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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    Yawn, it looks pretty boring inside and out. I don't find much interesting about it. They better use aggressive pricing, or it will just disappear in the marketplace.
  2. smk4565
    Everything is going to have a 4-cylinder. If you want to complain you could complain that it is not turbocharged. But I think the 2.5 liter four is the right base engine. I'd guess they want to lower the price a bit and set up shop in the mid-size segment. I think Terrain will shrink to Escape size. And this makes sense. People are used to a Terrain costing X and an Acadia costing Y. When you slide them down the Acadia costing X seems like great value. The opposite of adding $10k to the CTS and being surprised that buyers went away.
  3. smk4565
    Looks a lot like an Explorer from the front and side, the tail lights remind me of Durango and Grand Cherokee. Overall it looks good, and GM needs a true mid size SUV and this is it. I'd imagine the Terrain/Equinox is shrinking also. Buick will have the Enclave as the full size. It cuts down overlap which I think is good. Plus Cadillac is getting more crossovers and you want to drive the money toward the higher margin Caddies if possible.
  4. smk4565
    Not making Alpha RHD compatible when they wanted to make Cadillac a global brand makes no sense from the start. However, they make a Camaro, they make an ATS. It wouldn't take that much to make a Buick coupe on the same chassis, same wheel base as Camaro, same 3.6 V6 and transmission as Camaro. You put a new body on it, put the LaCrosse dashboard in it, soften the suspension from the Camaro and you are done. GM knows badge engineering better than anyone else. They could have this car on sale in 2 years if they wanted to. As far as Cadillac goes, the CT6 is coming out this year, they could have made it a bolder, more luxurious car, but they played it safe. They could have co-developed a coupe to launch with it, but they didn't. Adding a body style to an existing vehicle isn't that hard. And GM has proved they can do it, the Camaro and Corvette convertibles were on sale within months of the coupe.
  5. smk4565
    Minivans are not a growth segment, but they did sell 93,000 Town and Countrys last year at a base price of $30k. I think they could move 100,000+ Pacificas a year and if the base is $30k, most will probably sell for $35-40K. I don't think 100k units a year is anything to sneeze at for a mid $30s priced vehicle. As far as the EV range, it is 30 miles more than any other mini van, Explorer, Traverse, Enclave, or Acadia offers.
  6. smk4565
    It looks pretty similar to the Infiniti Q60. Buick has said there are no plans to build it as of yet. I don't get why they drag their feet on stuff like this, Avenir, El Mirag, Ciel, etc. Take a chance and build a halo car. Not everything has to be a crossover on a platform shared with 4 other products.
  7. smk4565
    It does have a 10-speed automatic for your gear shifting pleasure.
  8. smk4565
    Not many CUVs seat 7 or 8 people. Not many plug-in CUVs that get 80 mpg either. 30 miles of electric range is pretty good too. If cargo and people hauling is your top priority this Pacifica makes a lot of winning points.
  9. smk4565
    Well this search just ended with a 302 hp V8 all wheel drive wagon for under $10k. http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=07088&endYear=2017&vehicleStyleCodes=SUVCROSS%2CWAGON&showcaseOwnerId=0&startYear=1981&makeCode1=MB&firstRecord=25&searchRadius=100&maxPrice=10000&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=%5BMB%5B%5D%5B%5D%5D&listingId=403081721&Log=0
  10. smk4565
    I like it, I think it looks good, about as sleek and sporty as you can make a minivan look, and still looks pretty refined. I like the Pacifica name change, it is a CUV name applied to a minivan, "Town and Country" was a tired name, Pacifica sounds like a crossover name, so buyers will like that. I liked the original Pacificas they had good space in them and weren't a van, not a truck, the idea was good, maybe not the best quality or exception of it. A Hybrid van is a good idea, that will be a segment exclusive. Should give them a big edge over the competition.
  11. smk4565
    I like the S-class look a lot, the C-class the past generations always stole S-class cues. I wish this E-class looked a little different. I like how the new E-class looks, I like it more than the current generation (especially post refresh), but some variety within the brand would have been nice. Even if they just split the headlights or made the tail lights E shaped or something. Not surprised that it is a 2.0T as the base engine, the rest of the segment already does that. XF, 5-series, CTS, GS, A6 are all 4 cylinder. I do wish they got another 15-20 hp out of that engine. I don't get how they get 370 hp from a 2 liter in a CLA45 and 241 here. I wonder if the inline six will be the second engine. If it was the current V6, why not say that now. Unless they want to launch the inline six in the fall and put it in the C-class, and GLC all at the same time. The Drive Pilot thing sounds awesome.
  12. smk4565
    It's an ugly looking car. Lexus has no real high power engines, the 467 hp V8 is their most powerful engine, and is not so high on torque either. Agreed though, that at least you give them credit for building a bold design, low volume car. What is odd though is this car is 187 inches long, so it is closer in size to a C-class coupe, no where near as big as an S-class coupe, which was their supposed target.
  13. smk4565
    If BMW only made enthusiast sports cars they'd be like Lotus. You have to build products that appeal to the masses and BMW still has M models and track packages and CSI lightweight models and things for enthusiasts. If we are counting Buick and Cadillac together you'd have to add Mini to BMW. A lot of those Minis cost more than a Verano or Encore. I wouldn't call Mini or Buick a luxury brand though. And yes Cadillac should use word names. At least for sedans, crossover buyers seem to like alphabet soup.
  14. smk4565
    They should build it for sure. We need coupes and interesting cars on the market, everything is becoming a Camry, Accord or crossover and that is boring. The key for the production model is pricing. If it is too expensive they won't get any volume, and you can't really price it above an ATS. Plus I think you want a car like this to steal sales from Lexus ES, Avalon, Acura TSX, etc. And those are all sedans but I bet a lot of buyers of those cars never use the back seat anyway.
