Comments on: Daily Podcast: Come Again?

By: Matt51

Matt51 — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 04:48:01 +0000

No Charly,
electricity is used to run all the machine tools, and light all the plants. Go read up a couple articles here on TTAC “Cash for Clunkers – The Environmental Cost of a New Car” where the amount of energy required to produce a car is given. Car manufacturing will chase cheap electricity ahead of cheap labor.

By: charly

charly — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 02:29:44 +0000

Tony

Samsung is the Toyota of TV’s

Matt

The only place in production were the price is meaningful is in making the metals, but those can be cheaply imported.

By: WetWilly

WetWilly — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 22:38:48 +0000

So Japan is screwed by Korea/China/India use of coal.

Coincidentally, I can guess three countries that probably won’t be signing completely on for Kyoto II.

As for the Venga, Hyundai really ought to consider stealing it (like they did the cee’d/i30CW -> Elantra Touring) and badging it as the next Accent. Sticking the 156hp 2.0 World Engine in it and offering it here with the panoramic roof would be even better.

By: Matt51

Matt51 — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 22:01:34 +0000

Japanese companies copied the best in the West, until they could figure out a better way to do a job. Makes sense, if you don’t have a better idea, don’t be too proud to copy. GM was too proud to copy Honda/Toyota for far too long.
Korean companies have low cost electricity, as like China, they use dirty coal. So Japan, which has nuclear, will never be price competitive with Korea or China. If you add all the electricity used to produce a car, including the steel, aluminum and all supplier parts, it is far larger than the cost of labor. Often a buildings electricity is buried in overhead, but if you look at total electricity cost, it is a very large part of producing a car.
So Japan is screwed by Korea/China/India use of coal.

By: Demetri

Demetri — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:34:29 +0000

“people are prejudiced about many things”

Usually it’s only prejudice when there aren’t just grounds for having a pre-conceived notion on something. When a company makes nothing but flaming crap for years, I think that’s a good enough reason not to buy from them.

Does this look like a Yaris/Fit rip off to anyone else? The front came off of the Yaris, the side is from the Fit. And that new Forte has all kinds of stuff ripped from the Civic.

By: TonyJZX

TonyJZX — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 18:02:18 +0000

unfortunately Hyundai/Kia are doing what the 2.8 can’t do

the Koreans used to and still do to some extent, have a bad name… you can see where many people will have the misconception that Korean cars are unsafe or unreliable… people are prejudiced about many things… they will happily use a Samsung or LG appliance but since a car is a reflection of themselves… (you see where the ‘perception gap’ is)

but instead of crying about how the ‘customer is wrong’ they are building honest, attractive, reliable cars with long long warranties

there’s a lesson there that some people in detroit don’t want to learn… but hey… the world needs those $45k hybrids…