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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    Do you know what Corolla and Camry sell Because those names have been around for 50 year, people know what they are like Pepsi and Coca-Cola. No one will know what a K5 is or what brand even sells it.
  2. smk4565
    All the 53’s are mild hybrid now and the V8s starting on 2020 model year are switching over to that. AMG One is hybrid, that is their short term future, full electric is longer term. This effects every one though.
  3. smk4565
    Looks great inside and out. I hope they don’t start calling cars K5, K4,K3, etc
  4. smk4565
    Hybrid an EV. Problem solved.
  5. smk4565
    Sergio was sentimental and sympathetic to Fiat and Alfa, while the Chrysler guys feel the same about Dodge/Chrysler. Tavares has no sentimental feelings to either, so they have to perform or go.
  6. smk4565
    Chinese compliance car.
  7. smk4565
    Agreed on Sergio's dream and I have to imagine some stuff gets consolidated or some factories closed in time. Tavares didn't take dead weight like Opel and Vauxhaul and turn the PSA operation profitable by not making tough decisions and wasting money. 89% of revenue from North America and Europe, and China is the largest market? I imagine they will look to change that and grow in China, maybe another partner coming.
  8. smk4565
    I imagine the PSA platforms and powertrains will take over, and commoditize the running gear of all the FWD/AWD cars and crossovers. Stuff like Promaster City and any commercial vans will all be one vehicle with multiple badges. Obviously Ram pickup is unique, and the larger Jeeps. The 300/Charger cars could end up on Georgio or a PSA platform or dead, that is basically a 1 market vehicle in a shrinking market, PSA is going to want global product.
  9. smk4565
    They do have a lot but Mercedes 7 SUVs span $100k compared to the 7 at Hyundai that span $20k in base price. But either way I think it is a method to overwhelm consumers.
  10. smk4565
    Right it is an Accord V6 with 2 turbos and a hybrid system, it can’t cost $150k to make so they should sell it for less money
  11. smk4565
    NSX does have turbos and a hybrid drivetrain. I would say it is more advanced than a Corvette, but the NSX is a total rip off as far as price goes. Also doesn't matter if NSX makes money or loses it, I think they should price it at like $90k, even if they lose money on every one sold, they need to push that more as a halo product to promote their brand image which right now is pretty lack luster.
  12. smk4565
    I bet Acura loses money on the NSX because they sell so few of them. Or maybe after so many years of it on market it will break even as they recoup R&D and tooling costs. With Corvette it seems only the low priced ones will lose money, but I suspect when all the special trim ones come out that cost over $100k they will clean up on those and make a nice profit on them. Much like the $35,000 Tesla Model 3, they probably lose money on that but make money on the $65,000 performance model.
  13. smk4565
    Cadillac doesn't have a convertible or sports car, doesn't have an performance SUV, doesn't have any thing over $100k, and they moved CT4 and CT5 down market of where ATS and CTS were because ATS and CTS couldn't get German car pricing and I think Cadillac made the correct move there. But Cadillac isn't top tier until they have top tier product, where is the $200,000 Cadillac? "Small volume" is an excuse for poor sales, I am sure GM would love to sell twice as many Cadillacs as they do today, especially if the profit margins are better on Cadillacs than they are on a Chevy or Buick.
  14. smk4565
    VW has 2 EV’s on sale now and many coming. But I haven’t crapped on GM’s EV efforts. I said Cadillac doesn’t have the image of other luxury brands so they can’t sell on status. I said Cadillac needs really good EV product. I think real names is a good idea but the vehicles have to be really good and arrive soon before the market is flooded.
  15. smk4565
    All retail businesses have loss leaders. Corvette can drive showroom traffic and brands need halo product even if they lose money on it. Without a halo product you get brands like Infiniti that are dead in the water. I suspect Corvette overall will make profit due to how many optioned up ones they sell.
  16. smk4565
    VW has money. They can put out a ton of EV’s if market demand is there. Tesla can’t put out product that fast. VW could easily be the largest EV producer in the world in 5 years time. Tesla has a profitability issue, how long can they last not making any money? And personally I’d prefer a Tesla to a VW group EV.
  17. smk4565
    All EV’s are heavy. I also don’t think it matters if GM loses money on C8’s under $80k. It is good for consumers and That can be an overall business strategy. I just wouldn’t be surprised if prices rise in the next couple years like Nissan did with the GT-R.