  15. smk4565
    I agree most of these coupes look similar because there is one best way to design them. This concept does have the body shape similar to the DB9 and Jaguar XK which is what you want. I like the body shape of the car, the headlights and tail lights just don't look like a Buick. Where is the waterfall grill?
  16. smk4565
    I love the idea of a grand touring coupe. I don't like the Hyundai Genesis Coupe ripoff taillights or the Infiniti front end. The grille looks like it came off a Ford, the front is similar to the Mustang. It is a decent looking car, but to me it doesn't look very American or Buick-like. If all the badges were off it, I would think it was Japanese. I do hope they put it in production though, it reminds me a bit of the Chrysler Firepower concept that they never made.
  17. smk4565
    I did mention the X5 doesn't compete with the Escalade. What percentage won't hold up? the 70% of their sales are cars? I don't think that will hold up either, as crossovers become more popular and they bring out the X7, their crossovers sales will rise. I don't think their car sales will drop though, they might well 60% car and 40% crossover on a 400,000 unit total. The X7 will mostly steal sales from the Escalade, GLS, Range Rover, Navigator and the 39 people a month that buy a Lexus LX570 might just get an X7 instead.
  18. smk4565
    Volvo V70, $6,500 http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?endYear=2010&zip=07088&maxPrice=10000&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=%5BVOLVO%5B740%5B%5D850%5B%5DV70%5B%5DXC%5B%5D%5D%5B%5D%5D&vehicleStyleCodes=WAGON&modelCode1=XC&makeCode2=VOLVO&modelCode2=V70&showcaseOwnerId=0&makeCode1=VOLVO&modelCode3=850&startYear=1996&firstRecord=0&makeCode3=VOLVO&searchRadius=100&listingId=414657833&Log=0
  19. smk4565
    Taurus X probably had really low sales volume and could be hard to find. It was the Freestyle for a couple of years too. Transit Connects aren't that cheap, I have seen 100k mile ones for like $14k before which seems nuts. The diesel in the R-class will never stop running though. Gets like 27 mpg highway I think. I suppose the Rendezvous/Aztek have too small a load floor? Dodge Magnum wagon too low of a room in the cargo area, and those have poor reliability. Volvo V70 or V90? Whatever their larger wagon is called, or that XC70 Volvo Outback wagon?
  20. smk4565
    They should make a Riviera coupe on Alpha with a split rear window. They'd probably only sell 10,000 a year, but it would be cool.
  21. smk4565
    Mercedes R-class diesel.
  22. smk4565
    The Taurus X has 85 cubic feet of cargo space. Looks like it has a 6 feet of load floor.
  23. smk4565
    I think there is room in the market for a "personal luxury coupe" as the old saying goes. There are mature buyers out there that don't want a Camaro or Mustang, or don't want the noisy exhaust note and stiff suspension of an Infiniti G37/Q60. There isn't a mid-size coupe on the market right now that is geared toward refinement and luxury, unless you pay $60k for an E-class coupe. I think a $35,000 Riviera hits a sweet spot for those that want something nicer than the CamCord segment, but don't want a crossover or a big car like an Avalon, Cadenza or Impala.
  24. smk4565
    I have never been a BMW fan, their styling never really did anything for me, but I do respect the E39, the V10 M5, the E46 M3, the F30 3-series and inline sixes. I can respect their products, but I would never buy one, they aren't my cup of tea. That being said, I have to defend them here. In 2015, 58% of Porsche sales were SUVs. This was once a sports car brand that is on its way to having 2/3rds of it sales trucks. BMW still has 70% of its sales volume from cars. That is huge percentage, as all the non-germane luxury brands are under 50%. As far as the X5 goes, it is a rear drive platform, you can get a 450 hp V8 or 580 hp V8, or whatever the M has. The Acura, Lincoln, Lexus crossovers and the SRX are front drive products, basically family sedans on stilts with a V6 out of a Cam-Cord. They are garden variety stuff. I am not sure what is "mojo induced" about any Lexus or Acura SUV, but BMW is making an X7 SUV with optional 600 hp V12 power. Will a 600 hp V12 be enough mojo for the suv segment? The only reason BMW's CUV percentage isn't higher is because it is up against the five or six variations of EACH car model (3,4,5,6,7 series have more variations than you can shake a stick at) so those percentages you are touting are way misleading. Finally, the X5 was BMWs best seller last month and was second in yearly sales to only the multi-variant 3 series. What do you think is going to happen to that CUV percentage when the X7 comes out? So before the argument was made that BMW sells too many SUVs and that was bad. Bad for image to sell SUVs as a luxury brand. Then as it turns out they sell 70% cars and only 30% SUVs (the most car heavy luxury brand there is). Yet that is still bad because the X5, a high margin vehicle outsells a 3-series which is a bottom level vehicle. However at Mercedes the C-class, a sedan outsells the GLE, but that is also bad because the C-class costs less than the GLE. Then it seems that many more people want an Escalade over a BMW, yet BMW doesn't offer a full size SUV. So until the X7 is on sale we don't really know. And the X5 outsells the Escalade, because as was established the X5 is the #1 selling BMW for 1 month. Maybe the X7 will sell well, maybe it is too late to the game. Personally I think the X7 will gain some traction in the market place, and that segment isn't really growing so it will more than likely steal from established players.
  25. smk4565
    What about a Ford Taurus X (I think Freestyle before that). I haven't looked what they cost, but they have to be cheap. Chevy Uplander/Saturn Relay are cheap with cargo space. Chrysler Pacificas are cheap.
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