Heaven Forbid: A Corvette from Toyota? - Autoblog

[MonaroSS]

OK,

It's the bottom of the 9th as you Americans say, and GM could slide into Chapter 11 and then Chapter 7. So it's broken up and any good bits sold to other automakers.

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Oh God.

This sacrilegious idea made it onto Autoblog...

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/11/17/h...e-from-toyota/

Originally Posted by EldoFan

Ehh......with rumors of the Chinese getting their hands on remnants of GM & Chrysler.....this doesn't seem so bad now

Note: Autoblog has this story now in their Top 5 responded to stories for the week (with 110 posts in just 24 hours). Boy, they should be paying GMI a royalty.

Who would provide the best home for Corvette?

I say Toyota and I'll make my case:

Forget small sports car makers or any small manufacturers, they need the economy of scale to keep Corvette at the top of it's performance game while selling for as little as possible. If anything, THAT is what Corvette is all about. Low cost high performance.

The small block Chevy V8 will die with GM so the new owner has to have it's own V8 engine sold on a large scale to keep costs down. That cuts out your Honda's and most Asians other than Toyota, and most European makes as well. This leaves Benz, BMW and Toyota. Forget Ford and Chrysler as if GM goes legs up they won't have the money either to buy up the left over bits.

I'm going to say that BMW and Benz both got burned by their Rover and Chrysler experiences respectively and don't seem to play well with American car culture. This leaves Toyota who if nothing else has tried in the US to emulate most of what GM has done, even down to the Big Truck market.

They have the money to keep Corvette at the top of its game. Unlike the high performance I4's and V6 mentality of say Honda, Toyota does appreciate the big capacity V8. They could slip in the 5.7 DI V8 from the Tundra as a base engine and build from there.

Where do you think would be
the best home (if not GM) for
Corvette?

[tholland]

Please take that thing off the vette's nose!

I would rather hope for Prodrive/Aston or better yet spun into it's own brand and owned by a rich American... maybe Jay Leno has a few billion lying around.

[K-1]

Originally Posted by MonaroSS

They could slip in the 5.7 DI V8 from the Tundra as a base engine and build from there.

The question is, would it fit? I have a feeling the 5.7L is quite a bit taller than the small-block.

[tom3]

The sun is setting on the Corvette I'm afraid.

[wescoent]

I'm of the opinion that a small performance shop could buy the Corvette operations, and continue building them in a partnership with whoever buys GM powertrains.

[MonaroSS]

Sorry about the Toyota badge guys, but for some the seriousness of the potential reality facing GM hasn't sunk in yet, and a pic says a thousand.....

Originally Posted by wescoent

I'm of the opinion that a small performance shop could buy the Corvette operations, and continue building them in a partnership with whoever buys GM powertrains.

I have not doubt that Corvette could survive on it's own, even making its own engines, as a small shop like TVR in England. Especially if a few wealthy benefactors chip in. But it would not sell for it's traditional price, and at $100K or $150K it's not the mission it has always fulfilled.

PS. GM Powertrain will be broken up and some engines like the small block will not survive. Apart from the fact that the larger vehicles that could use them will sell in much smaller numbers, the new technologies coming down the pike will be developed for 4valve engines and they won’t spend the money to adapt them to 2v designs pushrod or not.

[stk]

ManaroSS:

The thing you don't seem to understand is that Toyota would not continue with the vette tradition, they will make it as bland as possible, tone it back down to around 400hp max, change the styling so people look at the corvette and see a 2 door ''sporty'' camry.

So the best place for the Corvette would not in any way be at Toyota, they would treat it like crap and in only one or two generation, it would be as bland as any other sports car out there in the likes of the honda S2000, Toyota Celica, Nissan GT-R, etc.

[tholland]

Originally Posted by MonaroSS

I have not doubt that Corvette could survive on it's own, even making its own engines, as a small shop like TVR in England. Especially if a few wealthy benefactors chip in. But it would not sell for it's traditional price, and at $100K or $150K it's not the mission it has always fulfilled.

Good point... the attainable sportscar image is one of the best things about Corvette.

[XP300]

Originally Posted by MonaroSS

OK, it's the bottom of the 9th as you Americans say, and GM could slide into Chapter 11 and then Chapter 7. So it's broken up and any good bits sold to other automakers.

Who would provide the best home for Corvette?

I say Toyota and I'll make my case:

Forget small sports car makers or any small manufacturers, they need the economy of scale to keep Corvette at the top of it's performance game while selling for as little as possible. If anything, THAT is what Corvette is all about. Low cost high performance.

The small block Chevy V8 will die with GM so the new owner has to have it's own V8 engine sold on a large scale to keep costs down. That cuts out your Honda's and most Asians other than Toyota, and most European makes as well. This leaves Benz, BMW and Toyota. Forget Ford and Chrysler as if GM goes legs up they won't have the money either to buy up the left over bits.

