smk4565
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Everything posted by smk4565
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I agree with all those points, using CTS and STS as the names would have made more sense. Especially since it would leave the ATS name available for a 1-series competitor in the future if they wanted to go that route. Since they are going to a new naming scheme, I guess this problem will be resolved. I'll go one step further on the CTS's price increase for sticker shock and add that it went from a standard V6 to a standard I-4. And for returning Cadillac buyers that had a DTS or STS, they are probably used to a V8. So not only might there be some sticker shock, they may also wonder only a 4-cylinder, when to most 60+ age buyers 4-cylinder means economy car, not luxury car. I remember when the first generation CTS was out there was talk of a coupe or convertible. So that has been on the radar since 2005 or 2006, and they should have had more body styles in the works as they were developing the Alpha platform sedans. As a minor correction, no C-class convertible yet, but will be in 2016. E-class has a convertible though, where the others in that segment do not offer.
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Lincoln is beyond saving to make them a luxury brand. They could be used as a Buick competitor, perhaps Acura competitor at best. Cadillac will spend $12 billion, but then what? They better have another $12 billion over the next 5 years, because the competition doesn't sit still. I question the long term commitment to the plan if sales don't pick up, and marketing could play a big role in that. As far as profitability goes, GM turned a $2.8 billion profit last year, while Mercedes and BMW were closer to $7 billion. Cadillac can't have that great of margins with the incentive spending they do, and if the GMC and Cadillac margins were so high, you'd think the company would post a higher total.
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Cadillac should build a mid-size crossover on Alpha to compete with the X5 and GLE-class. Something in between where the SRX is now and the Escalade. Cadillac should also make ATS and CTS convertibles. They are going to make a Camaro convertible, so clearly the platform is capable. I think convertibles add a bit of cool factor to a brand, it would help Cadillac's image.
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The ATS coupe arrived during the 3rd model year of the sedan, not exactly speedy roll out. So if the excuse of Cadillac not having any body styles other than sedan for the CTS being the reason for low sales, well that is their own stupidity then. Make a CTS coupe then, no one is stopping them. There is an E-class coupe, and an E-class convertible and wagon. M-B is adding C-class and S-class convertibles in 2016, so that all 3 lines have sedan, coupe, convertible. Side note, the MKS is ending production early next year so 2016 is the last model year. The Continental will essentially take it's place, so Lincoln will still just have 2 sedans.
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The S500 plug in doesn't have an EPA rating yet. I did find a European test drive of it, and in real world driving they got 29.4 mpg US as an average and 0-60 was 5.0 seconds. I think those are solid numbers for a full size luxury car. And the hybrid costs the same as the V8, they don't make you pay more for it. So if you trade .2 or .4 seconds of 0-60 time and the sound of a V8, you get about 10 mpg more, which is a pretty good deal. I guarantee the 7-series and CT6 won't offer their hybrid as the lowest priced model, and Lexus tacks on like $20k for their hybrid V8 that gets lame mileage anyway, and is still less powerful than the S550, because the Lexus V8 is old and weak and unchanged since 2007.
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Jag has zero momentum- they have nice lines & the specs are competitive, but no one buys Jags. Which got me thinking, I am surprised they don't have a diesel S-class for the USA."Everything should be available at launch!!" comes into play here. MB had a diesel AND a hybrid in the S-class, but they dropped them with the redesign. Probably put the money into the SCoupe instead. They have a diesel S-class, it just isn't sold here. If you go to Europe you can buy one, it isn't like they lack the product, they are just choosing not to sell it here for some reason. The take rate must be too low. I think Mercedes styling goes in cycles. In the 50s and 60s they were very rounded, in the 70s they started to do straighter sides while keeping the round lights. In the 80s and early 90s they were very blocky and squared off, then they went back to curvy, rounded body lines in the early 2000s, they did a brief stint of sharper edges and straight lines with the 08 C-class, 2010 E-class, and the GL, but they seem to be going back to rounded off styling. I tend to think they are at their best with the more rounded off bodies, seems more elegant.
