1st Gen Lunchtable Thread - General Discussion

Mad sus shit out here on a friday morning

 

Saving for future reference.

https://www.omix-ada.com/gear-ratio-vs-tire-size

YMMV by vehicle. I found it interesting while thinking about regearing in the future for larger tires.




Another interesting read in the following link about wheel/tire weight and performance. Over the years, I've landed on both the (good and bad) side of this result.

https://forums.tdiclub.com/index.ph...-5lb-lighter-wheel-make-you-go-faster.125626/

 

To the beat, to the beat.

 

I owe all of my packing skills to Tetris.

 

I can hear the Korobeiniki song in my head when ever I see the word Tetris.

 

33s
Spacer lift
Cheap wheels
And some lug nuts

And no credit given for the take-offs

All for $8k

 

A great deal clearly, this is why no one like dealers and why at home car buying direct from manufacturer will become the norm

 

I saw that. What a rip-off

 

It'd come at a cost to the manufacturer, but it'll be worth it to the consumer in the end.

 

It takes a lot of other logistics completely off the table though, there's got to be value to the parent company by reducing the number of steps to sell a car

 

Is this why Tesla's sell so well? Like buying tech from the manufacturer.

 

Dealers provide a physical storefront and a service center... the cost they tack on top of the manufacturers price of a car doesn't go back to the manufacturer, it just keeps the dealership running and making profit of their own... but the idea of having a dealership is ultimately pointless if you can now order online exactly what you desire and you can schedule a service vehicle to come take yours into a service center or whatever. Can lower cost and sell more cars without stealers in the mix

 

You're absolutely right, however in the end it cost the manufacturer more money.

Tens of thousands of dollars are easily made for each vehicle sold from the factory to the dealer.

Yes transport cost are part of those logistics you're referring to, but you're able to absorb it when you're a large manufacturer and have contracts with many different trucking companies.

However, there are a whole host of costs and liabilities that a dealership must absorb that would not benefit a manufacturer.

From the initial service and pre-delivery inspection once it arrives to the dealership, you have techs that need to be trained and in the area to perform those inspections.

Then you've got the licensing required which differs from state to state in order to sell a vehicle and collect taxes. This would require a whole other team for each and every state.

Then you've got the DMV side of it which doesn't just stop once the vehicle is sold, but done once funding has been completed.

We didn't even touch on those many customers that exist that would rather walk in and see a car in person, test drive it, and whatever else that would normally be done in a point-of-sale transaction.

Financing? That's yet another team and that would also differ across the states as not every lender covers customers Nationwide.

I'm just touching on the few things that come to mind immediately.

The manufacturer makes your drugs, and the dealerships are your dope dealers. When that product leaves your hands, it's up to the dealers to handle distributing the product and making their own profit.

 

By the way, I don't disagree with how you said things should run. I'm just stating the reasons why it won't happen that way at least for a very long time.

Manufacturers have no problem selling vehicles, as they're allowed to shove vehicles they don't want to dealerships at their will.

It's not only about money, but also liability. Which funny enough, that liability turns into money spent so yes, it really is all about money

 

Cute, you saved that pic

 

I think this is because they sell them to dealers primarily... but Tesla has proved dealerships are a relic just waiting to leave. The 1950s are gone, you don't need a physical presence to do any of the stuff you listed besides service and a standalone non-customer facing service center is much less overhead than a parking lot full of shysters.

 

Need this for the shop...

 

I'm in agreement with you, and yeah Tesla is proving that.

But these large manufacturers are already making a lot of money without having to worry about what happens to a dealership.

If there's an issue, a manufacturer will literally tell a dealership to pound sand. I know, I've been on the receiving end.

I ended up causing an issue by rejecting a few Jeep Renegades that I didn't want. We ended up losing allocation for a few Chargers, which meant no Scat Packs.

We still pulled through and sold cars as we needed, it just sucked losing some charger deals because of it.