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High End Luxury Cars

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Comments

  • 2001gs4302001gs430 Member Posts: 767
    The Lexus is the perfect car for chauffeuring rulers of countries or rich captains of industry.

    Price as tested: $122,700.



    TMC has been kind enough to give me a 20K discount on any of their vehicles sold in NA in form of TM stock appreciation this year. I hope the share will continues its run up so I could get a bigger discount ;)
  • cyclone4cyclone4 Member Posts: 2,302
    Sorry, but I don't think there is any way in hell, the LS460L is that slow from zero to 60. Are they trying to say that the LS460L is 1.4 seconds slower than the LS430 from zero to 60? That's impossible. They must have been towing a horse trailer while testing ;-).

    I am sure that if tested properly, the full production model is very close to its advertised rating of about 5.4 seconds from zero to 60.
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    Nice try, but I happen to be an Aries, even though I realize I am quite full of Taurus from time to time....although I am happy to be classified by you in the company of nvbanker, oac and blkislandguy. Fine posters; those three. :shades:

    That was a pretty comprehensive list! But who's counting? ;)
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    "I don't think you're being fair."

    I agree.

    Come on ljflx. You know you want to post regularly here again.

    Just do it! :shades:
  • Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    Although I've never owned one, I am a Taurus. However, my sister and daughter share the same birthday and they are Sagittarius, so I've most likely been assimilated to their way of the world. :blush:
  • cyclone4cyclone4 Member Posts: 2,302
    You missed on me badly D-Man. I am a Libra. This is why I am non confrontational ;-). I tend to see both sides of the issue. I always seek the truth without belligerence ;-).
  • ocean1234ocean1234 Member Posts: 5
    WOW! What a car! I'm not a big sedan guy...I tend to like smaller cars (I drive an 03 Z). Sitting behind the wheel was great! Getting to drive it was even better. It was wicked fast... I think I scared the two sales guys behind sitting me.
    TEST DRIVE VIDEO & PICTURES
    :) i need to start saving my pennies!!!!!
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    that horoscope thing was an excellent way of finding out who is still actively posting here. :shades:
  • reality2reality2 Member Posts: 303
    Thanks Designman, very cool. For reference, though, I am a Virgo if that helps. Happy Holidays to you as well.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    A little off there Designman, I'm an Aquarius.

    M
  • dhamiltondhamilton Member Posts: 878
    I've been to busy pedaling my liberal agenda to ever track down my sign. July 5, what's that make me Dman?
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    HELCS are associated with affluence? Think again.

    "The Millionaire Next Door" has been written ten years ago and here is an update about which car brand is Numero Uno among millionaires.

    They don't drive away wealth. The No. 1 make of car owned by millionaires in 1996 was Ford. Today, it's Toyota, according to Stanley's new study. Luxury brands do not top the list, and many millionaires, 37 percent in 1996, bought used cars.

    "There's certainly something about buying used cars," Stanley said. "Today, they're a little more likely to buy new cars. But what they'll do is buy a $22,000 Toyota and keep it a long time."


    2) And how do BMWs rank among millionaires? In fact what is written below is relevant to not only BMWs but HELCs in general:

    Stanley's research shows high-priced cars seem to be wealth-repellant.

    "What's interesting about spending is that everybody thinks all the millionaires in America have BMWs. Even among the highest income levels, about 60 or 70 percent have never owned a BMW," he said. "I think BMW is a great car. I'm a car guy. But I won't buy one because there is a relationship between wealth and how much people spend for cars. There's no doubt about it. It's a significant relationship."

    They don't care about the Joneses. "In a lot of the surveys we've done, you find people making 200 grand a year, which is in the top 2 percent of American households, and they're not happy," Stanley said. "Those are the people who are living in neighborhoods where the median income is $300,000. That's the problem. I don't think people really understand that. The people who try to keep up with the Joneses and ahead of the Smiths, well, they are the Smiths. They don't get it."


    SOURCE: COURANT
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    I've been to busy pedaling my liberal agenda to ever track down my sign. July 5, what's that make me Dman?

    Dont worry on this side of the border all liberals wear their beliefs like a badge of honour.
  • designmandesignman Member Posts: 2,129
    July 5, what's that make me Dman?

