, pull it, it allows the bikes to tilt down out of the way.

They  are badged as Opels in Europe and Ireland and only Vauxhall in the U.K.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Svend 06/07/2020 at 20:46

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That is very clever. Built in solutions like that seem to have fallen out of favor as factory options in the US. Big aftermarket demand though for quirky solutions to quirky problems (hehe).