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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    I would pretty much agree with Reg, a lot of people just don't like the Cadillac image. My mom is 60 and mention a Cadillac and the response is "ewww, I hate them, they are for geezers" because she remembers her grandparents getting a new Cadillac every other year, my great grand parents bought over 20 Cadillacs, all land barges of the 60s, 70s and early 80s. They could sell Cadillacs at half price and she still wouldn't consider one just because of the negative image she has formed of them. I think a lot of 20 somethings are probably the same way, they see Audi as cool and hip, and Cadillac as grandpa's car. And Cadillacs are big, some people don't want a mid size car even, they only want small or compact. The SUV line up I would propose is make the SRX smaller on the outside, same on the inside and keep the base price at $35k. It could be FWD because the mindless crossover buyer likes that, Acura, Lincoln and Lexus get sales on FWD crossovers because those Rav4 and CR-V and Ford Escape buyers have to go someplace when they trade up, and they are clueless to why RWD is better. The middle SUV should be on Alpha, more like the CTS in size and price, 3.6 V6 base and twin turbo V6 optional (or whatever engines the CTS has at that time), this would be more in the $50-65k range like an X5 or ML350. Escalade will stay as it is, the Tahoe is already there so it is easy to do. Rumor is they are thinking of a turbo V6 or diesel V6 since the Navigator has a turbo V6 and the Mercedes GL has a diesel. Other than powertrain or trim changes, the Escalade formula works for now. Probably one day body on frame SUVs will die, just as body on frame cars died and body on frame mid-size SUVs died, but for now they are still holding on.
  2. smk4565
    Based on what I can find searching the internet, MB has only 2 SUV platforms. Their military version mad consumer overpriced dino G-Class and the 4 model family GLA, GLK, GL and M-class suv. How is this any different than Cadillac with their 2 SUV platforms? They have their Escalade, Escalade ESV and SRX. I expect a second model off the SRX line but with Buick, Cadillac does not need to have a model in compact, Mid class and Full size. More then enough with what they have. Mercedes does have 2 SUV platforms but they have more than 2 SUVs. The GLA is on the A-class platform, the GLK is built on the C-class platform. The ML and GL share a platform but in different size similar to ATS and CTS on Alpha, and the G-wagen is their 2nd SUV only platform. So 2 of Mercedes SUVs are built on car platforms. I'd like to see Cadillac build an SUV off Alpha, maybe to slot in between the SRX and Escalade and they can help them keep the price of the SRX down to keep it in the entry-lux suv sweet spot.
  3. smk4565
    I imagine there will be a 3rd Cadillac SUV somehow, GM loves SUVs, they can't let Cadillac have only 2 when Mercedes has 5 of them, granted the GLA will probably be a slow seller and the G-wagen is a niche product.
  4. smk4565
    I think they will do a Cadillac Encore. The Cruze is as big as an ATS, so no sense in making a Cadillac out of that, I doubt they do a Spark or Sonic sized Cadillac, but I can see them doing an SUV smaller than the SRX.
  5. smk4565
    Diesel fuel is cheaper than premium gas around here. That is a good sign for those that want a diesel. A friend of mine has a diesel BMW 535, he gets about 31 mpg average in mixed driving, mostly commuting into the city or driving in the suburbs, about 38 on the highway. So there is a pay off, he had an older 535i gas and got like 21 mpg in that.
  6. smk4565
    Over $50k for a Durango seems like a lot, I'd think an Explorer or Lambda (though dated now) is a better value. $30k for the van with the same engine and basically same people carrying ability seems like the deal, but people don't like vans. Personally I don't see much difference between a van and a crossover, it is still a tall box on wheels and doesn't handle like a car.
  7. smk4565
    Nissan has huge economies of scale too, it isn't like Infiniti was a little independent. But Ghosn may have killed any flagship ideas, it is a surprise they got the GT-R out because he is probably the tightest bean counter of them all. Infiniti probably couldn't build a business case for anything above the M37/M56 so they just gave it a new name to make people think they made a new high end car.
