Gnil:
ha:

. IMHO the US has finally came out with a successful car that is universally accepted and for that kudos to Musk and his company.

A friend of mine works for a company that deals with most major car manufacturer ( VW , Audi, Lambo , Porsche , Renault , Ferrari , and a few more ) , providing an essential part of the car .

The other day he had a meeting with the Tesla guys in Berlin as he may supply the new factory with their product . 

He was amazed at how they work . Quick , efficient, straight forward . With the traditional car manufacturer it is always a very long decision process , complicated , and pretty unpleasant.
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 964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm -- 991.2 GT3 RS 

 

Not surprised as larger, more mature organizations become bureaucracies with codified standards and methodologies.  When companies are in oligopolies, margins are slim and finance/purchasing wants the best possible pricing from its suppliers.  Quality standards very from organization to organization with the Japanese automakers utilizing statistical quality control processes while some, like Volkswagen Group, tend to rely on 100% inspection on major components and subsystems.  These all impact contracting requirements and costs.

Tesla, in its Q4 19 financials suffered another deterioration in gross margins as pricing has tightened and the consumer has switched away from the higher margin Model S/X variants to the lower margin Model 3.  It too isn't immune to the ravages of the competitive market space.