RSG///AMUSE top is finally here!
12-14-2012, 04:15 PM
#31
So many confused people in this thread. "What it all boils down to is not everyone has $5,000 + to drop on a damn hardtop." Then don't buy a hardtop. Nobody is entitled to owning an ultra high-end carbon fiber hardtop that was painstakingly made. It is just funny to me that people think about nothing but their own well being these days. They think manufacturers over charge on parts that are built to F1 spec, special ordered and imported into the United States (I would be surprised if they ever even break even on most of the parts that get sold).
Look, the reason you don't see these knockoff companies just designing and making their own parts is because it isn't a good way to make a quick buck, which is all they are after. Where actual tuning shops build parts first to build the car as they see fit, and then sell parts to help sustain building more purpose built cars (built for driving). None of these replica companies are contributing anything to the S2000 community, you getting a hardtop for cheap is at the expense of the community, plain and simple. Every time another knock-off company pops up, the bar gets lower and lower. Everyone of these replica companies makes a point to mention all the things they do to improve upon the original build quality and design, but that is nothing more than a bad joke. Parts are no longer judged by their quality, but by how much work it will take to get fitting correctly. All the replica companies today are only competing with the original replica companies on quality.
Not only that, the companies that actually produce original parts suffer the most. Almost all of these companies are actually very small without a massive bankroll, that in some cases reach out to larger companies with the resources available to help them build the part they want at a cost.
With RSG it is just made even shadier, they literally funded the production of their first Amuse knockoff prototype by asking for downpayments on a replica hardtop they hadn't even started to manufacturer yet. These are all details that are clearly stated in their thread. Not only that, they completely subsidize any of their initial cost of buying the hardtop buy putting it up for sale after they are manufacturing.
It is just sad that building cheaply made, mediocre quality replica parts has become such a standard to the tuning industry in the United States. It is fueled by this attitude: I could spend $5k on something much better than a hardtop for my car, someone else buy it and make me a cheaper copy to buy. Mooching off of other people's investment (and time no less) so they can save money that they could already afford to spend. Complete scumbag attitude in my opinion, nobody will change my opinion on that.
Look, the reason you don't see these knockoff companies just designing and making their own parts is because it isn't a good way to make a quick buck, which is all they are after. Where actual tuning shops build parts first to build the car as they see fit, and then sell parts to help sustain building more purpose built cars (built for driving). None of these replica companies are contributing anything to the S2000 community, you getting a hardtop for cheap is at the expense of the community, plain and simple. Every time another knock-off company pops up, the bar gets lower and lower. Everyone of these replica companies makes a point to mention all the things they do to improve upon the original build quality and design, but that is nothing more than a bad joke. Parts are no longer judged by their quality, but by how much work it will take to get fitting correctly. All the replica companies today are only competing with the original replica companies on quality.
Not only that, the companies that actually produce original parts suffer the most. Almost all of these companies are actually very small without a massive bankroll, that in some cases reach out to larger companies with the resources available to help them build the part they want at a cost.
With RSG it is just made even shadier, they literally funded the production of their first Amuse knockoff prototype by asking for downpayments on a replica hardtop they hadn't even started to manufacturer yet. These are all details that are clearly stated in their thread. Not only that, they completely subsidize any of their initial cost of buying the hardtop buy putting it up for sale after they are manufacturing.
It is just sad that building cheaply made, mediocre quality replica parts has become such a standard to the tuning industry in the United States. It is fueled by this attitude: I could spend $5k on something much better than a hardtop for my car, someone else buy it and make me a cheaper copy to buy. Mooching off of other people's investment (and time no less) so they can save money that they could already afford to spend. Complete scumbag attitude in my opinion, nobody will change my opinion on that.
12-14-2012, 04:33 PM
#32
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So many confused people in this thread. "What it all boils down to is not everyone has $5,000 + to drop on a damn hardtop." Then don't buy a hardtop. Nobody is entitled to owning an ultra high-end carbon fiber hardtop that was painstakingly made. It is just funny to me that people think about nothing but their own well being these days. They think manufacturers over charge on parts that are built to F1 spec, special ordered and imported into the United States (I would be surprised if they ever even break even on most of the parts that get sold).
