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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    And yet the ATS and CTS are often cited for having the most cramped interiors in their class. And the 2010-2015 SRX you yourself said had interior space like an X3, even though the exterior size was similar to an X5.
  2. smk4565
    I feel like Elon likes to create a bit of a circus and this one back fired on him but I doubt he really cares either. He is still the majority shareholder and can call the shots. And if he doesn’t get what he wants he’ll probably shut it down and move to Mars.
  3. smk4565
    That is the problem, Cadillac is in the Volvo, Acura price class. And really Acura has those Honda loyalists to fall back on, Volvo has really improved over recent years and seems to have some mojo back. Cadillac is stuck in neutral with Lincoln who can't figure out what they want to be. I see Infiniti falling behind just because their lineup is rather dated, and there is no flagship vehicle of any kind, the Q70 is one of the oldest vehicles on the market, the QX80 might be the only thing older and more dated.
  4. smk4565
    True so why bother with a CT6-V? The CT6 sells about 1/10th the volume a GLC does, I can't imagine they will sell more than 500-1,000 CT6-V's per year globally. They might as well put the CT6 on the LaCrosse platform with a base 3.6 V6 and awd and make the 3.6 TT V6 with AWD the V. Lexus calls the RX 350 with no engine upgrade the F-sport, so a Cadillac can call anything with with 400 hp a V-series.
  5. smk4565
    The advantage is in MSRP. This is the XT5's dimensions: 190″ L x 75″ W x 66″ H Range Rover Velar dimensions: 189″ L x 76″ W x 66″ H And Merc GLE's dimensions: 189″ L x 76″ W x 71″ H The XT5 starts at $40,595 and maxes at $70,095. RR Velar starts at $49,600 and maxes at $94,385. The GLE starts at $52,200 and maxes at $127,925. In all 3 builds I added all the options except for dealer accessories like all weather floor mats, wheel locks, engine block heater, etc. Given those numbers it looks like an easy $10-20,000 price increase by going to rear drive. We can do this with the XT4 also, which is 181″ L x 77″ W x 64″ H Mercedes GLC: 183″ L x 74″ W x 65″ H and Porsche Macan 184″ L x 76″ W x 64″ H The GLC starts at $40,700 and Car and Driver had and as tested GLC63 at $103,300. Porsche Macan starts at $47,800 and I had it up to $127,180 on their configurator and I didn't even check a lot of the boxes. Porsche gets $20,000 per vehicle profit, and they don't do it with front drive and a turbo 4.
  6. smk4565
    They are all AWD, but you need a longitudinal mounted engine with the transmission behind it that can help with weight balance, longer wheelbase, and the ability to send more power to the rear wheels, like 40/60 to the rear for example. If chassis does not matter, then the CT4, CT5, CT6 should all be FWD with an AWD setup (make it standard AWD if they want) in order to save money. They can build the whole line off Cruze and Malibu chassis and save engineering resources.
  7. smk4565
    I agree with Cmicasa’s product line but Cadiallc didn’t do that then and they aren’t going to do it now. This brand doesn’t spend money and I have been saying that for a decade. Even going back to the XLR in 2004, they cut cost all over the place. The argument that sedans need to be rwd for better performance, ride and handling, but the crossovers are fine with front drive makes no sense. If rwd has better ride and handling then you should invest in it on the most popular body style of vehicle. Cadillac sales could be 80% SUV by 2020, why wouldn’t they want the best platform possible on 80% of their product?
  8. smk4565
    Which means they probably won’t be any good.
  9. smk4565
    Auto brands, just like brands in any other industry, operate globally. Cadillac operates in 2 countries and ranks in 6th or 7th place in both of them. I don't see any path for them to do better than that. Cadillac doesn't really have a clear focus or brand image, they haven't for decades. Cadillac was late on crossovers, they'll probably be late on EV's and miss that market when it takes off. I think GM will keep Cadillac around because they'll always find a way for the Cadillac brand to turn a profit. But I see no way for them to turn this brand around.
  10. smk4565
    “We lost our mojo for a long period of time. This time, it is different and we will show you," HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Yeah right, why will it be different? Oh please explain Mr. Carlisle. This brand hasn't had mojo since the 80s and that mojo was mostly with seniors even then. Since then it has been one mistake after another, "Dare Greatly" was a horrible idea, I said that at the time they launched it. I don't see the XT4 as their savior because the millennial and Get X-ers that are buying cars don't want a Cadillac, they want a German car if they like performance and they want an Acura or Lexus if they want reliability. Cadillac's brand image is badly damaged, and I guarantee nobody at GM knows how to fix it, or else they would have done it already.
  11. smk4565
    He owns like 20% of the company, he just has to find some big money group to buy up another 30% and he can probably buy up some more shares himself. He could take control of it if he really wanted to, but I think that would slow their growth and limit their ability to raise money.
  12. smk4565
    Jeep has really strong brand image and the styling really works too. This makes it a desirable brand all over the world. And they have 3 SUVs on the smaller side, the Cherokee is the size of an Equinox and they have 2 smaller than that. Japanese don't buy American because a lot of American cars aren't that good. The class leading American cars are full size pickups and SUVs and that stuff won't sell in Japan or Europe either. If American brands had best in class small sedans and small and compact crossovers I bet they'd sell over seas.
