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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    AMG has eaten M’s lunch the past 10-15 years. BMW needs something.
  2. smk4565
    It is embarrassing how old this vehicle is. A 4.6 liter V8 making 301 hp? What is it a 1995 Northstar? That is 30 year old numbers. Even in 2007 a 301 hp V8 was dated. For reference there have been 2 full redesigns of the GLE since this went on sale.
  3. smk4565
    A bigger motor may not fit in a small car though so this is what you get. You can't fit a V8 in an XT4 or a Chevy Sonic.
  4. smk4565
    They make a GLS for that.
  5. smk4565
    People don't buy how many seats they need, they buy how many seats they MIGHT need. A lot of people with 1 kid will buy a 3 row SUV for the off chance their 1 kid decides to bring friends along, or the twice a year the in-laws visit and they want to put 6-7 people in a car. 76% of driving is done alone, and yet 76% of cars aren't 2-seaters. Millenials with zero kids will buy GLB's for the "just in case" they have kids and need 7 seats one day. And the GLB may have a small 3rd row, but it's 3rd row is larger than the 3rd row in the Corsair, XT4, XT5, RDX, NX, X3, X2 and Q5, because none of them have one.
  6. smk4565
    Well good the GLB can outsell the Lexus RX if people want FWD, since the GLB looks better, is cheaper, faster if you get an AMG, and has more tech and better infotainment and seats 7. That is part of why the GLB is here, Acura, Volvo, Lexus, etc have had it too easy, Mercedes and BMW dominate those upper segments, that the Japanese mostly don't even bother. Well now Mercedes is coming for them in those lower luxury segments with the A-class and GLB.
  7. smk4565
    I would guess the X5 and GLE are the top 2 selling rear drive cars with a base price over $50k, in the US or globally. I think the GLC is the #2 selling luxury crossover, RWD seems to do just fine. And for those that want FWD, the GLB has them covered.
  8. smk4565
    Money.
  9. smk4565
    Basically same size, price and power as an XT4. They will have a 306 hp option and a 416 hp option which isn’t too anemic. Small crossover is a huge volume segment, why wouldn’t Mercedes be in it with 3 entries no less.
  10. smk4565
    Correct, it isn’t on sale anywhere yet. This is a new product for them and I think will be way more successful than the GLA which looks stupid.
  11. smk4565
    A little Honda Element in the headlights, the D pillar looks off a GLS. I think they wanted some GLK squareness but had to keep with the smooth body lines theme of the current cars.
  12. smk4565
    Glad is has “powerful off-road proportions” for the tens of people that will go off road. Seems a bit excessive on the black plastic but I guess that makes it “off road” as we learned long ago from the Pontiac Transport Montana. I bet these sell in big numbers, it is the only 7 seater in the segment, it looks good in and out and the 306 hp engine is coming right after launch. The crossover sheeple will like up all day for it.
  13. smk4565
    I am sure ZF makes something off the shelf that is transverse and can handle 350 lb-ft. If they really wanted a higher output XT4 there are options out there. In XT5 with more room I think it would be a no-brainer. Although if XT4 and XT5 were built on the alpha platform, then none of this would be an issue.
  14. smk4565
    It would make a lot of sense for an XT4-V. I could see that engine in the XT5 also, if not as an option, maybe as the only option since it would out power the 6 and probably get better gas mileage. Jaguar had Portfolio for a while. I don't know why they don't use Barritz or Brougham or something from their past.
  15. smk4565
    Shocker.
  16. smk4565
    Some of these luxury brands are claiming 10 EV's by 2025, so if Cadillac wants to be ahead of the curve, they might as well go all in on EV.
  17. smk4565
    Every AMG has legit performance credentials. AMG has the Nurburgring record for SUV, station wagon and 4-door car. The GTR Pro I think has the record for front engine/rear drive car. I imagine an A45 hatch will take the hatchback record unless there is some ultra powered Renault Clio Sport out there that I don't know about. I don't know if a Terrain Denali screams luxury, where as a 416 hp A45 is pretty damn fast. Although I don't really knock GMC for having Denali everything bees GMC isn't a luxury brand. If Cadillac does Barritz, they should be going for high end luxury with that. I say V-series every Cadillac too, 100% of Cadillacs should have a V-series, especially when 320 hp counts as V-series these says. That is why I think they needs SUVs on a rear drive platform.
