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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    And yet M-B is #1 in US market luxury sales, #1 in European market luxury sales, #2 in China market luxury sales and 3 time defending champion in Formula 1. While posting record profits the past few years. On the Cadillac front, I agree a sub-ATS car is a waste of time, they need crossovers. That is what sells.
  2. smk4565
    The F-pace is a GLC, X3, Macan (soon to be Stelvio) competitor. F-Pace is based on the XE small sedan. And yes an E300 is slower than a V6 Camry, but they offer more powerful engines. M-B offers AMG engines on every model line, Cadillac can't do a V-series on their Utilities because their platforms couldn't handle the power. I can't see how Cadillac fans are happy that the CTS-V engine isn't on an XT5, when the Europeans all have big power.
  3. smk4565
    I see it this way, Group A has decided to build crossovers on FWD mass market platforms, this includes Cadillac, Acura, Lexus and Lincoln (and about half the Infiniti and Audi crossovers) Group B thinks performance matters and uses a more purpose built chassis, boosted engines, etc. This includes Alfa Romeo, BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar/Land Rover, Bentley, Porsche, Maserati. Would you want to be in group A or Group B?
  4. smk4565
    But Cadillac comes up with a product like Escalade, that defines their brand and is their most profitable product, and you don't really see a smaller version of it to capitalize on what Cadillac is. Not that I want them to make 6 versions of Escalade like there are 5 or 6 "Range Rovers" now, but I don't see a lot of Escalade influence in other Cadilacs, other than vertical lights, which every Cadillac has, and had since like 2003. Jeep does this well, Compass is a mini Grand Cherokee, Renegade is heavily influenced by Wrangler, because those are the iconic designs, and they get those designs to people at a lower price point. Cadillac is supposed to be performance luxury, but the performance is limited to 2 models, when they have 6 models. 6 model lines isn't enough as it is, 2 performance lines surely isn't enough. People want horsepower and performance, and people now want crossovers a lot more than they want sedans, yet Cadillac hasn't combined the 2 yet, when Porsche, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, BMW, Audi, Mercedes, Bentley, Jaguar, Land Rover all have, and probably soon Aston Martin and Lamborghini will join them. Huge missed opportunity by not having performance in the crossover space, just like the V-series sedans (and rwd sedans in general) arrived 15 years too late after the M3 and M5 already set the segment. In 10 years time we will look back on Cadillacs crossovers of the 2010-2020 era as lackluster product that let them fall behind, just as we now look back at the 90s FWD Seville and Deville that failed to get it done and let the Germans take over. 20 years later Cadillac makes the exact same mistake, but with a different body style.
  5. smk4565
    Alfa has a worse reputation than Cadillac, but a better product than Cadillac. So that gives them a chance. Something that can work in Alfa Romeo's favor is the majority of people under 30-35 don't really even know what Alfa Romeo is or much about their history. They haven't been here in 20 years, if you are 30 now, you were 10 the last time they sold a new car here. To younger buyers they don't have baggage like Cadillac or Lincoln might have. The other question though is can 30 year olds afford Alfa Romeo pricing? If Alfa has to rely on older buyers that remember what they were in the 80s, they have a big hill to climb. If VW were to buy Alfa they would want that Georgio platform. Every magazine ranks the Guilia over the M3 and C63, and you don't even see the A4 anywhere near those comparisons because it isn't competitive.
  6. smk4565
    But the XT5 is priced like an X3. If the XT5 was priced like the CT6 was $55-90k, it would have no sales. XT4 will probably cannibalize a lot of XT5 sales. Lexus RX crushes all these luxury crossovers in sales, but it is cheap, so that's why.
  7. smk4565
    Now Sergio says he has no interest in merger, haha. That guys is nuts.
  8. smk4565
    The Gergio platform would have value to them, they could use it to make a mid size Dodge Charger and perhaps a Dodge crossover, bring the Pacifica to Dodge and it pumps some life into that brand and gets them US market sales that VW brand doesn't get. VW loves luxury brands, maybe they can see Alfa and Audi co-existing, I don't think they have any use for Maserati, Porsche, Bentley Lambo etc are better than them.
  9. smk4565
    Should, but won't. That is why a CT6 is priced like a 5-series and the XT5 starts $15k lower than an X5. Cadillac doesn't want to go up there and get in a head to head battle with the Germans.
  10. smk4565
    I don't see how you let a test car out with something broken on it. You want the press cars in tip top shape. This is the battle they will have to fight, even if it drives great, people will wonder if it will break all the time and would they just be safer buying a German car. You can't afford to have customers feel like they are gambling when buying your product.
  11. smk4565
    Listening to, and actually considering a merger are 2 different things. Of course it is worth listening, but they may have zero interest in FCA. I think Jeep gives VW interest, they'd probably want that brand and some more of the US market.
  12. smk4565
    Lexus has confirmed they are putting the UX into production, that will sit below the $35,000 NX. So you know Cadillac will want a product below XT4, to get in that growing segment. Infiniti I think has a crossover coming below the one they have based on the GLA, Mercedes is making a GLB, they are all fighting over this low $30s crossover segment because they can get growth there. Fighting over mid-size sedans is a lost cause anymore.
