yes, i agree that the engine could be replaced in a holden or ford for a fraction of what it would cost to do the same in a merc / audi. the point is though, what would last longer, given the same conditions, same service intervals, driven daily, what would still be purring along in 20 years time as tight as a drum? my money is on an s class mercedes, as these old girls are often seen around where i live happily cruising along after having to put up with 20 and 30 years of shocking brisbane roads and owner abuse. you can see that they have had a torturous existence, but their owners adore them for their faithful service. i'm talking the s class 80's and 90's era dictator mercs. they just seem to keep going and going. then i guess we throw into the equation and ask ourselves would a current commodore or falcon have the dna that would allow it to do the same as the merc and still be providing fault free service to its owner 20 and 30 years down the track? its obviously subjective, and open for debate, but i would say they would be lucky to last 10 years. garbage i hear you say, well let me explain.
when i was about 18 or 19, i was working for a a well known engineering company, who made fantastic quality products that at the time i could not see a rival competitor world wide (yes, it was that good). this was their downfall, their stuff lasted for 20 years, and longer, and hence, they did not make any money on parts and servicing of their equipment as it didnt break down. the company almost went bust, but they recognised that their stuff was lasting too long and they were not making money, so they changed their business strategy, outsourced their manufacturing to china and taiwan, and bob's your uncle, their stuff is back in line with everyone else and they are making money. apply this to just about everything around you, from appliances to furniture, and everything in between. now look back 20 years and remember how well made things were, things just didnt break. for example, i have the last of the sony trinitrons, a 68cm behemoth, sitting in our spare room doing nothing as its been replaced by a dirty great big plasma (which i expect will die within 5 years), the faithful sony has given me approx 10 years of trouble free service, and when i drop it off to my mother in laws place next weekend, i would be very surprised if she does not get another 10 years out of it. now apply this to holden and ford. they made some ok stuff back in the day, i'm talking good quality stuff, ht gts monaros, xyghtho phase 3 falcons, stuff like this that was built tough and was designed to last. unfortunately, now that they have gone the way of just about every other manufacturer in the world, and outsourced alot of their stuff, and quality is compromised. heres an example ... get out to a local car show and see how many old cars are there, i am talking from fj, fx, fc, lc, lj, ht, hk (holden) xw, xy, xt, xb, xc (ford) etc, i will guarantee you that the old stuff outnumbers the new stuff, why? because it lasts, simple. the only new stuff you will see will be some fag who thinks he's hard with an ss comodore who has air brushed it and put some neons on it and now thinks its a show car but he will try and sell it 12 months later as he has realised what a wanker he is ... but anyway, i am getting sidetracked .... my point is, go to a car show, any car show, and look how many vt, vx, vy, vz (holden) ba, bf, fg (ford) of these cars are there, now wait 20 years, and visit a car show and see if those same cars are there, i could guarantee you that they wont be, the old stuff will be there though, xy, xt, xw, xa, xb, xc, (ford) ht, hk, hj, fj, fx, lj, lc, (holden). holden and ford stuff is ultimately designed to fail like just about everything else these days, usually just outside the warranty period, otherwise they arent making money from people repairing or buying cars.