I'm going to say that BMW and Benz both got burned by their Rover and Chrysler experiences respectively and don't seem to play well with American car culture. This leaves Toyota who if nothing else has tried in the US to emulate most of what GM has done, even down to the Big Truck market.

They have the money to keep Corvette at the top of its game. Unlike the high performance I4's and V6 mentality of say Honda, Toyota does appreciate the big capacity V8. They could slip in the 5.7 DI V8 from the Tundra as a base engine and build from there.

Where do you think would be
the best home (if not GM) for
Corvette?

That suggestion and the ugly pic could easily get me to violate the terms of the forum.

So I think I'll sign off and see if my Jamaican daughter-in-law can make me a MonaroSS voodoo doll. Just hold still little doll, this won't hurt .... much!

[fp115]

Chances are if the Corvette would have anything to do with it, Toyota would be the last ones to get it. Toyota would be unable to work with CAFE very well with the Corvette under its wing, a small shop would be the best bet for it as Dodge has done with the Viper.

[Triple-X08]

get that thing off of my screen, its burning my eyes, its so ugly i want to stab my eyes out with a soldering iron.

if GM releases the vette to any other manufacturer, the reputation of the vette will fall to pieces, and all hell will break loose, collectors will go insane and there will probably be riots.

[Uzzy]

The 'Vette would sooner die with dignity than wear the bean with a sombrero logo. As others have said, a specialty shop would pick it up, not Toyota.

[MonaroSS]

Originally Posted by Uzzy

The 'Vette would sooner die with dignity than wear the bean with a sombrero logo. As others have said, a specialty shop would pick it up, not Toyota.

Of course what most of you don't seem to grasp is that in a Chapter 7 Corvette will go to whom ever the bankruptcy judge approves. Neither GM nor anyone at Corvette, nor GM fans or Corvette fans will have any say in it.

The highest bidder as the hammer falls gets it all at fire sale prices because no small shop will be able to get finance, so if it's bought it will have to be someone with big enough pockets to pay cash.

It could well be a Chinese carmaker instead of Toyota. And I should point out that 15 years from now you may all be Toyota fans defending them from the assault of the horrible bland mobile makers from China.

We are at a point in time where one or two of the Big 3 could disappear from the face of the earth, and those that remain be put out of business by Chinese makers within 7-10 years from now.

The only American manufacturers with any history then would be the transplants who by then would have taken over Nascar and other auto racing in America and have a huge fan base.

History can make for strange bedfellows. Remember when the English were killing you and the French were your best allies? Things can reverse over time. You all may change you minds and allegiances over time...........

[AMERICA 123]

Pure and simple there is no other good home for the Corvette - its impossible to divorce the reality of the car from GM itself.

GM is the reason for the Corvette not the other way around.

Most definitely a nonsensical idea and an unnecessary one as well.

Playing along with the adolescent fantasy here, Opel would obviously be next.

A distant second best choice group - as in a leaky spare tire 100 hundred miles from nowhere....... is all you got...... would Chrysler (if healthier) , BMW, and Audi.

Nothing in or associated with an Asian Import or pretend transplant such as Toyota is qualified or has the necessary pedigree or Corporate culture or engineering 'feel' - attributes that are critical to be successful with the program.

Matter of fact on a world wide basis Toyota is by far and away the poorest choice across the boards - the specific type of excellence that the Corvette program is made up of is something they have never been capable of and most assuredly never will be - its the antithesis of all that is Toyota - both good and bad.

Pigs don't fly for a reason - they don't have wings.

Toyota has no soul - the 'Vette does in spades.

The Corvette is American in character - Toyota is extremely Japanese - and in an extremely narrow way.

Neither one can substitute very well for the other.

Toyota on a good day designs ( well, they used to - ) a competent Corolla - GM produces a world class Corvette.

Toyota and the 'Vette could be likened to a two bit accountant for a gangster outfit - with the girlfriend / date opportunity of a lifetime who, after picking her up in his Prius takes her to dinner at Outback - and brings along his copy of 'How to make Love to a Beautiful Women' - for a later that just ain't going to happen.

The larger, 'more' 'ironic' error is that he thinks you can read the book as you 'go along' - right up there with believing she's coming back from the ladies room -.

( That description also usefully applies to the post that started this thread - but hey, a T boy can dream ? )

Nissan would be the best of the Asian makes followed by Honda/Mazda and Hyundai - heck, Marimba out of India would be a better choice than Toyota.

********************

This thread title is nothing more than sophomoric flame bait.

[Triple-X08]

never!!!!!!!!!! i will not go down without a fight. i will stand by GM until the end of time.
there is no way in hell i would support a foreign car maker.