Jeff:
I think you have downplayed the destructive role that labour unions played
in the decline of the British auto industry. Especially through the 70s,
they were a major impediment to the productivity, quality, and viability of
most British industries. Years ago, Britain was significant in not only
cars, but also bicycles and motorcycles. Not any more.
Adolf Hitler was unable to bring Britain to her knees, but the labour unions
did the job.
Doug Ingram (obviously not union guy; flame me if you want!)
Victoria BC
1958 Frogeye
AN5L/636
-----Original Message-----
From: Jeff Boatright <jboatri@emory.edu>
To: toyman@htcomp.net <toyman@htcomp.net>; spridgets@autox.team.net
<spridgets@autox.team.net>
Date: Saturday, May 29, 1999 6:19 AM
Subject: Nader, was: Side Marker Reflectors
>Toyman,
>
>Gotta disagree here. No doubt Nader had influence, but that's not what
>killed the Brit car industry. Poor management killed the British car
>industry. There were several articles in British Car Magazine, written by
>those who lived through it, detailing this. There are also entire books
>written on this. Management was unable to read the market(s), had little
>interest in making a better product, aided in creating poor labor relations
>(though the gov't had a lot to do with this), could not cope with gov't
>regulations (theirs and ours), and finally, had gone too far down the tubes
>by the time the pseudo oil crisis hit. Conversely, the Japanese car
>industry coped with all these problems and changes and thrived.
>
>Nader was one part of the equation. Given the direction some European car
>manufacturers were heading (MB and Volvo) with safety options pre-Nader,
>the industry may have eventually made safer cars. I don't see that Nader
>directly did much good, but as a center of controversy, he got safety
>issues on the table.
>
>Jeff
>"Light fuse and get away!"
>---
>On 5/29/99, toyman@htcomp.net wrote:
>> One of my 69 Midgets has two wipers, no side reflectors, and no
headrests.
>>
>...
>>the Spridget
>>went to the three wiper system in the mid-68 production year at the urging
of
>>'ugh' Ralph Nader aka the man that killed the british sports car,he placed
>>so many saftey requirements on the manufacturing of these cars that
England
>>couldn't keep up,since the U.S.imported the majority of the cars,England
>>finally gave up trying to please this pain in the ass advocate of saftey
who
>>had way to much influence,and stopped making the LBC,s(the ralfph nader
info
>>was read in a different source of info and will not be found in the book I
>>previously mentioned"DISCLAIMER")
>>
>
>Jeff Boatright __o_\__ '65 Austin-Healey Sprite
>http://userwww.service.emory.edu/~jboatri/sprite/sprite.html
>
>
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