The original formulation of this theory (in Car and Driver iirc) was that it’s harder to make a water pump for a Chevrolet than a Mercedes, because you had to m

The original formulation of this theory (in Car and Driver iirc) was that it’s harder to make a water pump for a Chevrolet than a Mercedes, because you had to meet a tight cost objective for the Chevrolet. In practice, it just meant Chevy often cheaped out on the water pump and you got water pump failures after the warranty expired.