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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    True on Ferrari, a lot of their profit is merchandise and licensing, they sell a lot of shirts and hats to people that cheer for the perennial 2nd place F1 team they have. Porsche and Bentley are big money makers for Audi obviously. Cadillac is probably making about $4,000 per car, the Escalade bank rolls it, but they have to put heavy incentives on those sedans and they don't sell the Escalade in China either. Even if Cadillac makes $5,000 per car like BMW and Mercedes do, the problem is BMW sold 2.1 million cars in 2017 and Mercedes sold 2.29 million. That is a whole lot more profit at BMW and Mercedes. And Chevy for sure turns a profit, they probably make $500 per car on stuff like the Cruze and Malibu, but all crossovers make money and pick up trucks make even more.
  2. smk4565
    Well, sales equal revenue, and ultimately lead to profits, which is the name of the game. But the German sedans, mid-size or full size, have more power, more tech, better build quality, better interior materials, better performance than the CT6. Even on interior sound, the E43 was the quietest car Car and Driver tested in 2017. I think what Cadillac should do on the CT5 is develop some hybrid powertrains, they have to have cutting edge technology to have any chance.
  3. smk4565
    Pretty good power and still fast. Very suitable performance for a Bentley, big tanks that do 0-60 in under 5 seconds is what Bentley is all about. This isn't an attractive vehicle though, and seems to look worse every year.
  4. smk4565
    A car that is priced with a 5-series and E-class, but gets outsold 4 to 1 by them in the USA. In China, it's worse, the E-class outsells the CT6 10 to 1. And Cadillac originally wanted to go against the 7-series and S-class but forgot 200 hp and a list of luxury features along the way and had to retreat. Cadillac is a brand without mojo, and I don't know what the solution is, they tried mid-size car for small size price, tried selling the CTS for $10k less than a E-class or 5-series, tried 640 hp, they tried full size car at mid-size prices, they have tried 2 different naming schemes in 10 years, and endless marketing campaigns and none of it has worked. The only thing they haven't tried yet is the 10 year/100k mile warranty. So I don't know what the answer is for Cadillac, but I am curious to see what they do with CT5, although my guess is more of the same formula of the past 6 years.
  5. smk4565
    This could be a 2010 Passat and I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.
  6. smk4565
    My question is what do they do different this time? The ATS and CTS were sales flops, they better rethink their attack this time around unless the strategy is to be a price leader and sell these for $35k which I doubt it is. That being said I think Cadillac or GM for that matter is not capable of making a competitive sedan.
  7. smk4565
    Put all wheel drive in cars and car sales will go up. A lot of people are buying crossovers just for all wheel drive. And make cars good, and cars will sell. Make cars with discount interiors that sit on the market for 8 years without and update, and watch the sales tank.
  8. smk4565
    There is a ton of gray plastic on that center console, which just screams cheap. My question is how with a 335 hp/380 lb-ft V6 does the Edge have the same 0-60 time as a 241 hp Mercedes GLC? The Edge must have huge drivetrain losses in power. What I don't like about the look of this Edge, is the grille looks like the front end of a Taurus police car, and the back half looks the same as it has since 2008.
  9. smk4565
    4-door coupe styling! This is now more common than 3 box sedans and kind of boring.
  10. smk4565
    Not interested unless it is a 4-door coupe pickup.
  11. smk4565
    The Malibu might get a second wind when the Taurus, Impala and Fusion all hit the graveyard.
  12. smk4565
    This is a nice, but it feels like a Denali trim where they tack on some upgraded materials in areas, but at the end of the day it is still the base car. The exterior of the GLE and especially the GLS have aged well, this GLS in it's 7th model year and it still looks good. What this car needs (and the GLE) is the updated Mercedes dash and center stack and the new chassis to get the weight reduction. I look forward to the new one.
  13. smk4565
    Ener-G Concept inspired GLB coming next year.
