Rik said:
That's just due to the hydro forming of the sheet metal, right? What if they used the traditional method of die stamping body panels for another version to be produced in much greater numbers. The car would have to be something that could sell in large enough numbers to justify the expense.
Supposedly, sheet hydroforming allowed for greater flexibility in forming metal (like the hood, decklid, deep draws on the quarter panels, etc.), for about 1/3 to 1/5 of the investment of traditional stamping investment.
Usually, you need a high profit vehicle (A cadillac or GT40, for example, or XLR...) to justify low volume with traditional dies. (one of the theories is that because the MX-5 and S2000 are global vehicles, they get significant profit in the Japanese and European markets that offset investment cost, and that they break-even or even lose a bit on every car sold in the US - that's only theory and speculation by automotive insiders who wish to remain nameless).
Or, you need volumes in excess of 100,000 for medium to low profit (like a Cobalt or HHR or Focus) to justify the investment of traditional dies.
It is claimed that some of the panels on the Solstice and Sky could not be made by traditional dies, though I find this somewhat suspect... perhaps instead of "could not be", the term "would be very difficult to" should be substituted.
And "would be very difficult" means +++$$$, so to make complicated shapes like the Solstice/Sky might mean a 50% premium on dies, more die stations (for complicated multi-stage processional dies), and more investment.