  18. smk4565
    VW is about double the size of GM, they are massive. They aren't going to lose their shirts in EV's and go bankrupt, if anything they have the best chance to the the world's EV leader. Porsche has the Nurburgring record for a production EV as it is with the Taycan, I know Model S is chasing that. As far as racing goes, Mercedes leads Formula E right now in their first season, but it is like 2 races in so long way for that to go. But Mercedes, Porsche, Audi, BMW and Jaguar are all in there, I'd love to see GM or Ford jump in and challenge, just like I'd love to see either enter Formula 1. Bring it on. I actually like the C8 Corvette, I think it is an engineering masterpiece given the price point even at $80-90k it is. Not sure where the C8 tech trickles down to when GM is killing all their cars in favor of front drive crossovers and GM refuses to do performance crossovers. But the performance they got, the price point, the usability of the C8 are great achievements. Mid-engine 2-seaters aren't really my thing though, like Ferraris have zero appeal to me, I can appreciate the performance and engineering that went into it, but it isn't my sort of car.
  19. smk4565
    Tesla is the future, that is the appeal to the brand. I like Tesla personally, I think they have great cars and I like the idea of EV. But you don't get S-class luxury in a Tesla, you don't get G-wagen off road ability in a Tesla, etc. There isn't a convertible Tesla, etc. There are things Mercedes already does with their lineup that they can electrify and offer something Tesla doesn't. Likewise with VV group and others. Daimler is the 3rd largest auto company in the world behind VW and Toyota, they have resources, they have a plan. EV's are not big sellers right now, the key is to transition people from gas to electric which might take 20 years and eventually the whole line is EV. Mercedes is in a great place right now, all those gas SUV's they are selling are making profit that Tesla doesn't have, and giving Mercedes ability to spend more on EV tech.
  20. smk4565
    They delayed 1 EV on sale date. EQ A and EQ B test mules are out there, those are both probably 2021 arrivals as is EQ S. Daimler has a zero emission carbon neutral goal as a company by 2040, that is for cars and factories. So that push is going to come hard. I personally would put EQ C on sale now and see what happens, Mercedes is a better badge than Jaguar or Audi and the EQ C looks better than their vehicle and is priced better than them also. I think it would sell jut fine, and if they only sell 10,000 all year who cares, it is 10,000 people that didn't go somewhere else.
  21. smk4565
    VW is the 9th largest company in the world. VW has said EV is their goal, with their resources they will figure it out. I also don't think Taycan owners care about range, but again they will sort that all out. Range is also over rated, 95% of driving is done within 25 or 50 miles of home. A Taycan charged once a day can drive 72,800 miles per year. I'd like to know how many drivers put more than 72,000 miles per year on their car. Tesla has a great product, but they also don't give you S-class luxury or Porsche's handling. It isn't all about range, there are other factors to the car. So we have to see what all these cars offer. And same for Cadillac, I have no opinion on the Cadillac EV because it doesn't exist yet. The Cadillac brand name does not have the status of others, the brand image is what they have to overcome so they need a good product. C8 performs like I thought it would, maybe a little quicker than I thought, the price is what surprised me, I thought it would be $80k at least to start. Although GM is losing money on every C8 under $80k, so we'll see how long the $60k price lasts. The Mercedes-AMG One will have the full run built in 2021, they just announced that. And they are doing something never done before, and building a car that is on a level never seen before. It takes time to get that right.
  22. smk4565
    Mercedes outsells Tesla now. Whether it is gas or electric doesn't really matter. Eventually everything will be electric, the rate at which the change happens isn't that important, what matters is that as the change happens car makers have the product people want. Porsche sells various products at over $100k, so they have proven buyer pool that will pay high prices.
  23. smk4565
    Mercedes is going to have EV's before Cadillac, they should have 4 on sale in 2021, which will be about as many as Tesla has. Whether the car is EV or gas, Cadillac still has an image disadvantage, so the car better be good if they are going after Tesla. And look at what something like a Taycan costs, people will pay $150k for a Porsche, they won't pay that for a Cadillac.
  24. smk4565
    Brands like Mercedes and Porsche have cache, they can make a run at Tesla. EQ C was put off here because I think their worry is it won't sell well since the Jaguar and Audi aren't doing well. EQ C is based off the GLC chassis, it isn't on their skateboard like EV chassis, that EQ S is on. I think when S arrives they beat Tesla. Mercedes is in Formula E racing now too, they'll build good EV's and they already have a built in customer base that pays high prices for cars, they don't have to really bring in new buyers as much as some others.
  25. smk4565
    I wonder if when people go into a Hyundai showroom (or any car dealership), the goal of the manufacturer is to have 9 SUVs there to pick from so the customer is just so overwhelmed, they just cave in and buy something there rather than going to a 2nd dealership to look at another SUV.
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