  8. smk4565
    Audi did well when he was there, he didn't do much of anything for Infiniti, but Infiniti has limited resources also. This guy did once call the Volt a "car for idoits" because no one would pay double the price for what is basically a Corolla competitor, so I wonder what he thinks of the ELR? The good news is this guy may shelf the ELR and XTS and push for a flagship sedan because he wanted Infiniti to get a flagship and/or halo models, but I think the bean counters had other ideas.
  9. smk4565
    $10,000 off a $100,000 car is the same as $2,000 off a $20,000 car. Silverado has $4500 off this month, that is more than 10% of the MSRP. The S-class is the most profitable car Mercedes makes, and it sells better than any competitor. There is really no problem with it. Mercedes-Benz passenger car division makes more profit than all of General Motors. Where is all the profit from GMC truck and Cadillac? New grille and badge isn't going to save them, they need new marketing and better cars.
  10. smk4565
    I found that currently Mercedes has about $2,800 in incentives per car and BMW $3,100. GM is offering about $3700 per car in July but they have $4500 on Silverado so that pushes the average. Cadillac and Audi I couldn't find a breakdown from the parent company it gets lumped in with GM and VW. I think if it were as simple to give $1500 cash back plus 0% finance on all Cadillacs and get BMW sales numbers GM would have done that. The problem is deeper, it is brand image and the product.
  11. smk4565
    Can't wait for the new C30, C50, and C70,sedans and CX40 and CX80 SUVs!
  12. smk4565
    I haven't driven a CLA, sat it one at the auto show and wasn't impressed. The Mercedes build quality is there in that everything fits together tightly, but the materials aren't what you'd expect in a Benz. The A3 sells because younger people like Audi's and people trading in their Jetta probably like the A3. Mercedes buyers want an E-class with tank like feel and legendary ride quality. The CLA doesn't seem to be competing or taking sales from other Mercedes though, so if nothing else, the CLA kept another 1600 people a month from buying an A3 or Acura ILX.
  13. smk4565
    Dwight nailed it. Lincoln does that black plastic touch button thing too, I will take real buttons any day. GM's incentive spend is $3,376 per car, highest of the biggest 8 automakers, the industry average is $2,450. January 2014 was the newest I could find, but GM was spending $3,600 per car in incentives in 2012 also. http://www.ibtimes.com/here-are-january-2014-big-8-us-auto-sales-numbers-gm-ford-chrysler-toyota-honda-nissan-kiahyundai So the deals and incentives are there, the Cadillac sales problem is half product, half brand image in my mind. Both are hard to fix.
  14. smk4565
    GM discounts as much as anyone. Cadillac can't match BMW leases though because Cadillacs depreciate too quickly. Cadillac can offer free maintenance or cheap leases, if that is all it takes to sell cars but I think the problem is in the product and not the lease payment.
  15. smk4565
    Audi is doing well because of the A3 but those younger buyers are key to get if they can get repeat business. The Lexus IS sales are up 118% this year, I would say they are surging. The 3-series is up 5% but by far the best seller in the class beating the C-class 2 to 1 right now. The ATS is down 22%. Buyers are looking elsewhere, if badge is what is hurting Cadillac then they need a flagship sedan and a mid engine supercar or something to build image.
  16. smk4565
    The 335 twin turbo six gets better gas milage than the ATS 2.0T. The ATS needs new engines and transmissions not a new logo on the front. Audi and Lexus are starting to surge in this segment too, the ATS needs more help than it got, but maybe that is coming next year.
  17. smk4565
    If the ATS is so good why is it the 5th best selling car in the class? The car is a dud, the XTS is becoming a dud also, as it gets older on market it will become damaged goods like the DTS.
  18. smk4565
    Not a fan of the new badge either, the Wreath and Crest division is now just the Crest, a form of toothpaste.
  19. smk4565
    Well the C-class is being replaced for 2015, new interior and new engines. Plus M-B is bringing an inline six in 2017-2018, so another all new engine is just 3 years away.
