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Comments
That 8 year warranty the automakers give is smart. My guess it covers the battery replacement.
How many of you would get another (or get one period) hybrid if you had to spend $4,000 on a new battery in 4 years?
Lastly do you think the Germans/Europeans are going to bet the ranch on diesel (or diesel hybrid where you then have the same battery replacement issue) vs.gas hybrid in the US? That is not a bet I'd make if I were them but God bless and good luck to them if they do. I'm afraid that what you are looking at here is VHS vs. Betamax all over again and diesel is the Betamax.
Autoweek is saying that Mercedes will do a gas/electric hybrid for the U.S. and Japan and a diesel/electric hybrid for Europe, sounds like the perfect solution to those caught up in the hybrid frenzy.
M
Gasp!
M
Given the fact every cell phone battery I've had in the last few years starts to give way about a year after I bought it, I think the jury is out on the battery issue.
KD - the give a way the razor, charge for the blade marketing is a bad analogy here. The price of the battery is peanuts vs the price of the car and 100K miles is L/T usage not S/T. Also the car doesn't become inoperable w/o a battery. You still have a gas or diesel engine in there working full time.
If ithe Hybrid is based on the Toyota HSD system. No battery No go. The Honda will continue on without a battery. You just lose power assist.
> clueless about their many advancements since the 80's, when diesels weren't all > that great
The clueful know quite well that the European city air pollution is horrendous thanks to widespread diesel usage.
Sorry. Toyota's with HSD can still drive on just the gasoline engine if the batteries go dead.
I do not think this is a major issue...they are expected to go 100,000 mi....plus.
I have never heard a figure as high as $4000....
All I know is that after several years in production, an original manufacturer replacement battery for my cell phone still costs $40. It would seem to me these batteries should sell for $2 on the street. (An original not a knock-off)
That's why I wasn't surprised by the seemingly high figure.
Still, we are just trading opinions and one needs to see how these vehicles fair in the future.
Then they should also know that the U.S. isn't going to turn into Europe either and that diesels have been in use a lot longer there, and they're more than 40 percent of the market. Won't happen here.
M
yesterday I disagreed with your comment that the Toyota prius would not continue to run when the batteries go down....I WAS WRONG...You were absolutely right the car GAS Engine will NOT run if the hybrid Batteries do not charge...It sounds like a design flaw to me.
To make matters worse...My dealer did not know the answer to the orginal question. Even with Toyota...IT IS NOT ALL ROSES.
A couple of ads I saw this week in both print and TV were the exact opposite. They talked about the thousands of patents that MB holds, the great engineering, the 111 year long track record, etc. etc. In short, the ads pushed MB's unique selling propositions: technology and heritage. Great ads. Fantastic ads. Ads drawing on powerful themes with examples that no one else can match. Ads that speak to values held by successful people, not wannabes. Ads that most importantly made me think, "OK, I'd like to be associated with the real thing that MB represents. Maybe I should put an E Series on my shopping list".
M
I also have seen the ads and they are very good...Kind of like the 70s and 80s ads with the concentration on Quality....
No specific Model other then the cars in General lots of the older models were flashed. (not the SUV if I recall correctly)
Talked about 100 plus years in the business and 10,000 plus Patents..Safety Features....Very Very good Ad. for Mercedes...
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nexuslexus, "2007 Lexus LS" #327, 17 Jun 2005 5:42 pm
This sketch has recently been confirmed as close to the real thing by an internal Toyota/Lexus designer.
So what do you all think of this design ?
It shows great promise for me....I like what I see...I would be concerned if it loses head room ..or trunk space which have been turnoffs for me on the Mercedes.
Looks like a cross between a Caddy and a Phaeton with that arrow nose and Caddy headlights..
The Lexus LS430, like most Lexus products has a nice interior, but it's exterior is painfully bland. The current LS still retains many of the styling cues that the LS400 had when it debuted in the early 90s.
The new car looks really sleek, even though it carries the stretched back headlights from the previous car.
Way to go Lexus!
Pics:
I'm still not sold on the design, especially those wheel arches and that BMW 7-Series look-a-like interior.
