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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    The S-class could be fully autonomous (for sale) in 2020. They already have a working prototype. What the S-class does the rest of the industry does 10 years later. So in 2030, I expect an autonomous Ford Fusion or Toyota Camry.
  2. smk4565
    First off this is a luxury car vs a non-luxury car. This is sort of like comparing an S-class coupe to a Porsche 911 and evaluating the two on luxury features and interior space only and picking a winner. That being said, the M division is showing some signs of weakness as of late. The numb steering is plaguing a lot of BMW cars, and they keep making the cars bigger and heavier which does them no favors either. They should have kept the old M3's 4.0 liter V8 and turbo charged it, at the same time keeping the M5's 5.0 liter V10 and turbo charging that. Those were special engines and they dumped them for a higher boost 335i engine and higher boost 550i V8. And obviously AMG kept the V8 in the C63, now BMW has a pretty big power gap there. And even to go a step farther, they could have taken the easy way out and used the S550 engine in the C63, it would have had plenty of power and torque, but they didn't do that. They designed a sports car engine for the GT and C63, because they wanted a unique sound and characteristics for those cars.
  3. smk4565
    By 2030 automous cars will be common place. Semi-autonomous is here already.
  4. smk4565
    Any automaker without a self driving car in the future will be out of business. Those without a self driving car will be like Nokia, Ericsson, and Blackberry when Samsung and Apple entered the phone market. BMW has to invest in this, just as all others do.
  5. smk4565
    I don't think Chrysler brand will be around in 2020. They are already going to kill the 200, to what sell a 300 that has barely changed since 2005, and the Pacifica?
  6. smk4565
    Lexus should put a 650 hp V12 in this car because
  7. smk4565
    4 speed automatic and 354 hp? What is it 1998? They are delusional if they think this is competition for the S-class coupe. The slowest S-class coupe does 0-60 in 4.5 seconds and will wax the floor with anything Lexus makes, even their F-sport junk. I don't know why Lexus doesn't have 2 turbos on that 5 liter V8, you'd think for the billions of cash on hand at Toyota they could come up with a competitive powertrain. The LC is actually closer in size to the E-class coupe, that is how they should price this car, about $60,000 and the E-class will wax the floor with it too. Only in Fantasy land will a 4500+ hybrid car with a torqueless V6 and 4-speed auto hit 60 in under 5 seconds.
  8. smk4565
    If Cadillac ever makes an ATS convertible. And if you want a bigger back seat, there is an E-class convertible.
  9. smk4565
    After President Trump adds his tariff on Chinese made goods, the Envision will have the same price as an Escalade.
  10. smk4565
    I wonder the same thing. The 3 and 6 are arguable the best sedan in their respective classes. They have a couple small crossovers. They need a CX-7 mid-size crossover in a bad way though, and the CX-9 is in transition. But the 3 and 6 should sell better, I think Camry beat the Mazda 6 like 5 to 1 in sales, and the Mazda is a good product.
  11. smk4565
    The market keeps shifting away from anything with 2 doors. They are fortunate to sell as many Camaros as they do. Remember not long ago when there was G6, Alero/Grand am, Monte Carlo, Sebring, Solara, Altima, Celica, and Cobalt coupes. They are all dead, and that happened in 10 years.
  12. smk4565
    Production on the 10th generation E-class began last week! Help is on the way and they still beat BMW.
  13. smk4565
    Mini had 4 models that totaled 9 sales. Best stat ever.
  14. smk4565
    Because the Camaro is not a crossover. Seriously though, I think it will do better in warm weather months. A problem with the Camaro is it hard to see out of or get in and out of.
  15. smk4565
    Awesome month by the A7 with 429 sales. Brag that one up some more in the press release.
  16. smk4565
    I think they could make a 2.0T and AWD standard in the Regal for $27k and it will still be a slow seller. People buying a sport sedan aren't shopping for a Buick. They'd be better off just taking the Lacrosse dashboard, putting it in the Regal and setting the suspension to mush mode, and hoping that they can convince Lexus/Toyota buyers to spend $29k on a Regal rather than $39k on an ES350.
