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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    No, I want them to sell 2 more crossovers (rear drive ones on Alpha and Omega), and a sports car and a convertible. And if the sports coupe and convertible are the same vehicle like Jaguar F-Type and Corvette have 2 body styles that works for me.
  2. smk4565
    They should do a Type R Grand Hatchback SH-AWD and sell if for $59,000. Because everyone wants them some $59,000 Civics. Seriously isn't the Civic Type R pushing $40k as it is? They can barely sell Acuras for over $40k, who wants an entry level Honda at that price.
  3. smk4565
    The FWD Seville and the mid 2000s era STS that replaced it were both deemed failures, and yet both sold in better numbers than the CTS or CT6 sell at now. So even if they build some corner carvers, people aren't buying them. Really Cadillac's best chance for success is as a truck company. Their 2 SUVs outsell their 4 sedans with ease. And by the time Cadillac gets a TT V8 out, the market will start moving toward electrics. Why not get 5 EV's in development for Cadillac to launch in 2020? The G-wagen had it's best sales year ever in 2016, so being decades old didn't seem to matter at all, in fact it seems to help, the older it got the better it sold. Mercedes makes the GLS which competes quite nicely against the Range Rover and smokes it in sales. But there is an all new G-wagen for 2018. And why does Cadillac not have aspirations of higher sales? As the most profitable brand at GM, they should want to sell as many Cadillacs as they can. If Cadillac had Audi sales volume, GM stock would probably be $50 a share and not $30. Not that I care, I don't own GM stock, but their shareholders I am sure would like more Cadillac sales to generate more profit.
  4. smk4565
    Why don't they make Volvo electric cars? I wonder how many will buy a Polestar over a Tesla, Mercedes, Audi or BMW. That is a tall ask from a start up brand
  5. smk4565
    Not just 2009, but 1999, and even 1989, that Cadillac has been fighting the same battle. Their image and public perception has trailed away past 2009. The Allante was going to challenge the Germans and create prestige for the brand, that failed and that was 30 years ago. In 1997 Cadillac was the #1 selling luxury brand in the USA on a 50 year streak of being #1 and today they are 7th place. They are almost more clueless now than they were in 2009 or 2002. They just have better engineers covering up the blatant weaknesses in product planning and marketing and R&D spending.
  6. smk4565
    The argument for killing the XTS after 2019 is that the Deville buyer won't be buying new cars by then, the Impala or other full size front drivers may not be around either, so the volume is gone, and lastly you can sell a CT6 for an extra $10,000 to the person who wanted an XTS. The dealer will just talk the person into a 7 year loan vs a 6 year to stretch the payments. Or there is the CTS or a crossover. Once Cadillac has 4 crossovers no one will miss the XTS. No one sweats the coming loss of the Taurus because people are buying crossovers anyway. But for the next 2-3 years I would kill every dime out of the XTS.
  7. smk4565
    The A-class in China sells for higher price than any Buick except the Enclave and Volt. This is why Buick sells a million units a year in China, they have 6 or 7 products below CLA. Western Europe is actually Mercedes largest market but largest country sales would be China. About 500k a year there and 380k in USA.
  8. smk4565
    Well that car has been in steady decline for years.
  9. smk4565
    So the 2017 Lexus ES350 has the same engine as a 2007 Toyota Camry. That's how sorry Lexus is. The XTS is more modern than that at least. So they can milk a couple more years out of it, I think the plan was to build it until 2019 anyway, and then kill it.
  10. smk4565
    Probably because the 2006 era V6 in that car isn't compatible with anything else.
  11. smk4565
    Well as I said, I don't think they have any interest in main stream product. They could do a main stream brand, but why bother. They pouring money into electric cars, they don't need a distraction. I think it is a waste of time to offer two 4-doors off the front drive platform, they should have a 4-door, a hatchback and a GLA and GLB crossover, because crossovers are what sell. The GLB is supposed to look like the off roader concept they had a couple years ago.
  12. smk4565
    The current CLA starts at a higher price than a Maxima or Lacrosse, and loaded goes higher than either of them also. The CLA starts $300 less than an Acura TLX (their middle sedan) and $1,250 less than an Infiniti Q50. They are playing low for Mercedes, but above the non-lux brands top offering, and right in line with the mid-range Acura and Infiniti. And there are some that will only see a badge, however if it was just a badge that mattered the CLA wouldn't get outsold by the C-class and E-class and I think even the S-class was close to outselling it last year. And the GLC, GLE, and GLS all outsell the GLA.
