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balthazar

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Everything posted by balthazar

  1. balthazar
    Leaf is $23K after the fed rebate.... but it's not competitive with the Bolt due to half the range and half the power. Leaf also loses out to the Bolt in every other critical criteria; the Bolt is a much better/nicer car. Bolt is also a far nicer car with tremendously more range than the $44K BMW i3, is this people choosing a Chevy over a BMW, or a quality, high-range EV over a half-assed EV?
  2. balthazar
    Outselling other EVs absolutely is an accomplishment- as you've stated- this is an upcoming segment, what with top end luxury and sports OEMs announcing EVs, OEM's announcing their entire production will switch over to EVs, articles EVERY DAY on EVs and entire countries announcing the future banning of ICEs (as China just did today). All the articles repeatedly comparing the Bolt & the Model 3 illustrated clearly how the fact that these are EVs is transending everything else. How do you think the Model 3 garnered 400K pre-orders when no production car was even shown? Getting a solid leg up on everyone else in the EV segment is crucial to future success. Once "Model 3" and "Bolt" and "Leaf" become synonymous with 'EV' vehicles, everyone else that comes along later has to compete with that.
  3. balthazar
    It didn't surpass Cadillac in sales in the '70s or '80s tho, did it? "#1 in sales" is not a verification of luxury in my book; product is.
  4. balthazar
    • Bolt is $30K out the door- not $40K. • It's first & foremost a high range EV, not a 'small Chevy'- that's who's buying it; consumers who want an EV. Just about every article or op-ed piece I've seen is comparing it to the Tesla Model 3, not other $30K ICE hatches. • Absolutely no one is buying the A8- it'll probably be killed off next year. • Model 3's obstacle is getting production up, not finding buyers. Oh, and making a profit. If it turns out the Model 3 doesn't turn a profit, the company is going to have to declare bankruptcy. • It'll be interesting to see the $37K Bolt vs. the $42-47K Model 3 from the viewpoint of EV shoppers / sales.
  5. balthazar
    SO mercdedes is going to have a 182" sedan, a 189" sedan and a 194" sedan?? Self-cannibalistic madness. Is the A going to come in higher than the CLA then- splitting the $10K price gap? It makes no sense- the CLA is already struggling- cutting it's segment (either from below or above) is going to kill it's sales and temper the a-class sales. And if MB dumps the CLA for the a-class, they squander the millions in publicity and investment already put into the CLA. And what of the recently re-roganized MB naming system? A, C, E,... where does a 'CLA' fit in there (it has nothing to do with the c-class)? Going to have to redo the name system again. What a mess.
  6. balthazar
    The Bolt ALSO sells. Model S is well established with 6 years under it's belt. Bolt just went nation-wide a week ago and it's already selling 80% of the Model S's numbers this year. By year end it'll be the #1 EV seller.
  7. balthazar
    Why would it cost less?
  8. balthazar
    B-b-but you said EV cars would become cheaper than ICE versions; less parts & 'amazing new cheap battery tech"- what changed your mind?
  9. balthazar
    Its funny to compare the 2 interiors because only one is the interior of a luxury car.
  10. balthazar
    CLA sales aren't good tho, esp for a (temporarily entry-level) line. This is supposed to be a car that MB buyers get their feet wet with, then (theoretically, tho it simply doesn't happen); move upward to higher margin models. CLA sales peaked in 2015 @ 29,643. But they're off 40% so far this year, on target for only 18,000 this year (from a brand selling around 375K). Most buyers skip right over the CLA, bite the finance bullet and go for the c-class- it's the same size sedan. Here's the problem for Mercedes though- instead of fixing the interior room, quality and roadability problems with the CLA, they're going to let it fester, meanwhile bringing out ANOTHER, even LOWER priced entry line below that. These bottom feeder lines are just going to compete with each other because MB has sliced this end of their catalog too thin already.
  11. balthazar
    Daimler sees a point; they think they can turn a few cents profit on the billion dollar investment. It's in addition to the CLA, which is already the same size as the c-class), so it's going to push the bottom MB price range even lower. Think there'll be a AMG version of this one?
