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smk4565

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Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    Ford beat Chevy 231k to 163k, wow.
  2. smk4565
    The problem with all these full size sedans, is what does a Cadenza do that an Optima Limited doesn't? The Optima with a turbo is probably quicker and rides/handles similar. The Optima seats 5, probably has most of the same features, same infotainment, and the Optima is about 4 inches shorter, so it isn't like you give up loads of interior room. It is just a tough segment for any automaker as most people don't want a large sedan, and even if they do, they probably don't see it worth paying $10k extra to get an Avalon or Cadenza over a Camry or Optima. I always thought the Cadenza had a nice interior. But I wouldn't spend $45k on a Kia sedan, it isn't that nice.
  3. smk4565
    Cadillac's goal is to make money, part of that is sales volume. Luxury brands can make $5,000 per car, $20,000 per car if you are Porsche. The more you can sell at those big margins the better. If Cadillac was run successfully it could generate 50% of GM's total profit. Volkswagen's profit doesn't come from the 7 million VW's they sell, it mostly comes from the 2 million Audis, and 250k Porsche and Bentleys. If Cadillac doesn't have any volume (which they don't) then GM won't pump money into them (which they don't). And that makes no sense when Cadillac could easily make more net profit than Chevy, if not Chevy, Buick and GMC combined.
  4. smk4565
    Mercedes since like 1895 has been about engineering and build quality. "The Best or Nothing" is an 1890s slogan. So Mercedes is Mercedes, they haven't changed the mission. A 3 liter V6 with 400 hp is pretty much the luxury standard, BMW has a 3 liter with 420 hp, Alfa Romeo a 2.9 liter with 505 hp, Mercedes has a 3 liter with 394 hp, Infiniti has a 400 hp 3 liter V6, Lincoln has a 400 hp 3 liter V6. Mercedes has a 400 hp 2 liter four even. Cadillac saw 3-series and 5-series sales in the early 2000s and tried to copy them, they saw the Lexus RX get hot and tried to carbon copy that, named their car SRX, they even copied the name! Even the Escalade was just because the Navigator was a success and Cadillac had to throw something together fast. They succeeded there, but they couldn't out BMW, BMW and they couldn't out-Lexus, Lexus.
  5. smk4565
    So Cadillac can't beat a Chevy/Toyota level company? Mercedes was the premier car brand in Europe in the 1900-1970 time frame, just as Cadillac was in the USA during that time. But when globilazation happened, Cadillac never really got out of the USA until they went to China late, and they went from #1 to #5 or 6 in the USA. They lost their way and I am not convinced that Johan knows how to get them out of the woods.
  6. smk4565
    Cadillac needs to be Cadillac. Which used to mean style, technology, power, luxury ride and they need to leverage their history rather than run away from it. Cadillac used to be the standard, but they have been chasing BMW and Lexus for so long they forgot who they are. And they change CEO's at GM every few years, change Cadillac management and marketing slogans every few years and it is the same old, result.
  7. smk4565
    GLS is better in just about every way to a G-wagen, except off road (which 90% of G-wagen buyers in the USA aren't doing and I imagine don't know what a locking differential is, let alone how it works). The G65 has a V12 though, so that gives it a special cache, but the G-wagen sells on being an icon, Cadillac could potentially move the Escalade up to $125-175,000 and get away with it too. There is a new G-wagen coming next year, with new engines, new chassis, new interior, huge weight loss, etc. So that will fist some of the issues now with the G-wagen not being a very good vehicle to drive. GMC isn't putting a twin turbo V6 in anything, much less a twin turbo V8. Because CAFE for one and cost for two. The price point would be crazy and you have to get to 54 mpg in a time when people are not buying cars. Cadillac however can charge high prices and should do performance SUVs and crossovers.
  8. smk4565
    Well right, Cadillac needs at least 4 EVs, figure 2 sedans and 2 crossovers.
  9. smk4565
    No one buys Bentley SUVs that probably make about $40,000 per unit profit? No on buys $150,000 Cayenne Turbos? Audi is building a Q8 so they can go up the price ladder. Tesla is selling a $130k SUV. BMW is building an X7 V12 because they are sick of watching Mercedes-AMG sell GLS's for $120k or $200k G-wagens. And Rolls thinks people really want to spend $300,000+ on an SUV so they are going to give it to them. There is room up in the $150k range for SUVs. SUV is the most popular body style there is, and there are lots of $100k+ sedans and sports cars, not as many SUVs, which is why all these luxury brands, and even Lamborghini are rushing into that segment. Cadillac's mistake was thinking Escalade is the top. You'll have about 10 SUVs more expensive and more prestigious by 2020. So they have to go up there and challenge.
