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High End Luxury Cars

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Comments

  • hungrywhalehungrywhale Member Posts: 83
    My boss has had a 745i for a couple months now (he had the first one in town, supposedly). No problems whatsoever and he absolutely loves it. His previous car was a 1999 740iL.
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    It amazes me how loyal BMW owners can be. ALL of the 745s have the remote problem, the remotes only work if you are very close to the car. The other stuff is hit and miss, like any car, but especially a complex first year model.

    My '98 750il has been to the dealer 19 times in 45k miles, my '95 740il went in more often than that. These cars are a lot of work to keep running properly. When they do there is not much that can touch them for performance and style. IMO they lost all sense of style on the 745, and like I said before, that was the deal breaker. I am absolutely in love with my new S600, copious speed, style, AND it is reliable.
  • hungrywhalehungrywhale Member Posts: 83
    Trust me, if he was having the key fob problem, I would have heard about it - stuff like that would drive him up the wall. He loves that his 745i feels like a much smaller car when you're driving it. He says it doesn't feel anywhere close to as big as it is.

    I'm an Audi owner, so I'm not loyal to BMW. Just reporting what I've heard and seen.
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    Which Audi do you have? How has it been for reliability? They make nice looking cars, I guess I dont care for the A6 sedan much, but the rest I like. Quattro where I live would also be a boon. I just do not trust them yet.
  • bobbyknightbobbyknight Member Posts: 121
    Did you guys happen to check out last weeks motorweek featuring the 745i? It's an ugly looking car with those "small" 18" wheels. I was amazed by the slalom performance. There was so little body roll through the corners. It was funny watching them roast the rear tires on the acceleration run too.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Yeah I saw it. I'm really disappointed with BMW, this car would be a worldbeater in my book if it weren't for the styling. Ugh...

    M
  • edarteedarte Member Posts: 41
    This post is a bit delayed but just to set the record straight Lexus dealerships do coexist with other brands. Here in the Quad Cities area (2 hours west of Chicago) the Lujack dealership sells Lexus plus Toyota, MB, Audi, Jaguar, Honda,and several other makes. The Lexus showroom is a separate building but MB, Audi, & Jaguar are together in another. However the service for most makes Including Lexus and MB) is all done in the same location.
  • edarteedarte Member Posts: 41
    Back on April 13th you said "I can't imagine any other company in the world releasing such an ugly car with so many initial problems."

    Now I do not think the MB C320 is an ugly car but you should spend some time reading all the problem posts regarding the latest MB C320 on that board. I actually got to the point of ordering one but cancelled after reading about problem after problem on that model (including key fob problems). I even delayed my order until the second production year but serious problems continue.

    I eventually bought an LS430 (for not a lot more money than the loaded C320 that I had wanted) and am very glad I did.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    I would loose even more of my mind at a dealership like that! Though I can't understand why in the world you're comparing a C320 to a LS430...

    M
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    Which board are you reading to get this information? I just looked through a months worth of posts on the new C class at Mbnz.org. I found one C240 owner that had some trouble, and a reference to some bad wiring harnesses on early cars. Every new car has some problems. My point was that the 745 has problems, at a price point nearly double a C320, and it is not pretty. I put up with a lot of repairs on 7s before because I love the look AND the driving experience. Take one attribute away and the car is much less appealing to me, the flaws are harder to forgive.
  • hungrywhalehungrywhale Member Posts: 83
    I've got a 2001 A4 1.8T. It's been great so far. Only been in the shop twice, both times for scheduled maintenance in 10,000 miles.

    Quattro in snow is unbelievable. My previous car was a 1998 4Runner and the A4 is better in the snow than the Toyota was. The only drawback in bad snow is less ground clearance, but that wasn't a problem this winter.

    If I could have any car right now (under $45k), it would be an A6 2.7T with a manual tranny. Either that or an S4. I think Audi has some of the best looking cars (subjective, I know), with beautiful interiors and gives you a lot of bang for your buck.
  • edarteedarte Member Posts: 41
    Granted it is a bit of a jump from a C320 to an LS430. I didn't start out comparing a C320 with the LS430. I started out looking for something new to replace my ES300. After spending several months testing and researching Lexus, BMW, MB, Audi and others I felt the C320 gave me the handling I felt the ES lacked but a better interior and features than most others (especially MB) - in short a good compromise for what I was looking for.