  13. smk4565
    You have to have demos, how will people know if they like the car if they can't drive it. Some of these new car dealers stock hundreds of cars, yet they don't want to stock any E-trons? I am sure those buyers will be happy to drive a mile down the road to the Mercedes dealer that has EV's in stock. Likewise for those waiting a year for a Tesla, you can go get a Mercedes that won't have different colors on the door panels or a hood that is put on crooked. I will have to point the finger of shame at Mercedes if they don't sell more EV's than Audi over the next 5 years.
  14. smk4565
    He should take Tesla private just out of spite now.
  15. smk4565
    I said this was a bad idea at the time. Johan did nothing right in his time at Cadillac. And really that is upper management's fault, they didn't know what to do with Cadillac, so they hired him and he botched Cadillac. The original "renaissance" started in 2002 and they still haven't figured it out.
  16. smk4565
    First off, Toyota has billions and billions of dollars, they can build anything they want. This isn't FCA. I have thought for years they should bring back the Celica, when Scion died they should have done this. It won't be that hard to make a Corolla based coupe, you have the platform, just have to re-body it and change the front and rear facias. They could use the Corolla's 1.8 liter as the base engine, and offer a turbo for the GT-S with like 190-200 hp. Or you could put the Camry's 4-cylinder in there that makes about 200 hp. Would be so easy to bring the Celica back. MR2 is a bit harder to make a mid-engine car, that gets into a new platform and stuff.
  17. smk4565
    You can lease a brand new Lincoln for $300-400 a month first off. And secondly, maybe after one month in a Lincoln they couldn’t wait to get a different car.
  18. smk4565
    Probably at the rate we are going a base 2025 Camry will be about $44,000 while the average American household has a $60k income compared to today when a base Camry is $23k and the median household income is $59,000.
  19. smk4565
    Isn’t a top of the line A8 a Bentley Flying Spur?
  20. smk4565
    A 2013 Audi S7 that has a 450 hp V8 does 0-60 in 3.9 seconds. Car and Driver testes a 2018 CTS-V at 0-60 in 3.8 seconds. That is all Quattro, and how a 5 year old car that is only slightly slower than a new CTS-V with a 190 hp advantage. And I know the car needs to go fast to have downforce work. My point on high horsepower cars that don't have AWD are hardcore sports cars and track cars like McLarens, 911 GT2/GT3, ZR-1, LaFerrari, etc. Those aren't daily driver type cars, they are made for a track where you can get up to speed and use the downforce to get the power down. That is the only type of car you can make rwd with 600 hp that can work. And those high power cars that do launch well have the engine in the back. Something like a V-series sedan, needs all wheel drive.
  21. smk4565
    The Nazis committed awful atrocities and yet German cars are the top selling luxury cars in England, USA, EU, China, etc. In the luxury world badge does matter. As far as the G70 goes, it looks a lot like a 2014 3-Series and there seems to be a lot of Hyundai in that car. What is going to make this car sell at BMW prices? The other Genesis cars are dying on the sales charts and they priced low in their segments.
  22. smk4565
    If you have a McLaren with active aero or something like a 911 GT2 RS then yes you can use downforce and aero to have a 700 hp rear drive car. But for a sedan or regular coupe you need AWD at these high power levels. Or go mid engine like the Corvette is doing because they can’t get the power down with the horsepower it makes now. But McLarens are mid engine too. A front engine car with a lot of power like a V-series Cadillac needs all wheel drive.
  23. smk4565
    When you add power you add weight, I couldn’t find a CT6-V weight but 4,500+ lbs is what I’d expect. I do agree that it will probably do 0-60 in that 3.4 second range. Traction and torque will make it happen. The S65 is slower 0-60 than the S63 but I’d imagine few cars beat an S65 from 100-150 mph. But you do have emissions regulations, transmission durability is why they use the 7-speed, and not being able to get awd on the V12 are issues the S65 faces. Mercedes knows this, the hybrid S73 is the answer to all those issues but they also have a loyal V12 customer base paying them $240k so they obviously are going to give them what they want.
  24. smk4565
    To the first part, the M760i is probably under rated on power, I've seen 0-60 in 3.4 seconds recorded for it, it is plenty fast. The current S63 is 4,806 lbs, while a turbo V6 CT6 is 4,385, when you add a V8 and bigger brakes, heavier duty transmission, etc, that weight will easily go over 4,500 lbs. So we are talking more like a 300 lb difference, and maybe the 2021 S-class drops a little when it changes platforms. Keep in mind there is an S73 likely coming to replace the S65, the S63 isn't the top of the line. I agree with your 2nd point, I think the CT6-V will beat the CTS-V in a drag race due to traction. There are 450 hp Audi's that can beat a CTS-V in a 0-60 sprint or at least come really close because of how well they launch off the line. Anything over 500 hp really needs all wheel drive or it is pointless horsepower, save for the crazy high downforce exotic cars. I would also imagine Cadillac to have drive modes since the M5 and the 4Matic+ AMG cars can send 100% torque to the back wheels or default back to a 35/65 sort of split.
  25. smk4565
    Well the GLB should have up to 400 hp in AMG trim, much more than you can get in a Cadillac crossover. That part is for the few enthusiasts that are left out there. Where are the V-series SUV's? The 3-pointed star is all you need to sell to the soccer moms.
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