[zb]
anorak:
Welcome back, Monsieur Saviem. How are your bionic bits settling in?Blimey- a French operator praising the reliability of 1970s Leylands? How bad can the local product have been, in that regard? I guess he could afford, with his £5k saving, to look kindly on the British vehicles. It appears that Leyland were making the classic mistake of discounting to gain market share. Does this mirror the efforts of the French manufacturers to establish themselves in Britain?
Evening all, michel, great photograph, Anorak…well the bionic bits must have been produced in the same Bulgarian hell hole that manufactures the mind numbing variations of complexity epitomised by the various cheap, easily available, central push button flush WCs!.. I am persevering but my walk is somewhat between a very drunken sailor, and a Tea Clipper rounding Cape Horn!!! Still must not complain…my Consultant and I are discussing Warranty claim procedures!!
Leyland did what every, and I mean every commercial vehicle manufacturer did when entering a new, (or in Leylands case, a market where they had “cocked up” big time), priced to gain market share. The only importing manufacturer, in the UK to successfully pull off the transition from low initial price to high retail price when established being Scania, (unless you are a major potential client…then they are in the mix with the rest)! Unlike Volvo who seem to have gone the opposite way!!
Leyland did quite well in France, where they were a low volume competitor, and in their latter years with the LI “Rollstrain” were able to lift their prices…then along came Mr DAF, having being given Leyland by the clown Channon…and killed off Leyland France, and all the work of Roger Doughtys team…a sad day, but like so much of the UK industries corporate demise…so well hidden!
Yet Leyland Group could have been a major player in France had they had the sense to persue AECs association with Willeme, a premium manufacturer, appealing to the small fleet user. Yet they severed this connection, despite the French operators liking for AEC engined Willemes, and chose to establish links with Hotchkiss. Some chassis were cabbed by Pelpel…and quite handsome, others wore the composite version of the LAD, as per the Belgian market, yet others wore the steel LAD…confused…so was the market. The product was acceptable,but the strategy less so. The Dealer network was weaker than Willeme`s, and lacked contacts at the heavier end, and the Willeme Dealers had succesfully sold the BMC range for some time… Willeme without AECs financial aid and engineering product failed…then did Hotchkiss… a golden opportunity thrown away by incompetent management… yet another glorious British ■■■■ up of grand proportions, to be replicated with even more serious consequences across the Atlantic in South America.
Leyland lost France, and much of Europe untill the 70s and the Woolcock/Simpson days, when Leyland tried again , had success, then were killed off by our Dutch “friends”, …but remember much of DAFs success came from Leyland Groups expertise, and not just in engineering, but also in support and marketing, shame it could not have been Leyland itself.
I shall away to my medicinal Bollinger…far better than any manufactured medication, to think of happier times,
Cheerio for now.