  13. smk4565
    There could be money to be made if Smart expanded and used the A-class platform for a compact sedan and a CLA size sedan, but in the $18k and $23k range respectively. I am sure they could get a 1.4 liter turbo off Renault for the motor, and they could do a little crossover, maybe some EV versions of those. I don't know if they really want to expand the range out that far though, or put money into that brand. They are pretty busy with the Mercedes line as it is. They are bringing the AMG GT sedan to the USA with possible 805 hp hybrid V8 powertrain. Their future is really hybrid and electric rather than Smart brand.
  14. smk4565
    I am sure they will bring it to the USA, it would be a hit. They could use a crossover larger than Sorrento also, but this compacts crossover segment is hot.
  15. smk4565
    Companies know where sales are going. They may not know exact numbers, but in Cadillac's case they could look at other brands conquest data or market share changes, etc.
  16. smk4565
    Yes, but that was a new car, new interior and stuff. I don't think they wanted to do anything with the XTS except put a new face on it. This was like the GM w-body treatment of keep the 3800 and 4-speed going just to save cost, and put on new headlights and bumpers. This new XTS looks a lot like a CT6, and is the same size, with standard V6 power to standard 4-cylinder power. They need something for the sales people to use to sell the CT6 (better transmission) and they need to keep cost down for the livery market.
  17. smk4565
    Well most luxury brand buyers are coming from another luxury brand. What about their top outflow? Year to date, Cadillac is up .9% Audi is up 6.5%, BMW is down 3.6%, Lexus is down 13.1%, Infiniti is up 24%, Mercedes is down 1%. Volume wise, Cadillac is 7th in the American market. I'd think Lexus would be the easiest for Cadillac to steal off of, especially with the slew of FWD crossovers that Cadillac is going to position directly against Lexus. Also keep in mind that Mercedes and BMW have sold the most luxury cars the past 10 years, with Lexus in 3rd, so it makes sense that that is their biggest conquest, just on sheer numbers there are more of them out there.
  18. smk4565
    They don't really need the CLS, but at least at that price point they are getting a pretty good up charge over the E-class. The new E-class coupe looks stunning and it is larger than the old one since it isn't on a C-class chassis anymore. Maybe they'll do a V8 in the CLS550 since there is no E550 anymore, I don't know, but there are some ways they can make it different from the E-class. And they do more volume on the E-class than they do on the CLA/GLA. The CLA and A-class sedan would be basically same size, same space, same power, similar body since the A-class sedan concept is sort of swoopy design anyway. I'd rather see the hatchback to a 2nd sedan.
  19. smk4565
    Mechanical changes cost money, this was front and rear fascia redo and let it soldier on for 3 more years. Which makes sense, why spend money on a product that is going to die in 3 years. I bet the Impala gets the same treatment next year.
  20. smk4565
    An A-class sedan makes no sense unless it is to replace the CLA. It would be selling 2 of the same model basically. What they need to do is give us this:
  21. smk4565
    Low selling is better than no selling. Mercedes is on pace to sell 30,000 AMG vehicles in the USA alone this year. So that is pretty good. At least someone is pushing performance, Lexus surely isn't. Handling, braking, chassis tuning, these are areas where Cadillac can beat the Camry platform Lexus line up. Horsepower also, at almost any level, Lexus still has that 3.5 V6 from 2006 in most of their product, they should have killed that thing years ago.
  22. smk4565
    Acura is a low end luxury brand and Lexus is boring. Lexus lacks the guts to really go big, even with the LC500, there could be more power there. They did the LFA, but even that needed more torque and after that 500 unit model run they seem to have no desire to do another sports car. Lexus is a brand that could be doing so much better because they have reliability and reputation, but they have ugly styling and super out dated engines. Lexus should have a 100% turbo charged line up with a hybrid version of every model they sell. They are close on the hybrid front, but the most powerful Lexus is 471 hp, Mercedes has like 20 models over 500 hp. Lexus is a brand that Cadillac should be able to steal a lot of business off of. Cadillac can make quiet and smooth riding vehicles, throw a ton of hybrid crossovers at them. Lexus is weak in performance, Cadillac can easily beat them there.
  23. smk4565
    Well yes, but there is another one coming below that. The FJ Cruiser looking thing. I imagine there will be an 8-series convertible at the top, and 4-series convertible for lower price, plus the Z4. Three convertibles is enough. And the i8 is getting a convertible of some sort, maybe that will be a targa roof thing, not sure, but no one buys that car anyway.
  24. smk4565
    It doesn't but if Chevy said they were cancelling the Corvette convertible or the Corvette entirely due to low sales, there would be outrage. And Chevy's fate doesn't hinge on the Corvette either, but there is a reason they still make it.
  25. smk4565
    I am not saying that Cadillac isn't a luxury car brand, but when a luxury buyer is out there looking to spend big money on a sports car or convertible, Cadillac doesn't have anything. It is hard to build status as an elite brand, without elite product.
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