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Originally Posted by Sparky-steve
it's people saying things like this that has caused rover group to disappear with all those jobs gone...
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If only it were that simple! One of BL's biggest problems was that they used their customers as development engineers - Mini floorpan leaks, Maxi cable gearchange, etc., etc. The Marina was a panic measure rushed to market to competein the fleet at a time when BL's front wheel drive cars were too expensive to buy& costly to run for fleet buyers to even consider them. So, they cobbled together & cheap-to-build car using a lot of Morris Minor components; unfortunately the cars released for the press launch were a classic case of underdevelopment - massive understeer & drum brakes which just didn't stop the car were two of the major problems. The latter of those problems earned a lot of overtime for some of my colleagues involved in the panic programme to develop a brake lining material which was up to the job!
BL, as did many British companies, dug itself into a hole by failing to invest & develop new products when times were good - the old "it's selling well, why replace it?" attitude. By the time they realised that they needed new products the money had run out; add to that strong, militant unions & weak management & you had the recipe for disaster.
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and BL/Austin, morris/ rover vehicles were very under estimated,
and had no more faults that ford, vauxhall etc cars..
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The kindest thing I can say about some, but by no means all, of BL's products is that, deep down, there was a good car trying to get out. . .