[DML] Re: New Delorean production....

["content22207" <brobertson@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Why is there so much unhappiness over a comparison that shouldn't
really exist? Even my untrained eye can spot the apples to oranges
differences:

The Delo's primary market was North American; The Esprit's primary
market was continental. Perhaps nowhere is this difference clearer
than the choice of powerplant (never mind the fact that DMC never
produced a proprietary engine).

The Delo was intended for mass production; Lotus seems to have
targeted limited consumption (barely producing more Esprit's in 30
years than the number of vehicles DMC managed in 3). The Dunmurry and
Hethel manufacturing facilities were as different as Dearborn and
Detriot (Packard). Cars that rolled out were priced accordingly (IMHO
DMC still came in too high, but that's another topic for another thread). 

The Delo incorporates a premium vinyl interior (see above); The Esprit
boasts leather all around.

The Delo uses a simplified backbone chassis/suspension (see above);
The Esprit has a fully adjustable suspension. Just out of curiosity:
Is there any truth to the rumor that DMC used cheaper/lower quality steel?

We could go on and on like this (comparing advertising, dealerships,
etc), but I for one am thrilled to death Lotus was brought in. IMHO,
had DMC gone through with ERM, very few of us would be driving one of
their vehicles today. I envision a wasteland of unibody cars
hopelessly cracked when their tired old plastic met one pothole too
many. Whatever uniqueness was lost in the redesign has been more than
made up in longevity. And if the retail price was too high with
conventional engineering, just imagine how much higher it would have
been with ERM (making the vehicles even less saleable). Doesn't it
stretch the limits of believability to think that DMC and Lotus were
competitive threats to one another? A much fairer comaprison is AMC
and the Big 3 (AMC used Chrysler automatics, Ford (Autolite) ignition,
and GM (Delco) generators/alternators) -- a manufacturing synergy that
lasted 40 years.

One plug for my beloved manufacturer (having broached its name in a
totally unrelated newsgroup): AMC *DID* have proprietary engines, the
oldest design of which continued in production until 2005 (Chrysler's
4.0 is the AMC 258/232/199). Contact me off list for more info than
you ever wanted.

Bill Robertson
#5939




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