FICTIONAL STORY: S2000 vs BMW Z4 :FICTIONAL STORY (long)
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From: West Henrietta UPSTATE NY
FICTIONAL STORY: S2000 vs BMW Z4 :FICTIONAL STORY (long)
FICTIONAL STORY: S2000 vs BMW Z4 :FICTIONAL STORY
got it?
A friend of mine has the M roadster. I like his car, he likes my S2000. We are friends and we like to yank the other's chain once in a while. He wrote this and sent it to me under the false presentation it was a new scoop he got from Japan. After I was ready to post it for real, I realized he was most likely up to no good and I ought to check it out. Yes, he did make it up, but boy did he get me hook line and sinker.
(Nippon Motor News 7/2/2002)
Honda's premier sports convertible, the S2000, was designed with a clear target: BMW's Z3 convertible. But has it missed the mark?
Released in 2000 to compete with the aging Z3 chassis, the S2000 was
expected to be the engineering marvel in the latest of fast, sleek sports cars.
Honda executives fully expected the S2000 to steal away fifty percent of the Z3 market. But now, accusations are flying inside Honda corporate- why does BMW continue to trump the S2000?
Honda corporate spokesman Takeyushi Nogoro describes the lack of sales as brand recognition. "Honda produce many popular cars, many cars sell very good in America. Honda Civic and Accord outsell all other car in America. But nobody think Honda can build performance car", Nogoro says. Indeed, engineering designer Yiro Suzuki agrees: "The S2000 engine was designed with the latest F1 technology. Unfortunately, most Americans still think in cubic inches. Such a small motor intimidates the average U.S. performance car buyer". No matter what the corporate statement is, there is little doubt for the real reason the S2000 doesn't sell: design.
Industry analysts think the S2000 is just too bland. Roger Meadows of ForwardAuto Design in Anaheim California calls the theme "Pulled Taffy".
"Look at the Z3", Meadows suggests, "that car has lines; a coke bottle waist, wide rear fenders, it says something. The S2000 looks like somebody took a Z3 and melted it." Industry polls agree. Over 85% of women prefer the Z3 to the S2000. And unfortunately, that is Honda's target audience. Mary Anne Settle, automotive editor for the Sacramento Daily Times calls the S2000 "snippy". Says Settle: "it looks like a kid's Pinewood Derby car. Take a block of wood, lob some off the front, and stick on wheels."
Mysteriously, the root of the design issue may be traced back to BMW.
Sato Goto, former head of Honda Design Studios in Van Nuys, California,
fired last year for undisclosed reasons, now tells of some dirty secrets: that the S2000 his group penned was based on Z4 designs stolen from BMW. "We knew that the S2000 had to be something special to compete with the BMW Z3. At the time, Honda had the opportunity to obtain the drawings for the new BMW Z4 from a disgruntled BMW designer. We wanted to one-up BMW and beat them, basically with their own design." Could Goto's accusations ring true? Now that BMW's Z4 has been shown to the public, the resemblance is uncanny. Los Angeles County records contain a sealed indictment against Goto, filed last month by Honda Design Studios. What more might Mr. Goto know? BMW has no comment. Goto's right hand man, Junichi Kurebayashi, won't comment on the Z4 designs. Fired along with Goto, Kurebayashi is under court order not to discuss any design issues related to the theft of the Z4 designs. However, Kurebayashi does have strong feeling about corporate Honda's handing of his design: "I design S2000 to be best sport car ever. Make design with everything better over Z3. But Tokyo Honda says too expensive. So they make cheaper. Tiny engine. Ugly paint colors. Even no heated seats. Who ever hear of convertible with no heated seats? BMW have heated seats. Honda no heated seats, Honda no sell S2000."
It seems everyone at Honda has an opinion on the lackluster appeal of the S2000. That doesn't stop the grin on the face of corporate BMW: with the new Z4 flagship, the S2000 will likely fade away quickly. Which, according to Goto, will be a godsend "It won't be soon enough. Honda needs to get this behind them, and go back to doing what they do- building cheap family cars."
Aren't friends great?
got it?
A friend of mine has the M roadster. I like his car, he likes my S2000. We are friends and we like to yank the other's chain once in a while. He wrote this and sent it to me under the false presentation it was a new scoop he got from Japan. After I was ready to post it for real, I realized he was most likely up to no good and I ought to check it out. Yes, he did make it up, but boy did he get me hook line and sinker.
