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High-End European Luxury Sedans
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Thanks
M
Time is money. To some people, cherry-picking a used car is not worth the time or anguish. That may account for a large proportion if not the majority people who are shopping $100k. I failed to convince my wife to consider a used at $35k level, twice in a row.
Now for the group that has money to burn Bentley is all the rage. I would suspect that big drop in Mercedes CL sales is due to the Continental GT being not too much more expensive. For the average CL500 (100K) buyer 165K+ might be a stretch for some of them, but for a CL600, CL55 and of course a CL65 buyer this new Bentley Continental GT is easily within their reach.
The Continental GT is hugely popular because of its pricepoint. All the while growing up and noticing cars it was a rare even to ever see a "Bentley" and it still isn't a regular think to see an Arnage, but this Continental GT I see almost on a weekley (daily on the the weekend) basis. And not just in the burbs where I live, I've even seen them in the old neighborhood where I grew up.
Now the even bigger question will be, depending on where Bentley prices the Continental Flying Spur, is whether or not it will have the same effect on the S-Class and the new S due this time next year.
M
my two bits...........my opinions.......
phaeton .............yesterday's news. i wanted one badly ,until i took 3 or 4 test rides..........and visited 4 or 6 dealerships ..........what a desilusionment ,... someone from vw corporate should send some of these guys to finishing school.............only one good dealer ,in conn. ,from the lot i visited
........been to the dresden factory......great .......just incredible, but the product does not live up to its billing..............
i predicted when the phaeton first came out that this factory would build something else ...... it is the bentley.
goodbye phaeton. too much car , too complicated ,and poor dealer network to support such a market niche.
bentley............great ,nice ,the car to own,but given that i travel 4 or 5 times per year from florida to the north east ,i am concerned about the lack of dealers ,and service..........(i hate the airbuses ) also, an overpriced vw lies beneath that bentley name.....now ,the arnage ,this is something else and special.........rides like an suv, but what class..........
a8...............great car ,but reliability keeps cropping up.........and still a disguised vw.....could be a great car and the a 8 is such.........but reliability ??????
mercedes.............with their downturn in quality of materials and assembly ,and the total reliance in electronics......i have stayed away ..... i still own their pinnacle car,a 1989 420sel with 240,000 miles.
and ,looking to buy another one .........best car ever made .
recently saw the S 350.................looking good..............but, there is the ls430 from lexus which is a far superior product from almost any aspect. it also beats all the S sedans ,in the usa......
bmw ......relying too much on past reputation. no longer a drivre's car.
almost got the 6 series until i looked in the trunk and found a bunch of computer parts where the spare tire should go............run flat tires can only be fixed in few places ,at a premiun, and no stock for a quick replacement...............
infinity.......got the fx , and still like it , has been great unlike the european cars that i have owned in the past and still own. great reliability over the same time period and mileage experienced with the other cars.but the new m series ,though good,.too much like the fx in ride quality,too similar .
.
but , this is the car to get for those of us who have owned bmw's in the past..........it does not have the crude but great ride of the old 635 which i kept for many years, but it is more refineed and fun.and reliable.
would buy this one over any german or british car. it has what it takes to be a driver's car.
rl...............an oversized honda accord for $50.0...................nice ride ..........but still an oversized accord...
quality -----if you read the german press ,you will note that in germany,german cars are rated way ,way lower than the japanes cars...troubling signs for the german car industry.
porsche ... the new 911 is no longer a sports car but a gt............my brother has one and i do not like the feel of the steering ....and ,the motor blew after 7,000 miles.
has been replaced under warranty..................get the 993.
i did try it. 3 times. the 2 door one ..........have not tried the 4 door.
liked it. loved it.just great looks and feel,
but ,i use my cars to comute from fla. to ct and vt. .if this car breaks down in the middle of the carolinas or even upstate conn. or vt. i will be stranded ,and it being a vw the possibility of this happening is high.
sounds like an excuse not to spend the 170 g's ,.maybe
And from a personal perspective...17 Months in two of them...not one mechanical malfunction, no squeaks, no rattles, no electical gremlins that would put the car "out of service"...Every repair made in my shop has been benign enough that it was handled during routine maintenance...
