Archive for January, 2007
January 19th, 2007
The price of increased market share for the Japanese juggernauts Toyota and Honda is becoming more apparent these days as they advance even further into the domestic automotive market, that is, more recalls. The demand for the most popular vehicles, demands more output from the factories, often leading to a lapse in stringent quality control checks or batches of sub-par components that often never become apparent until years later. This malign which often plagues the home turf manufacturers such as GM, Ford and DamlierChrysler is now becoming a more frequent visitor to their doorstep making for a small chink in what once was, ironclad armor.
Today we find that Toyota has launched a voluntary recall of its very successful full-size pickup and SUV, the Tundra and Sequoia according to Automotive News. The culprit being the ball joint assemblies in the front suspension. Toyota have said that maybe the surfaces could have been scratched during assembly causing excessive wear resulting in harder steering and excessive noise. Is this because the manufacturing process has been sped up to meet demand?
This follows a similar recall of the popular 4Runners, Tacomas, Tundras and Sequoias in May of 2005 which also had ball-joint problems even though the company denied any problems with the manufacturing process.
To me this signifies the inherent problem that faces all mass production. The higher the demand, the less time allowed for assembly and troubleshooting, after all you have to crank out those vehicles so as not to lose a sale. The numbers we are taking about are significant, 553,000 for this recall on 2004-07 vehicles and 750,000 for the previous 2001-04 recall but will this tarnish the indisputable reputation for quality that everyone has come to expect from Toyota. If it were a domestic manufacturer I’m sure the outcome would be significant, take the tire problems of Ford as an instance, this was the start of a downward spiral.
Hondas woes account for a total of 81,000 vehicles of their popular sedan, the Accord, for model years 2004-05 representing 23% of sales for those years. The problem lies in the faulty wiring of an airbag sensor on the drivers side which can result in full deployment regardless of the seat position. As everyone is well aware, this could be extremely dangerous for smaller drivers causing injuries rather than preventing them.
With every manufacturer trying to squeeze their suppliers to keep operating costs down even the most reliable vendors are going to cut costs, therefore passing any unfortunate mishap on to the consumer. Is this the price of doing business in the 21st century we may well ask and still be competitive?
Nevertheless, much of the component manufacturing is finding its way to cheaper labor forces that are abundant in contries such as India and China but does that mean the quality aspect may be a little off? The expectations that are taken for granted here may take a little more time with a different labor force even though the skill levels are the same, making it even more important that the quality controllers and batch inspectors are vigilant until that playing field is indeed level.
Still, with the ever increasing battle for the manufacturers number one spot, chances will be taken to bring vehicles to market quicker, to gain that edge over the next competitor but in doing so quality of parts must not suffer, neither should passenger safety, after all, it’s mine and your life that is at stake.
January 9th, 2007
Over on Clay, Application to Refinement forum “Geep” has posted his remarks on building my angle bracket from the plans provided at my claysculptors website and to compliment his workmanship he has done a fine job. These angle brackets are a necessary item if you are contemplating building a scale model as a home project, purely just to ensure some kind of balance to the model. Many of us who are attempting to create our own little masterpiece will realize that it takes considerable time and money to setup enough equipment to go through the process without the additional hassle of keep running to the local Home Depot for supplies.
The only option for many of these specialized tools is to construct them yourself and with the angle bracket this is no exception. To actually purchase a couple of metal aluminum or magnesium angle plates would cost quite a considerable amount of money, such as you would get from Norton Equipment Corp. The biggest problem is to find a supplier who has the size that would suit the task at hand at a reasonable cost. Initially that was what I had in mind but after considerable research I found that the cost was prohibitive for a project set for the garage, the setup is for hobby modelmaking and not industrial or commercial, so option two comes into play, make your own.
With making your own equipment the biggest factor is whether you are up to the task and do you have enough free time to get the job done. The material aspect of this project is a relatively small cost, it’s more a matter of woodworking skill.
John, aka “Geep” has enhanced the initial design by adding cut-outs in the webs to the angle head and lightening holes to the main spine of the bracket giving it a more purposeful look. The adjustment knobs have been taken to the next level, giving them a sprocket type feel with the use of a nice variety of hardwoods.The initial design is available via the link to plans above for anyone who wants to have a go as a download PDF.
One of the design issues at present is to add weight to the base of the angle plate to prevent it from toppling when in use. The use of plywood as the material of choice has the benefit of being light, easily worked and readily available but it doesn’t have the added/needed weight for stability when actually put to the test. The answer is to add additional weight to the base, be it as lead shot as John has suggested or affix an additional metal plate to the top of the base to provide more ballast.
Johns suggestion of routing out the underneath and filling with a mixture of lead shot and resin will retain the aesthetic look of the design but may present a additional problem of ensuring a flat base, be it only a slight problem. Additional care would have to be taken in the setup before pouring the resin/shot mix. My suggestion of affixing a plate on top of the base is the simpliest solution although not the most aesthetically pleasing. No doubt I will have to put more thought to this before deciding the best course.
Do you have any suggestions? Checkout the forum and add your solution there or post here. The best results always spring from combined thoughts.
January 8th, 2007
This time last year the top honors for Car and Truck of the year fell to the Japanese company Honda, with the Civic and the Ridgeline. The first time in the fourteen year history of the award that one company has taken both honors. Very impressive as Detroit has always been known as the home of the American auto industry, with that, the spoils for the year saw Honda increase its marketplace percentages as did Toyota at the expense of GM, Ford and DaimlerChrysler.
This year the North American Car and Truck award goes to General Motors with the 49 automotive journalists appointing the Saturn Aura and the Cheverolet Silverado the winners, making it the second year in a row that one company has taken both honors, couple this with the turn around plan that Rick Wagoner has in place we could see some real momentum for 2007.
This was no easy feat when you think of the competition, the Saturn Aura edged out the Toyota Camry and the Honda Fit proving that the quality is there. The Silverado bettered the Ford Edge and the Mazda CX-7 to win its award. Now with some real contenders out in the marketplace what better time than to reveal the continual story of the Chevrolet Camaro with the Camaro convertible. With production penciled in for 2009 this will keep the palate salivating until the real vehicles emerge. Much to the Generals credit, this years offerings are all about quality and with the possible emergence of an alternative fuel vehicle such as the Chevrolet Volt, the tide could be finally turning.
With the roller coaster year 2006 behind us and 2007 starting off in good stead the comeback could be on for General Motors. The stock has stabilized at around $30.00 after Kerkorian the billionaire investor withdrew his support by selling all his stock, leaving little doubt that he was not impressed with the current offering, but now, was it a hasty move? New product is making its way to the marketplace at ever increasing speed, fresh and less quirky proving a good design doesn’t have to be extreme. Good money doesn’t buy extreme, good money buys sensible well thought-out reliable transportation.
The combined efforts of Rick Wagoner and Bob Lutz have put real emphasis on got to have products with real quality, leaving us with no doubt that the number one auto maker will not give up its crown without a fight. This year could be the turning point and with the automotive journalists giving their stamp of approval this could just be the beginning.
