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Originally Posted by Butz
Tell me why it's not happening in Japan, for example.
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OUr market is way way too attractive for nearly every vehicle maker.
Consider what we prefer to drive
now. Our preference is for large vehicles at high prices with minimal safety and fuel efficiency equipment ( meaning low cost ). We prefer to drive vehicles with a built-in profit of $10000-$15000 per unit. In the economy range we prefer our vehicles cheap with no special features.
Nowhere else in the world is there a population that's willing to buy such $40000 vehicles and give the vehicle maker a $15000 profit per unit. Most other countries are still in $4000 junkers.
In Europe they do want their vehicles nice with all the amenities but they have to be small and ultra efficient by our standards.
In Japan the No 1 vehcle forever ( like the F150 here ) has been the Corolla. The big volume goes down in size from there. Who wants to break into the Japanese market, which is about half size of ours in NA, in order to sell kei-cars? There's nothing of interest there.