I think for my market it would be easy since there is no dealer anywhere near to service the car. That's assuming the prospect is being logical rather than emotional. If they are emotionally caught up in the Arnage (which would be easy to do) it would be an uphill battle. They are both very nice cars, it would likely end up coming down to personal preferences.
and ,looking to buy another one .........best car ever made .
I'm curious as to what you think about the W140 S-Class. A lot of S-Class owners consider it the best of the lot. Also Mercedes' interior quality has changed with every new model introduced, specifically with the SLK and CLS. They're built much better than the current S-Class. Not sure why you think Mercedes is any different as far as electronics go. Only the truly sportier luxury cars like BMW and Infiniti don't rely on electronics as much.
M
my point is that the 87 thru 91 420sel and 560 sl are the pinnacle of quality materials and quality of assembly , and product engeenering at mb.
it remained so from 92 until the new s class came out recently ,but the 92 thru 2001 or so, were in fact over engineered .too much mass . and high quality of materials and assembly . but way overdone in size, and highly complex systems. whereas the 87 -91 are just perfect cars.
a look at the engine bay ,or ,talk to any mechanic and he will tell you that this are the easiest cars to work on.
my 420 is going on 240,000 miles . mostly trouble free with the battery lasting 10 years and 4 months and the alternator wearing out at 210,000 miles .
the timing chain was replaced at 200,000 miles .
this car was hit twice,not our fault, with repairs over $12,000 one time and $6,000 the next. still a keeper.
i also have a volvo with 245,000 miles a 1986 740 gt........nothing in the engine or trannny has been touched . the a/c ,muffler and brakes do not last long.but overall ,also a great car.still have it as a new york city hit it if you want ,i do not care ,type car.
regarding the phaeton and vwguild.............you are a vw dealer ,and obviously you are a good dealer,even though you do not care for my phraseology,spelling ,etc...
but the fact is that the phaeton is history ,and even in germany ,it is history,and vw can spin it any way the want ,but the facts are facts.
check the ratings of phaeton at the german ADAC .
check the current production schedule for 2006 thru 2008 for the dresden factory.you have an inside as a dealer ,maybe, ---a hint ,you can get it from vw marketing group.
the infinity is ,in my humble opinion ,the replacement for the bmw cars .i used to rent or borrow bmw in europe all the time. no longer ,my favorite is the audi a6 with the diesel engine,and the vw passat which i get for $ 500. a week all included .
also, saab...........love my 9.5 aero.2000.but just got a letter from saab telling me that the engines ,4 cylinder are self destructing because owners followed the factory recommendations for oil changes and this causes sludge to form and block internal passages ,and wham..........
i have 80,000 miles on mine with engine and oil changes done every 3,000 miles.
tranny fluid changed every 6,000miles because i did not trust this tranny.
anyhow ,saab now tells me that they have extended my warranty to 8 years unlimited mileage. probably a class action lawsuit ?????/
so. it looks like my saab is a short term car. i think that they screwed up .
If you want people to hear you, you would help yourself a lot by using correct capitalization and making more of an effort to punctuate your sentences more accurately.
It's entirely up to you, though - it depends on whether you want folks to understand what you are saying without having to do so much work that they just give up and move on.
This is just some friendly advice.
M
No need to be an English professor. But at least try to make some sense.
but i type and post .maybe i should read what i post before posting . at times i do but not always
Speaking of the Continental's price point, there is a good piece in this AMs WSJ on the explosive growth in families with a net worth of 10 mil or more in the US. This is the car for them. The Phantom at 400K on the other hand is not selling.
Re: Merc1 and only three Bentley dealers in Chicagoland. If three dealers in Chicago isn't enough coverage for you, we have significantly different service accessability thresholds. ....
