|
In Reply to: OT: New Ford Thunderbird woes. . . posted by John (SoCal desert) on August 19, 2001 at 16:39:58:
Most car manufacturers would have simply continued production and played the odds that few would have the problem and those they could squelch with fixes or reparations.
Look at Chrysler who made mini-vans for years with defective hatch latches that caused multiple deaths until 60 minutes exposed them, at which time they denied responsibility, but changed the following year's latches saying taht it was a "design improvement, rather than a "fix" for a problem.
Even Mercewdes Benz had roll-over problems with its SUV, which they fixed after the Sweedish "Moose" test. So did Audi with TT coupes that left the Autobahn at high speed before spoilers were attached. Need I remind us of teh BMW fiascos that they quietly repaired for those who screamed loudly enough, but denied for the masses (rear e36 suspension failures, Nicosil engines that wouldn't last with US fuel, and more we could mention). To be honest, while I have owned many BMWs from a beautiful 3.0CS through an e32 735i, I wouldn't consider buying a new BMW because of the unnecessary complexity and cost of repair of these new generation vehicles (I mean, really, do we NEED a computer controlled dual climate control system that costs upwards of $8000 to replace and that we cannot "delete" from the package as European buyers can?).
I am not a Ford nut (though I do own a Powerstroke turbo diesel (Navistar engine) van built by them that I am happy (so far) with. I also own a Jaguar XJ-40 that I wouldn't have bought had not instituted a quality control program at Jaguar, but fair is fair.
Bob
© 1997 -
2008
Jump Internet Inc. All rights reserved.
