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This seems inevitable?
1996 Thunderbird (the car, not the watch). What percentage of replacement parts are available from Ford? Very few I suspect, you are not buying a new front fender from Ford.
85,000 were made. So, there is some aftermarket support, and TONS of common parts across the Ford line of the late 1990s.
But... if there were (guessing) 10,000 Tudor Subs made that year... Rolex is out of spare parts... not a lot of commonality across the rest of the line... a $400 NOS balance wheel, when made in quantity... would a precision machinist charge $1,500 to make quantity one? How much more dire is the situation for a $40 pinion gear, is someone willing to tool up to make quantity 100 per year for $350?
Just musing... if Ford drops support of a $25,000 car by year 30, can we be upset if Tudor does the same on a (guessing) $5,000 watch? If the aftermarket fails to fully support 85,000 units in the field, will it fail to support 10,000?
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