  17. smk4565
    Looks nice and glad to see another convertible in the entry-lux segment as most have died. Looks way better than a 4-series, and faster too.
  18. smk4565
    BMW has a lot of variants, if anything gets killed I could see it being the 4 and 6 series sedans, and just leaving those as 2 doors. Crossovers do so well, I bet they keep the X4 and X6. The BMW Z4 is probably the one in jeopardy since convertibles don't sell well. But they have nothing else like it, so I could see them keeping it. The electric cars from both brands are niche, but the law says they have to build an electric car, so those won't go away. Mercedes niche product is the CLS, but seeing as how everyone copies it, and it is basically an E-class plus $10,000, that is a keeper. Same goes for the GLE coupe, the interior is identical to the GLE, but it costs $10,000 more because the back window is sloped. The G-wagen is a niche car that they were going ti kill in 2005 but the fans want it, so they kept it. And the SL is low volume, but they won't ever kill the SL. I could see the GLC coupe being a weak seller and them dumping that. But I think they will continue with sedan, coupe, convertible of the C, E , S classes.
  19. smk4565
    When you look at Tesla or electric cars in general, price and range are the drawbacks. But look at an EV1 of 15 years ago to where Tesla is now. Give it another 10-15 years for the technology to develop and I'd imagine Tesla will have cars out performing gas powered cars for the same cost. Tesla for now can sell the fastest sedan and fastest SUV in the world and that lets them charge the high prices. The problem with electrics like the Leaf or Bolt, is you get an average performing small car for $40,000. The value equation on that sucks. 10-15 years from now if the Bolt costs the same as a gas powered Cruze, you'll see the electric cars sell.
  20. smk4565
    Or any kind of appeal.
  21. smk4565
    Mercedes just has more top end cars than BMW. We can speculate on what BMW might build, but when you look at the current line ups, they have nothing to compete with the GLS, G-wagen, AMG GT, or SL. And the 7-series is getting pummeled by the S-class, even with the new M760i V12 is it outgunned by the S65, and the S65 is supposed to get a power bump when they get all wheel drive on it and I assume reinforce the transmission. And you have to consider that Mercedes made the SLR and SLS in the past, no reason that they wouldn't go back into the $200k super car market again, BMW has never been up there. Mercedes could build a Ferrari La Ferrari competitor, they have the ability as their Formula 1 car is better than Ferrari's, but they have said they will not do a hyper car because it would be a money loser.
  22. smk4565
    When you look at the M cars, most of them are in the 2, 3, 4 series line. I still don't see them putting a straight six in an M5 or M^, still need a V8 there. But when you compare the M line to AMG, you realize how many fewer M cars there are, and how many fewer at the high end. They don't have any full size M products, or pure sports car or SL roadster competitor.
  23. smk4565
    The I6 engine is fantastic but a 335 or 535, or 340/740, etc has a straight six. If I were going to spend $90k on an M5 or $150k on an M7 or M760 as it were, I would want V8 and V12 power. Or if they do an M8, it better be a V12 coupe. The M5 is like 4,400 lbs, I wouldn't want a six cylinder in that. The exception would be if the M cars got lighter than the base model. If an M5 had a carbon fiber body so that it weighed as much as a 528i, then a 450 HP straight six might work. But I don't see them making an M5 that weighs what the E39 weighed.
  24. smk4565
    I'd bet 100 dollars to a donut that if they made a Crossover Coupe based on E2XX or D2xX that it would outsell the Regal 2 to 1 or more. I can't see the Regal moving any worthwhile volume to even continue with the product. People spending $30-35k will just buy a crossover, and car enthusiasts like myself that hate crossovers wouldn't buy a Buick.
  25. smk4565
    BMW M division should focus more on V8 and V12 power. The straight six is a great engine, and a very smooth and balanced engine, but it still a six cylinder. That is great for standard BMWs, but in an M car there should be more.
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