A new kind of car company

Hello all,
I'm still a young kid in college, studying mechanical engineering/automotive design at Kettering University, whilst working at Mack Trucks (Kettering has required co-op working, I will have ~2.5 years work experience when I graduate). My lifetime dream (at least since I was 8-9 years old) has been to start up my own car company, which with the current legal requirements/economy seems like quite a challenge/near impossibility... but someday I may try anyway.

But what I was getting at with the title here would be if/when I try to do that, what kind of cars would I make? I obviously can't try to go up against someone like Toyota/Honda at making bland/boring mass-market cars... and don't want to anyway. At the same time there's almost a market glut of high performance/perfectly engineered cars. On the mass produced side, something like Corvette... at the exotic side something like the 599. In between of course anything like 911's, Aston Martin V8, etc. So what would one make to be unique, yet desirable?? I've come up with a few options... and commentary on each.

1. CHEAP/high quality cars- think old VW beetle. Cost under $15k todays $$ good warranty, exceptional build quality. Along the lines of the VW, I would think cute/fun would be a requirement here. Current cars in this price category are boooooring. Kia and some low end GM are all that come to mind. VW is/was the king of this market, but they seem hell bent to move upscale... I think there'd be a big market for a car like this, but honestly my heart really wouldn't be in it...

2. "average" yet distinctive cars- I've been thinking recently about the car market over the past 50 years. People always talk about how Detroit never saw the competition coming from Japan... I think the problem was slightly different. Toyota/Honda created a new market segment, wherein a car is strictly a transportation device, devoid of any style/character. Back in the 50's you could buy a Ford or Chevy as your "cheap" car, but they were still "cool" cars (my mom often tells how excited she was when my grandpa picked her up from school in a brand new red 57 Chevy Nomad)... Nobody gets excited about dad pulling up to school in a brand new Camry. So years ago there were people who only cared about the utility of a car, but they had NO CHOICE but to buy something cool/stylish. Now the Japanese came along and offered the cheap/reliable/bland family sedan, people who didn't care about style/character moved away from Detroit iron (though admittedly the move away from Detroit was at a particularly dim part of American car history). Rather than lean out their operations and cater to people who still valued the 57 chevy type of cars GM/Ford/Chryco tried to compete with the Japanese in this new segment, but never got very good at it, and just produced bland low quality junk. Now 30 years later they're starting to catch on and come back, but they're WAY in the hole both financially and in the consumer marketplace (people don't even bother dropping by the Chevy dealer looking for a new car). So idea#2 is bring back the classic american car... reasonable price, average features, but more style/flambouyance... clear distinction over Honda/Toyota/GM/Ford... I don't believe it's really possible for a new company to compete effectively with Toyota, they're too good at what they do.

3. "Vintage Reissue"- Borrowing a term here from Gibson guitar strings, not sure what else to call it. Like I said I'm only 22... but there's always been part of me that yearns for the "good ol days" of cars. You'll hear people say now that we're in the "good ol days" as far as horsepower/performance, and that may be, but to me a car is MUCH more than that. When I was in high school my dad and I rebuilt/fiddled with/worked on a 1955 Jaguar XK 140... several crazy modifications I wont' get into, but I LOVE that car. I like the fact that there's no roll up windows, no exterior door handles, no stereo. I ENJOY fiddling with the 3 SU carburettors to get them "just so", having to fiddle with the choke, and drive the car like walking on eggshells before it warms up. I also have a 1973 Porsche 911 that has all kinds of quircks and oddities.... but it's a HOOT to drive. Now my family has been through a number of cool cars... dad's had a few of the recent supercharged Jags, mom has a new Jag XK, and dad just bought a 99 550 Maranello. But to be honest all those cars (yes Ferrari included) are pretty boring compared to either the Porsche or XK140. I mean, you turn the key it starts on the first crank, idles smoothly, no real warm up. Just start, and drive off. If I want anything done to any, it's off to the dealer so they can plug it into a computer to see what's up. I've also driven a C6 Corvette, and a 2000 Porsche 911.. same "problems". I think there's been so much effort in creating a "perfectly engineered" car that some of the companies have forgotten it's the imperfections that make a car fun. It's just the feel/smell/sound... no new car i'm aware of gives me the enjoyment of old stuff. Not that I'm saying there's anything wrong with the new/perfected cars... it's nice in a daily driver to hop in turn the key, never worry about overheating even when it's 120 with the AC on full blast. But there don't seem to be any FUN cars left. Even my friends MGB... no power/acceleration, but I can't help but grin like an idiot when i've driven it. new cars just don't "do it" for me. Not that I ever turn down a chance to drive a 550 Maranello mind you But I think it would be fun to have a "new" car that was still temperamental/eccentric/FUN. Doesn't have to be fast, doesn't have to handle well... just FUN. Judging by the huge market for classic cars I don't think I'm alone in this... wishing sometimes to go back in time. Actually the 2 cars that have gotten closest to this for me are a new (in 2004 anyway) Pontiac GTO... looks boring, but was fun to drive, and my dad's 2005 Bentley Arnage... The first several times I drove the Arnage I kept having to remind myself this was a "new" car not a "classic".