  13. smk4565
    The MR2 isn't feasible because how are they going to make a mid-engine chassis used on one low volume model and sell it for an affordable price? Won't happen. I think Toyota is foolish for not having a Celica, which is a front drive car, it could be a mechanical twin to the Corolla in base trim, and offer a turbo engine for the Celica GT-S and you put a good stereo and flashy wheels on it, and you have a car the young people will gobble up. The Supra might be good, it has BMW underpinnings, it might be as good as a base Corvette, but cheaper.
  14. smk4565
    75 % of sales being truck and utility is a telling number, and that could grow too. If only 20% of their sales are passenger car by 2020, then a lot of passenger car lines are going to get dumped. Sonic, Impala, Regal, ATS would be easy cuts. Or merge Spark and Sonic into one vehicle some how. Even Lacrosse is in a rapidly shrinking segment, the next Gen Lacrosse maybe goes down in size to become their version of the Malibu if Buick is to have only 1 car, it probably has to be more middle sized.
  15. smk4565
    I do hate numbered schemes that box you in like A3-4-5-6-7-8, or XT4-5-6-7, etc. Because then if the market changes or you want to introduce a new product your naming scheme doesn't allow it. I wonder why they went with XT4, unless they want to make it not like BMW X3. But I think more likely they see the need for XT2 and XT3 later on, so they want more slots below it to use. Not as fast as a 505 hp Alfa Romeo Stelvio though.
  16. smk4565
    To be a true MR2 it would have to be mid engined and I don't see Toyota doing that. And as mentioned sales of 2 seat cars are drying up fast. And I don't see how you build it at a low price point given the cost of developing a mid engine hybrid and I don't think anyone would buy it. With Scion dead it would be easy as can be to take the Corolla and make a 2 door version with different front and rear fascias and call it the Celica. That gets the fwd Celica back on sale with virtually no development cost.
  17. smk4565
    Lots of things will go hybrid, and more and more as costs drop. Combined with increasing regulations on fuel economy and emissions. Really you could have a 2.0 liter turbo 4 hybrid making as much horsepower and torque as a Hemi V8. Hybrids are the performance cars of the future too, just look at the McLaren P1 and Porsche 918, that philosophy will trickle down, it will just take time.
  18. smk4565
    We don't know what Alfa Romeo reliability will be like. Ow since it just went on sale. The problem is neither do the potential buyers. People buying sport sedans and soon Alfa will be in sport crossover, trust the Germans, they know what they are getting. If you buy a Jaguar or Alfa Romeo it is a gamble, you aren't sure what you are getting.
  19. smk4565
    Alfa has the Stelvio too, that may sell. And the number of 500 hp small crossovers can be counted on one hand, and that is even after the F-Pace V8 and GLC63 go on sale.
  20. smk4565
    Because the because the CT6 interior is worse than the C-class or most Audis, unless you only judge by rear seat legroom. So unless the ATS gets a CT6 beating interior, they aren't being a game changer. The Alfa Quadrafiglio is like 20 seconds faster around the Nurburgring ring than a CTS-V. I don't see them making an ATS-v faster than a CTS-V so again no game changer. Mercedes is for some unknown reason building a C63 R that will drop weight and have 577ish hp, Cadillac isn't that ballsy because there is next to no market for cars like that. I don't think Mercedes should even bother with it.
  21. smk4565
    ATS will have to make a quantum leap to change any games, I don't think Cadillac has it in them to get the ATS interior to class leading, while also increasing performance and refinement and space. The car Mags already like the Alfa more than the C63, it is the darling of the journalists, although it still doesn't sell. The fact that the Alfa Quadrifiglio V6 is 75% of a Ferrari V8 gives it some solid cred though.
  22. smk4565
    If all these FCA products were such great cash cows, Sergio wouldn't constantly be looking for merger partners. FCA is spending almost nothing in on new products, so what do they sell in 2020 with so little in the pipeline? And one global downturn, recession or gas spike could be 2009 all over again for them and he knows it. They are making money now because the auto market has had back to back record sales years, that won't last forever. Maybe he should contact Carlos Ghosn, he like alliances and mergers, and he took on Mitsubishi so apparently no car maker is too far lost for him to take on. Nissan would get the full size truck they want, Renault can absorb any Fiat models worth keeping, they could sell Renault in USA at existing dealers (the new Renault Alpine 110 looks pretty sweet), they can kill Chrysler and sell the Pacifica at Nissan or Dodge or both, they'd keep Jeep as is.
  23. smk4565
    VW looks at things globally, the only global brand at FCA with any value is Jeep. I am sure VW would love to have Jeep in the arsenal, Ram trucks would make profit in USA would would help them, but isn't like something they really need. I don't think the value of Jeep offsets the worthlessness of Dodge/Chrysler/Fiat/Alfa/Maserati to VW.
  24. smk4565
    If GM put a ban on wearing black sweaters at work, Sergio would leave them alone forever. He should try to merge with PSA, no one wants cars "Imported From Detroit" he could try some imported from France and use Citroen to fill Chrysler dealerships. And they can consolidate some of the other brands.
  25. smk4565
    The reason there are a lot of riced out Civics and have been since the late 90s, is they are cheap 2nd hand cars, easy to upgrade. I don't know of that tuner market wants to pay $40k for one.
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