smk4565
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Everything posted by smk4565
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Interesting that BMW didn't mention a diesel as one of the engines. I guess we have to wait a model year for the diesel and V12. Which got me thinking, I am surprised they don't have a diesel S-class for the USA. Unless the take rate was so low on the last one or perhaps they will wait for the new straight six turbo diesel before they offer it in the S-class. The plug-in hybrid S-class is the lowest priced S-class, and it only gives up 9 hp and 1 lb-ft of torque to the 750i. A much better option than BMW's wimpy hybrid.
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Fiat News: Marchionne Tries Another Way To Get GM, Looks To Alternatives
smk4565 replied to William Maley's topic in Fiat
This man loves sweaters. -
GM should merge with Chrysler and build the Avenir on the LX platform, lol.
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- Continental
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CAFE is coming, yet no one cars that the Escalade is 6,000 lbs and gets 15 mpg. It still sells, and I don't see Cadillac making it all aluminum to get weight down. The A8 4.0 gets 18/29 mpg, beats the LS460, S550 and 750i, and the A8 has the worst sales volume of the 4. I am bit surprised the 750i is priced higher than the S550. It is like BMW telling people to buy the 740i by putting that big of a price premium on the V8.
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- 2016
- 2016 BMW 7-Series
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If the base CT6 doesn't do 0-60 in 5 seconds or less then...
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I didn't read anything in the press release about autonomous drive capability. Hard for them to claim they are high tech without that.
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To celebrate my 6,000th post, 8 generations of what the 7-series has been chasing since 1977.
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- 2016
- 2016 BMW 7-Series
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It does have a standard panoramic roof, those are heavier than a normal roof. I hate when they say things like cut 190 lbs. Tell me what the car weighs now in actual numbers. There are so many variables that could go into play. A car company could replace a V6 with a 4 cylinder and claim weight savings without really doing anything.
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GMC doesn't sell outside of North America, not a global brand. I am not saying GMC loses money, I know it turns a profit so it will stick around. But if GM merged with FCA, you wouldn't need GMC, Jeep and Ram, that is redundant, GMC being a Chevy badge clone would be the one to go. But I don't think they will ever merge either.
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The Sky Lounge LED Roof feature sounds cool. They copied the S-class' cabin fragrance idea, so now everyone will follow. Overall it looks more aggressive and meaner, looks sportier. It is improved on the outside, but the old car was boring. The interior looks the same. I see they did a lot a leather, nice stitching, the LED ambient lighting (another S-class trait), looks well made, but looks boring. Where is the V12? The I-6 and V8 make the same power as before, that 4 cylinder hybrid will be weak. I think they are optimistic on their 4.3 second 0-60 run for the V8 model because the S550 is more powerful and does it in 4.8. Unless the gearing is ridiculously tight on the 750i, because they didn't lose that much weight.
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Well the Bangle 7-series was the worst ever. The current 7 looks like a fat 5-series. That car hasn't looked good in 15 years. This one actually looks unhappy and depressed.
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Th profit is at Jeep. If GM owned Jeep, then Chevy underpinnings could be shared with Jeep to replace the Compass, Patriot and some of the dated stuff. Jeep would still design the trucks, but they'd have a better parts bin of engines, transmissions and chassis to build off of. If GMC was all Denali I could see the point of them, but 75% of GMCs sold are just competition for Chevy. And Buick is supposed to be upscale and has crossovers, and Cadillac is the Luxury arm of GM, not GMC. Chrysler has gone bankrupt twice in 25 years, the only reason they are still in business is Jeep. Without Jeep Chrysler would go bankrupt again, regardless of their sales volume. I don't think Sergio will be able to find a merger, I think what will happen is he will try to sell the company in pieces because he knows another financial crisis will push them to bankruptcy. If gas prices spike and he loses the pick up and suv sales, they go bankrupt.
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RWD allows you to put a V8 in a car. If the 300 were a front driver, like the LHS, it would have a dopey 265 hp V6 still to this day, 10 years after introduction. RWD gives the option of adding performance. If Lincoln made the MKZ rear drive with the same 240 hp turbo 4-cyldiner then it would be a total waste. So for Lincoln that doesn't have any good engines, the platform doesn't matter as much. Same can be said for a Lexus GS that offers the same 306 hp V6 from 2007, and only the low volume GS F has a different engine. They basically waste the platform. You have to combine engine, suspension, transmission and chassis all together to make a superior driving car to the front drive mediocre mass market stuff.
