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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    Haha, nice find. I just did a google search, a pair of W221 bi-xenon lights with the cover and all is $3100. Replacement parts are always inflated and jacked up though to rip people off.
  2. smk4565
    I don't remember ever saying it cost $1200 for a S-class headlight. I know the 600 Grosser from 1963-1981 has ridiculously priced replacement parts, like $15,000 for power window switches. On the sales front, Cadillac is not in 4th place, they were in 6th place in the USA last month. March 2015 luxury sales: BMW 34,310 Mercedes 32,300 Lexus 31,054 Audi 17,102 Acura 14,760 Cadillac 13,756 Infiniti 12,525 Johan should have stayed at Audi, he would have had $28 billion rather than $12 billion to chase BMW and Mercedes. But he would still have the same problem of having to work off the VW parts bin and deal with VW bean counters, rather than GM beancounters.
  3. smk4565
    The CTS has been on sale for 13 years so I hope people know about it by now. But when you change the name again to CT4 or CT5, then you have to re-teach people the name of the car. The new "Dare Greatly" ads also give no mention of a car name, so it could be hard to get people to know what an ATS or CT6 is if the name of the car isn't in the advert. 3500 cars a year means this car will be a money loser, and we know hod the GM bean counters don't keep money losers around. Even at $5,000 profit per car, that is $17.5 million a year of profit, for a car that cost several hundred million to engineer. If they get an Audi-like 10% margin and $7,000 profit per car and sell 5,000 of them, it is still only $35 million times 6 years on market, is $210 million profit. This is where the S-class has a huge advantage over it's segment, at roughly $10,000 per car profit and 100,000 cars sold a year, it is a $1 billion in profit every year.
  4. smk4565
    This thing hasn't changed much and it has been on the market for a while. I think it looks a better now though, I thought some of the lines on the original were a bit funky, this looks more softened and a cleaner design. I am surprised the 2.5 liter four hasn't replaced the 2.4 liter to give it a power bump.
  5. smk4565
    I don't think the current crop of McLarens are good looking cars. The MP4-12C was a little boring, the newer ones are a little radical, and odd, but not really good looking super cars. The McLaren F1 still looks great today, I'd rather have an F1 than any of their current crop of cars. Of course an F1 now is probably a $2-3 million car and rising, that is a legendary vehicle.
  6. smk4565
    DeNysschen hasn't really done anything yet, but talk a lot, and sales keep going down. Infiniti is doing nothing with their new naming scheme, and that was about all he did for them. Audi is doing better now without him, than they did with him. I am not convinced he is the guy to lead the turn around. I think he is too arrogant and underestimates Mercedes and BMW. It is good that GM is spending $12 billion, but I think Johan might just squander it. Really Cadillac should be giving $2-3 billion a year forever.
  7. smk4565
    I thought Jaguar grille before Bentley when I first saw it. But why would Bentley even care what Lincoln does, Lincoln could be out of business in 5 years. But so many cars copy others, it would be nice if there was more originality in car design.
  8. smk4565
    The more I look at it, the more I see the shape of a Chrysler 200. So many of these cars copy each other, someone needs to make a unique looking car. The Fusion stands out as different, and the Mazda 6 also. But the Sonata looks more like a Subaru now, the Optima looks like a Camry, etc. I like what they did with the interior though, this is my favorite interior of any Chevy.
  9. smk4565
    What segment is it? By size it is 3 inches shorter than an S-class, and 12 inches longer than an E-class. So I guess it competes with the S-class, and this is no S-class. I am curious to see how they price it, my prediction is $59k base for the 4-cylinder, and like $80k for the TT V6. Although I don't think anything with a 4-cylinder is worth $59k, a diesel E-class is the only 4 cylinder sedan over $50k I believe. Pricing will be key to sales, but I think they will overshoot the price point like they did with the ELR.
  10. smk4565
    Keeps getting uglier, and it does look like a Venza. Hopefully people stop buying this thing.
  11. smk4565
    Looks like a Camry.
  12. smk4565
    I get the feeling that Johan and Ewe are writing checks with their mouths that their asses can't cash. We hear loads of talk from them, and Cadillac sales are down every month, while BMW and Mercedes go up. Even Lexus has really resurged over the past couple years.
  13. smk4565
    20 years since the Fleetwood, and we wait 20 years for a full size rear drive Cadillac and it arrives with a 4 cylinder engine and everyone is excited? CT6 would need to weigh 2732 lbs to have the power to weight ratio of an S550.
  14. smk4565
    I like the front, it has an Impala look and looks like a Chevy. The rear looks almost like a hatchback I prefer 3 box sedan styling, and the rear looks like a Hyundai. Exterior overall is decent, but not great. The interior is great, that might be the best mid size car interior, I would probably still take the Mazda 6 interior, but the Malibu is a close 2nd. Engines other than the 2.0T seem gutless, but a lot of people buy gutless engine cars so that might not matter.
  15. smk4565
    Well yes, the steering wheel doesn't really matter, no one ever touches it or looks at it. Swap out that piece of metal and replace it with wood, and you are good to go.
