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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    The original was ugly, and so is this one. Looks huge too, which sort of defeats the purpose of buying an Aston Martin. The DB5 and DB9 I think are 2 of the best looking cars ever, hard to believe the same people designed this.
  2. smk4565
    The LED light bars seem overdone, every Ford or Kia has them, time to move on to all LED headlights then you can just have daytime running light LEDs. That goes for the entire industry. If people are thinking CTS pricing is ambitious, how is Cadillac going to justify nearly double the price of a CTS for the LTS/large car that is coming. LTS could be in the $80-90k range.
  3. smk4565
    Lexus has the worst performance line of any luxury car maker, well at least for the ones that have a performance line, I guess Lexus is better than Lincoln or Acura. But they basically have the IS-F and some trim packages that amount to wheels and a spoiler and stiffer suspension on their cars. Nice performance line. Then they want to make a GS-F with 500 hp and 380 lb-ft or whatever it will have. 0-60 of 4.5 seconds, but does Lexus realize that is what the E550 and 550i can do? Even the Mercedes C400 has been posting 0-60 times of 4.6-4.9 seconds. The big boys are putting out 500-600 hp and torque, running 0-60 in the 3's now. The GS-F performance numbers are about 10 years behind, in fact they sound like a 2004 BMW M5.
  4. smk4565
    It is a nice looking car, but I think the XF looks better and the F-type is way cooler looking than this. The XE has nice proportions and most of the Jag styling cues, but I don't think it has a lot of wow factor like the F-type does. The interior looks average, granted there are only a couple pictures of it, but the doors look plain as can be, like a slab of vinyl, and the dash and everything looks almost like what a well trimmed Hyundai or Kia might have. I don't see this as much of a threat to the 3-series and C-class. But it is a car Jag needs and it is nice to have a lower priced pathway to get a Jaguar.
  5. smk4565
    And this sort of factual nonsense is continually brushed aside as if insignificant. I will state it again, Cadillac is NOT here to push volume, but still people -clinging to Old World Think- believe Cadillac needs to outsell every competitor or it's 'floundering/failing'… yet no such talk about the A6 or GS, for example. Wonder why the standards are so different for some people?? I think it is because in the case of Audi they have had growing sales, up about 10% per year for what seems like 5 years in a row now. Only 30% of Audi sales are A6 and higher, so 70% of their sales come from A3, A4/A5 and Q5. They are selling well on the bottom end, which if those are younger buyers that trade up could mean Audi has a bright future. If they can't get people to move to A6 and higher then the future isn't so bright, I don't think they'd be in trouble, but they'd always be seen a bit as a 2nd tier brand if they can only sell in that $30-45k range. Lexus GS and LS sales are crap, but they sell so many RX and ES, the overall brand numbers look good. But Lexus has sold a lot of those 2 cars for years, and they haven't been able to get people to trade up to a GS or an LS, in fact LS sales are probably worse now than they were 10 years ago. The IS has been a bright spot for them, sales of that really picked up this year. If the RX and ES sales dropped 20% and the brand got in trouble, people would be saying the GS isn't carrying its weight and make a deal out of it. The problem for Cadillac is they don't have an 8 or 9 vehicle lineup, and the ATS and CTS are 2 of their newest products and both are down. Cadillac needs the ATS and CTS to survive, Lexus could sell zero GS350's and it wouldn't really matter.
  6. smk4565
    Ponchoman is pretty spot on. I agree with what he says. As far as the sales advantage the Germans have with multiple body styles and engines, why isn't Cadillac doing that? It isn't like this is some new strategy they just thought up, there have been 3-series and E-class sedan, coupe, convertible, wagon since the 1980s or early 90s. They have been doing it for 25 years. Lexus has been doing hybrids for 10 years or so, the Germans have been pushing diesels big time for the past 5 years. Cadillac only has to blame themselves for not offering more body styles or engines.
