balthazar

Not sure off hand if the Firebomb was Ghia or not, I would lean toward 'no'. The thing to remember is the stylist, rather than the coachbuilder. Most of the Chrysler concepts were Chrysler-penned, but many people casually assume the coachbuilder designed it also. Often not the case. There were a bunch of 'specials' built by Chrysler in the early 50s; CB Thomas Special, GS-1s, Ghia coupes, D'Elegance, etc... I read that about 18 cars were built in the program. That one above appears to be the '55 ST Special: http://www.carstyling.ru/en/car/1955_chrysler_st_special/images/40043/

^ It's actually rather strange, but this quasi-bird-s eye view I do really like. It does present a nicely realized envelope- the Euro period 2-seat roadster always F up from the waist down.

Condolences to you, Horse. 79 (and 78: Moltar) is too young, but it happens. - - - - - '54 Dodge Firebomb

CLA has 9 inches less legroom than an ATS, A-class being maybe 4-5 inches shorter might mean it has 13-14 inches less legroom. If so, it's going to have to be classified as a 2-seater. And 2-seaters don't sell.

'55 300SL Gullwing coupe was cancelled after 2 years. ATS-V has already surpassed that.

I've held that one in hand somewhere/sometime in the past. - - - - - Some concept car art done by my friend, Ex-Hudson & ex-Chrysler stylist Don Butler. I believe this was for Chrysler circa 1956, showing a very early version of the production '59 swivel seats (but with an added recline feature).

163 HP is less than a 2008 Malibu 4-cyl. Mercedes should have called this the 'b-class', leaving room for one more price tier lower.

Absolutely correct, tho that is far more recent and no where near as expansive. Still holding out hope for a return to a catalog of unrelated names, rather than a 'system' for toddlers.

Yep. A lot of his stuff I am so-so on design-wise, but some really pop. I remember seeing a book of his stuff years ago, I remember this Sentinel; for some reason (let's assume it's the chrome), the above makes me think it'd make a cool Cadillac exotic.

^ I generally agree. Basically not a sports fan, I don't watch any football (pro or college), but I will watch the SB. That's been my pattern for the better part of a decade. I also don't care for 'legacy teams' and prefer to see the underdog win. Was a very entertaining game tonight.

Per recent history, Dodge is building another great looking truck.

Hilarity aside, there absolutely are too many thin slices of the same 'sedan apple', the same 'CUV apple'. Time to consolidate to some degree. The idea a brand has any legitimate need to offer a tweaked version of a given segment in 10" intervals is not sustainable. X1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7?? They're not filling market segments, they're filling numerical gaps in their naming 'systems'.

Germans triplets seems to believe naming systems have to be dumbed down to a mental hospital level in order for consumers to work their way thru the 90 different model designations.

With U.S. sales of the S-class sedan down 16% in 2017, some analysts are noting evidence of an apparent change of approach by Daimler. Though it is unconfirmed as to whether it will be sold in the U.S. market, Mercedes recently unveiled their entry-level A-Class model for the European market, due to go on sale there in May of 2018. Specifications released with images of the next generation A-Class detail three new technologies that are going to debut there first, rather than on the next S-class. The A-Class tech that may well trickle up to the higher models is a voice-activated infotainment system, an extended blind-spot assist that remains active for 3 minutes after the vehicle has been parked, and a private car-sharing feature for 'close friends and family'. This last feature claims to allow the key to be left in the vehicle for those approved persons to borrow your car for a set amount of time. This is apparently a degree of Beta test exploring future car sharing development, itself a widely speculative sector. Mercedes CEO Dr. Dieter Zetsche noted at the vehicle's Amsterdam unveiling that S-Class level driver assistance and safety features will also be available on the new A-Class. Mercedes-Benz branded vehicles have seen relatively strong growth in the lower price tiers in recent years. The press release A-Class images show a markedly similar face as the S-class coupe (2017 MSRP: $124K), in addition to an elongated display panel and steering wheel borrowed from the S-class. Some analysts are floating the theory that Daimler's continual push for volume over all else has the automaker moving it's focus to the lower end of it's catalog, as the upper level sedans dwindle sharply in sales volume.

See, that's confusing and counter to the so-called 'system'. Just think if it was E65 < AMG 550! Daimler juggled their vehicle designations recently; they missed the boat on switching them up so they made some sort of numerical sense. To kindergartners and others learning to count.

Buick StripMaster :

But 550>65.

The German triplet's naming system, in song: - - - - - So, in what makes "sense", a G73 must be a 7.3 liter engine, jut like the S65 is a 6.5 liter engine. Except...

You can't seriously sit there and say 'if the Mustang & Camaro live in the past they are doomed' when you are looking at them as they are now. What I mean is- they were born 50 years ago as sporty performance coupes with a range of power levels well 'up there', aggressive styling & attitude. With a few brushes with death (actual death in the case of the Camaro), they exist 50 years later with the EXACT SAME IDEOLOGY. If they remain true to their legacies, they are not facing doom anytime soon because a handful of EVs are being bought.

Past VW owners : how has your experience been with reliability/mechanical issues? Friend of mine has an '08 Passat. He takes meticulous care of it, only has 45K miles on it & he's thinking of selling it. My younger son is going to need a car over the summer, he's about 100 miles away from me at school. All I've heard is VWs are trouble-prone.

Dodge & Ram sold 60K together.