Is there a definitive list of British built cars anywhere?.
I presently have a Rover but obviously I won't be able to have another.
|
There's a list here: www.autoindex.org/makelist.plt?cntr=22&letter=All
Includes kit car makers too, so it looks like quite a big list!
|
|
Roverman, could we see your ID changing to Nobleman, Morganman or even Bristolman?
|
the saddest thing of all is that we are still capable of building high quality cars, just not capable of managing the companies that build them !!
Read a recent report that British management are the worst in Europe at communicating with their staff - anyone suprised, think not !!
|
I think in a global market and globalisation of manufacturing, the concept of a "British" car, or indeed a national anything, is out of date and virtually meaningless.
Components are made all over the world. They are assembled into bigger products in factories all over the world. The workforce comes from all over the world, and so does the capital, and the management expertise.
The purpose of a car industry is to provide customers with cars they want at a price they are willing to pay. Who cares where they are made, or who makes them? I don't weep over the demise of the British paperclip industry, I just want paperclips.
|
I think in a global market and globalisation of manufacturing, the concept of a "British" car, or indeed a national anything, is out of date and virtually meaningless. Components are made all over the world. They are assembled into bigger products in factories all over the world. The workforce comes from all over the world, and so does the capital, and the management expertise. The purpose of a car industry is to provide customers with cars they want at a price they are willing to pay. Who cares where they are made, or who makes them? I don't weep over the demise of the British paperclip industry, I just want paperclips.
>>
Car brands have a rather higher public profile than paperclips, I think.
Where they are made may not be important but the concept of a national brand is important to a lot of people. At least I bet it is to the Japanese, Germans, French, Italians and Americans.
|
|
|
Who cares where they are made, or who makes them?
-- fine example of British thinking when it comes to manufacturing industry, it's not only about the specific company itself (in this case rover) it's also about the thousands of jobs created in the local communities & the subsequent impact on the local economy.
If you take at look at countries such as China & India you'll see that they're building their economies based upon the very manufacturing industries we in the UK have given up on. Whilst we could never compete on labour costs if British companies had had the foresight to invest in high techonology & skills training we would have been able to do exactly as all the "foreign" manufacturers now established in the UK have done - run successful & profitable companies producing quality products !!
It's no coincidence that the most successful "british" manufacturers are owned by foreign companies.
I should know I work for AIRBUS UK & it's thanks mainly to the French that the company is as successful as it is now - if left to the Brits it would probably have stopped manufacturing aircraft years ago !!
|
|
|
|
Italy looks like it might be the next country to lose its own mass-market car industry. All its brands are owned by Fiat Auto, which is not prospering.
Cheers, Sofa Spud
|
|
|
|
Roverman, could we see your ID changing to Nobleman, Morganman or even Bristolman?
Nah, I'm thinking Jagman at the moment.
|
|
Since Jaguar is owned by Ford maybe it'd be easier and cheaper to become Fordman :)
|
|
Isn't Volvo also owned by Ford? :)
|
You seem to have forgotten about, for instance, Nissan at Sunderland, Toyota in Derbyshire and Deeside and Honda at Swindon - all have proved over the years that British employees can and do build high class and reliable vehicles that match quality levels from anywhere else in the world.
In addition such UK factories' employees have a proud overall efficiency record.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
|
"Nissan at Sunderland, Toyota in Derbyshire and Deeside and Honda at Swindon - all have proved over the years that British employees can and do build high class and reliable vehicles that match quality levels from anywhere else in the world."
Given a chance. I recall hearing that Nissan made a point of not employing people from the existing motor makers to keep out Red Robbies.
|
|
|
|
Isn't Volvo also owned by Ford? :)
>>
Yep and so I believe is Mazda - the marque I currently drive.
As regards being 'British', does this mean being built here or being built here by a UK owned company? Would a car built abroad by a British company be more or less British than a car built here by a foreign company?? Does anyone really care anymore? :)
|
As regards being 'British', does this mean being built here or being built here by a UK owned company? Would a car built abroad by a British company be more or less British than a car built here by a foreign company?? Does anyone really care anymore? :)
Quite so, Volvoman, that was what I was trying to say. Then add in the factors that the "home" built car may use "foreign" components, or the foreign car use British components, and you are left wondering why it matters.
Volvos are Swedish to the core, yet are owned by Ford, and have at different times been built in Finland or Belgium. Rolls Royce long ago had a factory in America. British classics like Morgan have used American engines. etc etc.
There is no world shortage of cars for sale, who cares where they are made as long as they are available here?
|
|
Yep- missed your original post CP. Havig said that I do care about things being manufactured here - what those things are is another issue. Cars have traditonally been a big part of our economy and I'd hate to see that lost and the 10000's of jobs transferred to the service sector. We need to manufacture things in order to underpin the economy and if this sort of thing continues I can see UK PLC becoming a house of cards.
|
|
|
|
>>Yep and so I believe is Mazda - the marque I currently drive.>>
Ford has had at least a 25 per cent stake in Mazda (now a Ford subsidiary) for many years - in 1992 they signed an agreement for Mazda to distribute Ford vehicles in Japan; in 1996 Mazda and Ford forged closer ties, with Ford increasing its equity share from 25 per cent to 33.4 per cent.
IIRC the Ford Probe was a Mazda MX6 variant or vice-versa and there are several other examples of mutual co-operation.
Mazda also had a tie-up with Kia in the 1990s, but such arrangements are very common between many different manufacturers to help keep down development and manufacturing costs.
I well recall that Fiat also produced its Ducato(?) van as a Citroen C15 and Peugeot Talbot Express on the same Italian production lines - it was ironic that some UK van buyers wouldn't touch the Ducato at the time because of Fiat's earier reputation for rust....:-)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Glad to see Vauxhall get a mention in the list unlike on the BBC news yesterday when the likes of Nissan & Honda get a mention as manufacturing cars in the UK after that they jumped down to TVR. Quite a few Astras get made at Ellesmere Port and exported too.
|
>>Quite a few Astras get made at Ellesmere Port and exported too.>>
The UK manufactured Astras are all built at Ellesmere Port.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
|
>>Quite a few Astras get made at Ellesmere Port and exported too.>> The UK manufactured Astras are all built at Ellesmere Port. - - - - - - - - - - -
Vauxhall got a £1.9 million bung from the Govt earlier this week to keep Ellesmere ticking.
|
|
|
|
|
Is there a definitive list of British built cars anywhere?. I presently have a Rover but obviously I won't be able to have another.
Last November, Autocar ran an piece about all the car plants in the UK. I had another look at it last night; without MG-Rover, it appears the biggest (by volume) wholly-British-owned car manufacturer is going to be....Morgan!
|
|
HJ according to a news report this morning Ford UK have spent the past eighteen months stockpiling K series engines to tide them over when the crunch came. Don't know what they will replace it with.
|
What Ford group cars dose the K series engine power? I know the petrol Freelander's but that going to be replaced next year with Freelander2.
James.
|
|
|
|
