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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    If they even sell 200,000 Model 3's next year that would be more than the 3-series ever sold in a year. At 350,000 they are at Camry and Accord levels, which are the best selling sedans in the US. If sedan sales look bad now, wait till next year when the Model 3 takes a huge chunk of them.
  2. smk4565
    480,000 reservations for the Model 3 as of August 2, 2017.
  3. smk4565
    I see the Corvette best served with a base V6, probably turbo, at like $50k, a V8 middle level and the current Z06 as the range topper at $100k. This mid-engine car I would make a Cadillac for $100-200k, or whatever the range is to be, and I'd have a V8 and a hybrid powertrain. Audi really took off after the R8 came out because it made Audi cool.
  4. smk4565
    I am not against options, for the past couple years I have said there should be a V6 Corvette that undercuts the current V8 pricing to widen the appeal of the car. My surprise was that the Corvette has 2 engine choices now and they were going to do an exclusive mid engine version then give it 3 engine choices? I like the idea of a hybrid Corvette though.
  5. smk4565
    I'd imagine the volume on a mid-engine Corvette would be small, like 20% of front engine Corvette sales, maybe even 10%. So we are talking low volume. If they share the new engines with Cadillac they can spread cost. This rumor of LT2, LT6, etc looks like they are making something new, and not using the current Z06 engine.
  6. smk4565
    S-class sells near 100,000 units per year world wide, I believe they have 2 diesels, which are probably going to be gone soon, a V6, a hybrid, 2 V8s and 2 V12s. But the 4.7 liter and 5.5 liter V8s are getting dumped this year for the 4.0 liter. There is a front engine ZR1 coming, so they will have 3 engine options in the front engine Corvette. If the mid-engine car has the same 3 then that makes sense. My original point was that I don't see GM making 3 new engines for a low volume car. But if they use the same 3 in the front engine model then the engineering is already paid for.
  7. smk4565
    Yes but the 911 has one flat six engine in a lot of different tunes and with and without turbo or maybe they are all turbo now they are headed there. Since they already have a Corvette with 2 engine options, and this mid engine Corvette is a specialty car which I assume would be $100k and up, then 2 engines (like NA and Supercharged) would be enough. If however they kill the front engine Corvette then I can see 3 engine choices in the mid engine car. I agree that choices are good, but there is a development cost and certification cost to that also. Last month 80% of GM's sales were trucks and crossovers. That trend probably isn't getting reversed so you got to figure GM will put 80% of their R&D into more trucks and crossovers.
  8. smk4565
    My guess is that they will want over $100k for it. Mid engine cars are expensive. I am surprised to hear of 3 engine options. Do they really need 3 on a low volume car?
  9. smk4565
    Cadillac should have done an SRX-V back in 2010 when the 556 up CTS-V came out. With a front drive small crossover under that if they needed something where the XT5 sits now. Then when the 640 hp CTS-V came out they could have had an XT6-V. Interesting that they will have 2 Corvettes, I don't like when you have multiple of the same car like all the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque. Why not just call it Land Rover Evoque? Unless maybe the mid engine Corvette gets a new name.
  10. smk4565
    The Silverado outsold the RAV4 by 4,000 units. And look at how many competitors the RAV4 has. That small crossover segment is on fire.
  11. smk4565
    Johan is a marketing guy and Cadillac has awful marketing. And why do you have a marketing guy in charge of your luxury-performance division? Shouldn't they have an engineer or design guy (and by guy I mean person, male or female) in charge of Cadillac, so the product comes first?
  12. smk4565
    The S-class is longer than a GLS, but it is more luxurious, and above all it is pushed by Mercedes as their top car, and the S-class goes up to about $250,000 in top spec. Yes they have the G-wagen and the AMG GT but the embodiment of Mercedes is that S-class and that is why they make the C and E class like scaled down versions of it. Why Cadillac doesn't put Escalade styling on like 3 other SUVs is a mystery to me. Cadillac's chances of being a big player in sedans is pretty much over, but they could still be a strong luxury truck brand if they capitalize on the Escalade attributes and styling. Although I am not a fan of calling every SUV they have Escalade like the 6 Range Rovers that Land Rover is selling.
