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Author Topic: Why is the BRAB so rare?????  (Read 21452 times)

Problemchild

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Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« on: March 21, 2010, 09:43:18 PM »

Given the car is such a fantastic little beast, why did it not sell many ??

Well according to EVO magazine, only about 200+ BRABS were sole in the UK and the reason ???

PRICE !! and price alone !!

Although standard spec and performance was excellent, the OTR cost was massive compared to its rivals......

ForFour Brabus      - £17,000 (177bhp)

Mini Cooper S       - £15,200 (180bhp)

Renault Clio Sport 182 - £14,200 (182bhp)

Ford Fiesta ST       - £13,600 (150bhp)

So there you have it ;)

JJ
« Last Edit: October 05, 2011, 05:29:41 PM by CrazyG »
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Brabs

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #1 on: August 11, 2012, 05:28:41 PM »

Given the car is such a fantastic little beast, why did it not sell many ??

Well according to EVO magazine, only about 200+ BRABS were sole in the UK and the reason ???

PRICE !! and price alone !!

Although standard spec and performance was excellent, the OTR cost was massive compared to its rivals......

ForFour Brabus      - £17,000 (177bhp)

Mini Cooper S       - £15,200 (180bhp)

Renault Clio Sport 182 - £14,200 (182bhp)

Ford Fiesta ST       - £13,600 (150bhp)

So there you have it ;)

JJ

Nearly right JJ... 2005 Mini Cooper 'S' 170 bhp  ;)

 :)
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Open Your Mind... to a smart.
I did, to a generation 1 forfour 1.1 with 'Passion', a Silver generation 1 forfour 'Brabus' Xclusive and a fortwo 451 'night orange' edition ;~)

funkydoodycool

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #2 on: August 11, 2012, 05:37:10 PM »

As this thread is reopened I'll add my idea that the forfour in general didn't sell much. Compare the numbers In the uk now against the standard competitors and they are just as rare as the brab is within its category.

I'm sure others here know the story of the forfour better than I do, but I imagine it was ignored due to its brand being associated with the weird and wacky rather than quality.
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CrazyG

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #3 on: August 11, 2012, 06:58:55 PM »

The story of the ForFour all along was the excessive OTR price,
not just for the Brabus, but for all models.

Blame for this must be laid at the doorstep of MB, who always
charge an arm and a leg, and like BMW, extra for anything over
and above the basic cost of the car...ie radio, mats, metallic paint etc
Oh and not forgetting that it was competition to their own A-Class,
so if they priced it high enough then people would go for the known
brand of MB in preference.

In truth, if MB/Smart had marketed it properly (which they didn't)
and sold it at a price to match the competition then it would have
been a different story all round.

The ForMore would have sold like hot cakes in the US, where it's
size (based on the MB E-Class floorpan !), specification and the
2 tone looks would hark back to cars and colours of years gone by
for the Americans. They would simply have loved it.
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Brabs

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #4 on: August 14, 2012, 01:39:08 PM »

I also think that MB/smart marketing/advertising in the UK was lacklustre to say the least. I came upon my 1.1 forfour purely by accident not having seen any advertising at all... and I do take a lot of interest in cars. I only then got to notice the Brab' version, which at a much more sensible price secondhand  made me want one of those too. I'm not a great fan of MINI, but credit where it is due IMHO BMW have done a great job of promoting the brand and look at all the derivitives there now are!
 :)
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Open Your Mind... to a smart.
I did, to a generation 1 forfour 1.1 with 'Passion', a Silver generation 1 forfour 'Brabus' Xclusive and a fortwo 451 'night orange' edition ;~)

lil.smartie

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #5 on: August 14, 2012, 07:33:39 PM »

They were very expensive.. My CZC with the same engine and a folding hard top was only around £15k new! (and I got a strut brace as std...)

Kate
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mozilla

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #6 on: August 14, 2012, 09:25:57 PM »

Mini has a celebrated history in the UK, and the new ones drive really well (not quite as good as the original but still class leading).
I agree, price is the biggest factor for the brabus. Minor quibbles would be subtle styling, jerky ride, not exactly sports car handling 
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airSnake

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Re: Why is the BRAB so rare?????
« Reply #7 on: August 16, 2012, 11:36:03 AM »

68bhp Diesel Forfour Pulses with triptronic.... 60 in the UK... 58 still knocking about last time I checked.. hm....
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