balthazar
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Everything posted by balthazar
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Part of 'knowing how to build a truck', perhaps the #1 crucial factor, is building it at a profit. With the typical markup of mercedes product vs. actual cost to build, half of that is already baked into the equation. Or should be. Regardless, the chart shows the trend, and next year when Ford & Chevy can say they sell a higher percentage of luxury vehicles than Daimler, and on the heels of a new downmarket a-class promotional blitz, I think some heads that otherwise wouldn't; will turn.
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My list ~ (7) 2-dr hardtops : 59, 64, 64, 65, 66, 72, 73 (1) 2-dr sedan : 65 (4) 4-dr hardtops : 56, 59, 60, 65 (3) 4-dr sedans : 64, 64, 78 (1) convertible : 63 (1) wagon : 95 (5) trucks : 40, 46, 57, 94, 04 (0) SUVs
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Might want to check this source. As of 2012-14, fully 51% came from nuclear, coal & NG. I doubt the state has gone from 51% non-renewable to 0.2% in 3 years. Metric needs to be clarified.
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They weren't all rounded up & crushed, you know. I've owned probably 60/40 on 2-drs/4-drs, so I'm no stranger. I'd buy the 'right' 4-dr... but would MUCH rather have 2-drs. Was out in the shop this afternoon, shuffling some B-59 parts around & taking inventory towards steering reassembly.
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I'd sure like to see the so-called 'full-size' cars grow to more like 78", & the mid-size to grow to more like 74".
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I was surprised to see the Bolt down in Jan vs. Dec tho. But Jan was a rough sales month for everything. So the Leaf was all new, but the lack of a reserve upgrade is rendering it a has-been. Interesting indicator that EV performance is what's driving the consumers on EVs, not the usual factors.
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80" is excellent- plenty wide. No cars are close to that today- s-class is only 74". B-59 is 81" (no mirrors- all body).
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2017 F-250 Super Duty XL Crew Cab 4x4 Powerstroke started at $47,725, or $13K under the $60K mark. Intentional commercial trucks aren't likely to be highly optioned for work crews, and going with the 6.2L gas engine drops that number by $8800. Mercedes lost 6% of the over $60K market share in just 5 years. Next year, Chevy, Ford & GMC are going to surpass MB. Chevrolet & Ford! What an amazing run in the truck segment. And yes; I already predicted the x-class is going to come here, and with these charts MB is going to force the x-c into the U.S. luxury truck segment- mark my words. They cannot resist.
- 67 replies
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For Ocnblu; a duck, Bill ~
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Noooooo; being #1 isn't a change over previously. The takeaway is that MB's market share in the above $60K tier is falling. F-150 starts @ $27K- far from '$60K'. It's not the volume, per say, the article is talking about market share.
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OK- so why would one care about MPG? Only 2 reasons I can see- 'envoronmental' and financial. TDi gets better MPG than the same-size gas motor, but costs more to buy. 2015 Jetta TDi was 25% higher in base MSRP- that might be 4 or more years of driving before the TDI 'broke even' with the 2.0 gas motor. I did the math on the Dodge Ram diesel vs. gas 6, and it was working out to be like 19 years to break even, but truck diesels are massively higher priced than the car diesels.
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I believe there's a very real link to the slight upsize in truck dimensions and the huge uptick in trucks sales over the last few decades- they've taken the buyers who preferred full-size cars (in addition to other demographics of buyers), espeically as they've become nicer & more refined. As big as my truck's interior is, it's still not as wide or has as much legroom as my '59, tho it of course has scads more headroom.
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I don't think styling is playing a part. Leaf was redone in fall '17, no? I was expecting it to see a solid rise in sales... maybe the Bolt is taking Leaf intenders away. Don't think SUV people are going to cross-shop sedans much. Model S is due for a redesign.
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• What happened to the Leaf tho? It was selling in the 1100-1400/mnth range but since October, it barely finds 150 takers/mnth. It's dead in the water... • Bolt isn't $100K, but it's certainly more than the average IC hatch in it's size class. Don't pretend that's not a factor in not outselling other similar (gas) vehicles. • Question is still on the table- why did the Model S sales drop in '17? It certainly wasn't cannibalization from the Model 3. And if you use a more 'natural' December volume, it was down around 8%.
- 48 replies
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Pffft- go ahead and let the EPA decide how you interpret vehicles, so you can be "modern". Dimensions don't lie, labels can though. I drive a modern, full-size vehicle with 3" more hip room and 6 " more shoulder room than an S-class. Does the EPA have a "king-size" label?
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How often do you take your car to the drag strip? What brand of slicks do you prefer? If the Model S is so good, why were it's sales down 4% in '17 vs. '16? Bolt would have outsold the Model S to be the #1 EV in '17 if Tesla hadn't pulled it's usual game for December and pulled ahead January sales (4,975 in Dec vs. 800 in Jan).
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Diesel is a mixed bag. On one hand (in trucks) they are quite expensive as an option. On the other, they get 75% better mileage in the same truck, and go much farther without repairs/maintenance. In that latter respect, they are easier to own. In trucks they make all the sense in the world, and trucks are 50%+ of the U.S. market. In cars, I never really saw the benefit.
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Your confusing my preferences at large with this car shopping debacle. S-class is only 74" wide & 207" long - that's mid-size in my book. The screaming depreciation as the warranty end comes due makes them a buy for someone, but not me.
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I'm still around them regularly- between my cars and my buddy's continually revolving flips of '50s-60s cars. Took a short drive in this last week (tho it has buckets/ no console) : I'd prefer a bench seat, generally speaking, but I like consoles, too (I have a fold-down center armrest in the 2500HD; it's always down). Just give measurements of actual HIP ROOM, not "armrest-to-armrest" dimension. One's hips cannot share the same dimensional space the console does.
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B-59 : 66" hip room (no console) Escalade: 60" hip room (fat console, which means nothing close to 60", but more like 48". But that would look REALLY BAD in the specs, so -poof!- invisible console!)
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That's what Daimler expressly said about the smart, yet I see them (not many, admittedly) out in rural areas and jockeying on the Turnpike with semis. Bolt is a compact mini-wagon, basically a low CUV. It's sales are impressive within it's segment (EVs), but not so much relative to ICE vehicles... but that's a factor of a notably higher price and the uphill battle EVs are working against. I suppose one could call the entire EV genre a 'novelty' based on market performance, but I don't think one should look upon it as a 'fad'. Will be interesting to watch it's 2018 sales chart performance. Meanwhile, General Motors is supposed to bring how many EVs online by 2021? Would be interesting to see an XT4 EV powertrain option (as long as there are also ICEs).
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Maybe '77-84. It wasn't prior to the '77 downsizing tho.
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^ Dream on- will never happen. I'm only average-size, so legroom isn't a high priority for me. My beef is width- I cut most of my teeth on real full-size autos, with 120"+ wheelbases and 80" widths, there's real luxury in space, IMO. You'll never see -for example- my '59's 66" hip room ever again.
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Bolt has more front & rear legroom than an E-class sedan! Then again, perhaps MB-s mediocre packaging isn't a fair comparison.
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Not exactly. Series 75 was 150" WB (in '58). Series 86 commercial chassis' had no bodies, were 156" WB. In other words, they were not converted from Series 75 limousines. Here's some '41 CC's for example- note the crates of other body parts/trim on the frame.
