I thought the agreement was no more than 276HP. But that agreement was always a bunch of b.s. anyways. The 300ZX TT, Supra TT, Skyline, and maybe some versions of the STi and Evo all had more than 276 hp. Of course the "official" rating from the manufactors was always 276 hp.

 

You meant to say 180 HP Quad4, since 1990

 

Check the sales #'s, Imports don't need big HP#'s to sell. They have been stealing market share for the last 20 years.

STi & Evo are 276hp in Japan. 300hp & 271hp in the USA. Acura is a North American brand so it can and will put out stuff over 276HP

 

How about this:


What are all car manufacturers (foreign and especially domestic) doing to reduce weights in cars?

Less weight, better acceleration, better stopping, better handling, and better fuel economy.

Something like the Lotus elise, although it only has 180-200hp, is really quick, since it weighs in at just under 2,000lbs.

 

Have you seen an elise in person? You really feel like you could step on it and squash it.

 

New alloys and lighter parts. advanced CAD help trim added weight from parts. Notice how all cars have plastic bumpers and aluminum engines are everywhere. GM's Hydroforming saves weight while making frames stronger.

That is basically a 1 person car.

 

Those are just bumper covers. the bumpers are not plastic.

 

It also is a $40,000 car with an engine from toyota's low cost celica and matrix. That means most of that 40k is spent in making it so light weight. I dont need a 40k commuter car personally.

 

inside those plastic bumpers is plastic honey come and styrofoam. Not big chrome bumpers like in the 60's or like on trucks.

 

Toyota 12.2%, Honda 8.2% and Nissan 5.8% still dont equal GM's 28.5% USA share of the market.

 

Well, most the 500hp cars that are being talked about are definately 40K cars.
Ok, the Elise was an extreme example. The point I was trying to make was that HP is only part of the equation. Weight is another big part. It's easy to make more HP, at least easy compared to trying to put a car on a diet.

Look at something like a nissan 240sx. There's a RWD 4 seater that comes in well under 3,000lbs. I know the versions in the US didn't come with a turbo, but the S15 versions in japan had 250+ hp. That inline 4 with the added weight of the turbo/intercooler/manifold couldn't be THAT much lighter than the aluminum V8s that are out now. And the retail on those cars was ~25k.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to defend imports, or bash domestics, or anything like that. Just making a point that weight matters, and it would be nice if carmakers paid more attention to it, not just on 50K+ cars.

 

GM's earnings cannot be directly compared with Honda or Toyota. Look at how many brands they manufacture, not to mention commercial vehicles. Those are skewed statistics.

 

The only thing that could skew the stat in favor of GM is if it includes medium duty trucks.

 

Not yet, but they are getting closer every year. Look at the % from 20 years ago and today.

They do try and make cars lighter, mostly to get higher MPG, but that cost money. Would you pay an extra $5000 to save 150lbs. on a Malibu?

 

Not only does GM manufacture medium trucks, but it has 9 different brands! You cant really compare the sales of 9 differnet brands to a companies that only have 2.