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speaking of... The idea that the CT6 is not an S-Class/7 series competitor is literally under-promising, and over-delivering by Cadillac. Compare: From Benz site: 1) The S-Class Plug-In Hybrid also offers multiple drive modes so you can customize how you want to spend and recover energy. The CT6- Plug-In Hybrid will allow driver to choose among three operating modes named Normal, Sport and Hold: 2) The S-Class Plug-In Hybrid will drive solely on electric power up to 20 miles The CT6 Plug-In Hybrid will drive solely on electric power up to 37 miles The 740e Plug-In Hybrid will drive solely on electric power up to 23 miles 3) S-Class Plug-in Hybrid Combined power output of 436 hp, 479 lb-ft of torque (3.0-liter V6 gasoline engine + electric motor) Acceleration: 0-to-60 mph in 5.2 seconds CT6 Plug-in Hybrid combined power output of 335hp, 432 lb-ft of torque (2.0L Turbo+ Electric motor) Acceleration: TBA.. but I'm betting it is lower than that 5.2 seconds 740e combined power output of 308hp, 332 lb-ft of torque (2.0L Turbo+ Electric motor) in the X5e it gets to 60 in 6.5 seconmds so I would guess it should pull into 60 at about 6.2 in the 740e 4) S-Class Plug-In is est city/highway: 21/26 mpg CT6 Plug-in is est to be more than double that of the conventional CT6 (which we kno is similar in many respects, due to weigh savings, to that of the CTS (2.0L Turbo with 6speed gets 20/30MPG).. so a CT6 Plug in coming in at 40/60mpg??? Keep in mind that the S-Class Plug-In Hybrid is est (by C&D) to come in at an almost "Tahoe like" 5100lbs. I gonna throw the cash down on "Black" The V8 S-class gets 17/26 mpg, I am pretty sure a V6 hybrid will beat that. In the CLS the bi-turbo V6 gets 20/30 mpg, granted it isn't as heavy a car as the S-class, but if they had an S400, I think it could get 18/28 mpg. Not sure how a hybrid system would add virtually no mpg gain on and S-class and a 200% gain on a CT6. S250 Bluetec was World Green car of the year in 2012, and S500 hybrid was runner-up in 2015. I didn't see the A8 or 7-series winning anything. CT6 poses no threat to the S-class, it won't be priced high enough for people to cross shop it. The 7-series barely mounts a challenge, and the other guys are also rans in this segment.
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Because GM product planning is poor, and they don't put enough money into Cadillac to develop a coupe and sedan at the same time. Interestingly enough, C-class sales are up, and they also rose the price, and didn't have a coupe or AMG model to sell over the past year. Although they have the AMG now and the coupe and convertible are coming soon. The A6, CTS, GS, Q70 also sell poorly because those brands mostly cater to entry lux buyers and they don't have the prestige of BMW or Mercedes. Those brands also can't get people out of their SUVs into a sports/luxury sedan for some reason.
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Interesting that BMW didn't mention a diesel as one of the engines. I guess we have to wait a model year for the diesel and V12. Which got me thinking, I am surprised they don't have a diesel S-class for the USA. Unless the take rate was so low on the last one or perhaps they will wait for the new straight six turbo diesel before they offer it in the S-class. The plug-in hybrid S-class is the lowest priced S-class, and it only gives up 9 hp and 1 lb-ft of torque to the 750i. A much better option than BMW's wimpy hybrid.
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Fiat News: Marchionne Tries Another Way To Get GM, Looks To Alternatives
smk4565 replied to William Maley's topic in Fiat
This man loves sweaters. -
GM should merge with Chrysler and build the Avenir on the LX platform, lol.
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CAFE is coming, yet no one cars that the Escalade is 6,000 lbs and gets 15 mpg. It still sells, and I don't see Cadillac making it all aluminum to get weight down. The A8 4.0 gets 18/29 mpg, beats the LS460, S550 and 750i, and the A8 has the worst sales volume of the 4. I am bit surprised the 750i is priced higher than the S550. It is like BMW telling people to buy the 740i by putting that big of a price premium on the V8.
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If the base CT6 doesn't do 0-60 in 5 seconds or less then...
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I didn't read anything in the press release about autonomous drive capability. Hard for them to claim they are high tech without that.
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To celebrate my 6,000th post, 8 generations of what the 7-series has been chasing since 1977.
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It does have a standard panoramic roof, those are heavier than a normal roof. I hate when they say things like cut 190 lbs. Tell me what the car weighs now in actual numbers. There are so many variables that could go into play. A car company could replace a V6 with a 4 cylinder and claim weight savings without really doing anything.
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GMC doesn't sell outside of North America, not a global brand. I am not saying GMC loses money, I know it turns a profit so it will stick around. But if GM merged with FCA, you wouldn't need GMC, Jeep and Ram, that is redundant, GMC being a Chevy badge clone would be the one to go. But I don't think they will ever merge either.
