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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    I know Mercedes tests every car they make on the Nurburgring. But they test them in ever climate and every type of terrain too. Some of these car companies are all about Nurburgring, I think Renault had a Meganne or Clio Sport that was the Nurburgring edition with a diagram of the track layout on the outside of the car.
  2. smk4565
    I think the big question is would you rather spend 900 miles in your own car or 900 in the rental spec Dodge/Chrysler product. I'd rather drive my own car than a rental. However if you don't care which car you spend 900 miles in, I'd probably rent something for the $250, gas would probably be the same either way.
  3. smk4565
    A BMW fan will argue Nurburgring = more better. I am a Mercedes fan, not a BMW fan. To me the good thing about the X7 is it pushes Mercedes to up the ante on the GLS.
  4. smk4565
    Will they test the Escalade-V on the Nurburgring?
  5. smk4565
    It isn't that bad of a loss, but at some point they need to get this production up. I think buyers and the share holders are still willing to wait, but if this time next year they are losing money and struggling to fill orders, there might be some revolt. On the flip side, if Elon can meet his 90,000 unit goal and the 500,000 by 2020 or whatever he is shooting for, they could hit it big and make money hand over fist. It will be interesting to see how it plays out, I hope they succeed, I like the idea of more wide spread electric cars (good electric cars, not crap like the Leaf).
  6. smk4565
    I didn't say better power delivery, but the BMW V12 torque hits really low so it should pull pretty well off the line. The 600 hp comes in at 5500 rpm on the BMW also, it is hitting it's peak sooner, so that can help make up the 40 hp difference. Not totally, but the overall power is close. The Rolls-Royce SUV could have over 760 lb-ft of torque, that could be a whole other animal, and the BMW won't get that tune it sounds like. The thing with the X7 V12 is what is the completion? Mercedes could do a GLS65 and out power it. A GLS600 Maybach would have less power. But they haven't decided anything, and any of that would be next generation of GLS in 2019. Cadillac could put the CTS-V engine in the Escalde, but look at the weight, at near 6,000 lbs no way would it be as fast as a unibody X7. And a V12 is a V12. There is something special about that regardless of the power rating. I am excited for the X7 in that it will force Mercedes to up their game with the GLS, but the downside is BMW is probably going to steal GLS sales.
  7. smk4565
    Agree with all that, except for the Q50, they have that new 400 hp V6, although that would cost a lot more than a Maxima. Where you get the gray areas are LaCrosse vs ATS. Depending on your view of luxury, you could argue either one over the other. I would say the ATS is more luxurious though due to the badge, material quality, driving experience. Small interior, but I don't think size = luxury like it did in the 80s. Once you get to $50,000 and up cars, you start to get the materials, build quality, performance, size, etc, you get it all. That $32-42k range has a lot of gray area of bottom end luxury brand cars and loaded up mainstream brand cars.
  8. smk4565
    BMW's V12 is a bit weak, they should be getting more power from it, even though it is tuned for low end torque and smoothness. Mercedes V12 is better and hasn't had a power bump in nearly a decade, although it is supposed to. Even the Mercedes 4.0 V8 is supposed to make 577 or 612 hp next year.
  9. smk4565
    Crossovers aren't enough of an MPG penalty for people to stay way. And even more so, buyers are choosing an Escape over a Fusion at the same price point. The buyers are taking the smaller vehicle on the inferior chassis (in theory) with not as nice an interior but all is ignored because it is a crossover. Fusion is larger, more luxurious, better platform, the buyers don't care. The subcompact crossover will emerge to rob sales from cars like Corolla, Civic and Focus. Ford and Toyota both have sub compact SUVs in the works, Chevy has Traxx, Honda has HR-V.
  10. smk4565
    The quality of the materials in the interior is exactly my point. A Cadenza has nicer materials than an Optima. An Avalon has nicer materials than a Camry. A Maxima has nicer materials than an Altima... etc. A Lacrosse has nicer materials than an Impala and a Regal has nicer materials than a Malibu. Agreed. And a Lexus ES nicer than an Avalon, and Infiniti Q50 nicer than a Maxima, etc. You can get luxury features like a heated steering wheel in a Kia Forte, doesn't make the Forte a luxury car. It is harder to say what is more luxurious a Cadenza or an A4 the Cadenza probably has more equipment and features, the A4 better build quality or materials. In that overlap price point in the mid $30s buyers could have different opinions of luxury. I still think materials and driving experience are what set the true luxury cars apart, which is why I think a rear drive chassis is important, because you can create that premium feel, long wheel base for smoother ride, 50/50 weight balance for better handling. These are the things a Toyota Avalon can't do, the Avalon will still drive like a Camry.
  11. smk4565
    Your information, as usual, is erroneous. BMW V-12 : 592 HP / 590 TRQ Cadillac V : 640 HP / 630 TRQ Already puts the smack down on the V-12, with a half-liter less displacement & 4 less cylinders. And no smoothness penalty. BMW's 12 needs a major overhaul. I think I read some rumor where BMW might up the power of the V12, as Rolls Royce will use it too. But if it is the 592 of the 760 which it probably will be, that engine does make peak torque at 1,500 rpm, which is really low. The CTS-V makes peak torque at 3,600. Regardless though, it is physically impossible to make a V8 as smooth as a V12 or an inline six for that matter. The V12 is the smoothest engine configuration.
  12. smk4565
    As far as luxury, my point was that the lines are blurred now. 15 years ago, when a mainstream sedan had sunroof and a leather power heated seat as the only options and that was about as good as it got, it was easy to see. Luxury cars had nav systems, cooled seats, automatic climate, bose stereos etc. But today, you can get cooled seats, heated steering wheel, sat-nav, and a panoramic sunroof in a Kia Optima. I think the luxury aspect now is more in the quality of the materials on the interior, and how the car drives. This is where the luxury brans separate themselves from the mainstream.
  13. smk4565
    I like Balthazaar's large coupe idea best, and do agree they need a convertible. I think they should do an Eldorado full size coupe/convertible, something big and over the top like the Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead, but more along the lines of CT6 turbo V6 pricing, like $70,000 range.
  14. smk4565
    True Dat. Johan would probably trade his first born for such an engine.
  15. smk4565
    Then why price the LaCrosse and Regal like they do? Regal was around $30k base and they dropped the price because sales were so bad. If Buick wants to compete with Lexus, they should price the LaCrosse dollar for dollar with the ES350. Make the LaCrosee $37,950 base price, if people always buy a loaded model, sales shouldn't suffer. As far as Sierra Denali (and cars like Maxima and Cadenza) depends on what your definition of luxury is. It used to be that leather heated seats and power seats, locks and windows was luxury. Now any car has that. If luxury means performance those cars don't fit that. ,
  16. smk4565
    ATS, it is rear drive and has more power if it us a 2.0t
  17. smk4565
    The BMW X7 is getting a V12, the only thing GM has that is close is the Z06/CTS-V engine. They aren't going to match that V12 in smoothness or refinement, they could be close in power and torque.
  18. smk4565
    Cadillac should do an Alpha SUV and an Omega SUV. GM has all these platforms, put them to use. XT5 is already on C2xx, that is fine for competing with the Lexus RX and Lincolns and Acuras of the world, a D2xx could slot below that in the low $30s. People buying a low $30s crossover are probably coming from a Rav4 or Ford Edge or something, they'll like the move to a fwd based crossover that drives like what they are used to but has more luxury. With 2 front drive crossovers you cater to the sheeple that blindly buy anything that is a crossover, and with Alpha and Omega crossovers you can sell performance.
  19. smk4565

