So why do you think there are no cheap basic cars being sold new?

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

My mother had one of these for 7 years, from 2007 to 2014.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Sometimes a model catering to "emerging" markets, relying on outdated underpinnings, is not so appealing to the manufacturer as it may not be so easy to sell somewhere else for a premium. That was the case with the Volkswagen Gol, which used to resort to the very same underpinnings of the B1 Passat/Dasher with some mods in order to cut costs.



Well, had it not been for the Chicken Tax, maybe it would've been easier to export the Saveiro to the United States...

[Isaac Zachary]

I've seen VW Gols in Mexico.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by Isaac Zachary

I've seen VW Gols in Mexico.

I've had a Gol as a rental in Mexico. There is no way it would sell in the USA.

100 hp, no airbags or ABS let alone stability control. No screen for carplay or android auto. The Gol makes a Chevy Spark look like a luxury car.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by JSH

100 hp, no airbags or ABS let alone stability control. No screen for carplay or android auto.

At least since late-'98 ABS and airbags had been offered as options, yet it was not much common. Stability control sounded like science-fiction in Brazil back in the day.

[Isaac Zachary]

Originally Posted by JSH

I've had a Gol as a rental in Mexico. There is no way it would sell in the USA.

100 hp, no airbags or ABS let alone stability control. No screen for carplay or android auto. The Gol makes a Chevy Spark look like a luxury car.

From what I understand the Spark sold in countries like Mexico is also very lacking in safety features and could be conisdered a death trap.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by Isaac Zachary

From what I understand the Spark sold in countries like Mexico is also very lacking in safety features and could be conisdered a death trap.

True but the Chevy Spark is the cheapest new car sold in the USA. I'd say it is a pretty good benchmark for the topic of this thread as to why manufacturers don't sell basic new cars without any options in the USA.

I've driven lots of basic cars in Mexico - most without any safety features and zero start safety rating from NCAP.

Odd as it is my favorite car to rent in Mexico (that my company will pay for) is the 3rd gen Nissan Versa but it needs to have the CVT. The version with a 4-speed auto is SLOW which makes passing on Mexican toll roads difficult. When you only have 95-105 hp you need the engine to stay at optimal RPM.


The newish Chevy Cavalier was decent too and apparently has been upgraded since my last visit in 2019. From Wiki:

The Cavalier was updated for the 2020 model year for Mexico with minor changes, adding three new colors, new alloy design, four airbags and ABS brakes, three-point seatbelts, and stability control

[Isaac Zachary]

Originally Posted by JSH

The version with a 4-speed auto is SLOW which makes passing on Mexican toll roads difficult. When you only have 95-105 hp you need the engine to stay at optimal RPM.

I've never driven through Mexico with anything more than an 82hp 1993 Mazda 323 with a slipping clutch. Usually I'd drive on the autopista in my 54hp VW non-turbo diesel.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by Isaac Zachary

I've never driven through Mexico with anything more than an 82hp 1993 Mazda 323 with a slipping clutch. Usually I'd drive on the autopista in my 54hp VW non-turbo diesel.

The toll road between the city and our factory is 2 lanes. That means it is a 3 lane road using the Mexican technique of passing on blind corners by just going down center of the road and expect oncoming and overtaken vehicles to move onto the shoulder. However, I'm not very trusting of that technique so I prefer to pass slow-moving semis in the conventional way between breaks in oncoming traffic - which requires reasonable acceleration.

No doubt I could just stick to the shoulder and crawl up hills behind the semis but after 10 - 12 hours in the plant you just want to get back to the hotel for a shower and then head out for some dinner. Even with enough power to pass it is still a 45 minute drive each way from the city to the factory.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by Isaac Zachary

From what I understand the Spark sold in countries like Mexico is also very lacking in safety features and could be conisdered a death trap.

Nowadays the Spark sold in some Latin American countries is up-to-date with the US-spec, yet some previous generations had a greater difference. Not to mention the earliest Spark was not even available in the United States and Canada, yet it seems to have sold like hot cakes in every Spanish-speaking country.