    However after putting my money down I had to wait and wait for delivery. While waiting I reread the boards (see the C class board here on Edmunds) and saw all the problems.

    So I went back to my alternatives. By then the new ES300 was out. It was better but still too much like my old ES. The dealer had a new early production 2001 LS430 that they had priced to sell as the 2002s were arriving. I had not considered it up until then as I thought it was out of my price range. However, after driving, and appreciating the car and Lexus quality control even more due to the C320 problems and as the cost was not such a huge jump after the no-haggle price I had settled for on the fully-optioned C320, I bought.
  • edarteedarte Member Posts: 41
    While I was in the process of buying a C320 I spent most of my time on the C class board here on Edmunds. I will try and paste a link here:

    sysop "Mercedes-Benz C-Class (Sedans Board)" Apr 17, 2002 3:09pm

    Before I decided to buy I read every post on that board from the beginning (there are now over 5000 posts). I saw there were some problems but I too assumed that they were teething problems and would go away. When they continued I pushed my order out to the second production year. Then, after waiting for three more months for delivery I had enough time to see that the problems were still far too frequent for me so I bailed.

    The problem posts started to appear around Nov 2000 and continue to today. I am amazed that so few appear on the MBZ site now as they were there last October when I last spent any time there.

    There have been problems with (purge valves, electronic keys, seats breaking, trim falling off, trunks-doors-sunroofs not opening, engines stalling, doors not sealing and others). And these are not one offs, many posters had the same problem.

    Now not all the posts are negative but I think a conservative estimate is that 1 in 5 (while I was active)deals with a problem. And this is well into the second year of production. I waited through the first year for the problems to go away but they are still occurring.

    And if you read a recent post of mine you will see I ended up buying a 2001 LS430 (first year of production) and the only problem I have had is that the Automatic Sound Level control had to be corrected. So I don't accept that poor quality is a given on a new production vehicle - Lexus has proven otherwise.

    I was at first very disappointed in having to pass on the C320. I think it has great styling, handling and a lot of potential. But my experience has made me believe the news articles I read that state MB has fallen recently from 3rd to 10th in automotive quality control.

    And some may say that all those who post their C problems are over-represented on the site because they want to solve/share their problem. But I think you would be hard pressed to read about so many problems with one model on any other board.
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    Read some of those posts. You made a great move. My car is fabulous and letter perfect after 25k miles so far. Go to the LS board and you'll see the main issue is nav system updates. The cars are as close to perfect as can be. Now if I can only get Lexus to stop sending me maintenance reminders in the mail. I always go 10k miles and if you lease the notices are timed to the lease miles you chose and of course are on a 7,500 mile basis.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Ok, I guess....I still don't see what the two cars have to do with each other. There seems to be this attitude on here about Mercedes-Benz's problems being the norm for everyone that owns one, which I think is being overstated by some in order to justify purchasing something else, the thing is, I wonder if a Benz ever really had a chance with some from the start. A C320 could be the best built car in the world, it still wouldn't compare with a LS430, nor is it supposed to. One is much larger, has a V8 and way more features. It would be like test driving a S500 and C320, no comparison.

    M
  • edarteedarte Member Posts: 41
    But in my case I started and had committed to the MB C320. I really liked the car. But there were (and still are) too many problems with it for me. So then after rejecting the C320 I started to shop around and eventually went with the LS430.

    I am not saying they are in similar types of cars. The C320 being a very sporty, entry level low-end luxury car. The LS is much bigger, not as sporty, high end luxury car (IMO). But the LS gave me much more than I started out looking for in most areas (and a little less in the sport area). But the relatively small difference in cost was worth it.

    And the original purpose of my post was to respond to the person (who I believe is a MB fan) who did not think any other car company would introduce a new model with as many problems as BMW has done with the recent 7. I think the C situation disproves this.

    It is true, considering the price differences, one should not expect the same level of refinement in a C320 as a 7 series. However, I think MB has a problem on its hands if the C is an attempt to win over customers who will go on to buy other, more expensive models. While the C looks great (IMO) it continues to be plagued with problems - turning off future buyers.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    I truly believe that Mercedes has their problems, but I can't see every single car they make as being this problematic. There about 10 or so people in the C topic that post quite regularly about problems. The C-Class can't be that bad, I think it's being overblown now.