    Buy or Sell?

    smk4565 replied to ccap41's topic in Cadillac

    Good review from rogueriver and welcome to a new poster.
  20. smk4565
    Since the argument was made that German brands rely on low end models, I figured I would post the sales of the luxury brands for models with base price over $50,000. This weeds out a lot of lower end models, and yes you can option a 3-series to over $50k, but most sold probably are 328i's. Starting price of $50k, probably means selling price of $60k or higher, so that gives us a better idea of where the sales of expensive cars are. 2015 sales numbers. Mercedes 135,228 BMW 126,728 Porsche 38,223 Lexus 36,270 Cadillac 35,921 Audi 32,201 Infiniti 15,646 Jaguar 14,466 Lincoln 11,964 Acura 2,195 Volkswagen 7,037 Kia 2,524 Hyundai 2,332 Buick 0 Volvo 0
  21. smk4565
    CLA is an average car from the reviews, I don't like the interior of the CLA, I would never buy one. But even a mediocre at best car with the Mercedes badge will sell, because there are people that will buy it just because of how it looks and the badge on the hood. Also just as the LaCrosse is often sold with leather package, most CLA's have Premium 1 package and another option. My local dealer has four CLA's for sale, MSRP, $40,030, $41,580, $35,475, and $39,730. I get that all cars have options and none of them sell for the base model advertised price. But the best way to compare is with starting points. Usually cars with the same base price, option up to a similar price.
  22. smk4565
    What luxury cars are the $21,000 Verano and $24,000 Encore competing with? LaCrosse is priced lower than a Maxima, Avalon or Cadenza, are those luxury cars?
  23. smk4565
    Good point by Oracle of Delphi. And Cadillac has ads for "the first ever CT6"
  24. smk4565

    Buy or Sell?

    smk4565 replied to ccap41's topic in Cadillac

    Tire wear is going to be fairly similar, brake wear as well I'd image. Most Cadillacs I think use Mobil 1 oil now, same as a Mercedes does, so all that routine stuff is similar cost.
  25. smk4565
    Since the request was made, here are Buick's numbers from 2010 sales year to 2015 sales year. 2010: 155,389 2015: 223,055 They gained 77,666 in volume. The Encore and Verano(both which start under $25k under the price of any 2010 Buick) combined for 99,435 in 2015. If Buick did' move down market under they would have a sales decline. Mercedes and Audi without CLA and A3 still have an increase.
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