Look, the reason you don't see these knockoff companies just designing and making their own parts is because it isn't a good way to make a quick buck, which is all they are after. Where actual tuning shops build parts first to build the car as they see fit, and then sell parts to help sustain building more purpose built cars (built for driving). None of these replica companies are contributing anything to the S2000 community, you getting a hardtop for cheap is at the expense of the community, plain and simple. Every time another knock-off company pops up, the bar gets lower and lower. Everyone of these replica companies makes a point to mention all the things they do to improve upon the original build quality and design, but that is nothing more than a bad joke. Parts are no longer judged by their quality, but by how much work it will take to get fitting correctly. All the replica companies today are only competing with the original replica companies on quality.
Not only that, the companies that actually produce original parts suffer the most. Almost all of these companies are actually very small without a massive bankroll, that in some cases reach out to larger companies with the resources available to help them build the part they want at a cost.
With RSG it is just made even shadier, they literally funded the production of their first Amuse knockoff prototype by asking for downpayments on a replica hardtop they hadn't even started to manufacturer yet. These are all details that are clearly stated in their thread. Not only that, they completely subsidize any of their initial cost of buying the hardtop buy putting it up for sale after they are manufacturing.
It is just sad that building cheaply made, mediocre quality replica parts has become such a standard to the tuning industry in the United States. It is fueled by this attitude: I could spend $5k on something much better than a hardtop for my car, someone else buy it and make me a cheaper copy to buy. Mooching off of other people's investment (and time no less) so they can save money that they could already afford to spend. Complete scumbag attitude in my opinion, nobody will change my opinion on that.
Look, the reason you don't see these knockoff companies just designing and making their own parts is because it isn't a good way to make a quick buck, which is all they are after. Where actual tuning shops build parts first to build the car as they see fit, and then sell parts to help sustain building more purpose built cars (built for driving). None of these replica companies are contributing anything to the S2000 community, you getting a hardtop for cheap is at the expense of the community, plain and simple. Every time another knock-off company pops up, the bar gets lower and lower. Everyone of these replica companies makes a point to mention all the things they do to improve upon the original build quality and design, but that is nothing more than a bad joke. Parts are no longer judged by their quality, but by how much work it will take to get fitting correctly. All the replica companies today are only competing with the original replica companies on quality.
Not only that, the companies that actually produce original parts suffer the most. Almost all of these companies are actually very small without a massive bankroll, that in some cases reach out to larger companies with the resources available to help them build the part they want at a cost.
With RSG it is just made even shadier, they literally funded the production of their first Amuse knockoff prototype by asking for downpayments on a replica hardtop they hadn't even started to manufacturer yet. These are all details that are clearly stated in their thread. Not only that, they completely subsidize any of their initial cost of buying the hardtop buy putting it up for sale after they are manufacturing.
It is just sad that building cheaply made, mediocre quality replica parts has become such a standard to the tuning industry in the United States. It is fueled by this attitude: I could spend $5k on something much better than a hardtop for my car, someone else buy it and make me a cheaper copy to buy. Mooching off of other people's investment (and time no less) so they can save money that they could already afford to spend. Complete scumbag attitude in my opinion, nobody will change my opinion on that.
**Places $5,000 order for a gasoline gift card from a remote Texas company when noticing the $5,000 purchase record for an authentic hard top after months of monitoring Andrew's bank account activity***
12-14-2012, 05:33 PM
#33
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I always wondered why no one ever replicated the Amuse top. Color me interested. Not a big fan of lexan though. It is the main reason why I won't buy a mugen or replica mugen top.
12-14-2012, 05:55 PM
#34
Well the Amuse DRY CARBON FIBER hardtop is probably about $10,000 all things considered and ready to mount to the car if purchased brand new: http://www.bulletproofautomotive.com...il.php?ID=6353
This is just the first time someone was willing to put a nice fat charge on their credit card for the top and fund the project by taking orders the moment the authentic Amuse top arrived. $10,000 is nothing compared to what it would cost to design and manufacture a dry carbon hardtop designed to work with a Toyota MR-S hardtop window like Amuse did.
I don't usually hate, but when I do it is because there is some serious cockery going on. Here's a thought for Rockstar Garage. Instead of just blatantly stealing a small tuning shops design, why not reach out to them, say, "hey, I think there would be a big market for your awesome hardtop in the U.S. if you made a less expensive non dry carbon version available. Oh and if you are interested we have the ability to have these tops produced in the United States so there are far fewer export costs involved. We think we can produce a hardtop that is up to your standards in quality, is there any chance you would like to work with us to develop this and have it sold under the Amuse name?" If they say no, move on with your life, or design and develop your own hardtop, if they say yes, awesome, everybody wins.