  7. smk4565
    According to CNBC Ford is #1 in customer loyalty at 64% and number 2 is Mercedes at 57.8%. Toyota was in 3rd, BMW and Lexus are in the top 10. Chevy is the only GM brand in the top 10, my guess is the Silverado drives that, just like the F150 drives Ford's number. http://www.cnbc.com/id/101800143/page/10 This year Lexus, BMW, Audi and Mercedes all have 9-16% growth (Lexus leading the way), and Cadillac is down. And even worse is the ATS and CTS which are their new products are down the most. The current strategy isn't working, this is like the CTS-STS-DTS trio of 2006 that wasn't working, so they scrapped 2 of those and put the CTS in a different class. They have the same results with ATS-CTS-XTS. Cadillac marketing is I think worse now than it was 10 years ago, and I don't think they have the money to really go toe to toe with the Germans or Lexus, even though most Lexus product isn't that good considering how much money Toyota spends.
  8. smk4565
    Cadillac ran an average incentive of $7700 last month and their sedan sales are still down. I don't think lower prices are the answer, they are already low. Better product and more importantly better marketing is needed. The thing is Lexus, BMW and Mercedes buyers are loyal, so to get people that spend $60k on a car they need to make something so amazing that those people switch loyalties, or get trade ups form Infiniti, Acura, Lincoln etc. And I suspect the type of people that buy an Acura or Lincoln are never trading up to something expensive.
  9. smk4565
    Problem #1 is the Wreath and Crest (now just the Crest) was neglected and dragged through the mud for too many years. Current buyers probably don't even remember the Cimarron or Allante, but I do think a lot of people have the image of Devilles/DTS that grandpa drives and that is how they see Cadillac. Cadillac has a weaker brand image than Lexus or the 3 Germans. Problem #2 is marketing. Ellinghaus makes a good point that they need to focus on Cadillac's roots and what makes Cadillac Cadillac, and not just compare them to the Germans as they have the past couple years. Other brands are guilty of this too, they run ads like "more standard horsepower than a C300" but who cares their car isn't better than a C300. Notice Mercedes or BMW never talk about other brands in their commercials, they talk about themselves and their brand. Problem #3 is lack of focus. Ellinghaus says they need to focus on roots and being American, but Cadillac admitted to basically tearing apart a 3-series and reverse engineering from that to make the ATS and they copied almost every measurement and dimension. Ellinghaus also says Cadillac's future is RWD, but you have a front wheel drive XTS and SRX, the next gen SRX is confirmed front drive already. So which is it? I don't think Cadillac has a vision of what they want to be, they see the Lexus RX sell well, they think let's copy it, they 3-series and E-class sell well, they think let's copy it. Problem #4 is the CTS itself. They are priced $6,000 below the E-class and you get $3,000 more cash back right now, so price isn't the problem. Styling is subjective, I don't love the front end, but some people might like it, the rear of the CTS looks dull as dirt. Equipment levels need work too, if you get the standard trim, it lacks content, you need the luxury package and then so much of what is on are driver nannies like blind spot monitoring and lane keep assist. Heated/ventilated seats leather seats, rearview camera and HID lights, ambient lighting should be standard even if that means another $1,000 or so added to base price. All the driver nannies go into one package, this is supposed to be a driver's car after all, half the buyers might not care less about radar cruise control and lane keep assist. Performance upgrades like magnetic ride control, bigger brakes, etc go into a package, multimedia or technology upgrades can be a package. There can be a premium package also that has basically what the current premium trim level has, for those that want all the bells and whistles. Makes is easier for the buyer to get what they want.
  10. smk4565
    Honda-Acura, Nissan-Infiniti (but have an alliance with Renault). Ford-Lincoln. I think Toyota could drop Scion and make a Celica, Supra and boxy looking compact SUV off the Yaris platform and get more sales than Scion makes. I think GM has room for a brand in between Chevy and Cadillac, they could do a better job defining the brands and spacing them out though.
  11. smk4565
    Cadillac may be getting an Omega based crossover to go between the SRX and Escalade, so that could fill that void they have. Although one wonders if Omega is supposed to be GM's best platform, why would an Omega SUV be placed below the Escalade which is based on a Silverado? Buick for a while claimed they were targeting Lexus but I don't think they ever really were. I have never thought of Buick as a luxury brand, GM needs to build what is best for Cadillac without worrying what it does to GMC or Buick. You can't compromise Cadillac because you are worrying Buick dealers might lose some sales. Lexus is resurgent this year also, they have sold almost 200,000 cars already.
