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Recently, I was reading an article on Speedville.com about a market action Peugeot was taking. The main thrust of the article was that Peugeot announced the end of the company’s RCZ sports car. I guess on the surface this action is probably not very remarkable. Personally, I was unfamiliar with the RCZ and probably would not have given the article much thought if it weren’t for the author. You can find the article here. The RCZ was Peugeot’s answer to the Audi TT.
It is a pretty cool-looking car with a definite slant toward performance. Of course, compromises abound in a vehicle like this but it was still an entry into the personal performance coupe market. This is a small niche market and sometimes is considered an image vehicle. Most manufacturers have one or more of these.
No one really ever expects to make one of these a profitable venture but sometimes they explode and are profitable. Corvette, T-bird, etc. are a few that turned into mainstream, high-volume vehicles. These vehicles are intended to stir the imagination and bring in other buyers to the brand that may not want that vehicle, but would buy the sedan version because it comes from a “cool” manufacturer that builds the sexier model. I guess you could say it is sort of a subtle marketing ploy. Either way, they are intended to instill passion or excitement into the market.
This is where I take issue with Peugeot’s decision to kill the vehicle. I am sure it is an excellent decision from a financial point of view. Today, automakers are run so strictly by the numbers that decisions like this go on all the time. Passion in the auto world is all but gone. In the 60s, Henry Ford II decided to win Le Mans and beat Ferrari, not because it would be a profitable venture, but because he was mad at Ferrari and wanted his brand to be considered a performance powerhouse. He did it and the performance legend surrounding that initiative prevails today. I am, of course, focused on good business practices and being fiscally responsible. But, I do believe that passion for your work is a key component for being successful. The automotive building and repair markets are ripe with things to be passionate about. Customer satisfaction, quality and reputation are all good business practices to be passionate about. Just don’t be afraid to spend a little to pursue them. RIP, RCZ.
