Dan-
Sorry to flame ya, but I think you're WAYYY off base on a couple of things.
Chrysler does in fact own Maserati, but they (Maserati) had nothing to do
with the design of the MGBGT. MG was having problems with the roofline of
the GT, and ended up contracting with a Italian design firm - Pininfarina I
believe - who may have been responsible for the design of some Maserati
coachwork, but was not a part of Maserati.
The LeBaron and more recently Sebring convertibles have had HUGE commercial
sucess. The LeBaron may not have been a "good car" but it certainly sold
well. The Sebring has met with substantial critical praise from the
automotive press, in addition to it's sales numbers. I will allow that the
K-car convertibles of the early 80's were total shit. however.
I am not sure, but you seem to indicate that the MGF would not be
commercially sucessful in the U.S. due to a poor reputation for quality
associated with MG. Here I think you are wrong once again. MG's quality
reputation was excellent until the last part of the 70's, when the design of
the B did not come close to meeting the standards of the day. There were
far too many band-aid engineering jobs, which resulted in cars that had a
lot of problems. I think that you would basically be looking at two market
segments for the F - people like us, dedicated MG lovers, and secondly a new
group of younger people, who are excited about a new sports car. The second
group would be too young to associate any quality problems of a 70's vintage
car with a late 90's modern sports car.
>From the articles I have read, the F was never designed to be built in large
quantities, or to provide the low costs that this style of manufacturing
brings. It was expected to be a lower volume market. This approach,
according to MG, would not work here, as they view the U.S. market as
favoring a higher volume/lower cost vehicle than the F is capable of being.
Whether this is true or not can be debated.
Regards,
Chris Delling
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-mgs@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-mgs@autox.team.net]On
> Behalf Of Dan Ray
> Sent: Sunday, September 13, 1998 7:45 PM
> To: mgs@autox.team.net
> Subject: MGF and roadster thoughts WAS Re: terrible joke -
>
>
> I didn't mean this to be a thesis statement, but IMVHO:
> Reliability rumors would certainly KILL any hopes of MG getting
> over here to
> the states.
> Unfortunately, BMW would be loath to allow what I'm thinking (below) to
> happen . I wouldn't be surprised if the powers-that-be in Munich are
> intentionally letting the MGF flounder, since it's a direct
> competitor with
> the Z3. (call me cynical and conspiratorial, hell, the rest of my
> countryfolk tend to be!)
> I'm still waiting for Chrysler to produce a Neon-chassied
> roadster, with the
> same general price-tag ($10-13K base)- it would KILL the Miata
> here, as long
> as it took some cues from a british car like the Mazda people did, and
> specifically have MGB cues with a GT model following right
> behind. Let's not
> forget that chrysler owns the brain-trust of Maserati...and who
> designed the
> GT. Not to mention their efficiency at CAD assisted production timelines.
> Granted, Chrysler convertibles have been total flops since the
> early '80's,
> other than the Viper, of course. I wouldn't be surprised if there
> are plans
> in the offing right now for an inexpensive, no frills roadster. And didn't
> the Triumph Stag have a Chrysler V8 in it?
> Now, if BMW were willing to sell the rights to the MG logo (or, let's be
> objective here for once, Tr**mph) and name to Chrysler/Mercedes....hehehe.
> Naaahhhhh! That would never happen, but the concept is the same no matter
> who does it. If Rover/BMW wants to break the Miata grip on that
> powerful yet
> nebulous "American market/mentality", they could,of course "un-fit" the Z3
> with vinyl/cloth interior, no A/C, wind up windows, etc....but that damned
> Z3 will still look like the teutonic thing that it is. America wants a
> BRITISH roadster dammit, and I think the Lotus lookalike proves it.
> Mazda had it right, but the cost has soared, and a lot of that cost has to
> do with importation.
> Flame away, since this was just a "fleeting" thought. If I'm wrong, well I
> can always fall back on the fact that I have absolutely NO
> emperical data or
> experience in the automotive industry to back me up. ;)
>
> Dan
> 73 B
>
> the MGF is getting a rough time, it is
> >proving to not be very reliable, and made our prime-time TV in the UK,
> >on a programme called " Watchdog". Bits keep falling off, or leak, or
> >seize. It only goes to show we now have a new breed of MG owner. One who
> >cannot fix his car, but goes running back to the manufacturer. Perhaps
> >it is another TR7 AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!
> >
> >Neil.
>
>
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