  12. smk4565
    Cadillac does have a marketing problem and has for a while. They don't have a consistent theme, they jump around year to year, they don't consistently advertise products, they advertise what is new then forget about it for 4 years. They don't really push the attributes of the individual cars or promote the brand name. Cadillac product is getting better, but the Germans are still superior. BMW makes a 45 mpg sedan, Mercedes has a 42 mpg sedan, the diesel C-class should get 45, Cadillac can't come close those numbers. Mercedes E63 AMG S does 0-60 in 3.5 seconds, that is 2015 Corvette Z06 fast. The 2015 C-class doesn't have plastic buttons on the interior, the window switches, fuel release door, power seat adjustments, etc are metal, they raised the bar big time. I bet Cadillac has plastic power seat buttons and fuel filler door release buttons on every model. Cadillac still misses some little details, as well as big things like no hybrids or diesels or convertibles.
  13. smk4565
    Cadillac only has one crossover. The SRX. The Escalade is an SUV .....as are the suburban, Tahoe, and Yukon. If they had 3 or 4, their sales would be a lot more. Look at all the lux marques.....the percent of crossover sales vs sedans..... I don't think SUV vs Crossover really matters to most of the people buying them. Another crossover would help Cadillac, but it isn't going to be the savior, it will probably just steal more sales off the CTS or ATS depending on how they sized or priced it, maybe it would take some sales off Acura who relies on crossover sales. The 3-series outsells BMW's whole crossover lineup by more than 2 to 1 combined. The C-class and E-class combined usually outsell the GLK, ML, GL trio by more than 2 to 1 each year. Only 27% of BMW sales this year are crossovers. The problem is GM doesn't build good sedans or market them well to make people want them. They pour their engineering and marketing dollars into trucks, SUVs, and crossovers. Which for them probably makes sense, they make more profit on them, but you can make profit on sedans too if they are good.
  14. smk4565
    The Cruze is more for commuter car purposes, or single people, older couple with no kids or kids who are adult age. Agreed that it isn't a family car, but that is okay, there are a lot of people without families or kids, who a Cruze fits their needs well. The Accord outsold the Cruze, Malibu and Impala combined last month. Chevy may want to merge the Spark and Sonic to one subcompact, push the Cruze down in size and price about about 5-10% so they can re-focus on the Malibu. But I have a feeling they will never get the Malibu right.
  15. smk4565
    Mini has been played out. They don't really ever change the styling, the brand has no focus, they just keep rehashing variants of the same car. They should have the Cooper and the Countryman, dump the Paceman, Coupe, Roadster. If anything they should be doing a diesel or a hybrid or a luxury trim Cooper, because that is their core product, and they should look to find ways to keep buyers coming back.
  16. smk4565
    2015 C-class has 35.2 inches of rear legroom, so a worst to first swing for Mercedes there. But the old car sold because it gave Mercedes build quality at a low price and it had good looks. The old C-class was actually somewhat sporty to drive, I don't think it was a great car, but it was good enough to outsell the A4 and Lexus IS. The 2015 C-class I think is a great car, Mercedes brought their A game on that one and that is something they didn't do the last time around. Rear seat legroom isn't why the ATS doesn't sell, the car looks boring, the powertrains aren't as refined or not as many engine and body style choices as the Germans. What amazes me is how the Lexus IS which is flat out ugly and also has an engine/transmission combo circa 2008 outsells the ATS. The CUE system probably is turning away more people than it attracts. And Cadillac isn't the hot brand either, the young up and comers seem to be flocking to Audi, and the ATS needs to take on that market.
