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riviera74

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Everything posted by riviera74

  1. riviera74
    Maybe, but it would actually solve the real issue: distractions. Wall Street ALWAYS wants its needs served first, last and always. The best thing is to NOT go public unless you (i.e. the CEO) are willing to deal with all the demands of sell-side and buy-side analysts and hedge funds and the like. Tesla does not NEED to be a public company. Wall Street does.
  2. riviera74
    New modular platforms are always a good idea, especially if you sell relatively few vehicles at high(ish) prices.
  3. riviera74
    WOW. 1985 called: they want their old GM back.
  4. riviera74
    Move the metal is what brought GM to BK nine years ago. Never forget that lesson. GM generally (and Buick in particular) really needs to cut back on production just so dealers can clear inventory.
  5. riviera74
    In an era where there is still a lot of M&A activity, executives should be made as redundant as the workers are once the factories shut down. I would argue even more so, since executives rarely add any shareholder value anymore.
  6. riviera74
    I suspect that Honda has high dealer inventory turnover because Honda tends to make too few vehicles (given demand) in order to support those MSRPs. Same with Acura, I suspect.
  7. riviera74
    Freezing the standards is a good start. If this administration truly wanted to reduce EPA headcount, they can get Congress to legislate the EPA out of existence. For a party that has advocated smaller federal government since 1980, they sure are doing a surprisingly poor job doing just that. Only defunding and legislation will actually reduce headcount in an appreciable manner, unless you want to repeal the merit-based civil service and revert to a 19th Century Spoils System.
  8. riviera74
    I honestly thought Toyota (and perhaps Honda) had fixed that already by having really flexible factories that built multiple vehicles on the same platform. As for Subaru, the tariff issue will not hit them unless those tariffs are applied to Japanese imports. Most Lexus vehicles, like the BR-Z and Forester, are built in Japan and then imported here.
  9. riviera74
    Suzukis were always cheap. Buicks are not (and seldom were).
  10. riviera74
    Wow. This is bad. I actively wonder why nobody has gotten those 2017 models out the door yet. I am now seeing ads for 2018 GMC and Cadillac models (mostly cheap financing via GM Financial). Somebody made a poor decision to overproduce A LOT of CUVs and pickup trucks. And apparently, it is infecting Buick too. SAD.
  11. riviera74
    I personally doubt that Cadillac will actually disappear at all, unless GM itself goes under. Only exception to that rule would probably be the Corvette. As for raising MSRPs and then creating incentives, GM has not backslid to the "move the metal" era that led to BK nine years ago. I agree that the whole "incentive a month" plan is long-term stupid and that needs to actually end, especially since we have reached peak auto sales in the last two years. As long as ATPs are up and stay up, profits and cash flow will follow. Of course, GM will have to trim back production somewhat so that the specter of "move the metal" does not return with a vengeance.
  12. riviera74
    Better to crack down now that wait for massive sales for Mahindra at the expense of the new Wrangler.
  13. riviera74
    Somebody needs to tell @Suaviloquent that without China, Buick is as dead as Olsdmobile since 2004. While imposing a 25% tariff on Chinese goods is bad policy, China is NOT going to defend America's IP with any consistency. An open market for any particular good ensures competition actually improves product, as opposed to protectionism which maximizes mediocrity. Why would China ever change its policies to compete in a global market based of accepted rules rather than pursue the mercantilism that has pulled them from the abject poverty of 40 years ago? The only mistake GM made is to build the Envision and the Encore in or near their largest market. No one anticipated the tariff escalation tit-for-tat that has come from this president. If you wish to buy a midsize (now compact) crossover NOT made in China, buy an Equinox or a Terrain (made in CANADA), or better still a Cadillac XT5 (Spring Hill, TN).
  14. riviera74
    Lack of engineers, huh? Sounds like what GM's problem when Congress was discussing emissions standards back in the 1970s. GM said: hire more lobbyists; whereas Honda said: hire more engineers. Maybe VW needs to toss a few executives overboard and hire another 30 engineers to solve this problem.
  15. riviera74
    While I would like to see CAFE replaced by appropriate taxes, California emissions should be left alone. For nearly 50 years, CA has had a massive smog problem that regulations have had some effect of reducing. (Just ask anyone from Los Angeles what it was like to breathe the local air in 1960 or 1970 compared to today.) CA standards may seem too high for some, but both China and the EU are also marching towards stricter emissions standards AND a push for more electric vehicles to replace the ICE vehicles currently on the road. Automakers will comply with global emissions standards whether the current administration likes it or not because it is good for business, not just good for the environment. This new proposal by the current EPA will probably get stuffed by federal courts and rendered inoperative within three years. Short of repealing CAFE outright, there will be no movement on emissions as of this time.
  16. riviera74
    Tesla is overrated. We need more competitors, not fewer, in this space in the auto market.
  17. riviera74
    China does not value intellectual property at all. Never have; never will. Enforcement of IP protection is either too arbitrary or nonexistent. If it wasn't for (the at one time) cheap labor and the CCP's inane foreign direct investment rules, then almost no one would ever consider building any goods more complex than a smartphone/tablet/PC in the Middle Kingdom.
  18. riviera74
    Camry or Accord. A LOT of baby boomers still hate GM after 30-40 years.
  19. riviera74
    How well is the LaCrosse Avenir selling compared to the rest of the LaCrosse?
  20. riviera74
    One thing Buick should do with the Regal: the Avenir should be the Denali (i.e. fully loaded) for the Regal, while the GS should be the spiritual successor to the GNX. Both trim levels should be priced about the same.
  21. riviera74
    Chinese made Rolex watches would obviously be cheap knock offs (as if China would actually enforce intellectual property on a consistent basis). I do wish that Buick would build the Envisions and Encores here in the USA. I would actually buy an Envision. I may have to consider a Terrain Denali or go straight to a Cadillac XT5 instead. Yes I know that without China, Buick would be lying besides Oldsmobile in the automotive cemetery. You cannot argue a 5:1 sales ratio for Buick in China's favor. Back to the Audi Q3: A lot of reviews I have seen online put the Audi Q5 as the best luxury crossover in its class, besting the XT5 and the Envision. Does the Q3 do the same, or is that the job of the new one coming next year to the States?
  22. riviera74
    Yes, Sergio was effective for FIAT and Alfa Romeo. His successor will have to fix/save Chrysler and Dodge. Thoughts and prayers and condolences to his family for their loss.
  23. riviera74
    NO. Save the Grand National for their sedans. Some added performance perhaps, but not the full GNX treatment.
  24. riviera74
    If only Buick would do that on the Encore and the Envision. . . . . .
  25. riviera74
    Yeah. The 1970s called: they want their personal luxury coupes back.
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