Yeah, I think if they want to remove features to make the base model cheaper it has to be stuff that's expensive. Keyless entry, sensors on wipers, a 4G LTE module, cruise control - that's peanuts in terms of costs, these sensors and RFID modules, LTE chips are mass produced in the hundreds of millions and make it to 100 dollar phones, etc. You need all kinds of motion and speed sensors for ABS and the like anyway, obviously they have an electronic accelerator pedal, isn't cruise control simply and extra piece of code on the onboard computer?
I agree the touch screen will get smaller, which is a good thing for a smaller car and the cost of those screens grows exponentially with size. As we have more and more 13-15" touchscreen notebooks, they should be able to get a good deal on a, say 15" model. But that can't be more than a saving in the low 100 dollars, I think, if at all. (Especially by 2017).
So they have to look at "real" costs. Not including the 4G dataplan could be something (think roaming costs and unlimited data per year). That could be an option, and some may go for theathering instead. But the real saver will be less aluminum, more plastics (some of those soft to touch plastic interiors are not such a horrible tradeoff), no air suspension, less cool but expensive gimmicks like door handles popping out, and of course, much cheaper batteries.
On thing we have to consider is offering less options to begin with. Options mean more variations, more manual configurations per customer, less truly mass production. When we bought a new Yaris for someone in the family a few years back, I was shocked they only had like 3 or 4 options, bundles to choose from. You could have the "engine option" for the step up from 1.1 to 1.3 liter, and maybe 2 trims including a bunch of stuff. But you could not do things "a la carte". That's one way to make things cheaper.
I agree the touch screen will get smaller, which is a good thing for a smaller car and the cost of those screens grows exponentially with size. As we have more and more 13-15" touchscreen notebooks, they should be able to get a good deal on a, say 15" model. But that can't be more than a saving in the low 100 dollars, I think, if at all. (Especially by 2017).
So they have to look at "real" costs. Not including the 4G dataplan could be something (think roaming costs and unlimited data per year). That could be an option, and some may go for theathering instead. But the real saver will be less aluminum, more plastics (some of those soft to touch plastic interiors are not such a horrible tradeoff), no air suspension, less cool but expensive gimmicks like door handles popping out, and of course, much cheaper batteries.
On thing we have to consider is offering less options to begin with. Options mean more variations, more manual configurations per customer, less truly mass production. When we bought a new Yaris for someone in the family a few years back, I was shocked they only had like 3 or 4 options, bundles to choose from. You could have the "engine option" for the step up from 1.1 to 1.3 liter, and maybe 2 trims including a bunch of stuff. But you could not do things "a la carte". That's one way to make things cheaper.