  18. smk4565
    I do agree that a lot of buyers don't care about motor racing, they are going to buy what they like. Maybe some hardcore racing fans build up loyalty to a team and that helps build brand image and loyalty and that's all good. I think in Europe it matter more than anywhere else, racing seems more popular there. GM's 6.2 liter V8 isn't European emissions compliant so this summer GM is pulling all V8 models form Europe, that includes the Corvette, so no need to worry about potential buyers there. Regardless of what happens on the racetrack, the Chevrolet dealership experience isn't going to rival the Aston Martin or Porsche or Ferrari dealership experience. Barritz would work. They can make XT6 Barritz, CT6, Barritz, Escalade Barritz. Make those top engine trim with acoustic laminated glass and extra sound deadening, executive rear seat packages, upgraded leather, suede or silk headliners, etc. Put that fiber optic headliner in that Rolls Royce has. Something to make it a special model with a 20% price hike or whatever is deemed appropriate.
  19. smk4565
    EVs are expensive, and Audi and Mercedes already have 400 hp EVs now and many more coming. The volume of the luxury market is still in small to mid size crossover.
  20. smk4565
    Except Nissan and Ford have Platinum trim cars, so "Platinum" means crap. No one else has "Denali" that is ubiquitous with GMC. If Cadillac had a "Brougham" trim for CT6, Escalade, the Eldorado they should be building, whatever EV they come out with, XT6, etc they can build that brand equity and cache like GMC has done with Denali. I wouldn't put Brougham on any CT5/XT5 or lower however, I would reserve it for the top half of the line up.
  21. smk4565
    Problem is Cadillac has no sports car, no grand touring coupe, no convertible, nothing. The only aspirational product they have is the Escalade, and not everyone wants a massive truck. People on this board love Denali, because it a big profit maker for GMC. Yet Mercedes uses the same strategy and it is a bad idea? At least Mercedes reserves Maybach for top of the line product, where as GMC would Denali trim anything.
  22. smk4565
    This engine is for 3400 lb cars with transverse engine and awd. Limited to 4 models, A-class, GLA, GLA, and GLB. 0-60 times will probably be 4 seconds, not sure what they need more power than this for in a FWD application for compact cars. What does the competition have in this segment? Cadillac, Lexus, Acura, Audi all have turbo 4's that max out around 260 lb-ft maybe 290. Where is the 400 hp XT4? The 400 hp Lexus NX? The 400 hp BMW X1? Mercedes is a country mile ahead here.
  23. smk4565
    It is basically like a racing engine, this is tuned for track days and people that want to drive high in the rpm band. Mercedes makes plenty of engines with low end torque for applications where that makes more sense.
  24. smk4565
    Well true to the first point, Wilhelm Maybach worked for Daimler and went out on his own and the company didn't make it. Much like probably half the car companies in the 1920s, 1930s, etc, that didn't make it. You can't have an AMG version of a Maybach, that wouldn't make sense. It is one or the other. Although AMG builds the Maybach S650 engine, but that engine is dying. If Buick has Avenir, and GMC has Denali, I don't see why Cadillac couldn't get something similar.
  25. smk4565
    Maybach stopped making cars in in WWII when they got converted to make tank engines like many automakers of the time quit building cars. Then after the war car production never restarted. The 2nd attempt was that 2002-2012 era with the car built on the W140 chassis which was older than the W220 S-class which made no sense. The trim level is their 3rd attempt and seems to be working since they are launching a Maybach GLS this year, and a Maybach G-wagen seems like a no brainer and would make more sense than an AMG G-wagen. Cadillac launching a luxury sub brand could be a good idea for them. V-series hasn't really helped the cause, as they are still in a sales rut and they cancelled the STS-V, XLR-V, ATS-V and CTS-V in favor of a couple 320-350 hp "V-series" cars to sell at a discount. The luxury route could be a better direction, especially since we know the mid-engine Corvette is GM's performance champ and Cadillac isn't getting a version of it. Given the the new level of V-series and the markets thirst for SUVS, super lux SUVs is probably the way to go. GMC has Denali, I don't see why Cadillac can't have Brougham and take $20k onto every model for an interior upgrade.
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