    Which sign? Uh-h... Merging Traffic?

    I can assure everyone I will not be going into the Astrology business. ;-)
  • designmandesignman Member Posts: 2,129
    Interesting. I know several people who who are always Jonesin. One guy knocks out 1.5 mil a year and his wife is always moaning about people in his company who do 3... stock market.

    Here check this one out. When you look at global wealth I think many of us should consider ourselves very fortunate.

    …assets of just $2,200 per adult place a household in the top half of the world's wealthiest. To be among the richest 10% of adults in the world, just $61,000 in assets is needed. If you have more than $500,000, you're part of the richest 1%...

    Global Study on Wealth
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    Wow now I feel really rich. Well at least for a few minutes.

    Now if only I bought a used Toyota instead of a BMW I would be even richer :(
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    "People in the top 2 percent... and they're not happy."

    Yeah. It's the same old story.

    Who said money and happiness correlate positively?
    My son-in-law makes 10 mil a year and always looks miserable.
    How many of the mega-buck show business types are walking train wrecks?

    Lucky are the folks who glow from within.
  • tagmantagman Member Posts: 8,441
    D-man,
    Sorry to take so long to get back to you on this... but, like merc, I am also an Aquarius.
    TagMan
  • tagmantagman Member Posts: 8,441
    I'm leaving with the family 4am Wednesday morning, and I'm busy with last minute stuff. Yes, this year it's Christmas with the in-laws and the wife's relatives. Pray for me.

    Anyway, if I can sneak a post in now and then I will. Otherwise I'll visit back shortly after the New Year.

    So... in that case, it's Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year from TagMan to ALL of you good folks here at the HELC(M) forum... hosts included.

    Hope 2007 is good for all of us, and I know I'll be more careful with my driving from now on since my astrological sign might be prone to speeding. So THAT explains it.

    God bless to all and your families, too.

    TagMan
  • Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    Prayers being administered for a pleasant visit. (Hint: Eggnog, heavy on the bourbon, helps some.) Fingers crossed for safe travel. (Should we install a speed governor on your shoe?) And a happy holidays to you and your family. :)

    And speaking of inlaws, I came across this joke.

    Q: What is the definition of mixed emotions?

    A: Watching your in-laws go off a cliff
    in your new (insert your preferred HELC here).
  • laurasdadalaurasdada Member Posts: 4,686
    My brother makes 7 figures/year, show-biz. His pride and joy "New" car? 1986 Chrysler Lebaron (and not restored, nor the TC Maserati by Chrysler) convertible. Replaced his beloved '72 Buick Skylark junker. Clothing? If you saw him you may just give him a hand out. And he's pretty darn happy. His wife? Land Rover LR3 and EVERYTHING she touches (and I mean EVERYTHING) has a Euro-designer label.

    Me & the Mrs? Acura and Lexus. So no BMW. Soon, maybe I'll be the Millionaire Next Door? Nah, probably buy a Bimmer first... :blush:

    '21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)

  • sysweisyswei Member Posts: 1,804
    source WSJ

    Jane David calls the white, leased Jaguar S-Type luxury sedan she received Friday from her husband, Larry, a New York stockbroker, the "best Hanukkah present I've ever gotten."

    But the surprise didn't play out exactly the way it does in car makers' holiday television ads.

    Mrs. David's doorman phoned to say she had a "heavy package" waiting outside her Upper East Side apartment building, she put off going down to get it. Meanwhile, Mr. David had double-parked the car in front of the lobby. By the time Mrs. David arrived, police had hit him with a $115 ticket....

    Many dealers say at least one or two of their customers every December wants to surprise a significant other with a new set of wheels.

    Perhaps no one pushes holiday car-gifting more than Lexus. For the eighth year, it is running TV ads that play on the theme....

    Such scenes don't just happen on television. Lexus sends two red bows to each of its 222 dealers nationwide during the annual "December to Remember" promotion, a spokesman says. Last year, Lexus sent 550 extra bows in response to orders for more. A survey of metro Lexus dealers across the U.S. last December showed that about 10% of sales were for a gift, though it didn't specify how many were surprises.

