When Endless Tinkering Does Nothing to Improve the Product (Two Examples)

Ford introduced the Thunderbird in 1955.   The car subsequently went through 11 generations of design changes, basically a bulking up through its first 8 generations, i.e., until the early 1980s.  Its length increased by nearly 25%, from 175.3 to 217.7 inches. The last generation, which reintroduced the car in 2003 after a 5-year production hiatus, returned the car to its two-seat, coupe-convertible roots.   By that time, nobody much cared.

Thunderbird ceased production in 2005.

Here's another case where a manufacturer can't leave well enough alone.   The product, no matter what its merits, has got to be bigger, with considerably more options.

The original Rival Crockpot, introduced in 1971, did exactly what it was supposed to do -- slow-cook whatever ingredients you added to it.  Today's increasingly disappointing models -- yeah, they're not made to last -- have multiple temperature controls that seem to have been added just for show.  Or else "low" is the new "high". Recipes that suggest "cook on low for 6 to 8 hours" will result in a bubbling of liquid that rivals any witch's brew.  Fortunately, turning the knob to "warm" does reduce the heat.  (Can't vouch for "high" as I've never cooked anything on that setting.)

The last time I prepared pot roast, I used an updated 1960s-era, foil-wrapped, oven-baked recipe.  The result put our "crockpot" to shame.