You are 100% correct. Except that in the 80's and 90's the only envelope that american engineers pushed was across design tables and contained foreign engine blueprints.
"The Premium V design was initiated as a response to the advanced dual overhead cam V8 engines introduced by European and Japanese competitors of Cadillac in the late 1980s. At that time, Cadillac was using the aluminum HT Overhead Valve (OHV) V8 which had been pushed hastily into production after the failure of the V8-6-4 of 1981."
The northstar engine does have some significant technical advances, but if it weren't for import design and advancement we'd still be stuck with gianormous pushrod guzzlers.
rant - sick of cheap asses
Re: rant - sick of cheap asses (defrag010)
To answer you first post I think the issue is that the American economy is in the crapper.... the Fed doesnt want to admit it, and most people don't even want to utter the words 'recession' but face it. We ARE in a recession. In the past I have built a lot of rollcages and made good money doing it, but now it seems no one can afford my prices, which havent changed since I started 3 years ago .... No one has money these days, the whole country is in credit card debt, driving cars they cant afford, tons of people losing tens of thousands in real estate....
Plus it's impossible to compete with products from China (eBay). Right now the best thing you can do it focus on the overseas market, particularly places with a strong currency. There is a very large market in Europe for quality custom parts for American V8's. To them our money is VERY cheap, so you can even charge your regular prices, or a tad more, but of course there will be shipping. Also the duty on some imported good over there can be as high as 130% so you might have to invoice your products lower to help your customers and insure future business.
I remember when I went to college in 1999 the British pound cost 1.55 American Dollars, I was just in London and every pound cost me 2.1 dollars.... Thats a HUGE difference, nearly 30%. Also in 1999 the Euro and the dollar were nearly identical value, right now it costs 1.3977 dollars to buy a single euro, that's 40% inflation relatively speaking.
I believe it was under the reign of Elizabeth I that England went from one of the poorest countries in Europe to one of the richest in the world simply by not waging war as her father had done.... but I don't think our current administration understads much about history or economics....
Plus it's impossible to compete with products from China (eBay). Right now the best thing you can do it focus on the overseas market, particularly places with a strong currency. There is a very large market in Europe for quality custom parts for American V8's. To them our money is VERY cheap, so you can even charge your regular prices, or a tad more, but of course there will be shipping. Also the duty on some imported good over there can be as high as 130% so you might have to invoice your products lower to help your customers and insure future business.
I remember when I went to college in 1999 the British pound cost 1.55 American Dollars, I was just in London and every pound cost me 2.1 dollars.... Thats a HUGE difference, nearly 30%. Also in 1999 the Euro and the dollar were nearly identical value, right now it costs 1.3977 dollars to buy a single euro, that's 40% inflation relatively speaking.
I believe it was under the reign of Elizabeth I that England went from one of the poorest countries in Europe to one of the richest in the world simply by not waging war as her father had done.... but I don't think our current administration understads much about history or economics....