  20. smk4565
    Buick isn't a luxury car though, nor will they ever be. Buick has had a resurgence but they couldn't replace Cadillac and start selling $50-60,000 sedans. I think Buick in recent years has been helped by the demise of Mercury, Oldsmobile, Saturn, and Pontiac, and years of lackluster Chrysler Sebrings and basically no Chrysler SUVs the past five years. VW has also shifted a bit down market. Buick basically has to compete with Acura, Volvo and Lincoln, not really much going on with those brands.
  21. smk4565
    The biggest issue is that it doesn't say BMW or Mercedes on it. But Lexus has got some sales increase recently with the IS350 and that has a dated engine and transmission also. ATS to me feels smaller inside than any of the German sedans, the build quality just doesn't seem there either, reminds me too much of a Chevy when I sit in one. Powertrains are yesterdays news, they should have an 8 speed transmission, better fuel economy, more power and refinement, etc. CTS is in the same boat, dated powertrains, weak marketing and I feel like the CTS's 2 biggest competitors come from its own showroom, because the ATS looks similar and is $10k cheaper, the XTS is priced identical to the CTS so 2 cars compete for the same dollar. An amazing stat is that Audi sold as many cars in China in June as Cadillac sold there in all of 2013. Audi is on pace for over 500,000 sales in China this year, Cadillac's global volume is less than that. Cadillac may just be too far behind to ever catch up.
  22. smk4565
    Jaguar has blinged out interiors with a lot of bright work also, at least on the XJ. The BMW interior may be the same basic look they have used for 15 years but people seem to be buying it still. The 3-series outsells the ATS like 5-1, so BMW must have something right. Brand image hurts Cadillac, I just don't think a lot of luxury buyers aspire to own a Cadillac or drive a Cadillac, the old guard it still buying Mercedes, baby boomers like Lexus and the younger people like BMW and Audi.
  23. smk4565
    Marketing is a problem, but even good marketing isn't going to save Cadillac. Their lineup is limited to 3 sedans, a FWD crossover and a rebadged Tahoe, not exactly a full line and they don't have a hybrid or a diesel. The other guys all have hybrids, diesels, convertibles, sports cars, etc. I don't think the competitors are so flawed except Lincoln and Acura which are basically non factors. Infiniti I think is a bit lost with the names and they made the Q50 a bit too big and expensive, it is too big and costly to compete with a 3-series but too small to compete with a 5-series. Infiniti is sort of stuck where Cadillac is, they don't have a full line or the money to go head to head with the Germans. I think a downside to Cadillac interiors is the shiny piano black plastic and the chrome knobs and buttons, it just seems to tacky and blingy inside their cars. And little things like the carpet seem like what Chevy has in it, the interiors of the ATS and CTS feel cramped. It is a lot of little stuff but it adds up, combine that with the powertrains that are a bit dated and buyers start to look elsewhere.
  24. smk4565
    Even at a $10,000 discount, the S-class is still going to have transaction prices around $100-105K. None of the competitors can claim that sort of price. I can't find the article, but Mercedes did add Saturday shifts and overtime to the factory that produces the S-class last winter, which put them at max capacity which is like 460 cars per day. I did read that just recently they started S-class production in India because they can build about 20,000 cars per year there to sell in Asia. Up until then I think all S-class were built in Germany, thus why the factory is maxed out when trying to meed demand in Europe, North America, Middle East, China, etc.
  25. smk4565
    I think people don't like CUE, I think the new ATS and CTS look a bit boring, especially from the back, and my guess is you are right about powertrains. Problem is Mercedes spends about $2 billion in development per model line. Cadillac doesn't have that sort of budget to work with. Audi spent $3.9 billion in R&D in 2012, BMW spent $5.4 billion, while Mercedes spent a whopping $7.6 billion. General Motors spent $7.4 billion in 2012 and that has to be divided up among Buick, Chevy, GMC, Cadillac, Opel, etc.
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