FAILURES, YOU HAVE OUR THANKS

WE need more failing car companies. If you look at the list of Italian car companies that has ever existed, 95 names no longer exist on the market while Germany chalks up 209 dead car companies.

Britain has 516 car companies consigned to the history books despite having an automotive industry that currently consists mostly of groups of bearded men in sheds.

Uncle Sam can boast 1,860 defunct car companies on its register of companies and this extraordinary number stands for something.

These companies suddenly become irrefutable proof that failures produce good classic cars.

There is no proof that the failed car companies contributed significantly to the list of collectible cars today but it does seem to indicate that companies need to fail so that others can build cool cars.

The number of failed car companies is an indicator just how obsessed a country is with the car and we know that the United States is still the most car-obsessed country in the world, by far.

China may end up buying more cars than the Americans but it doesn’t mean that they are more car crazed than the Americans. I mean, all the iPhones in the world are made in China but it is still crap at designing stuff.

The Americans showed the way when it came to cars because their car culture arrived on the back of fantastic economic growth from the 1930s onwards, when people bought cars not just to travel but also to enjoy the latest technology and show off their latest gadget.

Cars were the iPhones of the 1950s and 1960s in terms of status symbol in the US. The existence of these companies shows that the community is very vibrant and anything that is vibrant is full of ideas.

Not all ideas are good but in order for the good ideas to come out, a certain number of bad ideas have to peek their head and be proven wrong.

Innovation is simply making enough mistakes until there are no more mistakes to make and you end up doing something right.

The Cadillac V-16, launched in 1930, is a car that is way ahead of the rest of the world not only because it has 16 cylinders but also it had other niceties, too.

In the first few years of production, each car was custom built, with the chassis delivered to coachbuilders. That was the way they built luxury cars in those days.

From that point onwards until the 1970s, American cars led the way in terms of features and technology and design. They had so much room to play with that cars coming from the US were simply of a different calibre.

The Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Corvette became design icons and showed the world how to build reliable and fun sports cars.

American engines were sought out by Italian supercar makers such as De-Tomaso and Iso while Rolls Royce turned to General Motors for engines and gearboxes.

Britain has the second-largest roster of classic cars because it had a vibrant automotive industry in the post-World War 2 period.

The cars it built were innovative because they took note of the depressed economic situation and made full use of the restrictions and scarcity to produce lightweight sportscars which the world now loves.

The Italians did the same thing as the British but with considerably more style. As a result, classic Italian cars of the same era tend to be more prized, even if they are a lot less reliable and more difficult to restore due to the lack of parts.

The Germans, with their focus on technology and love of motorsport, nearly overtook the Americans in the 1930s and some might say that as the decade progressed, they actually did.

Cars like the Mercedes 500K showed the world what was needed to build super-complicated cars that were not just elegant and beautiful but reliable and durable as well.

While the German car industry may not have as many classics in its roster compared to the British, what they have is of a higher quality and more technically regarded.

Japan and South Korea do not have that many defunct car companies while China’s car companies are born as huge corporations and there are few small companies.

The Chinese build cars like they build the iPhones, according to the demand of market specifications, with little passion for driving enjoyme, ment.

Until they start developing a love for cars, they will never build truly great machines. If they don’t believe they can ask the South Koreans.

Malaysia needs more small manufacturers and customisers if it wants to be a force to be reckoned with in the automotive world.

Great cars are made by passionate people and passionate people tend to be very individualistic and want to create something better. Give them space so they can explore and put their creations on the road.

We must create laws that encourage responsible tinkering with cars and bikes so that from this heap of automotive madness some genius will come forth.

We must update our laws to allow for individual expression while we raise the minimum bar for safety and quality.

So far we haven’t had a single failed car company. How do we expect to produce future classics?