  12. balthazar
    At times it feels like a headless chicken is running Daimler. MB doesn't need to be in these sub-average ATP price ranges. The margins generally suck and it degrades the image over time. CLA is $32K, what's this A-class going to start at- $25K??
  13. balthazar
    If you are out shopping new cars this weekend, it's relevant. Otherwise, the fact that the c-class all along was in the same wheelbase for the purposes of design discussion IS relevant. MB bumped the c-class up to make more room for the bottom feeder CLA. In that the CLA's been getting lackluster reviews and isn't selling like an entry level car should, perhaps cutting the c-class price a bit and not bloating size-wise would have been a better strategy.
  14. balthazar
    Mercedes' hallmark was being 10 years behind contemporary vehicles for most of it's history, stylistically. Until the '90s at least. The interiors of mercedes were cheap junk since WWII up thu the '80s; hard plastic, plood, cheap design, that universal black rubber steering wheel that came from MB trucks, lack of amenities. Cadillac is who Mercedes benchmarked when they decided to make a hard push in the U.S.
  15. balthazar
    You have no evidence to support any sort of EV tide 'turning fast'. You do, however, have more evidence that it won't than you could lift over your head. And you are still glossing over the disconnect that what the batteries cost the OEM doesn't automatically translate to what they're going to cost the consumer. Can you justify any scenario where an EV S-class starts at -say- $60K, ever? This is an example of a brand... right now I'm looking a authorized dealer parts list and a '16 C300 sedan rear glass is listed at $875, and it's a very simple piece of barely convex glass. Perhaps MB is waiting for a 'fast turn' in glass technology that will allow them to only charge $200 for this $100 piece of glass. Maybe one day- automotive glass hasn't been around that long, after all. Car makers aren't here to put money in your pocket. Once the publishing/opinion/social media world has the majority convinced that EVs are what you MUST buy, prices will never echo economies of scale realization on the OEM side.
  16. balthazar
  17. balthazar
    Let's say this cost breakthru actually happens. If you think for one moment that with all the towering hype and endless press over EVs, that they are going to significantly lower prices on the CONSUMER end, you don't understand supply & demand. Sure, plug-ins are only 6-7% of the market and the hype is hyperbolic, but the trend (glacial as it is) is still there. Tesla's Model 3 400K pre-orders may be one of the largest EV market blunders we've yet seen.
  18. balthazar
    circa '52 Chevy pickup, in driveway under a cover. The half grille & bumper peeking out were heavily rusted. '70 Pontiac LeMans 2-dr hardtop, pale green, Rallye IIs, very solid unrestored, parked.
  19. balthazar
    If it's actually that. Mercedes has been caught more than once fudging their .cd numbers. I don't find the CLA unattractive- but that's not really enough for an entry (whoops- soon to be ex-entry) level model.
  20. balthazar
    I didn't realize the CLA and c-lcass are practically the exact same size. Didn't I read criticism about Cadillac having 2 sedans the same size?
  21. balthazar
    Same exact overall length but NINE inches less total legroom. Really poor packaging.
  22. balthazar
    Might look good in a driveway next to this:
  23. balthazar
    Kno what else is rather telling? smk went from his Olds Aurora (200" overall length) to an '08 e-class (190" overall length). HTF did that happen- that's a consumer buying a car that's a "full class size" different than the one they own. I thought that didn't ever happen. I mean, if 10 inches overall length AUTOMATICALLY precludes cross-shopping, it must also preclude vehicle replacement, by the same token Unless, you know, that's not how vehicles are bought....
  24. balthazar
    You don't seriously believe people shop for car based on exterior dimensions, do you? "Oooo- I like this Model A but jeez- it's 190 inches long and will hardly fit in our 240" garage. Better keep shopping for something 185 inches long! It's a shame, too, because I really felt Model A was a great value."
  25. balthazar
    Visibility is one unquestionable area where modern vehicles have gone backwards.
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