    M
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    I went back and read through the last 60 or so posts on the C-class topic. Part of the discussion was about how the cars are not nearly as bad as the board makes them sound. I think Merc1 is right, there are a few vocal posters with problems. They all sounded like resolvable issues. I have to wonder if as C-class buyers they were coming from Japanese brands? There is undoubtably a gap between the two. The difference is with the MB you get a better driving car, a better looking car, a safer car, and without a doubt in my mind a car that will hold up better in the long run. If you want to minimize your dealer visits, the Lexus is better. Consider that the MB maint is paid for 3-4 years, at Lexus you pay for everything.

    I personally didn't see anything in the C topic that would have stopped me from buying one. Consider this, I pulled a service history on my 45k mile '98 BMW. How about 19 visits to the dealer for service work since new. Only five of those are scheduled events, the rest are repairs. My '95 had that many in the year I owned it. I love the way they drive, I love the way they look. I could have bought Lexus, but I wouldn't enjoy the car. Others get the most enjoyment from not having to see their dealers at all. Different strokes.
  • edarteedarte Member Posts: 41
    I accept that it is possible that recently the problems on the C are being reduced, I have not taken the time to examine this. If they are reduced, I think this should have happened by the end of the first production year. We are talking abut MB here not Kia or some other low cost brand. (The C may be low cost by MB standards but it is not low cost compared to most cars.)

    But back in October 2001 if you were considering the C, as I was, you would have seen that there were problems serious enough to have many of the same cars in the shop multiple times in a month. And this was into the second year of production.

    There were theories going around that, because many of the Cs were being asembled in Brazil and other places, maybe the quality was dropping.

    But for me, "coming from a Japanese brand" (i.e., accustomed to reliability) I did not want to pay more money for a car that, granted, had good style and handling,(safer is debatable and only time will tell if MB continues to last longer) but spent too much time in the shop; so I stayed with Lexus.

    And I could have bought a MB but I would not have enjoyed the "lack of a car".

    And I, like I suspect, many Lexus owners, could have bought much more expensive MB models - we just don't necessarily equate more expensive with better (even if it does give you the opportunity to become very close friends with your dealer service manager).

    It appears to be true that you don't see your dealer as much with a Lexus but that is only one of its many virtues.

    Yes, some of the posters claim that the cars are not as bad as the other posts make them appear. It is true it is hard to get a representative sample form these posts. My point is that "relative to other boards" there is a disproportionate number of negative posts. And for a car manufactured by a company that has a (past, at least) reputation of high quality.

    I suppose you can consider all the C problems as resolvable - if you read the posts you will see that some of these "resolved problems" involved the customer swapping their C for an E model!

    Again, my original reason for posting was to challenge the comment that no other car company would introduce a new model with as many problems as BMW's new 7 series - I suggest that MB may be just as guilty, or worse with the C.

    I have rambled enough on this topic so I will stop now and let you have the last word.
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    Edarte - great post.

    V-12power - The Lexus is very safe and given the 90-95 models I see on the road probably holds up as well if not better than the S-class of the same period. The car is extremely satisfying, at the top of the shelf in luxury, has the best service by far from dealers and the company and dealer network make you feel like royalty. It has a great ride and more than adequate handling. I could easily have written a check for an S-600. But I don't prefer to spend that much money on a car. Seriously considered the S-500 (as did many of us on the LS board) but found the LS430 better for my tastes. Money was not the issue. I prefer the LS430 for its virtues which are many and all of which are important to me. The fact that it rarely needs service is wonderful and important to me but the primnary reason to buy are its luxury appointments, phenomenal ride and serene quiet cabin. You seem to live in a surburban area where you may find yourself alone at the wheel and can get a bit free on empty highways. In the big city areas that is very rare. And it is in the big cities where 80% of these cars are sold. Besides the LS430 makes 0-60 in 6.3 seconds so it is hardly a slouch. I always see a high proportion of 7, S-class and LS owners driving conservatively. A few, like me drive pretty fast but they brake pretty quickly on turns - so as I've said many times before - the handling may be there, particularly on the 7 but it doesn't seem to be used by this class of buyers. Nothing personal or mischevious intended here - I just don't think you really know the reasons LS people choose their cars.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    These are types of post I like to read at Edmunds. Informed, but different opinions from the actual owners. Thought I'd have to take exception to that ljflx, I think the 1992-1999 S-Class is the most durable car built. Maybe not the most reliable, but the build of this car was unbelievable.

