- Moderator
- #1
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2002
- Messages
- 4,316
- Location
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Corvette
- ZZ4, 700R4, Steeroids rack & pinion, VB&P Brakes
I had originally posted this as a response to someone in the "2014 C7 Beautiful Poll" thread, but thought that it was enough of it's own idea to spur conversation separate from the poll. Thus, here it is...
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Too many of us are isolated in our thinking, as if it's the early 1920's and we don't have international trade and international interest in our product. We are only concerned about what we want. But GM is a global company. And for a global company and their product to succeed, they need to think globally and not just focus on the 45-65 year old American male. In the US alone, how big is that demographic? Is it large enough to sustain a brand? "Barely" and I believe that's being generous. GM needs to expand the pool of people that will take interest in the car. Part of that shift means making the car appealing to a broader range of people.
Many people talk of "Buying American" or wondering how come our exports don't do well overseas. Maybe it's because we don't often produce anything that they really want or "just have to have!". Well, if you include others globally in your thinking, there's a much better chance you're going to appeal to more folks. And that's a big part of this new C7 design. We Americans are proof that people will buy cars from other countries. Plenty of us have imports. And speaking of that...
If someone states that we don't want a European car, I have to ask, "Really? Even if you could afford one?" Rarely do I hear anyone stating that they wouldn't want a Ferrari or Aston-Martin or Maserati in their garage. Nor do I hear people talk about how ugly many of those cars appear to be. Generally speaking, people gush over those brands. And yet, as soon as our designers in the USA start working with design & styling cues from those brands, we seem to jump on the "Ugly" or "Piece of Sh**" bandwagon. Why is that? It's like stating that we want our own original designs & styling concepts, but then sh** all over anything we come up with. Regardless of where the ideas come from, they are still our ideas. Globally, designers & stylists from all brands take cues from everyone else. All those people currently designing cars got their ideas from cars they saw growing up- maybe other designers concepts that were ahead of the time at the time. But now the future is here and these designers are taking those concepts and implementing them into their own designs. Look at the history of automotive design globally in the past 100 years. If trends weren't a global idea, there'd still be plenty of supercars riding around on 14" wheels. But they don't. Now everyone is riding around on 18"-20" wheels. Is it strictly functional or strictly design & style that led everyone to this point? Probably a little of both. But none of this occurred in just one geographic location with one specific brand. It happened globally because that's how car designers & stylists think.
Technology & fashion are global concepts. GM appears to be showing that they understand this. In my opinion, they've done an excellent job advancing the engineering, design, and style of the Corvette and in doing so, make it appeal to a much broader group of potential buyers. Granted, there's always going to be brand snobbery, both domestic and foreign. Many people in Italy wouldn't dare own a Corvette because it's not a Ferrari or people in Germany because it's not a Porsche. But I give propers to the Corvette engineers, designers, and stylists that are definitely making it harder for the snobs to ignore the fact that we've got a bangin' car that can no longer be easily dismissed as a cheap, unrefined, and uninspired American product.
The Corvette has conquered America. Our sites are now set on YOU Italy, Germany, and Japan!!! We're cominagetcha!!!
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And therein lies what I believe is the problem. You stated it and probably didn't realize it. Many others have given your same sentiments and this applies to them as well! There are so many points that come to mind in those three simple sentences, I will try to get most of them out here in as coherent a message as I can.
Too many of us are isolated in our thinking, as if it's the early 1920's and we don't have international trade and international interest in our product. We are only concerned about what we want. But GM is a global company. And for a global company and their product to succeed, they need to think globally and not just focus on the 45-65 year old American male. In the US alone, how big is that demographic? Is it large enough to sustain a brand? "Barely" and I believe that's being generous. GM needs to expand the pool of people that will take interest in the car. Part of that shift means making the car appealing to a broader range of people.
Many people talk of "Buying American" or wondering how come our exports don't do well overseas. Maybe it's because we don't often produce anything that they really want or "just have to have!". Well, if you include others globally in your thinking, there's a much better chance you're going to appeal to more folks. And that's a big part of this new C7 design. We Americans are proof that people will buy cars from other countries. Plenty of us have imports. And speaking of that...
If someone states that we don't want a European car, I have to ask, "Really? Even if you could afford one?" Rarely do I hear anyone stating that they wouldn't want a Ferrari or Aston-Martin or Maserati in their garage. Nor do I hear people talk about how ugly many of those cars appear to be. Generally speaking, people gush over those brands. And yet, as soon as our designers in the USA start working with design & styling cues from those brands, we seem to jump on the "Ugly" or "Piece of Sh**" bandwagon. Why is that? It's like stating that we want our own original designs & styling concepts, but then sh** all over anything we come up with. Regardless of where the ideas come from, they are still our ideas. Globally, designers & stylists from all brands take cues from everyone else. All those people currently designing cars got their ideas from cars they saw growing up- maybe other designers concepts that were ahead of the time at the time. But now the future is here and these designers are taking those concepts and implementing them into their own designs. Look at the history of automotive design globally in the past 100 years. If trends weren't a global idea, there'd still be plenty of supercars riding around on 14" wheels. But they don't. Now everyone is riding around on 18"-20" wheels. Is it strictly functional or strictly design & style that led everyone to this point? Probably a little of both. But none of this occurred in just one geographic location with one specific brand. It happened globally because that's how car designers & stylists think.
Technology & fashion are global concepts. GM appears to be showing that they understand this. In my opinion, they've done an excellent job advancing the engineering, design, and style of the Corvette and in doing so, make it appeal to a much broader group of potential buyers. Granted, there's always going to be brand snobbery, both domestic and foreign. Many people in Italy wouldn't dare own a Corvette because it's not a Ferrari or people in Germany because it's not a Porsche. But I give propers to the Corvette engineers, designers, and stylists that are definitely making it harder for the snobs to ignore the fact that we've got a bangin' car that can no longer be easily dismissed as a cheap, unrefined, and uninspired American product.
The Corvette has conquered America. Our sites are now set on YOU Italy, Germany, and Japan!!! We're cominagetcha!!!
).