Model range
S 350:
200 kW/272 hp
S 500:
285 kW/388 hp
S 320 CDI:
170 kW/231 hp (from first quarter 2006)
S 600:
380 kW/ 517 hp (from first quarter 2006)
Overall there are some things I like and some I don't, namely those wheel arches (which are hid in darker colors) and the BMW 7-Series dashboard design. More design comments pending.........
M
I'm a little disappointed in MB. Why is the new S Class dash such a copy of the current BMW 7? The center stack, and the navigation display scream "BMW 7 series"
Other than that, it seems like a nice car. However, from the pics it seems as if the rear seat is too low off the ground. And finally, why doesn't the new S Class have a wood steering wheel, the way all Lexuses and most Cadillacs do?
"And finally, why doesn't the new S Class have a wood steering wheel, the way all Lexuses and most Cadillacs do?"
Wood steering wheels dont match well with agressive driving. You'll notice there's no wood wheel in the 7 or A8 either. For the record, not every Lexus comes with a wood wheel. Leather wheels are optional on the GS, and Im pretty sure the new IS is leather only.
Actually it does, but its optional...and its an acquired taste just like in Lexus' and Cadillacs. Wooden steering wheels are very tacky imo. Audi caved in and now offers one in which the entire wheel is covered in wood on the A8L W12. Yuck.
M
A few more pics:
A short wheelbase model:
The hidden phone keypad:
Gearshift moves to the steering wheel like the new M and R-Class vehicles:
The Panorama roof:
A good shot:
M
About the LS sketch don’t get your hopes up, that’s not it, even if it’s an authentic sketch from Lexus. I highly doubt it will have those perfect low-slung proportions. Paldi, good observation on the Caddy motifs.
Oac sorry to hear about your wife’s accident. Really glad to hear she was not hurt.
I didn't expect you to think the S was a knockout design, because you don't even like the Aston-Martin DB9 so I don't know what it would take for a design to be a knockout in your book.
M
Hmm, I thought my comments on the older DB7 although brief were quite favorable. Want me to be more effusive? That's the car I'd like to take to Wimbledon, from which I would tote my strawberries and cream, and bow to her friggin' majesty ;-)
A couple of ads I saw this week in both print and TV were the exact opposite. They talked about the thousands of patents that MB holds, the great engineering, the 111 year long track record, etc. etc.
Emotional versus Rational - the ads work on different people. You don't have to like the former - that's why they created the latter.
It's called marketing.
And I wouldn't be surprised that the majority of car sales are based on emotions instead of rationalization.
Interior looks improved, and the DVD system in the headrest should be standard or available on all lux cars now. Lexus is going there as well with the new model and possibly the 2006 car from what I know.
It will be interesting to hear what an existing S-class owner or planned buyer thinks. Of course, merc1's views - after more careful analysis - will be very interesting reads.
Designman - I think that is a sport version of the LS that is posted. The standard car probably loses some or all of the low ground frame. But who knows for sure - they are promising a very agrressive car and based on these MB photos, it couldn't come at a better time for Lexus - assuming it's true.
I am very sad to say that my E500 is the last of the great looking Mercedes.
I think I like my big 2004 VW better. Just needs a 2006 update on the grill and wheels.
The reception to the new S-Class has been far warmer on other boards, but everyone is up in arms over those wheel arches, which to me are the only exterior flaw, or at least until I actually see the car. The interior quality looks to be on the level of Audi/VW, again this based only on looking at it.
That LS sketch - that honestly looks good to you? To me, again imo, looks like a Japanese Cadillac/Lincoln and is like totally forgettable like the 1995 LS. I think its far to early to base anything on such a sketch though.
M
I wouldn't be surprised if Lexus does the same with the next LS. Am I reading correctly where they're coming up with a 7-speed tranny for the next LS too? Lexus might not do the Idrive/MMI/Comand Controller thing, but I wouldn't be surprised if the shifter moves.
M
http://www.autobild.de/projektor/projektor.php?artikel_id=9008&pos=1
M