    Lynn Lipman, 52, got a surprise when she dropped off her Lexus RX SUV for maintenance at her local dealership last December. The salesman handed her keys to a new Lexus GS 300 sedan -- a gift from her husband. He had noticed she kept eyeing the car at the Southfield, Mich., showroom. Still, she went through a range of emotions common to unprepared recipients of cars. At first, disbelief, then anger -- "I'm sure I said a few things you can't write," she says -- then joy....

    It is wise to let dealers know if a car will be a gift, as many dealers say they will do exchanges if the recipient doesn't like the color or a particular feature.

    "We wouldn't let it happen several weeks later and thousands of miles later," says Molly Padovini, general manager of a Jaguar dealership in Troy, Mich. "But if the customer received a gift and was not happy with it, we would do whatever we could to make the customer happy."

    Before the magic moment, many dealers say they will go out of their way to help pull off the surprise -- communicating about the order in secret, delivering the vehicle to a chosen spot, providing the iconic oversize bow.

    Chuck Vangorden, the general manager of Meade Lexus in Southfield, Mich., once had an RX SUV delivered to the valet at Tribute, an upscale restaurant near Detroit, for a customer who wanted to surprise his wife. "He took her there for dinner, she walked out and we had it sitting there," Mr. Vangorden says. As the customer later described it, he says, "She goes: 'I always wanted one like that,' and the valet said, 'It's yours.' "

  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    LOL!

    Until now I always felt safe during in-law gatherings.
    Thanks for the warning about being driven by an in-law. I will make sure I wear a helmet next time. ;)
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    I believe the truly rich don't have to flaunt it.
    If you saw Bill Gates walking down the street, he looks like he just stepped out of an LL Bean Catalog.
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    Lucky are the folks who glow from within.

    True but you forgot only one thing?

    Luckier are the folks who glow from within and own a BMW 545i ;)
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    Yes. I am positively glowing.... or could it be because my wife is away for 11 days visiting relatives? :)

    Hope your 335i sedan is all you expected and more.

    Best holiday wishes to all lovers of the great German HEL and LP vehicles.
    2007 should be another great sales year for these incomparable vehicles. :shades:
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    Thanks it is doing just fine.

    Anyways here is a potential vehicle that the Millionaire Next Door would never be interested in. And if the Billionaire Next Door is not interested in this SUV then I wonder who the hell would buy this thing :confuse:

    A Lambo SUV likely to be powered by a Gallardo V10 or a V12 engine ?

    SOURCE: Lambo SUV

    image

    image
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    I'm eagerly waiting for the hybrid version. That should bring the mileage up to about 8 mpg. :shades:
  • sysweisyswei Member Posts: 1,804
    If anyone is shopping for a xmas gift:

    link title
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Well Dewey it looks like Mercedes is going to show some sort of concept tomorrow. Is it really going to be a S-Class convertible? Oh god I hope not.

    M
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    Should read: If anyone IGNORANT is shopping for a xmas gift:

    All those leases are based on MSRP. One should always negotiate the price of a car whether buying or leasing.
    Nobody should pay MSRP.

    All those leases involve huge down payments. One should always negotiate leases with no down payment (capital cost reduction). I have never leased with a down payment.

    Anyone with half a brain can do much better than any of those quotes.

    Anyway, thanks for the laugh! :shades:
  • designmandesignman Member Posts: 2,129
    I really like the design. Looks like something that would terrorize the bottom of the ocean.
  • designmandesignman Member Posts: 2,129
    Merc, please help me understand the problem you have with the convertible. I love the idea... brings back the glorious era of pink Cadillacs. Dewd, that's some serious sass and swagger!

    ;-)
  • brightness04brightness04 Member Posts: 3,148
    Very true. MFR advertisement usually use MSRP as capitalized amount. They have to do that because they have to leave something on the table for the dealers; or from a purely logical point of view, the manufacturer would be suggesting a different retail price if they suggested something other than the MSRP; only MB seems to have missed the logic there, with their use of "suggested dealer contribution" concept. Usually the "down payment" portion of a mfr advertised lease deal reflect the discount off MSRP one can reasonably expect.
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    The MB S Class cabrio is a reality!

    Nostradamus and myself have a special knack for predicting things correctly. While Nostradamus can predict natural catastrophies centuries ahead in the future I can predict with 20/20 vision MB S Class convertibles and MB/E Sales figures six months in the future.

