Re: Mercedes A-Class...Audi referenced

[ScharfR@aol.com]

In a message dated 97-11-16 02:13:33 EST, frederic.breitwieser@mcione.com
writes and/or quotes the following, with respect to the tipping Mercedes-Benz
A-Class syndrom and the "praisworthy" efforts of M-B to "come clean":

<< >Although the strategy risks drawing attention to the safety defect,
German
 >advertising executives praised the move.
 
 [snip]
 
 Seriously though, its good to see a responsible manufacturer, accepting and
 holding themselves accountable for their mistakes, even it their motivation
 is entirely selfish :) >>


Actually, the folks at M-B went through several stages of denial before they
made their public confession.  It follows the classic scenario of most people
and companies when confronted with major screw-ups of their own making.  The
usual three steps are Denial, Blame and Acceptance.  Here is a loose
recounting of the chronology of events.

1.  Initial reports of tipping and instability in Danish testing.
Response -- There is no problem.  We sent our experts and the testing was
extreme and unnatural.  The car is safe, stable and free of problems.  Don't
worry.

2.  Car tips over and injures journalists in Swedish testing.
Response -- There is no Mercedes-Benz problem, it's the Goodyear tires (bet
that really steamed the guys at Goodyear).  We'll fit new tires.  The car is
safe and stable. Don't worry.

3.  Other third-party tests establish/replicate the problem, some with other
tires.
Response -- The problem exists only at extremes of driving which occur very
rarely.  It's the Goodyear tires, but we'll also add the Electronic Stability
Control (ESP) system as standard equipment in February.  Meanwhile, we'll
keep on building and selling these things.  The car is safe. Don't worry.

4.  Public outcry continues and more evidence seems to indicate that the car
has a fundamental stability problem in severe avoidance maneuvers.  Daimler
stock price dropping significantly. 
Response: -- We'll stop selling the cars and make core engineering changes to
the vehicle, including lowering the certer of gravity, revisions to the front
and rear stabilizer bars, wider tires, installing ESP as standard equipment
 ...  The car will be safe, stable and free of problems. Don't worry.

Yeah, they fessed up.  Not before time and not before the usual denial.
 You'd think that in the heavily advertised 5,000,000 kilometres of testing
that the A-Class went through, they might have experienced something like
this.  A skeptic might think of several alternative scenarios.
A.)  There were no severe avoidance maneuvers necessary in 5,000,000
kilometres.  Congratulation on the good work, boys.
B.)  M-B test drivers are much more skilled than the rest of us and we'd all
better upgrade our skills before buying their cars.
C.)  They made some engineering trade-offs that they now regret.
D.)  They under estimated the difficulty of designing their first front-drive
car.
E.)  The task of designing three new platforms (ML, A, and Smart/Swatch),
plus faster development on the bread and butter car was just a wee bit too
much for the engineering capacity of the firm.