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Comments
man, u got some imagination.
When I first saw my 99 Pro Es, i thought it looked like the Mustang. the front grill and the lights that is. Does it really look like that? Maybe? Does that mean the Pro is a baby Mustang?
Whatever.
they just can't call suppliers and say we need more of this and that and increase production overnight. The suppliers must ramp up additional production, and their suppliers must ramp up etc. So it takes a long time to shift gears..If a company like Mazda over builds and then has too many cars it is a financial disaster for the company and dealers.. Just ask Ford and GM about that issue.
I find the allocation system to be a pain in the A** but its workable and fair but nothing is perfect all the time.
Mazda will find the perfect mix soon...and by next year it will be just right. Remember, they base their mix next year on real world sales this year...and right now the 4 cyl is out selling the 6 at the initial projected mix 60/40 and most of the other options are falling rather close to mazda projections...but not everyone will be happy with every system.
We should give them some credit. The car just came out and within 3 months they already changed the combinations offered. I am sure they will keep monitoring the demand and make these combinations more attractive but it would be impossible to satisfy everyone.
Heck, offer packages at one price, and just offer "Built Just for You" at a price 5% higher. Some of us would pay it.
Maybe it all comes out in the wash. Who cares if the guy got what he wanted as long as he bought something?
And if I can't get factory installed Sirius by 2004, I will probably buy another Pontiac Grand Prix GTP.
Option packages matter? I think so.
But Audia8 is right...dealers are the customers of the manufacturers, not the ultimate car buyers. Never, ever forget that.
Mazda can't track those. If there was some mechanism for that, it might help them. "I didn't buy a mazda because..."
All they will see is that X of this model config was sold, Y of this model and from that they will extrapolate demand. They won't know that buyer A bought a 6S AT even though he wanted the MT because it would take too long to order, dealer couldn't get it or whatever. More likely to happen with packages of course. that's why when people aska dealer for a certain config, they will often say they have it when they really have something that is "close."
I assume that "less than one" means that some dealers get none, but some dealers can get more than one? The reason is ask is that that Wayne Mazda in NJ (pretty large) has 3 manual v6 sports in their inventory. However, even a smaller dealership in NJ (Grecco) has 2. Or maybe these are cars that aren't physically there yet?
I wonder if any of those 4 cyl sales are to people that couldn't get the v6 they wanted...
Please see the informative response I had received from my email:
Original Message Follows:
------------------------
Hello,
I am hoping to become a proud owner of what I consider to be one of the
sharpest vehicles to come along in along long time... the Mazda6. The
main thing that is holding me back is not so much lack of incentives but rather the ability to be able to configure the type of car that I want rather then what Mazda wants me to have. It seems that even if I order every option package available I still would not have the car that I want. Rather then ordering a bare bones car just so I can get the side curtains and then have every thing else after market installed, something I prefer not doing. Are there any thoughts to rather then having all the different packages to making all the different options
and accessories available to be order individually? This would allow
me as well as everybody else to pick exactly what they want and end up with the car that makes them a happy and lasting customer,,,, Gee what a great concept.
Rich
Mazda's response:
Dear Rich,
Thank you for contacting Mazda North American Operations. I appreciate
the opportunity to respond to you.
I appreciate the time you took to bring your suggestions to our
attention. The current configurations listed on our website are
correct. Consumer feedback is very important to Mazda. Certainly, we
want to offer exciting vehicles and the most marketable combinations
for those vehicles, and comments like yours help us to achieve that
goal.
Throughout the production year, there may be changes to the
configurations available for the MAZDA6. The website will reflect those
changes, so I advise to stay current by visiting often. Although there
is no set date or specific combination plans at this time, in response
to consumer preference, new combinations may be added.
I have documented your e-mail comments and forwarded them to our
Product Planning Department for their review.
Again, thank you for contacting Mazda. It has been my pleasure to
assist you. If for any reason this response has not completely
satisfied you, please feel free to reply to this message. You may also
contact our Customer Assistance Center toll-free at 1-800-222-5500.
Please take a moment of your time to give us your opinion about our
e-mail service. Click the link below to complete a brief, online
survey.
http://www.zoomerang.com/survey.zgi?5TYD85TYCGRDSLWVFE7RJ6R9
Regards,
William Zdan
Specialist, Customer Assistance E-Business
Interesting about your comments about just-in-time manufacturing. The old way of having large parts inventories actually has the advantage that you could more rapidly adjust to a surge in demand by laying on another shift, but this evidentally is more than compensated by the better cost controls of jit - despite the longer planning lead times.
Silver GT with GFX every option loaded.
It is very nice and everyone loves it.
My brother in law who has owned some very high end BMWs said that it handles better than a BMW.
What more can I say...
Honda owners take note!!
Jason.
The grille IMO gives the front end a more upscale look and the best part is you get the old grille back if you want to mix and match.
