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Cars That Could Have Been Great, But Missed

421 messages,  Last post on Jan 31, 2013 at 2:32 PM

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What is this discussion about? Chrysler, Wagon

Messages Page 42 of 43

#410 of 421 Delorean Survey - Your help is Needed! by bumba

Apr 07, 2012 (10:23 am)

Hello everyone,
 
We are a group of MBA students from the Boston University. Our class project requires us to pick a failed product and revitalize it through design and innovation. We have picked Delorean DMC-12 as our product. In order to gather information for our project. We have designed the following survey to understand your perception about the Delorean vehicle. The survey should take about 5 - 10 minutes to complete.
 
Q1 – Do you know the DeLorean DMC-12?
Q2 – Based on your understanding of the DMC-12, what are the three biggest issues from the original vehicle design?
Q3 – If the DMC-12 is to be redesigned for an all new 2012 model, what are the three most important design elements that should be retained from the original vehicle design?
Q4 – What are the three top 3 features to be added to the new design to improve your user experience?
Q5 – To position DeLorean as an elite sports car brand, how much would you pay for an all new DMC-12?
Q6 – How should the new DeLorean company keep track of customer satisfaction?
Q7 – What should the new DeLorean company to improve the service and user experience of DMC-12?
Q8 – Do you have any other recommendations to the new vehicle or the company?
 
We value your responses and thank you for the support of our project!

#411 of 421 Re: Delorean Survey - Your help is Needed! [bumba] by oldburbnewcx9

May 18, 2012 (3:10 pm)

Replying to: bumba (Apr 07, 2012 10:23 am)
1. Yes, but I have seen ony one.
2. Underpowered in the US, Fingerprints on the stainless steel, too expensive for the delivered product.
3. Gull wing doors, distinctive design, 2 seats only
4. Move power, needs an exclusivity factor and of course a flus capacitor and fusion drive.
5. Over 100K which is still exclusive.
6. On a personal basis. NO internet. At this price level personal contact is the only way.
7. Unknown.
8. Power and looks are required for an exotic car.

#412 of 421 Austin America by hpmctorque

May 24, 2012 (4:29 pm)

Recent posts in "A Spotted An..." discussion mentioned the Austin America. This is a car that was very advanced in configuration and design for its day. It was, essentially, a senior Mini. Unfortunately, it was plagued by quality problems, so it never came close to reaching its sales potential in the U.S. market.

#414 of 421 Re: For 2012... [hpmctorque] by hotrodguy

Jan 24, 2013 (9:43 am)

Replying to: hpmctorque (Nov 06, 2011 9:58 am)
I have to concur with you on that one. I have to say I really miss my old civic. Great car that I would like to see Honda bring back to its original glory. I would have to say Honda for me has been in a funk. Not impressed by what there putting out.

#415 of 421 Re: For 2012... [hotrodguy] by hpmctorque

Jan 24, 2013 (9:43 pm)

Replying to: hotrodguy (Jan 24, 2013 9:43 am)
I've read that Honda will introduce a small sedan based on the Fit. That might be a spiritual successor to earlier Civics.

#416 of 421 Fiat Strada by hpmctorque

Jan 27, 2013 (2:21 pm)

For those of you who may not remember or know, the Strada was a hatchback that competed with the VW Rabbit, the Mopar Omni/Horizon twins, the Chevette, and the various subcompact Japanese offerings of that body style. The Strada was arguably Fiat's last best hope of competing in the small hatchback segment, but it failed due to - surprise! - quality issues. The styling was also a bit odd, which didn't help, and the 1.5L engine provided rather weak performance, even by the modest standards of the day. What it had going for it was a relatively roomy interior, good fuel economy and a comfortable ride. Those attributes weren't enough to win over American drivers, though, so the Strada made only a brief appearance on our shores, from the late '70s-early '80s.
 
Does anyone here remember the Strada?

#417 of 421 Re: Fiat Strada [hpmctorque] by fintail

Jan 27, 2013 (3:09 pm)

Replying to: hpmctorque (Jan 27, 2013 2:21 pm)
I remember the Strada, although not when new. It was a US market Ritmo. Weird styling (the round lights are offputting to me, somehow), and I have to imagine quality control was laughable. I bet parts supply and service availability were also suspect. They have to be fantastically rare today - I know I have seen somewhere local, I want to say Portland, but maybe it was online.
 
I have a 1981 Consumer Guide, where they raved about the Strada. Maybe nice until the end of warranty.

#418 of 421 Re: Fiat Strada [fintail] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Jan 27, 2013 (5:44 pm)

Replying to: fintail (Jan 27, 2013 3:09 pm)
The Ritmo/Strada has some distinctions I'm told.
 
First off they made about (roughly) 1.8 million of them, so not too shabby...
 
Also it may have been the first, or one of the first cars to be built almost entirely by robots!
 
"Ritmo" means "rhythm"......"I got ritmo, I got tow chains, I got hand tools who could ask for anything morrreeeee...."

#419 of 421 Dodge Caliber by hpmctorque

Jan 28, 2013 (3:39 pm)

You'd think that Mopar would've gotten the successor to the Neon right, but no. The Caliber got panned in every test I read. The gas mileage was disappointing for its class, even though the automatic was a CVT.
 
I rented a Caliber in Idaho and drove it almost 1,000 miles, much of it on mountain roads, and I thought it was okay. I liked the styling, it had good room, and was as comfortable as anything in its class. Performance was competitive, and I didn't discover any notable negatives. Well, okay, the CVT was a little odd, but that didn't make it bad. Would I have bought one? Probably not, because I wouldn't have wanted to take the chance that all those reviews were wrong. The fact that there was no second generation Caliber suggests that mine was a minority experience.
 
Has anyone here owned a Caliber or know of someone who has, and, if so, what was the experience?

Messages Page 42 of 43

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