A replicator theory model of competition through imitation in the automobile market

When the retail price of new cars is plotted versus a parameter which characterizes their bulk, representative points fall along a branching scheme which can be formally described as a bifurcation diagram. I first use an heuristic approach to explain how this pattern of price distribution reflects a convergence towards a few design standards of automobiles. The existence of these standards can be regarded as the result of an imitation process between manufacturers, which in turn seems to be a selected. strategy for collective survival. This phenomenon is modeled using 'replicator dynamics', where the sale of a unit of a given car model is viewed as the 'reproduction' of its blueprint. This reproduction is considered to be stimulated by the existence of those standards of design. The result is a possible coexistence of several similar car models, as it is actually observed in the market.