Hmm, HBS vs Wharton here? :)

Both of you are thinking broader and deeper than I. I guess looking at it from a marketing perspective does make sense, and we have Volvo as an example of successfully marketing their safety innovations. Leon's facts are, of course, facts, but facts can be interpreted in different ways.

I'll try to take my own point to a further step, without a business degree. From the data I collected, it seems that if a company historically hasn't been on the leading edge of innovation, it isn't likely to start all of a sudden. Its natural instinct is to stay on its proven conservative course. On the other hand, many innovative companies that have had quality troubles in the past have done the right thing to improve it. A classic example is Porsche, who hired a team of Japanese managers in the '90s to help them change their manufacturing process to reduce costs and improve quality. The result is that Porsche now ranks close to Lexus in reliability surveys. (OK, they took a step back with the Cayenne, but the latest JDP result shows they've recovered.) So, quality is a relatively minor issue that can be solved by a big restructuring process, but innovation is more deeply rooted in company culture. If I have to bet, I'd rather bet on innovative companies.

For one thing, the (automotive) world would be very boring indeed without them.