    M
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    I had an interesting return drive home from JFK last week went I went to London. It was a first for me. The limo driver who picked me up had an S-430 that he just picked up two weeks earlier. Never had an S-class limo before but the guy who owned it said the superlux cars are starting to sell as limos particularly MB and Lexus because of reliability and durability. Anyway I got to experience the ride for about an hour and a half from the back seat. Very good ride but definitely not as smooth or quiet as an LS430. But by no means is it not quiet or smooth. One major advantage the S has is the extra rear seat stretch room. From a driver standpoint it's irrelevant but for someone who has to get a child out of a baby seat the extra space is nice. Now I can sit very comfortably in the rear of the LS430 (I'm 6ft) with the front seat at its maximum depth. Plenty of space for my legs even if it was possible to move the front seat even further back. But I can't stretch the way you do in an S. I would think at some point Lexus has to go to 199-202 inches.

    By the way the driver lives in the next town over from me. Needless to say I'll use him whenever I travel which thankfully is a lot less than in the past. Without question a great car but I still prefer the LS430.

    Last thing - I noticed many more LS400/430's on the road in London than in the past. They must be penetrating the market there now. I also see that they still make the S-320 in the new style in Europe. I've also come to appreciate that an S-class with tinted glass is much more striking than one without it. I think as DVD players become standard or part of option packages in the future we'll see cars all such cars have the tinted windows direct from the factory, which is the only way I would want them.
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    I have a pretty good handle on why people buy the Lexus. I certainly do not mean to infer they could not afford the S-class, though in some cases that is true. Witness the poster going from a C class back to a Lexus LS430, I doubt the S500-600 were real considerations. The value of the LS430 is undeniable.

    You acurately describe why many chose the LS430. They do not drive in an enviroment where the added capabilities of say and S600 would be noticable or worth the added expense. Dealer service is the best, no dispute there. Beyond that everybody has their own priorities on car buying. I can see/feel/hear the differences in my 750 and 600 vs the Ls430. I am willing to pay more for the cars to get that advantage. It is just one of my priorities. I am also going to become a Ferrari owner soon. Not much point in that either, a new Vette has all of the performance. But it lacks some of the feel, heritage and mystique, all things many find foolish, but things I am willing to pay for. I can't fault anyone for buying a Lexus, they just are not for me. It is not for a lack of trying either. I have looked at every new LS since their inception, more than once in all cases. It is just not me. My mother in law still has her '94 SC400, it has 120k miles on it with very few problems and great service from the dealer. She will probably replace it with a RX300, a car I think is a joke. She will not waver from Lexus, and who can blame her. Still the styling and general feel of the cars does not appeal to me at any price.
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    It really comes down to what you want, what you can afford and getting your money's worth. No one is foolish for spending money they have on the things they want. You only live once. Enjoy.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Well you know the European market enjoys quite a few more S-Class variants than we get here. There is a S320 V6 and a S400 V8 direct-injection turbo diesel that is really a torque monster. I don't particularly like the new S-Class in limo form, the previous model had a much bettter body structure to begin with and it looked better stretched. Nevertheless, there are S500 and S600 Pullman models in Europe too. We do get the S500 Guard here though for a mere 150K. I've actually seen 2 since they've been on sale here. Thats one of the things I like about Mercedes is the diversity of their model lineup; trucks, taxis, limos, dump trucks, Unimogs, vans, 2 two-seat convertibles, 4-seat convertibles, a modern SUV, an old-school SUV, big coupes, little coupes, mid-sized coupes, they have it all. They're the only company in the world that can make turn out one bodystyle in both taxicab form and at the same time produce a hi-po variant (AMG) all the while having some of the highest prestige and one of the images worldwide.

