PARTICIPATION BADGES

We’re living in a rapidly changing world and our automotive landscape is being hit by the rollon effects. Half a century ago, manufacturers were cranking out sub-models, trim packages, and limited editions as if it they were going out of fashion. Gripped by the ups and downs of manufacturing, the need to stay competitive against other brands meant that there was a seemingly endless supply of options for newcar buyers to get their hands on.

However, that was a different time, and the way we live has changed a fair bit over the past 10 years, let alone the past 50. Consumer trends are showing a shying away from a wide range of vehicle purchases and a move towards focusing on safe, family-oriented haulers and economy cars that attempt to combat rising fuel prices. In response, many automakers are scrambling to crank out the latest and greatest in electric-vehicle (EV) technology and tap into a booming demand for the clean and green. As a result, the production of outliers such as sports cars is being whittled away and disappearing altogether; you can blame

the lack of buyers and a constant restriction on emissions for that.

This puts automakers and consumers alike in a difficult position. Those of us who are waiting for the next performance model to drop are unlikely to free up the budget to purchase a new car unless it is truly worthwhile, reducing the cash flow that automakers need to stay in the game. On the other side of the card, those automakers know that consumers are less likely to buy sports cars that aren’t new, innovative, and attention grabbing; therefore, developing one from scratch is not only costly and time-consuming, but runs a huge risk of flopping and putting the company into a bad financial situation.

All this is why it doesn’t surprise me that, in recent years, we’ve seen an increasing trend of manufacturers teaming up to produce a common model that is sold under multiple monikers. It isn’t strictly a new phenomenon, with badge-engineering dating back to the ’70s; however, we haven’t really seen such deep integration as we have in this decade. It may seem like a crime against nature for brand-dedicated fans, and there have been a few questionable crossovers, but, when you put loyalty aside and think about it from a logical, cost-oriented point of view, it tends to make a bit of sense.

Designing, developing, and launching a new model requires extensive funds and is a huge risk to a manufacturer. Knowing the trends and where buyers are spending their money at present, the chances of a successful performance car is reasonably low — you’ve got a niche market, to say the least. To spread that cost and risk by teaming up with another manufacturer to pool resources is generally the only way to make the investment viable, typically using an adapted version of an existing platform.

While this means that we don’t always get the exact configurations that we’d like, it does make the difference between getting something and getting nothing. Rather than slam it, put your money where it counts and support manufacturers when it’s deserved. After all, given the circumstances, we’ve had a few solid offerings!