Re: Asian Outboards
I got a Press Release awhile back from Mercury about their new plant in China, making their high performance & racing motors. They as everyone else are moving there to reduce their cost.
I have a problem with, #1 the “offshoring” of jobs, and I have a problem with #2 the price politics of the companies doing so.
They reduce their production cost to at least one tenth of what it would cost in the America or Europe, but the sales price to you, or me, continues to increase.
If it is “Made in China”, I want to see a “Made in China” price.
I am sick of paying the old “Made in America” or “Made in Germany” premium price, for “Made in China” products.
The “brand name” may say America or Germany, but it is really China.
My neighbor used to sell American, Canadian, and Japanese ATV's here. It got to the point he couldn't sell anything.
He now sells crappy (his wording, not mine) Chinese ATV's. A one man operation that sells 100+ a month, and delivers them all over Europe. These ATV's, are as already mentioned concerning the outboards, being shipped new, with replacement parts included. They break within days, and he tells people this, but they are cheap so the y buy.
They are really dangerous pieces of $h!t, but people don't have the money for the brand name products anymore, because of the loss of jobs here, do to the “offshoring” of what was formerly made by them.
He is now considering importing the Chinese outboards although he hates them. He is, or was, a longtime Evinrude/Mercury man.
The Chinese companies say, “same as Yamaha”, or “parts compatible with Mercury”. The engineers that work officially for one production facility, also work unofficially for the other. A lot of the western production facilities also have what is called their unofficial “Night Production” runs, producing OEM parts sold through black market channels.
It is a “devils circle”, as the Germans would say. Companies offshore the jobs to save on production cost, and at the same time eliminate their former customer base, who are now without jobs, in the process.
At first the western companies said we are only offshoring the low level parts production, now the “Research & Design” and “Marketing” is also being done in China. These are no longer western companies.
I was recently asked by a old American company with offices in Germany to talk to them about joining them here. I showed up only to find out it was now owned by the Chinese. It is supposed to have the old American face to the customers, but internally it is now 100% Chinese. All facilities in the States are quietly in the process of being shut down.
To add to the problems here, as the economy slows for the boat market in the States, major dealers in the U.S. are shipping their used stock to Europe to try to get it off the American market, thus driving down the prices here, in what has been a dead market for over 8 years. This is happening at the same time the Germans are sending their used stock to the Middle East & Eastern Europe to get it off the market.
Another neighbor put his “Bayliner 2252 Classic”, with trailer, all options & updates, plus complete ready for the water top of the line accessories (all new radar, electronics, life jackets, fenders, ice chests, tops, covers, toys ...)) up for sell two years ago because he lost his job at a major German car manufacture. His job is now in China.
It is a almost new boat, and was only used a couple of times (really), before he lost his job. He started asking 16,000.00 Euro. The price is now at 7500.00 and still no buyers. He has more than that in the electronics alone.
Now new Chinese made boat hulls are showing up on the market at about, once again, one tenth the price, of their (used) American & European equivalents.
The market is being killed for boats in Europe.
I just bought a used twenty year old Evinrude outboard for about the same price as a new Chinese made and Branded model. I guarantee it will out last the Chinese motor.
You can get good “Made in China”, “Western Branded Products” (Mercury is just one), but you still pay the cost of made in the west.
The savings are not being passed on to us, they are going to those in the penthouse offices.
Yea, I know, Bla Bla Bla! I am really sorry some of this is off topic & I got up on my soap box, but this all pi$$e$ me off.