Jason777: Congrats and welcome to the club.
everyday: Check out www.Mazdaformance.com, they are Mazdaspeed of Houston and sell the Sports Grille for $150. Direct dealers probably cost about $200.
metenuzero: HID xenon lights may cost more , but it's a small price ($500) to pay over safety due to better illumination. The whole system, even the bulbs, are also suppose to last the lifetime of your car.
jason777: Wasn't the 7 weeks wait worth it? Post some pics of your new pride & joy!
As for HIDs being safer, I think that assumption may not be true. According to the april issue of Consumer Reports (http://www.consumerreports.org bottom link on main page "HID Headlights"), they tested quite a few cars with regular halogen headlights and cars with HID, there were a few HID cars that did not illuminate as well as halogen headlights, most HIDs provide better close-distance/side illumination, but for speeds higher than 35mph, further distance illumination is more important, and regular halogen lights may be better.
I also don't rely on CR on a lot of products I purchase. I haven't read a CR mag in years. What HID beam type did CR use for comparison? There are several types, parabolic, freeform and ellipsoidal 1st & 2nd gens (projector beams). The ellipsoidal 2nd generation projects/produces the best light of all and with the highest efficiency. The 6 has projector beam headlights (ellipsoidal, 2nd gen).
*I love the 6 but the option packages are atrocious. It's a great car that deserves more respect than most, but the management/product team that developed the production allocation and option packages must not have graduated college.*
Makes you wonder if they aren't like the people who write software manuals, they weren't sitting at computers with the program on it.
I think the real problem is, for such a well-equiped car to begin with, they have too many options which makes too many combinations possible. They should have fewer options and make some specific to the V6 model - only. ABS should be standard on both models since it is a very important safety feature.
gee35coupe:
*You can still see 626 and Millenia all over the 6.*
Yep, you can see some of the lines of the beautiful Millennia in the C-pillars and the hood. Mazda wisely went with the best styling cues of the past for the 6-series. They are universally appealing (note all of the awards from around the world). No retro stuff from way back when and no futuristic nonsense that may not catch-on, or worse, be too far from the mainstream.
The Mazda6 styling is the basis for the new lines yet to come. They will vary in the 3 series due to it being smaller and more difficult to blend gentle curves into.
Think of it this way: Mazda adapted the roof styling of the Mercedes, the handling of the BMW 3-series, and the compact size of the Audi A4 into one car and produced a winner.
audia8: I think some here do not understand J.I.T. delivery and advanced production scheduling.
*Why can't they just set parts aside to build custom ordered cars?*
J.I.T. means Just In Time delivery of parts. Suppliers receive orders well in advance for X-number of parts to assemble X-number of cars. Parts are not stored in warehouses and delivered as needed, they are delivered to the assembly plants on a regular schedule for specific cars to be produced: engines, transmissions, fenders, doors, hoods, interior trim, etc. Each car is pre-scheduled and the parts for that car arrive J.I.T. to build it. There may be an exception from time to time for a special order. Because you ordered it doesn't mean it will be built -- IF certain parts are not in the supplier pipeline.
Or your Redfire 6S MT with Sport package could arrive with a Lapis Blue front bumper cap and a Speed Yellow trunk lid because they were what was scheduled next.
If they set parts aside to build custom cars, those cars would cost 10-times more because they would be hand-built. Robots do much of the handwork on production lines in modern assembly plants. Assembly means none of the parts are made there. They are made by hundreds of smaller companies all over America and in Mexico and in Japan. A huge supplier pipeline.
With all the screwups and lazy people I have worked with, the MIRACLE of modern production is that it works and everything arrives ON TIME.
fowler3
Car dealers are very, very powerful. That's why you never see negative articles about them in the media. (They spend too much on advertising.) And they also have powerful lobbies, so there are lots of protectionist laws to keep the current distributor/retailer system alive. (Which is how the Internet idea got squashed.)
But I've said too much already. :-)
So anyway, I go over there because I STILL cannot decide what color I want and I want to see them all together to compare, etc. Well - almost every car that did NOT have the Sport Package had butt-ugly PINSTRIPES going down the sides. Can you say YUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK?!?! All the Sport Package models (Lapis Blue, Yellow, Steel Gray, Silver) did not have those ugly things, but all the non-sports did. Did they come that way from Mazda, or did the dealer put them on for some unknown, STUPID reason?? Those pinstrips just RUINED the look of the entire car.
Also - I STILL cannot decide on color. But let me tell you - that Speed Yellow looked mighty nice. I was pretty much against the color before, but after seeing it in person, I am seriously considering it. I was still not impressed with the Redfire - still looked too "burgundyish", although it WAS a tad dirty/dusty, and it was not full sunlight out to really see the color good. Still want a good clear look at the Redfire in sunlight, and I have yet to see a decked-out White in person. So right now it's between Redfire, White, Steel Gray and the Yellow. <sigh> Sure wish I could get this most basic of decisions made. :-)
But back to the topic of the post...what the hell was up with those PINSTRIPES?!?