  10. smk4565
    Of course optional, an Omega SUV should use the 400 hp 3 liter turbo V6 as the base engine, you can throw a plug-in hybrid to the mix, and then your V-series would be 600 hp. You could even do a V-sport at 500 hp. This Omega SUV would no doubt be faster, better gas mileage, better handling, better riding, and potentially better interior than the Escalade. So then the question is does XT8 get priced above Escalade, or does the current Escalade become the XT8 and the Omega SUV gets named Escalade. This is also why you can't have a vehicle with a name in an alpha numeric name scheme. Unless they keep Escalade and call the Omega SUV a word name also.
  11. smk4565
    I think the Escalade should stay where it is for now, but I would like to see an Omega platform Cadillac crossover. Nothing like a front drive V6 Enclave. I was thinking more 600 hp V8 in 3 row crossover weighing 5,000 lbs. They could probably sell that at $150,000 and make way more profit than an Escalade does.
  12. smk4565
    Better to have a lighter weight SUV. Imagine if the Escalade was built on Omega and lost 1,000 lbs. Even with a heavy SUV, I think it depends on the V6, some V6s can make a lot of power at low end and if you introduce hybrid powertrain or 48 volt electric systems, then you can get some electric boost of the line and a V6 would not even have to work that hard.
  13. smk4565
    Cadillac doesn't need to fill the low end, with exception of a low $30,000s compact crossover, they need to fill the high end. The XT4 should be priced where the XT5 is now, the XT5 needs a $10,000 price increase, they need a 3 row crossover. I think Cadillac could sell an SUV in the $150,000 range above Escalade, they could sell a sports car in the $200,000 range and a sedan in the $100-125,000 range.
  14. smk4565
    It isn't just Mercedes, BMW has X1, X2, X3, X4, X5, X6, X7 is coming. Audi has Q1, Q3, Q5, Q7, Q4 and Q8 is on the way. 7 crossovers is pretty much the standard of the luxury market. And these are cash cow products. A Cadillac should make 5 times the profit margin of a Chevy, why would GM not want more Cadillac models? And Cadillac doesn't even need 7 crossovers, but the need at least 4 plus the Escalade, and they need at minimum 1 sports car and 1 convertible. And they need EV's, when and how many sort of depends on battery tech and what the market is buying.
  15. smk4565
    They need a compact crossover below the XT3/4 whatever is coming next. If they get that and a 3-row above XT5, then 4 crossovers starts to fill out the segments. They probably won't have any performance products in that line, which I think they need, but at least they will have 4 crossovers then. I think Cadillac should offer an additional 3 crossovers that are EV's for a total of 7 crossovers plus the Escalade. That could serve as their path to performance crossovers like what Tesla has.
  16. smk4565
    The Bolt has more sales than a Model S because it is 1/3 the price. Tesla has home battery unit, the solar roof and other items to expand beyond cars. Tesla has a whole home power system thing going on. GM doesn't manufacture the battery or motor for the Bolt, LG does. The current crop of Mercedes hybrids are pretty standard tech, the B-class is a compliance car thrown together. The real Mercedes EV's are in development as they have a dedicated EV platform, and soon their own battery factory. Once that all comes online around 2019 they can start to give Tesla a run. As Drew said, it takes 5 years (sometimes 4) to get a car to market, Cadillac has no EV in the works now, and a Bolt clone probably isn't what they need. Cadillac is still playing catch up on crossovers, which were getting hot 10 years ago, and they still only have 1. I don't see Cadillac magically having 5 or 6 EV's on sale 5 years from now.
  17. smk4565
    He'll never get it done. Even if he wants to, he will never have the money to do it. Mercedes is going to launch 10 electric cars by 2023, they just broke ground on a 50 acre battery factory that will go online next year to rival Tesla's Giga Factory. How will Cadillac ever get 10 EV's to market, when they can't even get 10 total models on market, they have 6 or 7 models now an that is the biggest line up they have had in years. And look at how slow Cadillac moves, Oldshurst's whole post was how convertible is coming, EV is coming, CT8 is coming, crossovers are coming, etc. The other luxury brands are selling all that stuff now, you don't have to wait for a BMW EV or a Mercedes convertible, or a mid-engine Audi sports car, you can go buy it now, you could have bought them years ago even. When the big shift to EV's happens, I suspect Cadillac will be well behind, just like they are well behind the crossover boom.
