Cougar Ace: Could some of her Mazdas be saleable?
The latest news regarding the cargo of Mazdas aboard the now-righted M/V Cougar Ace is that preparations are underway to tow the ship to Portland, Oregon, where it can undergo repairs and there are facilities able to take on its entire load of cars.
The cars will be inspected thoroughly to determine if any are still saleable, a possibility that exists despite the fact that they spent the last two weeks hanging on their sides. According to the Coast Guard, "there was minimal damage to the cars." This flies in the face of other reports that state that vehicle damage has been sustained on all decks, so the upshot of it all is that no one really knows anything definitive yet.
Mazda spokesman Jeremy Barnes told the ADN, "We don't have a car count as to what is salable and what condition they are in. It all depends on what we find when we get in." There's a lot of wiggle room in that statement. While it allows for the possibility of saleable vehicles, Mazda could just as easily write the whole lot off.
Frankly, we don't understand why Mazda would even broach the topic of vehicle saleability before having their own people inspect the offloaded cargo firsthand. This is sure to be a very delicate topic, as potential customers are going to be asking hard questions about the origins of the vehicles they're considering. Reasonable or not, we wouldn't exactly be thrilled to learn that the new Mazda we're about to drive home of spent the better part of a month hanging on its side in a crippled cargo ship.
In fact, it'd probably be a dealbreaker. We're betting we aren't alone in that sentiment. We'll keep following the story closely.
Thanks M steele for the tip!
[Source: Anchorage Daily News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Steve 1:58PM (8/27/2006)
Hell yeah! "RX-8 Cougar Ace Edition"
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jp 1:31PM (8/27/2006)
What about this idea? Any saleable or useable vehicles Mazda donates to charities for their use...say a "Meals on Wheeels" type of organization. They get a tax writeoff, goodwill, good p.r., and no press about willing to sell vehicles off of the ship. Thoughts?
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Travis Bickle 1:42PM (8/27/2006)
Uh, Mazda wouldn't do so since they would still be liable for the vehicles. DO you think their counsel would advise them to do such a thing that would potentially open them up to lawsuits down the road?
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ericthered 1:46PM (8/27/2006)
Sounds like an idea to me! I like the look of the CX-7 but I sure wouldn't buy one that had on that ship unless maybe it was at half price. Donating the cars would probably be the best thing Mazda could do.
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Covenant 69 1:47PM (8/27/2006)
Fact is, 99 & 44/100ths of potential Mazda owners probably will never know that the Cougar Ace ever existed, nor that any Mazdas spent a month on their sides. If the cars are sellable, they may end up being sold as something other than retail (a rental bulk purchase, or sold as "program" vehicles or somesuch). There is a lot of value left even in damaged cars.
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Bargamon 2:18PM (8/27/2006)
Mazda can buy the "Cougar" name from Ford.
even upsidedown in salt water those cars are better than most that were built!
The 2007 Mazda "Cougar Ace"! Zoom Zoom!
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Ted K 2:03PM (8/27/2006)
RX8 Cougar Ace edition?
What would that be, even slower, more sluggish and soggy than the original?
That thing is so bogus to begin with. What an insult to the RX7's history.
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Steve 2:18PM (8/27/2006)
It was a joke.
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asolar 2:33PM (8/27/2006)
So, what will a month on its side do to a car, assuming that it avoided external damage somehow?
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cheezedog420 2:35PM (8/27/2006)
They might just end up parting out the cars too. The salvage market would love to have 5000 motors, transmissions, and whatever else they could pull off these cars. After all, almost all of them have zero miles, and any dammage done by water, could easily be found while pulling appart the cars for parts.
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Stoneman 2:36PM (8/27/2006)
I'll buy the Mazda 6 "leaning edition".
Stoneman
http://www.stonemanautoreview.com
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verdegrrl 3:32PM (8/27/2006)
Rental fleets......
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Glenn 2:54PM (8/27/2006)
Almost guaranteed they will distroy the cars even if they are in good shape. They would not be allowed to even brake them down for parts as I understand -- probably the parts would be considered used.
Too bad they couldn't sell a bunch with, say a extended warranty, at a great price -- being subsidized by the insurance company.
It will be a large insurance claim; and Mazda will get the equivalent of a free boat of car sales.
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Jim 3:43PM (8/27/2006)
The damage isn't as bad as one my think. here is a video that has exclusive images of inside the Cougar Ace. Most of the cars stayed strapped down, only a few lost their straps and went crashing into other cars beside them.
http://www.cartv.com/content/research/channels/index.cfm/channel/cartv_video/action/showvideo/vid/n_0146/vcat/News/
Now I'm not sure about engines and transmission - the floors of the cougar ace were covered in fluids from the cars.
Jim
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Sid 3:44PM (8/27/2006)
They could sell 'em to Toyota buyers. After all, they're used to soggy suspensions, washed-out colors, loose-steering and squishy brakes.
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Richard Warren 5:31PM (8/27/2006)
While the unstrapped damage might not be bad,the fluid damage, breake fluid, antifreeze, possible transmission fluid and engine oil can cause extensive damage. Ever seen what brake fluid does to paint? How about any fluid that leaked the entered the car below it seeping through a weatherstrip on to upholstery?
Even considering this comment " Fact is, 99 & 44/100ths of potential Mazda owners probably will never know that the Cougar Ace ever existed, nor that any Mazdas spent a month on their sides."
If you bought one then had some problems and found out after the fact this was the situation, what would you do or ask for?
Best bet for Mazda with this shipment, insurance write off.
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stan 5:34PM (8/27/2006)
You know, at the right price I may have to investigate getting on of these cars. I mean, after sinking in the ocean, sitting around for a good long while, being refurbished by factory representative types and so on ...
I mean, what more could possibly happen to it? and I'm a sucker for a good story.
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Brian 7:50PM (8/27/2006)
Anyone know what was actually on the ship? I am guessing that there were a lot of MazdaSpeed 3's onboard just based on the timing.
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buckeyeguy 10:26PM (8/27/2006)
Question: Mazda doesn’t own (all or in part) the company that does the shipping - do they? If not, wouldn't the shipping company's insurance be responsible for reimbursing Mazda?
Anyone know the details on this?
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lavardera 3:23PM (8/28/2006)
Mazda will collect the insurance, the insurance company will total the cars and take them. Whatever happens to them will be up to the insurance company unless Mazda wants to forgo coverage in exchange for control.
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