I think I have an answer to your question of “If Mazda planned the 6 as a "family car" why has it spent so much advertising money on TV and in Men's magazines extolling its virtues as a sports sedan?”
My guess is because of aaall the married men out there with a wife and children that don’t want to drive an Accord, Camry or Taurus . The M6 provides the size to sit junior and baby daughter in the back seat, big [non-permissible content removed] trunk YET it’s a fun car to drive.. Just M.O. of course
One of the very first reviews I read of the 6 before the car came out, the reviewer mentioned that the real value and success of the M6 is that it’s a sport car that is a family car and vice versa . Some people want the sport but also the SIZE, while other want the size but also something sporty and fun. For the price of a loaded M6S, the car is hard to beat.
Drumm
the yellow does look super sharp, but can't see myself as a 38 year old male in that color.. but sure is sweet. The red looks awesome in sunlight, but otherwise.. I'm not so sure about it. The blue I have the strangest reactions to.. sometimes I think it is the most beautiful color ever!.. and other times it looks garrish. I like the grey, but it seems too popular, and I'm thinking that the non-sport pkg. may look better in one of the other colors. Plus, dirt is a concern.. although all these colors seem to show dirt equally.
So, I can't decide. I'm stumped!
And yes, one of the dealerships had those funky little pinstripes on virtually all of the non-sports. In fact, there were two guys in the lot applying a bunch more of those stupid things. YUCK! Who likes that CRAP!??
Easy for the dealer to take off, I suppose.
They put those on my '99 Protege and on my wife's '91 Saturn. She made the dealer take them back off before she'd accept the car. I took mine off a few months after I'd gotten mine.
It's a dealer thing. Owner or manager must still be fond of pinstripes.
I've owned 2 white cars, including my current one, so I was not too up on getting a white 6. But I can't say for sure until I actually SEE a decent-looking one - one with either the Sport Package or non-Sport but WITH a spoiler. And NO PINSTRIPES!
Earl Scheib anyone?! hee.
I've seen one white, on a non-sport, and it looks good to me. Very safe color too.
but again, those cheesy skinny little pinstripes blow monkeychunks. they gotsa go!
What about the 50 year old buying the bright red sports car? Fact is, if a car looks good in a color, provided it's taken care of - it always will. IMHO - Yellow is the best color for this car's shape. Add the black interior & 17" alloys and it's simply a classic combination.
My dad is over 70 and SUGGESTED the yellow wihtout having seen it. Had he been buying, that's what he'd have purchased.
Take this however you like, but the age thing is all in your head. It's over used, but it's true. You're as old as you believe yourself to be. I *think* this has more to do with how you feel you'll be percieved by others than with your own personal preference. But that's just me.
I have to call my tire place to see how much 17" are to replace as compared to 16".
Do the 17" tires wear out any faster? Is there less tread or anything? Or does all that depend on how you drive and whether one burns a lot of rubber, etc.? Do the 17" wheels get worse gas mileage?
I agree with you about the pinstripes. And, of course, the dealer puts them on. It's literally a tape-type 'roll' they use, and wanna charge you $100 for it. I had them on my Protege when I bought it, but I ended up peeling them off myself (it's pretty easy), and removing the excess sticky stuff with Goo-Gone. I didn't pay for it either when I bought the car.
Painting a car will definitely lower its value, so think about that. But of course, if you have the car over 5 years, it's pretty much hit the bottom of its value scale anyway.
If Mazda uses Michelin Pilots on the '6 (which I think they do), figure on replacing the full set of tires, with regular rotations, around 35K miles.
Yellow has been a great color choice for decades. It's been in and out of popularity forever. Never as popular or as widely available as some colors, but around non the less. Yellow IROC Camaros, yellow 'vettes. Yellow Ferarri's are normal for God's sake. Not so trendy after all.
You can even go all the way back to the 1937 Cord - as important a car as any. 1937. Even it was built in yellow. And still looks good today.
Some buy 'winter tire packages' from Tirerack to preserve their 17" sporty wheels from salty roads...that's a personal decision.
I hate black personally, after owning a black car through one hot MD summer. You have to take very good care of the color, unless you're like my friend and don't give a crap about the car...
Configuring a car on the website. Just for fun I picked the Black Leather interior, which automatically makes it have the Sport Package. So on the Options page you see all the boxes that are automatically checked becauase you chose black leather (i.e. Sport Package). Both Premium Package and Sport Package are checked. Premium is 16" allow wheels and power driver's seat. Sport Package is 17" alloy wheels and all the other stuff. I am assuming, even though it LOOKS like you do, you don't really get both 16" and 17" wheels/tires for your car, so you can switch them in winter/summer, etc.? You just get the 17" bigger wheels, right?
That is deceiving. If I'm "getting" the Premium Package which says 16" alloys, then I should get them, too, shouldn't I?
I just got rid of a black car. How's that for a switch? Black to yellow.
Love the look of black, hate the upkeep. I've had my black car.
Never again.
Black to yellow is very cool. Will brighten up your life alot. :0