On Mar 16, 6:30 pm, "ND" <some...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> My point I wanted to make is this. When the original Mustang was
released it
> filled a void in the auto industry with an affordable performance
vehicle
> creating a new bread of cars we call the Pony Cars. With this new
Hyundai
> packing 306 hp from a 6 cylinder at a more affordable price I am betting
> that it will change the automotive scene once again. Perhaps it will
> encourage Ford to get back to basics of being a more affordable s****ts
car.
> I think thats were many of us feel let down with the so called "fair
market
> value" over pricing and the likes of the Shelby, a vehicle that no way
is
> considered afFORDable. If Ford were smart make the Mustang what it was
to us
> all best bang for the buck and then bring back the GT40 or a real Cobra
to
> fight off the Corvette's, Vipers, and such. Whats your opinions?
Opinions? On the Usenet?
Mine:
First, you are talking about the Genesis coupe, not the sedan as other
posters have linked to. The coupe was originally rumored to have a V8
but the packaging won't work so it will be a six. Here's a Car &
Drive link:
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/hot_lists/high_performance/concept_central/hyundai_genesis_coupe_concept_auto_shows
Mustangs must always have V8's. The Probe thing settled that. If
they pull the V8 from the Mustang they will lose the market they now
monopolize and they will not attract any rice boys.
A Hyundai does not need a V8. The rice boys actually disdain V8's. An
actual conversation I had with a couner monkey at the local Kragens:
He and another monkey and another customer were talking about some
damn Honda build and I merely stated the obvious, that it costs a lot
of money to get power out of small fours and the same performance is a
lot cheaper with a V8. Monkey #1 says, yes but you can get more from
a Honda. "It's called pressurized induction," says he. I guess this
guy never considered that you can also throw a blower on a V8 and the
more all-motor hp you start with the more blown hp you'll end up with.
I did not share this insight. It's a lost cause. Point being, these
guys -- who are the target market for this new Hyundai -- have this
incurable blind spot, that somehow big cubes are a bad thing.
Another ricer story: I'm down at my neighborhood horse track and the
ricers are running an autocross in the parking lot. A guy comes over,
mainly to tell me I'm parked in a bad spot. But he also mentions about
a Civic 2-door that's going by on the course, that it's got an Acura
engine and it's owned by a Honda tech and it's got 280 hp at the
wheels. Well that's pretty impressive from a 2-liter, and one pulling
less than 3000 lbs. But still, 280 rwhp is hot stuff? Yawn.
Probably cost more than a 450 rwhp small block.
This new Hyundai will not make much of a splash. The WRX and the EVO
are at the same performance level and while they're in the $30,000
range they still are selling nowhere near the levels of the original
Mustang. A Hyundai for $5000 less will do no better. Ford sold 1.2
million Mustangs in the first two years of production, when the US had
about one-half the population it has today. I did this calculation
once and found that one of seven (or maybe it was one in 11) new cars
sold in '65-'66 was a Mustang.
I would not advise Ford or anyone to stop producing a product (the
GT500) that is selling for $5000 over MSRP, in favor of a small volume
GT40 or Shelby Cobra s****tscar. I wonder if Ford made money on the
GT? Gussied up Mustangs, however, are a guaranteed money-maker. If
your customers are buying a performance variant of a mass-produced
model, at prices of two to four times the price of the base V6 model,
why would you want to deny them that op****tunity?
Car buyers are such babies today that you can't make money with a low
price, low weight de-contented s****ts coupe. Everything must have a
bank vault feel, no rattles, cra****ng sounds, or ride harshness, and
65 dbA road noise at 75 mph. So you either settle for low price and
low weight and with a mild motor that doesn't require big weight to
deliver the bank vault feel, or if you want the high torque high hp
you've get the big weight and the big price tag. I have a '65 Mustang
fastback and believe me no one would accept such a POS today.
180 Out
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