While I don't think the quality is the same, I have less of a problem with people producing OEM style tops. They are no longer made, were never made in carbon fiber, and people are trying some new things with them. Also Honda is a massive corporation that has decided they no longer want to make any money (they probably lost money) selling hardtops for the S2000. I like the idea of a cheaper Amuse hardtop being made by Amuse or a partner of Amuse. If the car tuning industry was similar to technology startups, people would be sued into oblivion.
This is just the first time someone was willing to put a nice fat charge on their credit card for the top and fund the project by taking orders the moment the authentic Amuse top arrived. $10,000 is nothing compared to what it would cost to design and manufacture a dry carbon hardtop designed to work with a Toyota MR-S hardtop window like Amuse did.
I don't usually hate, but when I do it is because there is some serious cockery going on. Here's a thought for Rockstar Garage. Instead of just blatantly stealing a small tuning shops design, why not reach out to them, say, "hey, I think there would be a big market for your awesome hardtop in the U.S. if you made a less expensive non dry carbon version available. Oh and if you are interested we have the ability to have these tops produced in the United States so there are far fewer export costs involved. We think we can produce a hardtop that is up to your standards in quality, is there any chance you would like to work with us to develop this and have it sold under the Amuse name?" If they say no, move on with your life, or design and develop your own hardtop, if they say yes, awesome, everybody wins.
While I don't think the quality is the same, I have less of a problem with people producing OEM style tops. They are no longer made, were never made in carbon fiber, and people are trying some new things with them. Also Honda is a massive corporation that has decided they no longer want to make any money (they probably lost money) selling hardtops for the S2000. I like the idea of a cheaper Amuse hardtop being made by Amuse or a partner of Amuse. If the car tuning industry was similar to technology startups, people would be sued into oblivion.
12-15-2012, 04:54 PM
#35
If your main concern with a part is whether it is "authentic," and not what the quality or usefulness of the part actually is, then you have cars confused with fashion. If the part achieves its performance goal for 1/4 the cost, you would be stupid not to choose it. I can't speak for the build quality or fitment of these tops, but if they match the original, the only reason to get the original would be if you want to show off in parking lots, in which case you have a very different hobby than I do. 
12-16-2012, 04:33 PM
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If your main concern with a part is whether it is "authentic," and not what the quality or usefulness of the part actually is, then you have cars confused with fashion. If the part achieves its performance goal for 1/4 the cost, you would be stupid not to choose it. I can't speak for the build quality or fitment of these tops, but if they match the original, the only reason to get the original would be if you want to show off in parking lots, in which case you have a very different hobby than I do.
x2
12-16-2012, 04:41 PM
#37
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i've never seen an amuse hard top before. i'm gonna have to say this looks pretty nice, but i'm sure the authentic looks nicer. (quality-wise).
i agree with thomsbrain about performance, but quality is also a big factor to certain individuals :/
i agree with thomsbrain about performance, but quality is also a big factor to certain individuals :/
12-16-2012, 09:04 PM
#38
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Originally Posted by thomsbrain' timestamp='1355622866' post='22213017
If your main concern with a part is whether it is "authentic," and not what the quality or usefulness of the part actually is, then you have cars confused with fashion. If the part achieves its performance goal for 1/4 the cost, you would be stupid not to choose it. I can't speak for the build quality or fitment of these tops, but if they match the original, the only reason to get the original would be if you want to show off in parking lots, in which case you have a very different hobby than I do.
x2
12-16-2012, 09:13 PM
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I'm sure the quality of the authentic Amuse is a little better but it look identical to me. Spending $8500 on the authentic or $2500 on a very nice replica is a no brainer. I rather save $6000 and get the replica. But like what thomsbrain said, if you're into showing off how much money you have then get the original
12-16-2012, 09:41 PM
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Originally Posted by tkeyyy' timestamp='1355708480' post='22214266
i've never seen an amuse hard top before. i'm gonna have to say this looks pretty nice, but i'm sure the authentic looks nicer. (quality-wise).
i agree with thomsbrain about performance, but quality is also a big factor to certain individuals :/
i agree with thomsbrain about performance, but quality is also a big factor to certain individuals :/