  18. smk4565
    It would help more than the Buick Cascada. And a Cadillac convertible should be more profitable than a Camaro convertible. Cadillac could probably use 4 new crossovers, not just 2. But 2 is a start.
  19. smk4565
    A hatch might cost more. I assume 5.6 0-60 and 215 miles is the base car. I assume there an upgrade?
  20. smk4565
    Escalade must be new in China, they didn't sell it there last year. The displacement tax must be huge on it. And why doesn't Cadillac have more models? GM should triple Cadillac's budget so that they can have 5 crossovers, convertibles, Hyper cars l, electric cars and what ever else they want.
  21. smk4565
    One post earlier mentioned the STS with 304 hp and the 469 hp V, which was still less than an E63, and the 320 hp Northstar STS was less than the 382 hp E550. But more importantly the STS is dead. DTS, Fleetwood, Eldorado, XLR, all dead. They are about to kill the CTS. All this stuff Cadillac tried and it all failed. I said years ago when the CTS was a tweener it needs to be 5-series size and 5-series price (or 3-series size and 3-series price with STS aimed at the 5). I said when the CT6 came out it was priced too low, they aimed too low. I have said for years Cadillac needs a sports car above Corvette and even in the $200,000 range. I used to be a big Cadillac fan, I liked the Northstar era Cadillacs, I liked the XLR (not so much at that price, but I liked the car). But for years it has been over promise and under deliver, looking for short cuts and stop gaps, and going to the GM parts bin. I don't hate Cadillac, I am being realistic. I'd like to see Cadillac make a $175,000 V12 + hybrid sedan or an SUV that can run the Nurburgring in under 8 minutes, or a sports car that can go 200+ mph and 0-60 in 2.5 seconds. Make and ATS-V R with a 640 hp V8, all wheel drive, 10-speed auto and carbon fiber body panels. I'd like to see Cadillac make more EV's than Tesla, come out with 5 all new EV models in the next 5 years. Bring it all on. Cadillac lives in their fears (as Mike Tomlin would say), they lack the guts to actually be "the Standard of the World" so Johan and crew play pretend like they are a top luxury brand, when in reality they are not.
  22. smk4565
    The A-class hatchback, the cheapest Mercedes sold in China, costs more than a Buick Lacrosse in China. Buick isn't competing with Mercedes over there. Their full size flagship can't even command Mercedes compact hatchback prices.
  23. smk4565
    Buick and Chevy and Cadillac??? Do you all realize what Buicks cost in China? The Enclave is by far the most expensive at 509,000 RMB, which is $74,000 US. The 2nd most expensive Buick is the GL8 minivan at 289,900 with a top Avenir trim at 449,900 RMB. (Mercedes sells the Vito/Metris there for 299,000 and 489,000 which is rather similar) The most expensive Buick car in China is the Velite (Volt) at 265,800 or $41,681 US. Buick has 5 products in China under 200,000 yuan or $29,000 USD. More of a VW competitor in China. A Mercedes CLA in China is 249,000 yuan, a base C-class is 325,800, so already way above any Buick other than Enclave. The S-class starts at 938,000 RMB or $137,000, and goes up to 2,998,000 RMB for an S65, which is $437,000. Mercedes also has the GLS, G, SL and AMG GT with base prices over 1 million RMB also.
  24. smk4565
    From wikipedia: "The different body styles of the W126 S-Class achieved a combined sales total of 892,123 units (818,063 sedans and 74,060 coupés), making the W126 the most popular S-Class ever produced." I think still to this day the W126 S-class is the number 1 selling luxury car of all time. It was pretty much the car that cemented Mercedes world wide reputation and sales growth. Those 80s Cadillacs are what killed Cadillac's reputation and led to their demise.
  25. smk4565
    Buick sells econoboxes like the Excell in China. And the entire Mercedes portfolio in China, is Mercedes. 1 brand of luxury cars. So I compared it to one brand of luxury cars.
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