    I think there is a rule in Japan about their cars being a certain length in order to avoid taxes or something like that. Thats another reason why Lexus went to such a tall body in order to get the most room from the least amount of space on the outside.

    M
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    It wasn't a stretch limo just your base S-class. What surprised me was the driver telling me that base S-class cars and LS430's are becoming the choice for some limo drivers. I would have thought the cost too high but I guess the durability evens things out in the long run. But even the base S allows for good stretchability in the rear for your legs. By the way having ridden in the rear of an A-8L pretty often I would honestly say the S blows it away. But you know what my favorite car still is.

    They're giving you a hard time on the S-class board. You need to put out the fire - but in a nice way.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    I'd been away for a few days. Consider it done. I get a real kick out of stirring up the GM lovers. I could talk about Cadillac for days on end. You should hear some of the excuses they come up with. Like "the car will be out of production soon" when reguarding a car that's been on the CR list of cars to "avoid" one year after another.

    Have only driven an A8, never rode in the back seat. I doubt that it blows away the S as you put it, but it could be better...Audi tends to make better seats than MB or BMW (non sport seats) anyway.

    M
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    No. You got it backwards. I said the S blows away the A-8. I've driven both and I've been in the rear seat of both now. I like the styling of the A-8L but you see it will always come down to a Lexus LS vs the MB S for me. Both companies make the cars I prefer over anything else. Great ride, luxurious and quiet. And if I go the more sporting route it will be the SC vs. the SL. Man I love both of those cars.

    By the way the A-8 doesnt't seem to be all that reliable.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Oh my fault. I've been debating so much today. Seems like to me Mercedes and I have to do something to get you to come on over. You're definitely the type, as they say. The A8 has just always been one of my favorites. It's a unique offering in the class.

    M
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    We may differ on certain things but I'd have a drink with you and want you as a teammate in sports anytime. I do want your opinion of the LS430 when and if you experience it though, particularly the euro version.

    Can't make myself like that BMW 7 no matter what. I'm 100% with v-12 power on that one.

    v-12power - great looking car in your pix on the S board. Much prefer the S over the 7. I hope your neighbors don't read these boards.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Well thank you sir, appreciate it. If I ever drive an LS430 I'll be honest about the experience. Funny you should mention it, one was riding beside me just the other morning. I really never noticed how tall the car is for it's relatively short length. The car was making child's play of the bumps in the road though.

    M
  • fredvhfredvh Member Posts: 857
    Edmunds has a new feature called "True Cost To Own". It is listed when one researches out the various vehicles on the new car heading. It is one of the 13 subjects when you click on a particular vehicle. It is very useful when comparing one vehicle to another. "True Cost To Own" takes the purchase price and adds things like depreciation, insurance, license fees, etc. and gives you a figure for 5-yr ownership. They even tailor it to your particular zip code. I tried it on a few vehicles and it is very useful.
  • jefftpjefftp Member Posts: 11
    I have never been in a modern era Mercedes (while it was moving, anyway), so cannot speak on that. As for the reliability of the Lexus, however, one experience comes to mind:
    I recently bought a 4-year old LS400 from a Lexus dealer. Lexus gives your car an extended 3 year bumper-to-bumper "certified pre-owned' warranty. The dealer then offered to add two years to that warranty for $1,400. This means for $1,400 I can have a car with a bumper to bumper warranty up through nine years of age. I feel safe in saying that BMW would never consider doing anything like that, because the major repairs would eat their lunch.
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    BMW does offer extended warranties. They have a program called Certified Pre Owned(CPO). As long as the car is sold through a dealer and is within the original warranty period the car is eligible. It extends the warranty to 6 yrs, 100k miles. I have it on my BMW, wouldn't be without.

    ljflx, My wife seems to agree with you. The 750 hasn't left the garage in a week or so. She seems to have grown roots in the S600. I can't blame her. The 750 is a great machine but, the S is so much more. It is faster, quieter and has more usable luxo features. Of course the 7 debuted in '95 and the S in 2000. It is amazing how fast things change these days.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    I had been wanting to ask. Do those wheels affect the ride much in the S600?