  14. smk4565
    The Bentley Bentayga has a 117.9 inch wheelbase. That is what this thing is, although the overall length is less than the Bentayga, maybe shorter hood if they have no W12 plans. I wonder how they will price the Q8, my guess is above A8, so it better have an A8 level interior or better.
  15. smk4565
    This is basically the poor man's Bentley Bentayga.
  16. smk4565
    I was wondering how big this thing was, thanks dfelt for posting the size. What I don't quite get is why it is nearly as big as a Q7 when it is a 2 row vehicle. But maybe they just want it to feel like a jacked up A8.
  17. smk4565
    GM sells 4 or 5 vehicles for every 1 Daimler sells, so them making equal profit would suggest Daimler does a better job. Mercedes ran something like a million simulations to see if there was any benefit in efficiency of a 10 speed to a 9 speed, and there was not, so that is why they made a 9-speed. They already build a convertible Maybach G-Wagen. The G-class is also not the flagship Mercedes, the S-class is, always has been and is stated so on the Mercedes website.
  18. smk4565
    I actually think 20-30 miles is plenty of range for a plug-in hybrid because you aren’t going to be in EV only that much and a lot of commutes are less than 20 miles anyway. The problem with any plugin even if it had 100 mile range is you still have 2 power systems and you still burn gas. A mild hybrid almost makes more sense from a cost-benefit standpoint until you can switch to full electric.
  19. smk4565
    Hahaha, the G-Wagen should never change. That box on wheels is here to stay because that is what the G-class buyers want. It set a global sales record in 2016, I imagine when the 2017 global numbers are out it will outdo 2016. It is plenty modern, the chassis is brand new, the 4.0 V8 and 9-speed first came out in 2016, it has current Mercedes interior trim and electronics. What Cadillac fans don’t get is the Escalade doesn’t compete with the G-Wagen and if Cadillac wants to then they need a product above the Escalade, but Cadillac/GM management thinks no SUV at GM can be above the Escalade, just like no sports car can be above the Corvette. This kills Cadillac when trying to take on high end cars.
  20. smk4565
    The G-class isn’t changing it’s look, just like the Wrangler has looked the same for 50 years. And it now is on a 2018 so all of a sudden the G-Wagen has the most modern chassis in the industry. And the GLB will feel nothing like a G-Wagen, plus the GLE is the same size as the G-Wagen, half the price and has been more modern than it the past 15 years and G-wagen sales went up every year. What Mercedes is doing is similar to what Jeep has done, they can run 2 styling themes on SUVs, one boxy and off road like Wrangler and Renegade, one more smoother out like Compass and Cherokee and both can work.
  21. smk4565
    Nobody wants a 2.9 liter V6 Bentley with 462 hp. A plug in hybrid V8 would be much more fitting for Bentley. The only place this hybrid Bentayga makes sense is China where they have a displacement tax at 3 liters and they are looking to mandate EV’s.
  22. smk4565
    Not sure how it is a lost opportunity when they are building an SUV based on that concept.
  23. smk4565
    First off, as I said, the Ener-G Concept was not meant to be the G-Wagen, that was a electric fuel cell concept which obviously isn’t commercially viable from a powertrain standpoint. They are building a GLB crossover in 2019 based on that concept, so the masses will line up to get a mini G-Wagen. The current G-Wagen has more rear seat legroom than the Escalade, the new G-Wagen is getting 5.9 inches more so no problem there. And keep in mind the G-Wagen is a mid-size SUV.
  24. smk4565
    The Concept G from a few years ago was never meant to be a new G-Wagen, the G-class is what it is, they aren’t going to mess with the formula. There has been talk that the Concept G will turn into a GLB boxy, off road looking crossover in the mid $30s price range.
  25. smk4565
    Max water fording depth is up to 27.5 inches on the new one, that is insane. Anyone that buys a G-Wagen should take it off road at least once a year. Even if you are a Real Housewives of Beverly Hills wannabe celeb driving this thing, it is a total waste of you don’t drive it up a mountain or over a sand dune or through a brick wall or something. The new model is said to be roomier on the inside it, and several hundred pounds lighter, same exterior size.
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