美國車企祖傳8宗罪

????當有人說汽車業是個“周期性行業”時，并不只是說這個行業會隨著經濟周期而出現正常的銷售起伏。它實際上是指這個行業很容易一再故技重施。一方面是由于每四年車型就會來一次重新設計；另一方面是因為，對那些一再出現的問題總是采用老辦法應付，比如銷售不暢時就降價促銷。但令人驚訝的是，這很大程度上是由于總是祭出老一套法寶，卻希望得到不同的結果——這是典型的神經錯亂的表現。

????When autos are described as a "cyclical business," it means more than the normal waves of rising and falling sales that follow the rhythms of the economy. The industry tends to repeat itself. Some of this comes from the predictable pattern of every-four-year redesigns. Another part comes from proven solutions to recurring problems, such as cutting prices during slow sales. But a surprisingly sizeable slice comes from doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result -- the classic definition of insanity.

1.熱門車愛漲價

加價銷售那些供不應求、炙手可熱的車型以牟取暴利的做法在汽車銷售業由來已久，可能廠商指導價剛剛新鮮出爐，經銷商就開始抬價了。畢竟汽車業有些地方和時尚業、而不是交通運輸業更有淵源——比如那些肌肉車、跑車和敞篷車——所以一旦看到有車熱銷，經銷商哪里能忍得住不下快刀狠宰一把。《汽車新聞》（Automotive News）報道稱，一幫雪佛蘭經銷商正在密謀，售價高達52,000美元的雪佛蘭科爾維特今年秋季上市后，他們要加價20,000美元。這個消息會再度引發一場熱烈的爭論，即經銷商是否在用市場經濟規律定量配給稀缺產品，還是亂漲價疏遠長期客戶。

1. Marking up hot cars

Tacking an additional dealer markup onto models in short supply and hot demand is a long-established retail practice that probably started seconds after the window price sticker with the suggested MSRP was adopted. Parts of the auto business are more about fashion than transportation -- think muscle cars, sports cars, and convertibles -- and dealers can't resist trying to make a quick killing while they are in demand. Automotive News reports that a handful of Chevy dealers are planning on add on up to $20,000 to the sticker price of the 2014 Corvette when the $52,000 car goes on sale in the fall. The news will ignite another fierce debate about whether the dealers are merely using market economics to ration a scarce product -- or alienating long-term customers by gouging.