  16. smk4565
    The steering wheel is the same as the one used in the Impala, with a piece of wood glued on. If they cut corners on the thing you touch the most, you gotta wonder about the rest of the car. I think the Continental is more impressive than this. The CT6 looks like a big CTS with tacky lights. If the Continental ends up front wheel drive that will be what kills it, if the Continental is rear drive, I like it more than the CT6.
  17. smk4565
    I like it, I hope it looks close to that, obviously the production car won't have 21 inch wheels, probably 18 standard and maybe a 19 or 20 optional, but too big of wheels can make a car look odd.
  18. smk4565
    The grille reminds me a bit of a Jaguar, but Jags are good looking cars, so I guess they are a good car to copy. Overall I like it. It looks good inside and out, looks expensive, Ecoboost engine seems to be standard, so all around quite good and I like the Lincoln emblem shapes in the grille. I also love that they are using the Continental name. I heard this is probably a FWD or AWD car though, if that is the case it will be no better than an Acura RLX, which is lame. Hopefully they don't destroy a good design by building it on the Taurus platform.
  19. smk4565
    Formula 1 is the highest form or Motorsport and Mercedes is the best at it right now although Ferrari got a win over them today. But the point was made how the torque is more usable on the 2.0T engine, all I am saying is you can tune a naturally aspirated V6 to make peak torque in the 3000-3500 rpm range. BMW non turbo engines used to be pretty good at that. I would think Cadillac could get more usable torque from the V6 than they can get from the 2.0t if they wanted to. Thus no need for the 2.0t CTS.
  20. smk4565
    So engineer the V6 to make peak torque at 3,500-5,300 rpm, as the Mercedes V6 does. My car is naturally aspirated and makes peak torque at 2800 rpm. The problem with Infiniti and Cadilllac is they set their engines to make max power at 7,000 rpm and max torque over 5,000, which is pointless for everyday driving, but they probably want to be able to put 330 hp in an advertisement. And I am saying make the 3.6 V6 the value engine in the $45-50k CTS, make the new twin-turbo 3.0 the main line engine in the CTS that sell in the 50-60k range that competes with the 535i and A6 and E350/E400. The ATS-V 460 hp engine could still be used in a V-sport CTS at $65k, which would be like their S6 or 550i competitor, and the V-series obviously above that. CT6 should have a base turbo-diesel V6, 275 hp, 440 lb-ft, 8-speed and 40 mpg highway, 3.0 TT V6 with 400 hp , plug-in hybrid TT V6 and a twin turbo V8 with plug-in hybrid. The same engine line would work in a CT8 with a V12 added at the top. For economies of scale, the twin turbo V12 for the CT8 flagship could also be used in a mid-engine Cadillac super car with 200+ mph top speed and 0-60 under 3.0 seconds. This would be ultimate GM sports car competing with the Lamborghini Hurcan and Ferrari 488, the Corvette would stay front engine rear drive in the $50-100k range.
  21. smk4565
    Every corporation is in business to make money. If you don't turn a profit, you need to file bankruptcy and get a government bailout.
  22. smk4565
    Europe is a tough nut to crack, they could sell CTS-V's for 30,000 Euro and the E-class and 5-series would probably still crush it in sales. Europeans don't want an American car, so they could have to build something so spectacular to blow people away, then put in a dealer network. The barriers to entry are huge.
  23. smk4565
    To be better and give the customer more power. The 2.0T has only a 1 mpg advantage over the 3.6 V6, if the V6 is getting an improvement in fuel economy, then that advantage is gone. Most V6s are getting 30 mpg highway, which is all the Cadillac 4-cylinder gets. The 2.0T is good for the base ATS because the C300, 328i and A4 have a turbo 4. I see the CTS more in the spot of the Infiniti Q50, you have to give the customer more to get some sales. The Lexus GS and E-class have standard V6s also, as does the Acura RLX is you want to call that a competitor, it is about CTS size and price.
  24. smk4565
    BMW might feel tight, but Daimler just had it's 3 most profitable years in company history, they don't need BMW's help. Daimler already has a partnership with the Nissan/Renault alliance, so some engineering work and parts sharing goes on there. BMW probably could use an ally, but Daimler already had one.
  25. smk4565
    If the 3.6 is not your cup of tea... there is going to be a 400 hp 3.0TT offered in the CT6. It says so right in the article...I know because I wrote it. What's the problem with having choices? The ATS should be 2.0T base, 3.6 V6 optional, that 2.5 liter should be gone. CTS could probably start with the 3.6 V6 base, the 2.0T isn't getting that big of a fuel economy advantage, so might as well dump it. If the CT6 is supposed to compete with the big boys, it should have the 3.0 TT V6 standard, and a 4.0 TT V8 optional. I like choices when they are good choices, or when a diesel engine or hybrid is a choice. Not when you get to pick from the Malibu's 4-banger, a 2.0 turbo or a V6 with no torque below 4,000 rpm.
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