“But the largest and certainly most demonstrable lemminglike behavior in this business is model proliferation. It’s loosely based on the philosophy that if a car company utilizes its vehicle architectures efficiently to create more models, then the profits will follow and everyone will look like a hero. Except that it doesn’t really work that way.
The most strident proponents of the model proliferation philosophy are the German luxury auto manufacturers. There’s no question that they’re the OGs of this movement. They exist in a world of their own making that revolves around the credo that if model proliferation is a good thing, then even more model proliferation is an even better thing. . . . All of this was fueled, of course, by the fact that the German luxury competitors have spent the better part of the last decade jumping at the slightest whiff of a rumor of a new product from one of their competitors to come up with an answer to that product of their own.”
— Peter DeLorenzo, Auto Extremist
RE:SOURCES
- DeLorenzo, Peter M.; 2019. “Thunderheads.” Auto Extremist. Posted May 19; accessed May 22.
Also see ‘Brand management: The tail that now wags U.S. auto industry’
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