EDITORIAL Touch and Go
I
recently read an article that detailed an in depth analysis of CAP that says that vehicle historic data proves that vehicle life cycles have shortened substantially over the last three decades. Earlier when OEMs launched models, they were expected to run for at least 10 years or so. Now latest generation cars are launched within a span of three to four years. The article states several reasons for the shortening lifecycles. A main reason is the increasing number of Far East manufacturers that have entered the European market. Most of these manufacturers have come to these foreign markets bringing in new models to gain traction in a highly competitive market. At times it is probable that they launched the models in their own country and then quickly changed specs to launch to European or American customers. What makes it easier to change the look of a car is that most areas of the front and rear are made from plastics, and this enables the Far East OEMs to quickly change the look. This makes their work easier than what it was about 20 years ago. The new advancements in emissions reduction has also tightened some screws for manufacturers in terms of policies. Car manufacturers have increasingly come under the spotlight
with regards to carbon emissions. Especially in Europe, the government offers tax incentives to those who manage this well. And this is one of the main reasons for manufacturers to come out with newer models that adhere to these norms. Quite often the changes to reduce emissions involve changing the construction of the car along with the aerodynamics and therefore the car has to be redesigned into a new generation to accommodate the lower CO2 requirement. Coming to India, one wonders whether Indian OEMs will be as quick to apply to launching newer models as quickly. Most Indians are used to running their vehicles for five years and more, and considering how Far East manufacturers are looking at sales, one wonders at the figures they look for in India.
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Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, Ferrari Chairman
Our goal is to approach our target carefully as if we were running in a marathon.
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