Question for BRZ and GT-87 hps?

[dsgerbc]

Ratio of rudeness to coherent argument has exceeded the threshold beyond which I don't bother to reply.

[Corey]

Excuse me, I didn't realize we were arguing. I was under the impression you were just on some tyrade against common knowledge and wanted to make sure the rest of the forum didn't get caught up in the crossfire.

Anyway to summarize what I've been saying and put it in a context that clearly demonstrates its relevance to this thread:

Japan's export based economy has been strongly affected by the weakening of major currencies like the USD. Toyota is strongly affected, even more so than competitors, because they still produce many of their cars in Japan where the cost to produce the car rises in relation to the USD as the yen appreciates. This means that when the car reaches American soil it has to either be priced higher to make up for the relatively rising cost of production, or sold at a price that is competitive in the US market but likely at a net loss for Toyota. As evidenced in the big list of quotes I posted on page 14, up to this point Toyota has largely been eating the costs themselves rather than raising prices.

So what does this have to do with HP?

As we all know, more power means more money for the additional cost of a turbo, its related hardware, etc. Naturally this means the cost of the car would also increase. Toyota however is trying to sell this car to a specific market which means keeping it within a certain price range (I think I read they want it to be accessible to people just out of college?). Given their current financial situation, selling the car as is in the US at their target price is very likely a losing endeavor for them (again, as evidenced by various sources on page 14). This means any additional production costs to the car either come directly out of Toyota's pocket or the consumer's, and the latter option runs the risk of pushing the car out of its intended market entirely which is potentially disastrous as it was never meant to compete with something like a Z out of the box. Given Toyota's current financial situation (page 14..) they are not in any position to do the former either.

There's obviously a lot more to it than that, and I'm not even touching engineering or design choices, but that's basically what it boils down to on the sales side. The exchange rate plays a direct role in Toyota's profits and right now the strengthening of the yen against the dollar is taking a huge toll on the company.

[Allch Chcar]

Originally Posted by dsgerbc

Define what you mean by 'free market' in application to buying cars and I'll tell you where you're assuming too much relative to how things work in the real world.

First tell me if you are referring to MSRP or actual dealer invoice prices. I need a point of reference so that I don't bring a guitar to a banjo duel.