Tojo Blues

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Originally Posted by JDNSW

The basic problem is that all four wheel drives (Landrovers perhaps least) have changed their design in response to pressure from their majority customers - who rarely drive offroad or on rough roads, certainly not every day. This has resulted in emphasis on performance, comfort, handling, style -
John

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This is the problem we faced in the 1970's trying to sell Series III's into a market place that wanted a vehicle with off-road capability that could cruise to & from town and the property at 70mph or more. Few 4wd's used 4wd more than 5% of the time. The bulk of LR sales then were cab & chassis with dropside body and sold to the rural population and the various levels of government.
The recreational market was just starting. The largest group RR's were sold to were Doctors. RR's had become a status symbol with the medical profession.

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Originally Posted by Captain_Rightfoot

Who cares! None of this is my problem :D :D

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Yep agree totally:D

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I haven't had anything to do with them directly for forty years, but I remember then that we always carried half a dozen wheel studs in the glovebox!

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did they also have the factory kidney belt fitted :D :D ;)

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Originally Posted by Brian Hjelm

This is the problem we faced in the 1970's trying to sell Series III's into a market place that wanted a vehicle with off-road capability that could cruise to & from town and the property at 70mph or more. Few 4wd's used 4wd more than 5% of the time. The bulk of LR sales then were cab & chassis with dropside body and sold to the rural population and the various levels of government.
The recreational market was just starting. The largest group RR's were sold to were Doctors. RR's had become a status symbol with the medical profession.

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The steady improvement in roads everywhere has made toughness less and less in demand. Few properties round here only have as much as twenty or thirty kilometres of rough road before they hit the bitumen - thirty years ago a lot of what is now bitumen was gravel, and what was bitumen was a lot rougher. And so the capability on smooth roads more and more outweighs the capability on rough roads. And the few where this does not apply are insignificant in terms of sales. Even major buyers such as mining companies don't buy that many vehicles compared to the urban recreational buyers, and so don't rate very highly with manufacturers. Farmers would generally like to have tougher vehicles for their farm utes - but very few can afford to buy new vehicles today, and again they represent a very small market compared to the urban four wheel drive market, so they make do with what is available, usually the cheapest they can get.

John

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Originally Posted by JDNSW

The steady improvement in roads everywhere has made toughness less and less in demand. Few properties round here only have as much as twenty or thirty kilometres of rough road before they hit the bitumen - thirty years ago a lot of what is now bitumen was gravel, and what was bitumen was a lot rougher. And so the capability on smooth roads more and more outweighs the capability on rough roads. And the few where this does not apply are insignificant in terms of sales. Even major buyers such as mining companies don't buy that many vehicles compared to the urban recreational buyers, and so don't rate very highly with manufacturers. Farmers would generally like to have tougher vehicles for their farm utes - but very few can afford to buy new vehicles today, and again they represent a very small market compared to the urban four wheel drive market, so they make do with what is available, usually the cheapest they can get.

John

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I would agree again, the fact is people want comfy cars with air con not tough agricultural cars that never break.

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Originally Posted by Ace

I would agree again, the fact is people want comfy cars with air con not tough agricultural cars that never break.

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Slight correction to that -

.... the fact is most people want comfy cars with air con not tough agricultural cars that never break.

Not everyone, but an overwhelming majority. And unfortunately, the costs of designing and making a small production run vehicle today makes it so expensive as to be ridiculous, so nobody even tries to do so for "agricultural" type needs - and look at how many are successful in doing so for sports cars and similar; more failures than successes, selling into a market with a lot deeper pockets.

John

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Originally Posted by JDNSW

Farmers would generally like to have tougher vehicles for their farm utes - but very few can afford to buy new vehicles today, and again they represent a very small market compared to the urban four wheel drive market, so they make do with what is available, usually the cheapest they can get.

John

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Now you cockies out there, don't take this as insulting. In the marketing professions farmers are generally regarded as "cheap". A well used marketinng ploy to get a new brand/product established in Oz is to set the price at a point well below any competition and start selling in rural areas.

Farmers/graziers tend to buy anything that is cheapest and if your product is reasonably good, this will get numbers out there and talked about. You can apply steady small price rises as the product becomes established. You need an advantage to sell a new brand/product against established and trusted brands.

Another way to break into a marketplace that has a market leader with a very high market share is to open your dealers next door to, or across the road from, the market leader. You will get the tyre kickers who are not committed to a brand looking at yours as you are close to the leader, and you will get the disgruntled customers who are unhappily leaving the parts and service departments of the big fellow.