Jump to content
News
Reviews
Discussons
Activity
Create New...
Close

Drew Dowdell

Editor-in-Chief
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    55,742

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    513

 Content Type 

Everything posted by Drew Dowdell

  1. Drew Dowdell
    Just quibbling on terms... the only luxury car Mercedes sold back then was the S-Class. The other cars they sold were like the CLA is today... luxury pricing on less than mediocre vehicles. The E-class of the day was an awkward Malibu sized car powered by an 89hp - 110hp 4-cylinder.... or if you really wanted to twist your tweed, you could get it with a 65hp non-turbo Diesel.... not exactly anything close to zoom zoom.
  2. Drew Dowdell
    That was the Grandma and Grandpa Kettle version. It wasn't about features, it was about cheap transportation.
  3. Drew Dowdell
    Like it or not, platform volume is easier to get with EVs than it is with petroleum-burning ones. Remember GM's skateboard concept? That was to an extreme, but the idea is right, and we're already heading in that direction. Tesla only makes two power units and they can drop in and out of a car at the repair shop faster than any gas car. I think it is under an hour. As EVs get closer to the GM Skateboard concept, the number of body variants available will only increase. Eventually, it will be as simple as plopping a different body on the right wheelbase chassis. That's where the volume will come from.
  4. Drew Dowdell
    The Euros will never build a full-size pickup because they can't sell it globally, if they did, it would be a half-hearted effort just to dip their toe in the water. It's the mid-size segment where they'll come in and tackle Ford, GM, Nissan, and Toyota. Dropping the Chicken Tax means the X-Class comes here, that the Amorak (sp?) comes here. BMW doesn't build trucks currently, but given the market for them globally, I could see them coming out with a T535iXDrive and T745iTxDrive-MSportPersonal. Soon after, the T435diXdrive bluefficiency would come out... a 4-door crew cab pickup.... coupe. They'd sell 12 of them, all to US BMW executives, but count it in with 3-series sales. Mercedes will just rebadge a Titan. Land Rover could make that Defender Pickup and have it have a chance.
  5. Drew Dowdell
    The Ford Transit Connect, the Promaster, the Transit, even the Nissan NV all dispute the idea that the Europeans can't do "trucks" in this market. I'd say that only Toyota has come close in the Full-Size segment, but they've let their entry wither on the vine. The ones to watch will be VW and Hyundai... if those two jump in with serious competitors, particularly in the Colorado/Ranger segment, it will start to be an interesting race.
  6. Drew Dowdell
    People who accuse Europe of not playing fair don't seem to remember the 25% tariff we've had on EU trucks since the 1960s. It's also why ALL of the German automakers have built plants in the US over the past 20+ years. There is quite the pretense in demanding the EU "play fair" when we've been far worse than 10% tariff for a long time. Ford gets around this tariff for the Transit Connect by shipping them in from Turkey with a full set of seats, stripping the seats out after entry, and converting them back into cargo vans. They throw away the seats..... that's how ridiculously unfair our own tariffs have been.
  7. Drew Dowdell
    Sure, why not? It's already a niche vehicle. If they can put enough batteries in it to give it a good range, it should do decent as an EV. Plus, it's a car people already love even if not a lot are sold. Also, making it RWD with the batteries up front would make for an interesting profile.. less overhang in front of the front wheels/
  8. Drew Dowdell
    NYC style is still the best
  9. Drew Dowdell
  10. Drew Dowdell
    Me when non-NYC people tell me how great their local pizza chain is.
  11. Drew Dowdell
    This is a "managed" system where I set up basic place holders and the service goes out and fills them with ads. The problem appears to be that they are filling with ads of the wrong shape for the space, so I need to adjust it.
  12. Drew Dowdell
    I'm still making adjustments and learning the new system. I hope you all can be patient with me. This is how I pay the server bills.
  13. Drew Dowdell
    We have a new ad server. If you're blocking ads, it might screw things up. I've also just now turned down the settings on it to try and prevent issues. I'm only mixed about this service, but I'm going to give it a week to prove itself.
  14. Drew Dowdell
    You can believe what you like. All 20 are already sold out.
  15. Drew Dowdell
    None of those are AWD hybrids, only the C63 has more torque, none will get better mileage. This is the Volvo version of a Model 3 dual motor that comes with insurance and maintenance in the monthly payment. Try getting any of the cars on your list (except the C43, that's not even a valid comparison) for $1,100 a month including insurance. … and still be able to drive in the HOV lanes in California and NY.
  16. Drew Dowdell
    None of the bedroom communities could handle it. The other cities could, but would you really send it to Indianapolis? (where I am today)
  17. Drew Dowdell
    I knew German labor laws were strict, but I didn't know they were "embroil the company in a multi-national, multi-billion dollar legal scandal and still keep your job" strict....
  18. Drew Dowdell
    Not the worst idea in the world... but go to where?
  19. Drew Dowdell
    They did it to prove a point. I don't think they'll keep it up consistently. Their build quality would suffer more than it already does.
  20. Drew Dowdell
    The main thing is that Kia / Hyundai have money and FCA does not. They already share some 4-cylinder engines. They could combine transmission tech fairly easily since none of Chryslers are actually made by Chrysler. I would imagine the Pentastar would die in favor of Kia's 3.8 liter. A shame, but it is what it is. Chrysler's hybrid version of it is da-bomb though and I bet Kia and Hyundai could make use of it.
  21. Drew Dowdell
    Great write-up. I prefer the looks of the Rio, but agree with your assessment otherwise.
  22. Drew Dowdell
    Tie it with woodward
  23. Drew Dowdell
    The K900, with an appropriate restyle, would make an impressive Imperial. And it's the kind of grandiose name the Hyundai loves
  24. Drew Dowdell
    I see this as a very good union. Dodge - Sports car / Sports SUV brand Jeep - duh Ram - Trucks Chrysler - American luxury, plus another place to use Genesis platforms Kia - Where it is now, but move the K900 to Chrysler and Stinger to Dodge, while giving a shared platform for future Sedona/Pacifica and some of the crossovers with Jeep. Hyundai - Where it is now, maybe toss a platform or two to Chrylser to fill in the blanks. Genesis - Don't touch, just keep on keepin on. If nothing else, just getting the economies of scale would help Chrysler and Dodge live.
  25. Drew Dowdell
    I can’t wait to drive this.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

Hey there, we noticed you're using an ad-blocker. We're a small site that is supported by ads or subscriptions. We rely on these to pay for server costs and vehicle reviews.  Please consider whitelisting us in your ad-blocker, or if you really like what you see, you can pick up one of our subscriptions for just $1.75 a month or $15 a year. It may not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way to help support real, honest content, that isn't generated by an AI bot.

See you out there.

Drew
Editor-in-Chief

I've whitelisted
Continue without support

Write what you are looking for and press enter or click the search icon to begin your search