Anyway, just interested in getting opinions from other "car guys" out there. What do you think the new car-market is missing?

I've also thought a lot about dealer network/buying experience etc... but we won't get into that for now!

 

Never said anything about "Giant" Thinking more along the lines of TVR, Saleen, Callaway production levels...
And/or I make a fortune somewhere else and just play with cars for fun a'la David Brown.
And I have plenty of ideas in the efficiency/alt-fuel etc as well as general transportation (Mag-Lev trains+nuclear generation=sweet). But I was just talking about the character of cars, not so much the engineering details behind it. I've always been more into figuring out what I want to do, then how to do it, not "here's a new technology what do we do with it?"

 

Well, as far as liking Kettering... It has many downsides, but from my talks with other people at many other universities (including some "ivy league") pretty much all have the same type problems. The worst part about Kettering is Flint... not really a nice area, but on the bright side (to me), anywhere I end up when I graduate will be an improvement.

As far as the co-op goes, that's definitely the reason I went. I don't know of anywhere else in the US with this type of system, and didn't really look internationally... As far as the co-op, my first one was with a automotive test center in Nevada, and it was amazing, and my thesis there was going to be designing a new traction test vehicle and calibration center (or at least that was the plan at the time). I moved to a much larger corporation which has some advantages (pays a lot more!, closer to home etc) but the downside was moving into a manufacturing department so most of what i've done is plant layout/visualization type stuff. My thesis is working on a process of virtual assembly for class 8 trucks. The good side of that moving forward is getting experience/education in both design engineering AND manufacturing. 2 things I will need to be well versed in if ever I live my dream and startup a new company.

 

Thanks for your comments. However the one thing to remember with some of the comments (truly light trucks, smart cars etc)... the reason I'm wanting to do this if at all is that I have a huge unquenchable PASSION for cars... and those kind of cars don't inspire passion, therefore me getting into making them would just be a job.
I personally disagree with the comments regarding the death/irrelevance of the IC engine. I'm fairly "plugged in" to the automotive market by virtue of going to a college with STRONG ties to the automotive industry and that graduates more mechanical engineers than any other university in the country (maybe world?). I haven't seen or heard of any technology ready for prime time. Fuel cells still have a long way to go to be practical... hybrid still relies on IC. True electrics don't have the range required (fine for daily commute, but what if you want to drive from NY to LA?). I HAVE however seen some interesting new technologies in development for the IC engine that have signifigant promise.

Getting back to my idea #3 the idea there was to make a RAW car. I read about the 430 Scuderia with it's computers that basically do everything but steer for you... I want something that has absolutely minimal computer controlling (only what is required legally). No ABS, stability control etc. Right now I think the only car that really fits that idea is maybe the Morgan +8? It may not be a huge market, but I still think there is some market for it. New cars just bore me :/
Jaguar XK-SS is EXACTLY what I'm thinking. As I mentioned I have an XK 140 and it is my favorite car of all time. I'd love to have an XKSS but sadly they are too few and far between. D-type replicas are cool and abundant, but still out of my price range at the moment.

Idea #2 also intrigues me a lot... Truly reinvent the the American car. Regarding bringing back a classic name... There's plenty out there that maybe could be dusted off and refreshed and sold. There seems to be a market for rediculously expensive exotics... Maybe it's time to bring back Dusenburg? Packard?
I was actually reading recently in Hot Rod magazine that some investors are bringing back AMC. One car reported in the future line up is a V12 mid-engine supercar, another is a V12 luxury car. All the way down to the Gremlin.. kind of an interesting concept.
The idea of starting with a super high end car a-la Dusenberg is nice because you are in a price class where $$ is not the deciding factor (I don't think most people decide between a Phantom and a Maybach because one is $5k cheaper..), initial development costs can be recouped a bit more quickly, and production volumes are low enough that you don't have to commit to a huge infrastructure for parts, delivery production etc.

 

Hmm.. not a bad idea. We'll see. Might be a good way to at least come up with some $$ to do something more interesting.

Looks like I'm a little late on the duesenberg idea.
http://www.duesenbergcustomcoach.com/torpedocoupe.html

 

Well like I said I have a lot of ideas for the selling/servicing end of things. But before you can sell, you need a product...
I do think basically every dealer network is poorly done.