Comments on: The Open Source Car http://www.radicaltrust.ca/2009/04/16/the-open-source-car/ Blogging the revolution of brand democratization with an emphasis on transparency and radical trust. Thu, 19 Aug 2010 17:47:29 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: collin http://www.radicaltrust.ca/2009/04/16/the-open-source-car/comment-page-1/#comment-51719 collin Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:50:44 +0000 http://www.radicaltrust.ca/?p=1370#comment-51719 Sounds to me like you should sign up and help on the project Darcy! I think your concerns about what people will actually buy needs to come after the bigger issues of powertrain and engine. Once that nut is cracked, BMW and the others will decorate it appropriately for the market. A million bucks a car is a number crunched on their process of innovation. What if feasibility wasn't a concern for a little while, and focus on function. Concept cars simply are not cutting it anymore. I wonder if this approach is the beginning of something much more interesting in the automotive innovation realm. Sounds to me like you should sign up and help on the project Darcy!

I think your concerns about what people will actually buy needs to come after the bigger issues of powertrain and engine. Once that nut is cracked, BMW and the others will decorate it appropriately for the market. A million bucks a car is a number crunched on their process of innovation. What if feasibility wasn’t a concern for a little while, and focus on function.

Concept cars simply are not cutting it anymore.

I wonder if this approach is the beginning of something much more interesting in the automotive innovation realm.

]]> By: Darcy Kelley http://www.radicaltrust.ca/2009/04/16/the-open-source-car/comment-page-1/#comment-51717 Darcy Kelley Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:14:28 +0000 http://www.radicaltrust.ca/?p=1370#comment-51717 The concept is powerful - especially the swapable body panels attribute. The Smart brand vehicles have scary depreciation rates - 55-60% over 3 years - so having the interchangeable exterior panels is a must, but not enough. You and me are car guys, and as such know interior quality/features are critical when people decide what to buy, so there needs to be consideration for upgrading the inside of this vehicle, too, for it to sell well. BMW cites a cost of roughly $1-mil per hydrogen 'engine.' Hydrogen may be the penultimate fuel goal, but surely there is more practical possibility with a hybrid electric-small displacement gas engine. The concept is powerful – especially the swapable body panels attribute. The Smart brand vehicles have scary depreciation rates – 55-60% over 3 years – so having the interchangeable exterior panels is a must, but not enough.

You and me are car guys, and as such know interior quality/features are critical when people decide what to buy, so there needs to be consideration for upgrading the inside of this vehicle, too, for it to sell well.

BMW cites a cost of roughly $1-mil per hydrogen ‘engine.’ Hydrogen may be the penultimate fuel goal, but surely there is more practical possibility with a hybrid electric-small displacement gas engine.

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