    M
  • v12powerv12power Member Posts: 174
    The honest answer is, I dunno yet. I do know that it rides better than our 750 with 18" wheels and 45/50 series tires. The 600 is on 255/35s. I have winter tires in the stock 225/55-17 size but they have never been on the car. I accidentally hit a major pothole with the 600 a few days ago. Hard enough that I was sure I damaged the rim. Those Brabus rims must be awfully tough, there was absolutely no damage. They work just fine for my driving. We do not venture into the big city much, that is where the big potholes seem to live. I might be a little leery if I did have to make a metro type commute daily. We did make a 2400 miles drive home in it over all sorts of roads. The ride was great. I think the low profile tires give the car the handling edge it needs to satisfy me like the bimmer has.
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    Anyone ever notice the games manufacturers play with leasing deals and how they use disconting through the lease rather than the msrp. A friend of mine is interested in a new Q and asked me to check lease deals he has received. That led me to check today's NY Times auto section and I found a couple of interesting deals.

    One deal is for a $52.3k Q which you can buy for $50k or lease for $639 per month for 39 months with $3k down. I then wandered looking for another Q deal and I came across a 745I which you can buy for $71k or lease for $849 per month for 36 months also with $3k down. The same add offered an X5 V8 for $54,300 or lease it at $699 per month for 36 months but with $4k down. All are 10k miles per year and BMW throws in the free maintenance. These are all deals through the Mfrs. so clearly sponsored programs.

    Now I applied some math to this and I found that while the Q is discounted $2300 it actually costs more relative to MSRP (on a lease deal) than does the 7. The Q sells for 70% of the 7's price but its' lease is 75% of the 7's lease price plus 3 extra months. The X-5's lease is an additional $1k down and while it sells at 76% of the 7's price it leases at 82% of the 7's lease price and this is in the same family. Interesting. It would seem the 7 is set-up for leasing and BMW is taking a big chance on residuals. Infiniti with the Q - so heavily criticized for discounting - is taking no such risk. The X-5 is hard to understand. Here BMW seems to be betting on a lower residual relative to the 7 even though the truck is hot now thus you are paying the higher price. Thus they are taking no risk and letting the buyer pay in the same way as Infiniti.

    Another interesting item is the total cost. The Infiniti's all in cost after 39 months is $57,211 (3000+24921+29290 residual) which is is 115% of the $50k sale price. The 7 is $79,000 (3000+30564+45437 residual) which is 111% of sale price and the X-5 is $62,284 (4000+25164+33120 residual) which is 114% of sale price. Infiniti is certainly holding up a lot better than anyone would think looking at the real TMV vs. MSRP prices on Edmunds. Remember that the TMV becomes that $50k and not the $52k the way Edmunds does it. Lexus and MB don't seem to ever advertise lease deals (except the IS300 and the C) anymore so I couldn't bring them in.

    With BMW taking the risk on the 7 this is certainly not a car to buy but one to lease and decide on in 3 years. Look at the factors. If you assume you can get 5% interest return (treasuries are yielding more than this) on your money now then a compound interest factor on $71,000 means you are paying $82.2k for a car that you can lease and then buy for $79k (plus maybe a $500 application fee). And if you think you can better the 5%.......
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    What do you all think about the Maybach?

    http://www.germancarfans.com/News.cfm?NewsID=2020524.002

    M
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    The Maybach is a gorgeous car but limited to a very select few. I often wonder though why manufacturers seek that space as there is so little money to be made, if any, on such low volume cars. A car like an S-600 will be quite profitable because it's part of a bigger breeed but a Maybach is a stand alone car. Nonetheless it's a hell of a car.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    It's about bragging rights. All the big luxury brands are about to get into a serious peeing contest real soon. Wait till you see BMW's new Rolls-Royce on Jan 1st, 2003. The early reports are saying that a 6ft tall man CAN'T see over the top of this car!!! Bentley will unveil their new car at Paris. It's a small market true, but they all want it.

    M
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    Didn't VW buy RR from BMW? When I was in London last month my limo driver even told me that BMW did as much harm (on the marketing side not on the car engineering side) as possible to RR and pushed Bentley heavily. But he also told me no matter what, the true upper crust Brits prefer RR as the true elite car of the world.
  • magnetophonemagnetophone Member Posts: 605
    According to June's "Car" magazine, Cadillac has left UK shores. The Seville, their only offering, sold an astoundingly (low) 458 Sevilles in a 3-year time frame.

