The classic example of "Quality" is one given by W. Edwards Deming in his book "Out of the Crisis". Deming gave the example given to him from the days of AT&T "Leasing" phones (Before the breakup of AT&T in the 1970s). In those days you could trade in your phone for a new one and AT&T would not only replace the phone, they would install it (This was a big issue till the 1960s when the modern Phone Jack was introduced in the US by AT&T). An installer told him of the number of times he had to go to a house and replace the phone just because it had an almost imperceivable mark. That was those people's definition of "Quality" a perfect phone upon viewing it. The Installer then told Deming of the times he went to a home on another problem and the headset was in two pieces. When he told the people who had such phones they could get a new one for free, they all said why, it worked. What they heard on the phone was they definition of "Quality".
The point Deming was making with that statement is "Quality" must be defined BEFORE you can even try to meet it. One marketing teacher gave an example of "Quality". He was on vacation with his family and looking for a place to eat. He pointed out one place, someone else in his family would object. Other members would mention a place, but someone in the group kept rejecting them. Finally they all came to McDonald's. While no one really wanted to go they, no one objected either. That is where they went. Why no objections? McDonald food is a KNOWN quality. You may prefer someplace else, but it is acceptable if that alternative is NOT available (or in the case of his trip, the other options had all been rejected by someone). Yes, it is hard to think that McDonald's has HIGH Quality, but it does. Not that its food is the best, but where ever you go you will get the same meal. McDonald's is a Known Quality and thus high Quality.
I bring these two stories up for they demonstrate the problem with quality in ANY OTHER MARKETING SUBJECT. Some of the modern Electric Cars have to adopt some strange shapes to maximize the power of the electric engines. The batteries MUST be low, do to their weight. The Car has to be aerodynamic, so less electrical power is used. The car must be maneuverable. The car MUST meet modern crash tests.
The aerodynamics are the biggest factor. in the 1970s AMC came out with its Pacer. It was the most aerodynamic four passenger car of its generation. Low to the ground, shaped like a "Banana". There is a Rumor that Ford actually designed the car (Or it was stolen from Ford with some Ford input aka "Go to drawer five and take those plans" followed shortly afterward by "You forget the rest, we mailing it to you"). Ford was committed to the Banana shape but believe it was to radical for the 1970s and 1980s. In 1989 Ford would use the Banana shape in its Ford Taurus and Mercury Sables. The Taurus and Stable were NOT as radical banana shape as the Pacer had been, but then Ford had to satisfy a larger market while AMC always had to look like it was cutting edge (Do to the extreme long time between model changes for AMC). What was the best shape for a four Passenger car from an aerodynamic view? a Banana, but that shape was radical compared to the Boxes of the 1970s and the aerodynamic sloped cars like the Cameo, Fire bird, and Mustangs (And lets NOT forget the AMC Javelin, probably the best of the lot but rare I only remember ever seeing one). Now race cars tend to be even more aerodynamic, to maximize speed, but that is achieved by adding length both front and rear to achieve that increased aerodynamics. This cost weight (To hold up the extra panels) AND costs (The panels have to be attached or made out of high strength metal, which cost a lot of money). These three times, length, Weight and price were NOT worth it at the speed most family cars operate at (Less then 70 mph) thus the Banana shape won out when it came to the Pacer, the Taurus/Sable and the Electric Cars.
Javelin:
http://www.javelinamx.com/javhome/articles/ca87-jav.htm On the Pacer:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMC_PacerThe Pacer has a reputation as one of the worse cars ever designed, but that is more do to that fact it had to resigned for a different engine then it had been originally designed for, like the British Mini (Another car on many "worse cars" list), it introduced elements that the big three did NOT dare introduce at the same time, but would do so within ten years (Including its Banana shape and no rain gutters above the doors).
Pacer as the 31st out of the worse 50 cars of all time:
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1658545_1658533_1658042,00.htmlAnyway, even today, the Banana shape is considered the "Ideal" shape from an aerodynamic point of view, but most people hate it. Thus the conflict in "Quality" I mentioned above comes into pay. People actually prefer a more boxy look, even at the cost of Aerodynamic efficiency (Thus the sharper edges on the Taurus and Sable compared to the Pacer, more market driven then anything else). These compromises with Aerodynamics for marketing is more then justified when the extra cost of being less aerodynamic can be made up with a gasoline engine (as in the case of the Taurus and Sable).
In electric cars that extra power is often NOT available so the tendency is to go to the Banana even at the cost of making the car look "strange" (and the story that Ford looked at the Pacer as a test car for its plans). Thus you have the makers of Electric Cars, looking at cars to use the least amount of Electrical power to perform like a gasoline car (Their definition of Quality) while most purchaser are use to what they have been driving, more boxy shapes that overcome air Resistance with more power from Gasoline engines (Which is buyer's definition of Quality, it has to look good). Sooner or later this difference in the definition of "Quality" will have to be resolved, mostly by having people accept the Banana as the ideal shape, but that will require the price of gasoline to go much higher then it did last summer let alone today.
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