  13. smk4565
    It started when the 2004 STS was lack luster and of poor quality, the 2004 SRX looked too much like a station wagon and the XLR flop didn't help. Then they brought out the XTS as a stop gap, made the SRX a lower priced fwd SUV instead of keeping the SRX a mid-size performance SUV and introducing a new model below it to have 2 crossovers (like everyone else did). Then they brought ATS and CTS knives to a German gun fight, and they forgot to build a sports car like Audi, Mercedes, BMW, Acura and Lexus did. To aide in all that, Johan DeNyschen left Audi and sales went up, then after he left Infiniti their sales went up, and he came to Cadillac and Cadillac's sales have declined. How Cadillac can't outsell Acura and Infiniti in the USA is a mystery to me. To fix it, they have to spend money they don't have.
  14. smk4565
    No, but I bet if you polled 100 people at a Cadillac dealership and took the window stickers off the cars, the majority would say the XT5 is a more premium or more desirable product than the CTS and even the CT6. Because most advertising is made to make people think the crossover is better. Another problem is size doesn't equal luxury any more. In the 80s and maybe some in the 90s, the large sedan meant luxury because it had space. Not people see crossovers as having space, but also no one wants a large vehicle. A Rav4 that is 180 inches long or whatever it is is seen as a family car, and even as a better family car than the Camry that is actually bigger and roomier. It defies logic. Anyone notice that the LaCrosse is a new product and down 56%. It is a rough business selling big sedans, I think car companies need small to mid-size sedans that offer luxury and performance way above what the SUVs can offer to stay relevant. I think the new Camry stepped it up a lot to try to get people back in sedans. Since the Lacrosse and Impala are going away, they should take the interior out of those cars and put it in the Malibu, then maybe people would consider a Malibu over a Rav4 that seems to sell 2,000 units a day now.
  15. smk4565
    No, the S-class is clearly Mercedes flagship product. The power, the technology, the luxury is all put there. This is a difference between Mercedes and a lot of car companies, they invest big dollars into that sedan and they position it as their halo product. Cadillac and Lincoln make an SUV their top product, Buick does it with Enclave, Acura does it with MDX, etc. Most brands market their SUVs as what you should buy because that is where they make their profit. Nothing wrong with that either. But I am a fan of cars, I don't like SUVs, so I like a brand that pushes cars.
  16. smk4565
    Not only handles better, but probably brakes better, gets better gas mileage too. But the people don't care, they see Crossover = Status symbol or Crossover = premium vehicle. Part of the problem is people won't even give the car a chance. If you have a 2010 Fusion and come to the dealer and look at a 2017 Escape Ecoboost, then the ride, handling, gas mileage, etc may be better on that Escape because it is getting compared to a 7 year old car.
  17. smk4565
    What is surprising is their SUVs didn't go up much, sort of mixed results there. The sedans are getting beat on except for the 5-series which is new and last July they were probably buying out the old model.
  18. smk4565
    Cadillac is #7 in luxury sales in the American market. They gotta do something.
  19. smk4565
    People aren't buying crossovers for space concerns they are buying them more for image. If you took a group of average people and put an Equinox next to an Impala, the majority would think the Equinox was roomier and more luxurious and that it was a more premium product. They wouldn't know that the Impala was 2 size classes bigger had more leg room or had more luxury features, they would see the SUV as the more desirable vehicle.
  20. smk4565
    I am not ragging on GM, I am pointing out that Tesla has a high value, they are worth more than adore too and they might pass Daimler in a couple years. Tesla is selling a lifestyle, they car the solar roof, the in home battery pack, etc. if they keep growing and are way ahead of the EV curve then they could take huge chunks of market share. They also don't have the legacy costs of GM or Ford. Ford and GM have so much overhead they need to sell millions of cars or they go bust, as what happened in 2008 when the SAAR was 8 or 9 million units, they collapsed.
  21. smk4565
    Going back to the mid 90s most sedans aren't that good or don't offer the features of an SUV either. These companies programed people to think the SUV was more luxury and an upgrade. I
  22. smk4565
    Bad month unless you are Toyota corp. Alfa cracked 1,000 which is good but that might flatline around 2,000 a month. Will be interesting to see what happens there. The part of this list alphabetically from Buick to Ford told a severe beating. Not surprised really.
  23. smk4565
    This is a good bye and good riddance. They only made this to comply with California laws so they could sell their gas guzzlers there. The new wave coming in 2019 I am optimistic about, 250+ mile range and 405 hp, 5 second 0-60 time.
  24. smk4565
    Daimler is worth $64 billion and Tesla is worth $53 billon.
  25. smk4565
    So you think an Electric Jeep is a bad idea but love the Bolt and I assume think the Buick SUV Bolt will be a hit? The first brand FCA should look at for EV's is Jeep. Jeep is their best brand image name plate and their most profitable. It is also global and has volume. Spending a couple billion to make EV Maseratis with no sales is asinine.
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