    According to the article, "Pitched as a luxury saloon to take on the Lexus LS430 and the Benz S-class, it didn't stand a chance...the Seville might have been an advance for Cadillac, but only in the same way as Hindustan's 1971 Vauxhall Victor-based Contessa is an advance over its 1954 Morris Crowley derived Ambassador....the Seville was a car way off the pace, not least because technically it was spectacularly misconcieved. Why? Because all the action occured at the wrong end...this was the world's most powerful front-wheel-drive car...the tyres only escaped howling extinction because of the severely interventionist policy of the traction control system."

    A Vauxhall spokeman said, "It was the wrong car for the UK market, and there was no point in trying to continue...there is light at the end of the tunnel...if the new CTS does well in Europe, we might bring Cadillac back."

    Wow!
  • fjk57702fjk57702 Member Posts: 539
    Losing 500 sales every three years will probably bankrupt cadillac!
  • magnetophonemagnetophone Member Posts: 605
    fjk57702, actually it was one of the biggest gaffes I can think of.

    They spent millions and millions of dollars at Hamtramck (I believe) to retool the factory to build right-hand-drive models for Europe. It is very expensive to do this. Also, the cost of creating a dealer network to cover a country of 50 million, as well as failed marketing, not to mention the fact that most Sevilles sold for 7,000 pounds under the manufacturer's recommended price, and also the fact that for the 500 sold in the UK, there are approximately the same amount still unsold...

    sounds like a money-losing proposition to me.
  • merc1merc1 Member Posts: 6,081
    Nope, VW owns both until Jan 1, 2003. BMW then takes full ownership of RR. They are building a new factory and a new car for 2003. Quite a task. The British kill me, they are so stuck on their cars, but when RR, Bentley, Jaguar and others got into trouble, their precious government did nothing. That is so ridiculous for them to be that uppity about RR and yet it belongs to a German company. I saw a special on the History Channel about RR/Bentley. The quote that stuck with me the most was from a British car buff/historian. He stated "The Germans are accomplishing with their checkbooks what they couldnt' accomplish with their bombs".

    Vickers the parent company of RR before VW stepped in begged the British Government for help and was soundly rejected. Unbelievable.

    That said I love Bentleys. Me and co-worker went down the street to look at some of them, I work the late, late shift so the lot was closed and we could look at the ones outside uninterrupted. All I can say is that I hope a person that can afford to drive something like that is truly appreciative of their station in life. Nothing like a Bentley, that part is true. Hopefully VW won't turn them into Giant Passats.

    M
  • jagboyxkrjagboyxkr Member Posts: 53
    "The British kill me, they are so stuck on their cars, but when RR, Bentley, Jaguar and others got into trouble, their precious government did nothing."
    --Merc1

    The British government is doing things for their cars, now at least. Recently, they paid something like $69 million to the Premiere Auto Group to continue to keep production of Jaguar models exclusively in England, and they did the same for Aston Martin, but I don't know how much they paid for it. I also don't know why you'd harbor ill-feelings towards Volkswagen AG for owning Bentley, as there would be no more Bentley had VW done nothing. The same is true of Rolls-Royce and BMW, and Jaguar/Aston Martin and the PAG. In fact, even though I'd rather see all of these companies be independent, they are building better cars under the ownership of larger companies than they ever had in the past.
  • sweetjeldoradosweetjeldorado Member Posts: 94
    BMW is under no one. BMW however looks over Mini and soon Rolls Royce.

    J "CaddyLac"
  • jagboyxkrjagboyxkr Member Posts: 53
    My last post said that BMW has ownership of Rolls-Royce, just as the Premiere Automotive Group has ownership of Jaguar/Aston Martin, and Volkswagen AG has Bentley. That was why I even listed them all in the same order in my other post: company that is owned and then the one that owns it following it.

    I do not see the relevance of your last post. Also, BMW has already designed a new Rolls-Royce, so although they may not officially own them, "soon" is more like now.
  • ljflxljflx Member Posts: 4,690
    Then the guy meant VW was doing the under-marketing. I think they are still having a hard time over there understanding that their auto companies are no longer British owned.
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