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The Sky Lounge LED Roof feature sounds cool. They copied the S-class' cabin fragrance idea, so now everyone will follow. Overall it looks more aggressive and meaner, looks sportier. It is improved on the outside, but the old car was boring. The interior looks the same. I see they did a lot a leather, nice stitching, the LED ambient lighting (another S-class trait), looks well made, but looks boring. Where is the V12? The I-6 and V8 make the same power as before, that 4 cylinder hybrid will be weak. I think they are optimistic on their 4.3 second 0-60 run for the V8 model because the S550 is more powerful and does it in 4.8. Unless the gearing is ridiculously tight on the 750i, because they didn't lose that much weight.
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Well the Bangle 7-series was the worst ever. The current 7 looks like a fat 5-series. That car hasn't looked good in 15 years. This one actually looks unhappy and depressed.
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Th profit is at Jeep. If GM owned Jeep, then Chevy underpinnings could be shared with Jeep to replace the Compass, Patriot and some of the dated stuff. Jeep would still design the trucks, but they'd have a better parts bin of engines, transmissions and chassis to build off of. If GMC was all Denali I could see the point of them, but 75% of GMCs sold are just competition for Chevy. And Buick is supposed to be upscale and has crossovers, and Cadillac is the Luxury arm of GM, not GMC. Chrysler has gone bankrupt twice in 25 years, the only reason they are still in business is Jeep. Without Jeep Chrysler would go bankrupt again, regardless of their sales volume. I don't think Sergio will be able to find a merger, I think what will happen is he will try to sell the company in pieces because he knows another financial crisis will push them to bankruptcy. If gas prices spike and he loses the pick up and suv sales, they go bankrupt.
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RWD allows you to put a V8 in a car. If the 300 were a front driver, like the LHS, it would have a dopey 265 hp V6 still to this day, 10 years after introduction. RWD gives the option of adding performance. If Lincoln made the MKZ rear drive with the same 240 hp turbo 4-cyldiner then it would be a total waste. So for Lincoln that doesn't have any good engines, the platform doesn't matter as much. Same can be said for a Lexus GS that offers the same 306 hp V6 from 2007, and only the low volume GS F has a different engine. They basically waste the platform. You have to combine engine, suspension, transmission and chassis all together to make a superior driving car to the front drive mediocre mass market stuff.
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The CLS has less room than an E-class and it only seats 4, not 5. CLS and E-class ride the same wheelbase and chassis, the CLS is longer, must have more overhang on the front and rear because of the body shape. Interestingly, the C63 AMG is 3 inches longer than a standard C-class because they had to lengthen the hood to fit the V8. The CT6 looks like 3-box sedan, it won't get cross shopped with an A7 or CLS which are just people that want something different from the more common A6 and E-class. I think Cadillac wanted the first Omega platform car to be an S-class fighter, but then had to retract and say it isn't because they don't have a V8 yet, and they saw the W222 S-class and thought "oh crap" The leaked photos of the 7-series make me think this is the best looking 7-series since the 90s.
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Ferrari has an IPO coming, they are selling that off and the Ferrari family still has stake also. So that won't be part of any FCA merger. Jeep is the prize, the one thing that really has value. Ram trucks only has value to someone that doesn't make pick ups, but wants to. For GM to do this deal, the Chrysler 200 and Town and Country would move to Buick, the 200 becomes the Regal. The Chrysler 300 could be turned into a Park Avenue for the short term until they kill the LX platform. Chrysler brand dies. Dodge would stay with the Dart, Charger, Chalenger and a new Avenger based off the Dart/200 platform. They can sell to rental fleets, police car fleets, or young people that want a sporty car. Ram trucks continue with the commercial vans and pickups. GMC trucks would have to die, the Canyon would become the new Ram Dakota. Yukon could be transformed into a Grand Wagoneer.
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Dinosaur.
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Maybe Sergio can convince Kirk Kerkorian (who is somehow sill alive) that a merger is a good idea and get him to buy $3 billion worth of GM stock. Then he can get Ferdinand Piech (who is now without an automotive home) to buy $3 billion of GM stock. That will give those 2 10% ownership in GM and with FCA money or a hedge fund they could buy up another 5% and maybe try to pressure the board on a merger. Better yet, maybe Sergio can swing a three-way merger of VW, GM and Chrysler to build the super auto union. 20 brands under 1 roof. Strength through unity, unity through strength.
