Today's Hyundai… Tomorrow's ???
Back in the late 90’s VW was, “ Getting the Bugs Out“. In more ways than one VW had found that special elixir of popularity and hipness that made it a media darling.
Before the flower vase era of VW there was the “ Second Coming of Chrysler“. Cab forward designs and horsepower aplenty gave Chrysler a foundation for high profits and massive market gain. If Y2k had indeed ended the world as we knew it, these two automakers would have been memorialized success stories.
Since these Clinton era prodigies, only a few car manufacturers have really broken the ranking order for car companies in the North American market. Hyundai, Toyota, Subaru and NissanRenault. Hyundai has been the most clearcut beneficiary of modern tastes. However no success story in this business lasts. Just look at VW and Chrysler.
So who do you think will be the next success story of the first half of this decade? Will it be one of the manufacturers already mentioned? Or perhaps some other automaker that has yet to truly flex it’s muscles?
More by Steven Lang
Comments
Join the conversation
Trying to make an educated guess on this, but all I can come up with is reasons why nobody breaks out.. They all just shrink, some slower than others... Boomers can't risk their retirement savings a new ride Huge chunks of all demographics now have crappy credit due to job loss, forecloses, etc... Recent grads can't get jobs Mid life crisis guys either don't have the credit score or can't take on the payment Folks delay/defer due to concern about potential job loss Millions of parents co-signed for their kids student loans and now have to pay those instead of a car payment Wow. This sucks.... I need a beer....
I'm torn between the three with the most votes already: Ford: They look like the new Toyota. Finding their success in small cars and building their way back to relative. The styling is still somewhat conservative but the goofy fusion face is gone and finally the lineup looks like brothers and sisters rather than inbreds. The fact they have remained profitable and didn't need bailouts helped their image. Overall they look to supplant GM as the make that America rides in. Kia: As Hyundai repositions themselves as the almost-luxury car Kia is doing their thing by selling everything they got and doing with a good looking grill (I know, berate me at will). Their products are coming on strong and I see a great deal of Kias being sold for being Kias and not as the Hyundai crowd tends to still be buying on price. VW: They own Audi and they seem to have finally figured that out. When a Passat is pushing with options into base A6 territory there is something wrong. If the next Jetta comes off as good as the last and starts slightly cheaper (13-14K) they may have a runaway success on their hands. They need to develop two follow-up CUVs though on the Jetta/Passat platforms and as stated bring over a mini-bus just for brand appeal and they could easily take the crown.
A couple years ago, I would have said Ford. But I don't think so anymore. It seems they've shifted their focus from improved quality & mpg to electronics. I expect it will generate a lot of sales at times, but electronic gadgets & their buyers are fickle. I don't see Ford's strategy generating sustained success.
Suzuki?