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The CLS has less room than an E-class and it only seats 4, not 5. CLS and E-class ride the same wheelbase and chassis, the CLS is longer, must have more overhang on the front and rear because of the body shape. Interestingly, the C63 AMG is 3 inches longer than a standard C-class because they had to lengthen the hood to fit the V8. The CT6 looks like 3-box sedan, it won't get cross shopped with an A7 or CLS which are just people that want something different from the more common A6 and E-class. I think Cadillac wanted the first Omega platform car to be an S-class fighter, but then had to retract and say it isn't because they don't have a V8 yet, and they saw the W222 S-class and thought "oh crap" The leaked photos of the 7-series make me think this is the best looking 7-series since the 90s.
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Ferrari has an IPO coming, they are selling that off and the Ferrari family still has stake also. So that won't be part of any FCA merger. Jeep is the prize, the one thing that really has value. Ram trucks only has value to someone that doesn't make pick ups, but wants to. For GM to do this deal, the Chrysler 200 and Town and Country would move to Buick, the 200 becomes the Regal. The Chrysler 300 could be turned into a Park Avenue for the short term until they kill the LX platform. Chrysler brand dies. Dodge would stay with the Dart, Charger, Chalenger and a new Avenger based off the Dart/200 platform. They can sell to rental fleets, police car fleets, or young people that want a sporty car. Ram trucks continue with the commercial vans and pickups. GMC trucks would have to die, the Canyon would become the new Ram Dakota. Yukon could be transformed into a Grand Wagoneer.
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Dinosaur.
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Maybe Sergio can convince Kirk Kerkorian (who is somehow sill alive) that a merger is a good idea and get him to buy $3 billion worth of GM stock. Then he can get Ferdinand Piech (who is now without an automotive home) to buy $3 billion of GM stock. That will give those 2 10% ownership in GM and with FCA money or a hedge fund they could buy up another 5% and maybe try to pressure the board on a merger. Better yet, maybe Sergio can swing a three-way merger of VW, GM and Chrysler to build the super auto union. 20 brands under 1 roof. Strength through unity, unity through strength.
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I read Sergio is still trying to get a merger with GM, and trying to get people to buy some chunks of GM stock to help influence that. Perhaps his thought is to put projects on hold, because if he can get a merger some of those products will be shelved, and the more cash on hand the better FCA looks in the short term. Clearly Sergio is trying to Merger, just seems that no one is buying what he is selling.
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Cool, as a low cost basic commuter car they make sense. It looks practically new. And it is rear engine-rear drive like a Porsche 911.
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Lincoln Navigator sales averaged 33,517 for its first 10 years on market 1997-2006. Then the GL went on sale. The Navigator has averaged 9,510 sales per year since 2008 model year. Ford's approach is getting hammered.
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The current Navigator went on sale in 2007 model year. The new one is coming in 2017? 10 years on the market! And a lot of those body panels you can tell came from an Expedition. There has to be a better way to produce your most expensive model.
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Jeremy Clarkson once did an off road test of an Escalade, Range Rover and a Hummer H2 for one of his DVDs. It was to see which could climb some mountain out in the desert. The Escalade was obviously the first one out, it didn't get that far. The Ranger Rover got to the top. The G-wagen has 3 locking differentials, it is made for off road. Important to remember that Mercedes was going to kill the G-wagen off in 2006, the fans wanted them to keep making it. Mercedes is just giving the people what they want.
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But what works for Cadillac isn't working for Lincoln. The F150 sits on the market too long before getting chassis updates, and is the F150 chassis what you want to use as the basis of your BMW X7, Merc GL, Maserati Levante, and Jag-LR products. Lincoln isn't a tier one brand, making a Navigator off the Explorer platform gives them 380 hp/460 lb-ft turbo V6 in a 5,000 lb vehicle for $55k. That matches up extremely well against top end Tahoes, Enclaves, MDX, undercuts the Escalade a lot in price while offering better acceleration and fuel economy. It gives Lincoln a chance. Lincoln doing a half assed job turning and F150 into an Escalade competitor hasn't worked since like 2006 when the previous generation Escalade stepped it up.
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The Genesis has a V8 and RWD, so I think that gives it a bit of an edge over the front drive V6 crowd. I did just look up the price of an Acura RLX which is $54k base and $60k with a technology package. I think Acura has a better reputation than Lincoln, and the RLX has awful sales volume, but only 315 hp or whatever they got out of the Accord V6. I could agree with Drew's $51k starting point, if the content level is high. I think $49k starting will grab more attention though. The Continental needs aggressive pricing, I'd almost suggest they sell it at a loss to get Lincoln back in the game if they are actually serious about resurrecting Lincoln.