  17. smk4565
    The old models like the Avenger, Journey and Patriot have to be almost all fleet sale or deep discount. They might not even be turning a profit on those. The big 3 of the Jeep lineup (Cherokee, Wrangler, Grand Cherokee) is doing well, but those have name equity. The Jeep brand name is popular and trusted, and the Cherokee, Wrangler and Grand Cherokee names have weight to them. People are familiar with those, compared to some of the alphabet soup names or something like a GMC Terrain that has been around only one generation.
  18. smk4565
    They can probably cancel the TT already, no one is buying that thing anymore.
  19. smk4565
    Over 1,000 i3's is pretty impressive actually. Most oddball looking electrics have no sales, the i3 might get a following going. The 7-series and A8 are getting destroyed by the S-class, maybe BMW should just give up now, although I know they won't
  20. smk4565
    GM has enough crossovers and trucks. They have a whole brand dedicated to trucks, and 2 of the 5 Buicks and 2 of the 5 Cadillacs (if you don't count ELR) are crossovers/SUV (I counted Escalade as 1). The Buick-GMC-Cadillac trio has more SUVs than sedans. The Thetas and Lambdas are due for an update though, I don't think they need more, just to update what they have, although adding a compact SUV like the Trax to Chevy could get some younger urban buyers. Cadillac could use a 3rd crossover, but Cadillac could use a lot of help in other areas too, they could use some coupes and convertibles, and the CTS might have it's lowest sales year ever this year, and the price didn't get jacked up that much, they are still pricing the CTS under the 5-series and E-class. The Malibu sales reflect how good the car is, mediocre car, mediocre sales. The Impala sells well compared to the Taurus, Avalon, Azera type cars, I think the Impala is fine, for the full size $27-37k market it is a strong seller, that just isn't a huge segment of buyers.
  21. smk4565
    Their number 1 seller is a mid size sedan and #2 was a sedan introduced for 2008 model year. C-class should see a big boost this fall, so it is possible the C and E are pushing 15,000 units a month, which the 3 SUVs aren't going to do. The GL is probably being hurt by the new Escalade, I think the GLK is helped by the diesel because it gets 33 mpg which spanks most of these crossovers.
  22. smk4565
    A lot of GM cars aren't space efficient on the inside, why don't they just make better use of the space they have.
  23. smk4565
    Combining a supercharger and a turbo charger makes sense to eliminate the lag time and keep even power flow. But at $40k you are talking C-class money, and the S60 isn't that good of a car. 300 hp and 35 mpg is a solid combination, but you can get a 45 mpg diesel BMW if you give up some acceleration. And the diesel C-class should hit 60 in 7 seconds and turn out 45 mpg also. Good engine for Volvo but it will probably just push the cost of the car up and their cars don't justify that price point. I did read that Geely was going to spend $11 billion on Volvo to try to get them up to par, we'll see though, they might be too far behind.
  24. smk4565
    The numbers used to mean engine size, but the engine sizes change a lot and now that engine sizes are going down, they probably don't want to go down in numbers. BMW does it too, the 328i has a 2.0 liter engine. I think what Mercedes could do to make the numbers simple is 300 for 4 cylinder, 400 for 6 cylinder, 500 for 8 cylinder and 600 for 12 cylinder. When the day comes they have a 3 cylinder they could use 200. Then as engine sizes change you keep the same number, easier for marketing. The S500 in Europe is S550 here, no reason for them to be different. Diesels could be 250, and 350 for 4 and 6 cylinder. 450 if they have an 8 cylinder diesel, but I don't think they do anymore. On the AMG names, they should have named the CLA45 AMG the CLA35, since it is 4 cylinder, if AMG does a 6 cylinder in the future it could be 45 AMG, make the V8 55, so you'd have an S55 AMG like they used to, then S65 is V12. And it fits in like with an S500 would be a V8, an S55 would be an AMG V8, S600 is V12, S65 is AMG V12. Much more cohesive.
  25. smk4565
    As bad as it sounds, why not rename the ML to GML or GLM, the M being for mid size if they want every SUV to have a "G" in it. GLE sounds like a trim package on a Camry. Keep GLA, GLK and GL the same. This isn't broken so it doesn't need fixed. They already went from M to ML to appease BMW why change it again.
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