2.- Molancholic sadness originated by the memory of a loss
Nostalgia has come to stay in the car market. It makes a lot of sense, if we think coldly. We are facing a historical moment in the automobile industry. The regulatory changes and a new technology that seems to be average price increased of a car to Remove some capabilities He has made many feel expelled from this “new mobility.”
Nostalgia applied to the automobile market is nothing more than the redundancy of A constant of our societyencouraged to constantly remind us that all the past was better. And it does not have to be exactly like that but manufacturers have decided to enter the game. If the most common buyer of a new car exceeds 45 years and what lived between 15 and 25 years We consider it as the best time of our life …
You just have to subtract.
That is why Renault has risen to Renault 5which ceased to be manufactured 40 years ago and was an essential part of the childhood of those buyers who are already well entered in the forties. The same buyers who have the purchasing power to get those cars. He will follow him Renault 4 and the Twingo.
It is about attracting the electric car market to an audience that needs stimuli and incentives that appeal to their feelings. Ford opted for a slightly more risky strategy: use mythical names. He did it with the Ford Mustang, who was left an electric brother.
And he has done it with the Ford Capri. A car that was an icon of the 70s and a large part of the 80s. Subtracts, again, and checks who is directed An electric car called Ford Capri.
Renault has opted for popular models but Ford has chosen the way to resurrect names that have a space of honor in the collective imaginary of car lovers. And, with this, they have gotten the most staunch defenders to be thrown on them but have also managed to get to those who would cost more money with higher investments in marketing.
An example of that selective memory and understanding that the past was better for the simple fact that we remember it is the case of Ford Capri. Yes, it has risen as an electric car but in its day it also came to set up an unexpected, weird and that of course we do not associate with the Muscle Cars American.
A motorcycle engine in a mythical car
That generalized image we have of “American car” of the Ford Capri is not such and partly distorted by memory. The car was born as a European version of Ford Mustang. That forced to make a smaller car, with also smaller engines and, above all, except gastons.
That led Ford to opt for a curious solution with the launch at the end of the 60s: mount a V4 engine.
Ford’s intention was to make Capri A car that young Europeans could buythat was not expensive and that offered a cheap and sports alternative to the classic German Coupés. The proper functioning of Mustang In the United States they convinced them that they could get a similar result in Europe. With that premise, it was about recycling all possible components to prevent development from being price.
With that premise, Ford brought out a V4 engine. A very little used concept in the car market because it forces to develop a propeller with Two ass, two exhaust collectors and two valve trains. That is much more complicated than a four -cylinder engine online.
In return, you get a propeller with a very characteristic sound and very contained dimensions. Width it can be a problem if the car is very narrow but it is a much more compact option than its older brothers. In addition, the power delivery was softer than with a four -cylinder online, although it does not reach the refinement of a V6 or a V8.
That compact size is perfect for a high performance motorcycle. Its power can go above 100 hp easily and entered in this field, the configuration is ideal for high performance motorcycles. In a car, where the weight is much greater, this advantage is very eclipsed.
Ford’s V4 engine we already knew it in Europe. The company put it at the service of Ford Taunus and was Saab’s supplier. Also Lancia with the fulvia He had tried unsuccessfully to make the V4 engine an alternative to the four online cylinders. Despite their best behavior, the high development and production costs finished killing a propeller that we would see again in the Porsche 919 Hybrid of Le Mans.
But that is another story.
Photo | Ford
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