Speed,
the new rods still break, of course failure rate is down, the cars have new rods..will they be claiming the same when the new rods are 5 yrs old???
The problem with any new design is how does one address the basic flaws in such a way to permanently eliminate or mitigate the original problem in a permanent way. As John M mentioned Titanium is very difficult (read expensive) to machine. My design eliminates the welding of the original design, it is essentially machined from a piece of solid billet titanium, eliminating several weak spots of the original rods. The piece of Titanium Billet alone costs $260...and I've had quotes up to $3000 for the machining..of course that number was unacceptable, but to make a long story short this is a more difficult project than it sounds.