European car sales plunge

daveyjp

wymondham wrote: »

Despite this still taking 9 weeks to get a new SEAT from Spain..... too many siesta's?

UK sales are up, but we require RHD vehicles. European manufacturers have limited capacity to produce RHD cars and production of RHD units cannot be increased easily due to the extensive supply chain, hence we still have waiting times.

Thrugelmir

vivatifosi wrote: »

My car's pretty old (13) and I'm looking to buy from new this year. I've had it from new and kept it serviced and it's reliable. Having said that, even a car that old is reasonably fuel efficient compared to some of the tripe available in America.

American motorists are light years behind Europe.

Drove the Hybrid Yaris the other day. Over 60 mpg. That's not bad for a petrol (/battery) car.

mystic_trev

Thrugelmir wrote: »

American motorists are light years behind Europe.

Drove the Hybrid Yaris the other day. Over 60 mpg. That's not bad for a petrol (/battery) car.

The trouble with Hybrid's is they're still expensive. The latest brand of economical Petrol engines are combining economy with performance.

http://www.whatcar.com/car-reviews/ford/fiesta-hatchback/1-0t-100-ecoboost-zetec-s-s-5dr/summary/66542

grizzly1911

Thrugelmir wrote: »

American motorists are light years behind Europe.

Drove the Hybrid Yaris the other day. Over 60 mpg. That's not bad for a petrol (/battery) car.

They may be frugal with fuel and CO2 but the amount they create in manufacturing is high. For the Prius Clarkson likes to point out the distance the battery materials travel round the globe from mining, for refining and to manufacturing. Canada, Europe, China and Japan. Batteries have a design life of about 8 years so will require replacement at a fairly high cost for new.

Interesting item here on costs, as this is MSE. In $s so I am sure pay back here may be quicker.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjkL5BomSvg

Interesting article on the pollution caused in battery manufacture.

http://forums.motortrend.com/70/6259344/the-general-forum/prius-outdoes-hummer-in-environmental-damage-so-go/index.html

A 2.0d 6 speed Avensis has combined MPG of 63 and CO2 of 119 and would be cheaper to buy.

But yes the USA are not bothered particularly.

Generali

Perhaps when times are tough you ditch the unreliable Renault or Merc you were planning to buy and get a hyper-reliable Toyota or Nissan.

It's funny how times change. You used to buy a British made car despite rather than because of its reliability.

onlyroz

I've put in an order for a new Peugeot 208 with an e-HDi stop-and-start engine. It claims to do a minimum of 78mpg, but we will see. I've also got it on the "Just add fuel" deal and so my monthly costs are a known quantity.

RichardD1970

daveyjp wrote: »

UK sales are up, but we require RHD vehicles. European manufacturers have limited capacity to produce RHD cars and production of RHD units cannot be increased easily due to the extensive supply chain, hence we still have waiting times.

Sorry but that is rubbish.

Modern "lean manufacturing" systems enable any spec of car to be built at any time, regardless of being LH or RH drive. It just has to be scheduled and the correct parts will be delivered line side

DreamweaverB

wymondham wrote: »

Despite this still taking 9 weeks to get a new SEAT from Spain..... too many siesta's?

You think that's bad?!?! I just had to wait 6 months for my Range Rover to be delivered and that was only coming from Liverpool!

daveyjp

RichardD1970 wrote: »

Sorry but that is rubbish.

Modern "lean manufacturing" systems enable any spec of car to be built at any time, regardless of being LH or RH drive. It just has to be scheduled and the correct parts will be delivered line side

Not rubbish at all - it is true you can build any car at any time, but as you say the correct parts need delivering - where do these parts come from? The car company simply puts the parts together, they do not make every component in the one factory -the supply chain is key.

If one part of the supply chain is at capacity and you want a 5% increase in RHD components which cannot be fulfilled, you still have to wait for your RHD car.

RichardD1970

daveyjp wrote: »

Not rubbish at all - it is true you can build any car at any time, but as you say the correct parts need delivering - where do these parts come from? The car company simply puts the parts together, they do not make every component in the one factory -the supply chain is key.

If one part of the supply chain is at capacity and you want a 5% increase in RHD components which cannot be fulfilled, you still have to wait for your RHD car.

I know how it works, I have worked in car manufacturing for 24 years.

The suppliers (mostly) have the same techniques in place as their customers and will supply what ever component the factory requires as it is needed (baring any breakdowns of unforeseen problems). They have to be very efficient and flexible, as there are large penalties if the main lines stop due to lack of components.