Re: ffb (aka ee cummings for his punctuation) and his four time a year commute down I95 to FL. From previous posts you have mentioned driving your SAAB from VT to FL. I think you would find better service support for a Bentley than an AERO on this trip. Far better. I'll bet that you are never 45 minutes away from an authorized Bentley dealer once you are out of VT and into CT. Even in the wilds of the Carolinas there are excellent dealers, one smack on I95 in High Point and another further down in SC. I'd rather be broken down in an Arnage on I95 in the Carolinas than in AERO with a wierd tire size (see article in European Car) that no tire store stocks. One cell phone call to the Bentley dealer and a ramp truck would be on its way. You could even get some use out of the trays in the back seat while you waited.
Have you seen Fletcher Jones' new used car showroom on the corner of Ontario and LaSalle? Its in what used to be (in another lifetime) a Hanley Dawson Cadillac store. I've seen a few Vanquishes and SLRs there too.
M
They had a new Rolls on the floor and I just don't care for that front clip.
i changed the donut spare tire into a full size spare tire .it does fit into the space but the top of the floor in the trunk is now about 1/2 an inch higher towards the rear .and,have had to use it 3 times already. and ,no problems getting the new tire.
regarding the bentley and dealers.. yes ,but they are not that close to i95 nor the mountain routes that i favor.
and once you own one , a bentley ,the dealers own you.
same happened with a testa rossa some years ago.hated the feeling.
regarding the saab, this one is reliable so far. but as i posted above i recently received a letter advising that the warranty on my car has been extended to 8 years unlimited miles due to engine failures ,therefore my new commuter car is my infinity fx35.
I had to wonder though how many of these Bentleys get driven in Chicago in February (as I think S Class cars do get driven). Anybody going to Chicago should put this dealer on their must see list.
the first 2 or 3 letters in the plate gives you the city.
LMAO! Very clever and creative observation. You must have some writer in you. And kudos to Paldi... you discovered the talent in that shot!
Ha ha. No, just a southerner's gift for metaphor.....well I guess in this case, simile
Somehow that photo wouldn't have been near as funny if those VW Beetles were any other car. Had to be those Beetles being "chased" by that vicious looking Bugatti
Well I just meant that a Bentley dealer isn't as visible and they aren't usually on your typical "dealer row" like more "common" makes. I'm sure that three are enough for service and what not. Here they're spread out pretty good, one is in downtown Chicago and the other two are in the Western and Northern Suburbs.
The Bentley dealer in Downtown Chicago is wonderland for the rich. They sell any and everything expensive with wheels. Spykers, SLRs, Saleen, you name it.
M
One reason for that is due to the wide range of European car makers.
Duesenberg did luxury and performance better than anyone else, imo. Plus they had racecars that won the Indy 500 four times.
That Bugatti is the 1993 Bugatti EB112 concept.
Also, the new Bugatti Veyron isn't a real Bugatti. VW simply bought the name and developed the Veyron.
The following is from CAR June, 2005 on the new Continental Flying Spur:
"At an indicated 285 km/h (178 mph) the Flying Spur is calm, quiet and incredibly unexciting, just like the Continental GT."
"There's a whiff of Korean to the slabby sides."
"Debt to the Conti GT is obvious. Except to the Japanese tourist who asked if it was a Rover."
"Beautifully executed saloon, but it leaves us cold."
M
The owner has done the 1/4 mile in 12.53 seconds at 109 mph.
check this link
Jaguar XJR
i wish i could find a way to post it here .
anyhow ,it was a design exercise done when vw acquired the brand . it is a shame it never made it to market . classic but futuristic lines and a slooped rear end but within proportions .
this should have been their 4 door .
Funny, I can see Timberland now that you mention it. I have them as art deco light. However, the CGT has a hunkered-down high-roller look to it... driving up to the valets at night with shades on... peeling off the tip from a ream of hundreds. Somehow I see it as picking up where Cadillac left off in the 50s. Just thinking out loud. BTW, ever see the size of the brakes on that sucker?
M
The hood is too tall and short like that of a VW.