QOTD: Sailing Past Sinking Ships in 2019?
Last Wednesday, our Question of the Day asked which automaker you wished well in 2019. Today we take a different approach, and ask which automaker doesn’t need any of your positive internet thoughts and prayers.
The question is a simple one: Which single manufacturer do you think is best positioned to succeed in 2019? This OEM don’t need to change many things around, as in your view they’re doing things (mostly) the right way.
Though ’tis a simple enough question at its base, the more one ponders, the more difficult it becomes. A few passing thoughts came and went while struggling for the correct answer:
Chevrolet
Trucks and SUV/CUV action = good. Closing plants and cancelling models = bad. But GM hasn’t closed the factories yet.
Ford
The new Ranger, though expensive, seems pretty okay. Trucks and SUV/CUV action is good. Cancelling all cars save the Mustang = bad. Mobility!
Nissan
The company has fifty billion different CUV offerings, and considerable fleet sales for that tasty volume. But it also has a few legal issues with its recently ousted chairman, and that might spell a rocky road forward.
Mercedes-Benz
Broad product offering is very good. But M-B has stooped lower and lower into bargain-basement lease customer territory, and here in 2019 their long-term reliability is pretty questionable.
Every manufacturer I considered has a chink in its armor; something they’re not doing quite right. Alas, I don’t have an answer for today’s question. But perhaps one of you can convince me there’s a manufacturer standing out above the rest in 2019.
[Image: Ford, Mercedes-Benz]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.
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Nissan: A sinking Ship? I would say that is the accurate statement of the new year! Happy 2019. My prediction, GM Full Size twins to take big hit. FCA 1500 series to be the big winner. Sadly, Tacoma and Tesla fan boys will solider on in the comment section.
FCA will be just fine so long as they keep building a supply of TIPMs for the suckers that bought their vehicles. Should keep them in business, well, forever.