[Hudson]

I don't know where you've been...but MiniDisc and DV players have been on the US market for years.

As for the BB and ist, they're not all that old. The ist (xA) is about a year old. The BB (xB) is a bit older, but far from ancient. And neither of these vehicles are "kei" cars.

For those who don't know, "kei" cars are regulated to be tiny (smaller than the xA and xB) and have engines no larger than 660cc. The market is quite popular because of tax and parking laws which favor these little cars. Toyota doesn't sell "kei" cars; Suzuki and Daihatsu (half owned by Toyota) are the largest players in this market.

The point of Scion is that these cars are different when compared to other products on the American market. Toyota is also selling an image, something that worked for Mini and (at one time) Saturn.

 

[Astra_Boy]

Why doesn't Ford of North America just import the Ford Fiesta from Europe?? The car already shares it's platform with the Mazda2, not sold in North America, so it would make alot of sense!! Plus it would fit in with the rest of the Ford range, with the Ford Focus and the upcoming Ford 500, that already look's like an oversized American version of the European Ford Mondeo!!

 

[Ming]

Originally posted by Hudson@Jan 16 2004, 04:09 PM
I don't know where you've been...but MiniDisc and DV players have been on the US market for years.

Japan for about a decade.

Obviously Minidisc and DV have been here for some time - what I'm saying is that I could find a particular Minidisc or DV camera (from, say, sony) being sold in Akihabara in 1992 that was being passed off as fresh and new in 1998 here in the U.S. at a Best Buy.

Take a trip to Tokyo's "electric town", take photos of the televisions, radios, etc. in all of the shops, and you'll have a good idea of what will be the next new big thing 2-3 years later in the US.

Of course, some of it just never makes it here -- I guess Japan's home market is a kind of "first adopter market", where people are willing to pay big bucks for the new tech as soon as possible - and stuff that doesn't sell well is never exported. Of course, with minicars that strategy seems to make little sense, unless Toyota wants to keep its quality rep high - Ford had to deal with Focus problems in the first couple of years, Toyota could contain such problems in the Japan market and sell the vehicle in the states 3 years later...

Let's put it this way - in 1997 http://www.nec.co.jp/press/en/9702/2701.html Plasma screens were the big upcoming thing in Tokyo - the status symbol you'd have to get to be on the bleeding edge. It's been about a year or two now in the making, but giant plasma or flat panel TVs were suddenly all the rage - years later. Some of this obviously has to do with price - but in general I've noticed the Japanese product on sale now is something you have to wait years for to get your hands on in the US, and even then its not the latest & greatest, but some design from 3 years ago.

What a time difference. Toyota's Scion cars remind me of this in that they tend to be OLD NEWS, like the BB/bBX.

At least people know the story of the Monaro becoming the "new" GTO. But I wonder how hip/sick/cool Scions would be if people knew they really weren't new at all, and were never all that popular in Toyotas own home market.

 

[Hudson]

Originally posted by Ming@Jan 22 2004, 07:23 AM
...But I wonder how hip/sick/cool Scions would be if people knew they really weren't new at all, and were never all that popular in Toyotas own home market.

They're new in America. That's all that matters.

 

[BigAls87Z28]

if ford brought any of thoes cars to market here, I would cry. Just when things were getting RWD friendly again.... here come this crap?

 

[thehemi]

The sticker on the new 300-hp Mustang GTs is
going to be like $26K. So you could score one
of those for under $25K. That would be sweet.

340-hp Dodge Magnum wagon runs like $30K.
Hopefully they will pump out a sedan version,
and price it cheaper, so it could eventually be
haggled down to roughly $25K.

I'm in the market this year for the wife's car.
Probably Malibu (3.5) or Grand Prix GT (3.8).
Both offer over 200 lb-ft torque and you can
buy them for $20K or less. Not bad deals.

 

[Ming]

Coming to a high-school near you!