(Nippon Motor News 7/2/2002)
Honda's premier sports convertible, the S2000, was designed with a clear target: BMW's Z3 convertible. But has it missed the mark?
Released in 2000 to compete with the aging Z3 chassis, the S2000 was
expected to be the engineering marvel in the latest of fast, sleek sports cars.
Honda executives fully expected the S2000 to steal away fifty percent of the Z3 market. But now, accusations are flying inside Honda corporate- why does BMW continue to trump the S2000?
Honda corporate spokesman Takeyushi Nogoro describes the lack of sales as brand recognition. "Honda produce many popular cars, many cars sell very good in America. Honda Civic and Accord outsell all other car in America. But nobody think Honda can build performance car", Nogoro says. Indeed, engineering designer Yiro Suzuki agrees: "The S2000 engine was designed with the latest F1 technology. Unfortunately, most Americans still think in cubic inches. Such a small motor intimidates the average U.S. performance car buyer". No matter what the corporate statement is, there is little doubt for the real reason the S2000 doesn't sell: design.
Industry analysts think the S2000 is just too bland. Roger Meadows of ForwardAuto Design in Anaheim California calls the theme "Pulled Taffy".
"Look at the Z3", Meadows suggests, "that car has lines; a coke bottle waist, wide rear fenders, it says something. The S2000 looks like somebody took a Z3 and melted it." Industry polls agree. Over 85% of women prefer the Z3 to the S2000. And unfortunately, that is Honda's target audience. Mary Anne Settle, automotive editor for the Sacramento Daily Times calls the S2000 "snippy". Says Settle: "it looks like a kid's Pinewood Derby car. Take a block of wood, lob some off the front, and stick on wheels."
Mysteriously, the root of the design issue may be traced back to BMW.
Sato Goto, former head of Honda Design Studios in Van Nuys, California,
fired last year for undisclosed reasons, now tells of some dirty secrets: that the S2000 his group penned was based on Z4 designs stolen from BMW. "We knew that the S2000 had to be something special to compete with the BMW Z3. At the time, Honda had the opportunity to obtain the drawings for the new BMW Z4 from a disgruntled BMW designer. We wanted to one-up BMW and beat them, basically with their own design." Could Goto's accusations ring true? Now that BMW's Z4 has been shown to the public, the resemblance is uncanny. Los Angeles County records contain a sealed indictment against Goto, filed last month by Honda Design Studios. What more might Mr. Goto know? BMW has no comment. Goto's right hand man, Junichi Kurebayashi, won't comment on the Z4 designs. Fired along with Goto, Kurebayashi is under court order not to discuss any design issues related to the theft of the Z4 designs. However, Kurebayashi does have strong feeling about corporate Honda's handing of his design: "I design S2000 to be best sport car ever. Make design with everything better over Z3. But Tokyo Honda says too expensive. So they make cheaper. Tiny engine. Ugly paint colors. Even no heated seats. Who ever hear of convertible with no heated seats? BMW have heated seats. Honda no heated seats, Honda no sell S2000."
It seems everyone at Honda has an opinion on the lackluster appeal of the S2000. That doesn't stop the grin on the face of corporate BMW: with the new Z4 flagship, the S2000 will likely fade away quickly. Which, according to Goto, will be a godsend "It won't be soon enough. Honda needs to get this behind them, and go back to doing what they do- building cheap family cars."
Aren't friends great?
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 58,680
Likes: 2
From: West Henrietta UPSTATE NY
I too thought it was great!
The thing about the heated seat though. He is right on target. Honda just plain dropped the ball. And don't anybody give me a pile of crap about weight. Who here has ever been overcome with the weight of an electric blanket???
The thing about the heated seat though. He is right on target. Honda just plain dropped the ball. And don't anybody give me a pile of crap about weight. Who here has ever been overcome with the weight of an electric blanket???
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 27
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From: Corpus Christi
Ok explain a bit. I know all of what he said was b.s. but what part did you take in it. The S in my opinion is the hottest car right now. And I'm glad it's in limited production. No advertisement and you don't see 20,000 of them in your city. We rock.
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