Small sedans under the gun: Automakers anticipating shift in U.S. market to more versatile vehicles
RICK KRANZ | Automotive News
Posted Date: 9/21/05
FRANKFURT - Automakers are preparing for a big shift at the small-car end of the U.S. market this decade.
A new breed of vehicle, the mini-minivan, is emerging as the next major product trend for the American market, many industry watchers and executives agree. Already popular in Europe and Asia, the small one-box vehicles, along with a flood of small sporty hatchbacks, are likely to replace such low-end sedans as the Dodge Neon in automakers' lineups, they say.
"I see the possibility that monospace vehicles will slowly work their way into the U.S. marketplace, as they have done in Europe for years," Ford Motor Co. design chief J Mays said at the Frankfurt auto show last week.
Todd Turner, president of consulting firm Car Concepts Inc. in Thousand Oaks, Calif., says the functionality of these vehicles will become the hallmark of design at the low end of the market.
That means one vehicle capable of supporting owners through lifestyle phases ranging from single mountain biker to married soccer mom or dad.
"What young buyers are looking for is the most they can get for their money," he said in an interview here. "That is not just performance and size. It is capability. It is flexibility, versatility."
Similar characteristics
Generally, vehicles in the new category have similar characteristics: four-cylinder engines, front-wheel drive, good fuel economy and sticker prices beginning under $19,000.
Most important for their target audience, they offer relatively cavernous interior space despite small exterior dimensions.
Vehicles such as the Honda Element, Scion xB and recently introduced Mazda5 mini-minivan fit into the category, along with a few new names: the five-passenger 2007 Dodge Caliber, the 2007 Jeep Compass hatchbacks and the 2007 Jeep Patriot sport wagon.
Those three vehicles go on sale next year and will be priced around $17,000.
The Chrysler group's design chief, Trevor Creed, agrees that a shift is occurring.
"I think we will see more products along those lines," he said in Frankfurt.
More competition
While the new Mazda5 has the mini-minivan segment to itself in the United States for now, both Turner and Creed expect to see competition heat up. For example, Nissan is preparing a small wagonlike vehicle that will be introduced later this decade, Turner says.
The six-passenger Mazda5 features three-row seating, with two seats in each row, and is shorter, narrower and lower than the Mazda MVP minivan.
Creed said disappointing sales for the first- and second-generation Neon sedans led to the decision to create the Caliber, a five-door hatchback.
"The first Neon, the second Neon, they haven't been successes," he conceded. "So we said, 'Why don't we do something that is completely different, something people would not expect,' rather than trying to go back into Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla (sedan) territory."
source:http://www.autoweek.com/news.cms?newsId=103205
RICK KRANZ | Automotive News
Posted Date: 9/21/05
FRANKFURT - Automakers are preparing for a big shift at the small-car end of the U.S. market this decade.
A new breed of vehicle, the mini-minivan, is emerging as the next major product trend for the American market, many industry watchers and executives agree. Already popular in Europe and Asia, the small one-box vehicles, along with a flood of small sporty hatchbacks, are likely to replace such low-end sedans as the Dodge Neon in automakers' lineups, they say.
"I see the possibility that monospace vehicles will slowly work their way into the U.S. marketplace, as they have done in Europe for years," Ford Motor Co. design chief J Mays said at the Frankfurt auto show last week.
Todd Turner, president of consulting firm Car Concepts Inc. in Thousand Oaks, Calif., says the functionality of these vehicles will become the hallmark of design at the low end of the market.
That means one vehicle capable of supporting owners through lifestyle phases ranging from single mountain biker to married soccer mom or dad.
"What young buyers are looking for is the most they can get for their money," he said in an interview here. "That is not just performance and size. It is capability. It is flexibility, versatility."
Similar characteristics
Generally, vehicles in the new category have similar characteristics: four-cylinder engines, front-wheel drive, good fuel economy and sticker prices beginning under $19,000.
Most important for their target audience, they offer relatively cavernous interior space despite small exterior dimensions.
Vehicles such as the Honda Element, Scion xB and recently introduced Mazda5 mini-minivan fit into the category, along with a few new names: the five-passenger 2007 Dodge Caliber, the 2007 Jeep Compass hatchbacks and the 2007 Jeep Patriot sport wagon.
Those three vehicles go on sale next year and will be priced around $17,000.
The Chrysler group's design chief, Trevor Creed, agrees that a shift is occurring.
"I think we will see more products along those lines," he said in Frankfurt.
More competition
While the new Mazda5 has the mini-minivan segment to itself in the United States for now, both Turner and Creed expect to see competition heat up. For example, Nissan is preparing a small wagonlike vehicle that will be introduced later this decade, Turner says.
The six-passenger Mazda5 features three-row seating, with two seats in each row, and is shorter, narrower and lower than the Mazda MVP minivan.
Creed said disappointing sales for the first- and second-generation Neon sedans led to the decision to create the Caliber, a five-door hatchback.
"The first Neon, the second Neon, they haven't been successes," he conceded. "So we said, 'Why don't we do something that is completely different, something people would not expect,' rather than trying to go back into Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla (sedan) territory."
source:http://www.autoweek.com/news.cms?newsId=103205
