Quote:
Originally Posted by Le Chef
Back in the old days you designed a car and then priced it out and hoped it would make a profit. Eventually even companies like Mercedes-Benz realized that this was not going to work anymore.
Today, bar a handful of manufacturers, everyone builds to a target price (researched across local markets for greatest potential volume and greatest margin delivery) which is adjusted for each local market. This means your car was designed and priced down to the last tiniest screw, with the thinnest of margins for variance.
For a company like BMW to go back to "design it then price it" would be disastrous. They would be unable to sell in some markets and would suffer slow sales in others due to exchange rates and local taxation. There would be less money for r&d which would mean lower competitiveness and longer model cycles. These days you have to be a realist and play the "build to a price" or you go out of business. It's that simple.
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In BMW's case particularly with the X3 series, it's a shame it was not
Build to a target price with reliability.