??? European standars are less restrictive than americans? And why are german cars the best worldwide technically? Normaly US cars dont get the ok from the german tüv.
btw the crash test was from a german automobile club
just my 5 eurocent.
Safety is major issue for most people buying new cars, especially when the safety is proven to be abysmal as in this case. The tabloids will be all over this, and they’ll be lucky to sell even a hundred cars after the publicity dies down. Who the hell wants to drive a brand new car that is likely to kill you if you ever get in an accident at 50 km/h?
Please point me to comparative information that demonstrates that the USA has stricter vehicle quality standards than Western Europe. Thanks.
It would be the exact opposite of all my experience as a European consumer who emmigrated to the USA.
What, do you want to put American carmakers out of business?
It could sell like hotcakes. Look, they need to hook up with an ailing US car manufacturer (take your pick, but I’m looking at you, GM) and have them rename it something less retarded, but only slightly, or maybe even something trendy if you want to go hogwild on the marketing budget, and sell it under one of their brands that doesn’t have an SUV, or if that isn’t available, one that size. Bring it up to just the bare minimum US safety standards and pack it full of every feature that costs the manufacturer $12 but normally adds $200-$1000 to the final price, offer it all standard, price the thing a few large under the competition but not as cheap as they could price it, because then everyone would know it’s a rolling deathtrap.
End result: the Oldsmobile Zephyr, available with every luxury and affordably priced at $17,000, becomes the best-selling new car of the 2007 model year.
flightplan has made $70 million so far. have you read rywill’s description of the plot? i can’t think of a more damning indictment of the american consumer.
I read an earlier draft of the script (when the protagonist was male), and the plot as I saw it was basically a remake of Hitchcock’s classic “The Lady Vanishes.” I can think of far worse ideas to base a movie on, and any number of films whose box office success more strongly condemns the American consumer. Patch Adams, to name one.
As if taste in movies had much to do with wise automotive purchasing practices, which it doesn’t.
You said “hotcakes.” Hotcake-level numbers got to come from the Middle Class, yo.
I read this as McGriddle Class.
Wait, am I to understand that you crashed various cars in Europe and then crashed various cars here in the United States?
Wait, am I to understand that you crashed various cars in Europe and then crashed various cars here in the United States?[/quote]
Well yes…
But that’s not important right now.
Anyone that drives a Ford F150?
What is this Euroindignation at U.S. car safety standards? I always held the impression that US standards were much higher, which is why wildly successful euro hatchbacks never ever get tested here (Like the Ford Ka, an obvious deathtrap agglomeration of tin and glue that is ubiquitous on British streets but not even sold in the US)
People die by the thousands on American roads because Americans are the worst and most insane drivers in the world outside of Rome’s city limits, not because the vehicles are unsafe.
My driving test here in New Mexico comprised a written test that had the last guy’s answers (and passing grade) still pencilled on it. The actual driving test comprised four right turns (six, including the DMV parking lot), and lasted about 90 seconds.
It sounds like you really haven’t driven much in Britain or France. Terrifying, and I’m a Brit.
Tiny roads, extreme speed and the arrogance that only comes with having to take a year to pass your test, and the crass assumption that everyone else has gone through that too. Whereas at least the whole four way stop thing in the US causes drivers to at least look out for other drivers - and assume the worst.
In Europe there is extremely robust consumer legislation - something which at times appears almost entirely absent in the USA. Although California and New York do seem to be making headway despite Washington, I still find it hard to believe that Euro standards are worse.
I don’t know which mirror universe USA you moved to, but can you get me a ticket in? :wink:
One where there is no grace period for car purchases etc. One where if you need to hire lawyers constantly in order to assert your rights as a consumer. One where the FDA is run by political appointees who actively quash dissent from their scientists etc.
I meant safety, not quality. I’m pretty sure we still have stricter safety standards for vehicles than most of Europe.
This is one of the reasons why a lot of cars don’t come to the US. If the standards were the same or higher in Europe, you could import any European car to the US (you’d probably be seeing a flood of small, fuel-efficient Euro cars). But safety–and emissions–are still different. Some of it is very simple, like bumpers needing to be a certain height or resisting a certain crash impact. Others are more complex, like side impact requirements.
Most SUVs aren’t classified as cars because they’re built on truck platforms, so they only have to pass less restrictive truck standards.
There are some exceptions in Europe, such as Volvos, Mercedes, etc. But safety is part of their marketing message.
I thought Americans don’t drive tiny Euro cars because they love their big cars, not because they’re not allowed to import Euro cars…
Besides, you can turn that argument around. American-designed cars are extremely unpopular outside America. The cars made by American companies which are sold in Europe are mostly European designs, or Euro-Japanese co-designs.
There’s a mutual dislike of the other continent’s car design that, as far as I know, is not actually related to quality or safety or any objective measure at all. Other than size, anyway.
In addition, the US testing bodies, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), combine to do all of the testing European bodies do, plus a rollover test.
Here’s a few other ancedotal quotes I came across while looking into this…
This is about Russian cars, so it doesn’t really apply to European cars in general, but…
Now Europe does have some standards that the US hasn’t even considered, like the pedestrian protection standard, so I guess on that basis, it’s fair to say that Europe has stricter standards in that area. Generally, however, I think the US safety standards remove more cars from the market or require safety accomodations than European safety standards do.
That’s generally true. But with $3 gas, there was a window of opportunity for sales had companies been able to easily import a bunch of small, high-mileage vehicles from Europe.
There’s a mutual dislike of the other continent’s car design that, as far as I know, is not actually related to quality or safety or any objective measure at all. Other than size, anyway.
That’s also mostly true, though there are plenty of Euro fans in the US. And most of the major Euro brands like Mercedes and BMW tailor their cars to the US market–California itself is almost as big a car market as all of Europe–but we typically only get the bigger, high-end models here.