    My crystal ball has never failed me yet. ;)
  • brightness04brightness04 Member Posts: 3,148
    I had a BMW (well, actually two, consecutively) when I was making 1/10 as much as I do now. Cars cease to be a status symbol when the most expensive car costs less than 5% of a person's income. It's like, do we really care about what Chinaware or silverware we use nowadays? when the most expensive (non-collectible) ones only cost a few thousand bucks.
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    The article linked below (sorry it's in French) describes the increased prevalence of Ferarri accidents worldwide (some of them fatal). What will the future be like when mainstream performance/sport cars drive like ENZOs. A scary thought indeed.

    I did not post some of the ENZO accident pictures linked below because they are quite disturbing.

    http://www.leblogauto.com/2006/12/encore-une-ferrari-crashee.html

    image

    image

    image
  • deweydewey Member Posts: 5,251
    True very true.

    All luxury marques (including BMW ofcourse) have become more commoditized throughout the years. And that doesnt bother me one bit. I couldn't care less about exclusivity. If Honda can produce RWD cars like the BMWs I own right now then I would buy Hondas instead ( I can live without the more exclusive Acura marque).
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    I would rather see a CL cabrio I guess. Also, I guess I don't want Mercedes to add yet another model to their lineup, one that no doubt took a lot of engineering resources (a 4-door convertible) to get "right". The S-Class has seemingly been launched without so much as a peep of trouble and I'd like it to stay that way.

    I'm reading that Mercedes just registered "CLC-Class" also. What the hell is going on here? No one told me anything! I guess we'll all know whats what in a few hours.

    I mean how will a S-Class convertible look? Will it uphold Mercedes legendary convertible solidity standards? So many things have to be right for such a model to work, IMO.

    Then again I could be worried for no reason, it could be the most stunning Mercedes in years.

    M
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    We'll see, the fat lady might be warming up but she hasn't belted out anything just yet. A few more hours....

    M
  • brightness04brightness04 Member Posts: 3,148
    What's up with French roads and inflexible poles :-) I mean, seriously, haven't they heard of compression barriers and deflection barriers? Do they bank the turns the opposite way too? just to get rid of the fast drivers? :-) Now that's an evil thought.
  • brightness04brightness04 Member Posts: 3,148
    Isn't S2000 RWD? and probably better handling than any HELC.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Well it seems that Dewey, Tagman and Designman got their wish. I present to you the Mercedes Ocean Drive Concept:

    image

    image

    image

    image

    Article

    M
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    "Usually the "down payment"...reflects the discount off MSRP one can reasonably expect."

    No it doesn't. The down payment is simply up front money which creates the illusion of a lower monthly payment.
    For example if I have to pay BMWFS a down payment of $2500 and my monthly payment is $450 for 36 months, it is the equivalent to paying $519.44 with no down payment. It has no effect on the price of the car whether it is MSRP or otherwise.

    Also, settling for a lease with up front money also means if the vehicle is totalled in the first few months, that down payment is completely lost.
    A smart consumer will always negotiate a lease with no down payment.
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    Which really shows the folly of someone buying a racetrack car and using it where it is totally out of place.
    They shouldn't even sell these things for "civilized" use. Too dangerous for drivers, pedestrians and normal vehicles out there.
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    who post photos:

    Can't you adjust the settings so the forum column isn't shown in cinemascope?
  • sysweisyswei Member Posts: 1,804
    I couldn't care less about exclusivity.

    Wait, dewey, aren't you one of the germancarfans who has in the past bashed Lexus for its platform-sharing with Toyota? What's wrong with platform-sharing, other than the loss of exclusivity?
  • designmandesignman Member Posts: 2,129
    Man, that is SO cool! Brings back the panache of a Duesenberg. There's only one bummer. They say it's a design study. If true you know what that means... it probably will never make it to production.
  • 2001gs4302001gs430 Member Posts: 767
    Ouch, that poor pole could not get out of the way. It looks as if the driver did not even try to brake i.e. no skid marks, just simply a bad driver.
  • 2001gs4302001gs430 Member Posts: 767
    I am not much of a convertible fan, but this S actually looks good.
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