ORIGINAL: mopar2ya
superbleu, I think your idea is sound, however, I believe the car manufacture model used today has changed so much that it is not able to handle the dynamic of customer input and limited production it once was. They are geared more for extended production runs in auto-pilot rather than manual operation. The production model today is designed to cater to the masses rather than individuals. This is why they offer "option groups" rather than "options"... it's all about streamlining. There has probably been untold amounts spent on research that indicates "sublime" and "plum crazy" and "go mango" are poor market choices, and these loser would never sell... regardless of what the customer wants... err... thinks they want...
You hit the nail on the head with your comments. There were way too many options, colors, etc., on American cars that were costing the manufacturer tons of money because of limited production runs and adding complexity to the product. Unfortunately it took the Japanese auto manufacturer to teach us this lesson. They build cars in limited colors and options and tell you the dealer can put on the rest if you really want them. Have you ever seen the prices on dealer installed options for dealers like Honda? Back up the truck if you want anything but what comes with the car. It's how they do business now and it's not going to change.