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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    Not enough engine choices, there should be minimum 3 engine offerings. Probably has worst in class fuel economy due to the only engine being a 5.6 V8 from a 2007 Infiniti M56.
  2. smk4565
    GM doesn’t need an A45 competitor, they could use a competitor to this engine for rear drive application. Although look at the bulk of GM sales which is front drive crossover with a thirsty 300 hp V6. If GM has this motor it could replace the 3.6 V6 company wide. On the Mercedes side, I like them using what that have in as many places as they can use it, it would be a waste to only use this engine in A-class and GLB. C-class and GLC can use it too.
  3. smk4565
    It makes sense to use it in larger cars, add a mild hybrid to it plus being around 380-400 hp depending on tune and this could be the E400/E450 engine and replace the six cylinder in C43 and GLC43. Most car company people refuse to comment on future product, Moers always seems willing to offer it up. Which I think is smart because they can gauge customer reaction before they do it.
  4. smk4565
    The main problem with the Arteon is an Audi A4 2.0T Premium is $42,000. The secondary problem is the Kia Stinger is cheaper, the new Hyundai Sonata is a looker inside and out and much cheaper. This car just has a horrible value quotient.
  5. smk4565
    0-60 doesn't matter in practical use, but nor do 1/4 mile times. The issue is how do you measure a car's acceleration? Can you measure 0-30 time at a peak of 2500 rpm to judge how a car feels or pulls away under light load? There is no way to compare power/torque delivery of a vehicle due to weight, transmissions and gearing being different on all of them that you can' just compare horsepower. Cars spent most of their life driving under 60 mph, unless you do constant interstate driving. And the times you are above 60 at interstate speed you aren't really using acceleration. So I think 0-60 makes sense in that it shows how much acceleration power a car has in typical driving speeds.
  6. smk4565
    To add to this, in 2030, China and big chunks of the EU may ban ICE vehicles for sale. So given that those are Mercedes 2 biggest markets, it would make sense that they have a full EV line post 2030. 12 years ago was iPhone 1, 14 years ago was the launch of You Tube. A lot can happen in 10-15 years. If Daimler pours R&D dollars into electric cars they can get that battery cost down, they can probably reduce warranty costs and build/design complexity, there may be other areas to pick up savings when the economies of scale kick in.
  7. smk4565
    About 10-12 years is what they get from an engine, and that usually involves some overhauls along the way. They could go to a turbo 4 with more electric power, but I feel like in 10 years they'll have the batteries figured out and no one is going to want a n ICE when you can just get any amount of power you want from an electric, with more cabin space and less maintenance. Wouldn't surprise me if the whole Mercedes line was electric only in 2030.
  8. smk4565
    The 48 volt mild hybrid V8, Inline 6 and inline 4 are new engines, most models don't even have them yet. So you figure this is a fresh engine line, the 4.0 V8 has been around a few years, but has a 2020 MY update. The I-6 launched in 2019. That engine line with little tweaks and upgrades can get them to 2030. By then they will have an all EV line up I would imagine.
  9. smk4565
    Needed a power bump years ago and I doubt the cost of a 2.4 liter engine vs a 2 liter engine is pretty negligible.
  10. smk4565
    Toyota can't put Lexus-level quality and reliability into the Tundra and beat any domestic truck in that area? Toyota can't beat them in fuel economy and price? I think Toyota is slacking in full size trucks. The current Tundra is the worst full size truck on sale, and there is no excuse for that with the resources Toyota has.
  11. smk4565
    Toyota ran Ford and FCA out of sedans and GM is retreat. Toyota has the #1 selling SUV in the country. Toyota has the #1 selling mid-size truck. I don't see why they can't penetrate full size trucks with better success than they are now.
  12. smk4565
    Nice update with some solid powertrain choices. This should continue to sell well andI bet the hybrid take rate is pretty high.
  13. smk4565
    About time. You'd think 1 of the 300,000 or so people that work at Toyota would have figured out you can't sell a 2007 platform truck in 2019 and be competitive. There is zero reason why Toyota shouldn't have 20% of the full size truck market, and I am talking half tun trucks, not the F350 and up stuff which they don't have a vehicle to compete with.
  14. smk4565
    If they already profit share then the UAW doesn’t really have anything to complain about.
  15. smk4565
    Sure unions are greedy, but GM had $8 billion on net income least year, Mary Barra made $22 million. Corporations are greedy too. Maybe what GM should do is offer a profit share bonus, so on years like 2018 when there is an $8 billion profit, take $1 billion of that and pay to the workers. So then the workers also have incentive to build quality product, and ensure the company does well.
  16. smk4565
    Is this better, it isn't all black This car is also entering its 6th year on the market, and still top of the class, and they'll advance it on the next one.
  17. smk4565
    I think the CT5 interior is decent, still a lot of black plastic button on that dash and not sure about that big gray slab of rubber on the center console. But overall it looks good for the price point and pricing it below the C-class and 3-series is smart on them. Not having sat in a CT5, I don't know how the material quality is, so it is a wait and see on that.
  18. smk4565
    Probably won’t be long before they cancel all Malibu’s. I don’t think GM seems too motivated to invest in family sedans.
  19. smk4565
    This makes total sense as there is demand for off road vehicles and you can get a pretty profit margin on them too. I would offer the ZRX with both the 6.2 and a supercharged version. If you can charge $10k as a stand alone option engine upgrade then why not.
  20. smk4565
    3-pointed Star and better technology for one. The “real” V-series should be the Blackwing V8. But I don’t even know how much that moves the needle, we have had 15 years of V-series cars and Cadillac has lost market share in that time.
  21. smk4565
    It is larger so probably heavier, and the turbo 4 makes less power than the last one, the 2.7 makes less hp than the V6, although more torque. I feel like if the Camaro went 237 hp turbo 4 standard and 325 hp turbo 4 in the SS then people would riot. When Cadillac does it, it is called better. What don’t see any overall performance gains coming with CT4. The interior hasn’t been improved any, it looks to be Mazda-level. What hooks buyers from other luxury sedans or gets them to buy CT4 over a crossover of similar price? I think price is Cadillac’s only play, I would price this car at $29,950.
  22. smk4565
    I don’t think the CT4 looks better than the ATS, it is a little bigger but I don’t know if it is roomier. No V6 options. I don’t know if they did anything here that makes this better than the ATS which wasn’t selling. If they price it below ATS maybe they have a chance.
  23. smk4565
    I actually think Safari on my phone works well, I'd probably just continue to use that.
  24. smk4565
    The GLC is rear wheel drive. Top 4 sellers in order in the USA are GLC, C-class, GLE, E-class. All 4 are rear drive, all 4 offer a V8.
  25. smk4565
    So Cadillac who made 1 FWD car in their 2009 lineup, and now has 4 (until XTS is officially dead) and introduced the front drive ELR, forgot about that disaster is not relying on FWD for sales? Cadillac's 2 best sellers are front drive, XT6 will probably outsell Escalade and for sure will outsell CT4 and CT5. And the A-class is in a segment that Cadillac doesn't even compete in, by size class anyway, we don't know how CT4 is priced yet. As I have said before, transverse mounted 4-cylinder engine vehicles are by far the most popular set up, it is what people are used to. Smart move by Mercedes to offer a product to pull people into their brand with something they are familiar with. Not everyone wants a 500-600 hp V8 rear drive car, I would like that, but most of the market wants horsepower in the 200s and gas mileage in the 30s. Mercedes is building what people want, and they haven't killed any rear drive lines and replaced it with front drive.
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