High End Luxury Cars

24700 messages, Last post on Dec 01, 2009 at 12:24 PM

You are in the Sedans Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens

What is this discussion about? Audi A8, BMW 7 Series, Jaguar XJ-Series, Lexus LS 460, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Volkswagen Phaeton, Maserati Quattroporte, Mercedes-Benz CL-Class, Sedan

Let's try to define this forum as being limited to luxury performance vehicles where the mainstream version in a typical configuration has an MSRP of at least $60k.

A luxury vehicle with a base price of $59k qualifies because it would typically be bought with some additional equipment, bringing the MSRP over $60k.

Vehicles like the E, 5, A6, M, or GS, even if available in certain versions over $60k, don't qualify because they are cars from companies that have higher end cars in their lineups.

Outline

Messages Page 1344 of 2471: 1; ...; 1341; 1342; 1343; 1344; 1345; 1346; 1347; ...; 2471; Prev; Next; Last

#13426 of 24700 Re: No Attack Or Insult! [syswei] by hpowders Jan 16, 2006 (5:41 pm)
Replying to: syswei (Jan 16, 2006 5:33 pm) I plan on driving the new LS because I consider it a prerequisite for me to write on this board. I plan on driving the A8 too. Curious to experience the Audi dealership treatment. The GS430 had adaptive steering which I couldn't "adapt" to and grabby brakes. I did really want to like that car. Major disappointment, last summer. And I really did like that salesman. Replies to this message: lexusguy (Jan 16, 2006 6:10 pm) hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 6:17 pm) syswei (Jan 16, 2006 6:20 pm) and 1 more...
#13427 of 24700 Re: No Attack Or Insult! [hpowders] by lexusguy Jan 16, 2006 (6:10 pm)
Replying to: hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 5:41 pm) I actually agree with you on this one. Active steering and E-brakes are things Lexus should not have copied from the Germans. Replies to this message: hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 6:17 pm) syswei (Jan 16, 2006 6:20 pm) hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 6:52 pm)
#13428 of 24700 Re: No Attack Or Insult! [lexusguy] by hpowders Jan 16, 2006 (6:17 pm)
Replying to: lexusguy (Jan 16, 2006 6:10 pm) The GS300 is actually more fun to drive because it has normal brakes and steering. Just needs a more powerful engine which I guess they will be addressing pretty soon. Replies to this message: syswei (Jan 16, 2006 6:20 pm) hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 6:52 pm)
#13429 of 24700 Re: No Attack Or Insult! [hpowders] by syswei Jan 16, 2006 (6:20 pm)
Replying to: hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 6:17 pm) Lexus could have put the 3.5 in already but wants to "save" it for use as a midlife kicker for the GS. The customer suffers. Replies to this message: hpowders (Jan 16, 2006 6:52 pm)
#13430 of 24700 Re: Lexus in Japan [docnukem] by scott1256 Jan 16, 2006 (6:25 pm)
Replying to: docnukem (Jan 16, 2006 5:27 pm) Toyota has a very high, almost iconic status in Japan. Toyota Crown models were the ultra prestige cars in Japan for years. I believe there have even been V-12 Crowns (somebody can correct me if I am wrong). The switch from Toyota to Lexus in Japan will be tough.
#13431 of 24700 Re: No Attack Or Insult! [syswei] by hpowders Jan 16, 2006 (6:52 pm)
Replying to: syswei (Jan 16, 2006 6:20 pm) Too bad because that was the only thing that turned me off to the GS300. I previously mentioned the driver's seat not being very comfortable but at 6'2", this is usually a problem across the board. I believe the only car I had no issue with the seat and legroom was my much lamented, dark maroon 1967 Impala.
#13432 of 24700 Re: A Question? [designman] by oac Jan 16, 2006 (7:41 pm)
Replying to: designman (Jan 16, 2006 4:44 pm) Designman: I'll break this synopsis into two sections. First will be a timeline capsule of the LS400.... Second (later post) will be the creation of the LS. Happy reading. Timeline Capsule of the LS400 08/1983: Toyota Chairman decides it's time for a luxury arm for the company. 05/1985: Design team and study team are put together in the US. 07/1985: A running LS400 prototype is made 05/1986: Autobahn testing began 09/1986: More testing on US roads 05/1987: Final approval for LS400 design from management 01/1989: At the Detroit and LA auto shows 09/1989: LS400 goes on sale 01/1990: Named C&D 10 Best 02/1990: Named Best Imported Car of the Year (Motoring Press Assoc)
#13433 of 24700 1990 LS400 by oac Jan 16, 2006 (8:21 pm)
"In 1989 when Toyota introduced this car to America as a 1990 model, the automotive press thought it didn't have a chance against the likes of Mercedes and BMW. Toyota knew how to build great economy cars and small family sedans but this is the big league. Jokes circulated about this folly, one of which I remember on a TV drama where a car thief who specialized in stealing expensive cars pulled up with a Lexus. When his partner saw him and gave him a look, he said "it was dark, I thought it was a Mercedes." As a matter of fact, the only LS400 that I have ever known to break down was in the 1991 movie "The Grand Canyon" starring Danny Glover (a movie I otherwise highly recommend.) Well, it took less then a year for everyone in the automotive industry to change their attitude and give this car the respect it deserved. Lexus became the standard by which other cars are judged. Only the Mercedes S Class and the BMW 7 Series could rightly claim to be better cars. But they cost $10,000 to $20,000 more than the Lexus LS400 which had a starting price of under $38,000 in 1990." Read the whole article http://www.familycar.com/RoadTests/Lexus1stGen/Lexus1stGen.htm Replies to this message: ljflx (Jan 16, 2006 9:04 pm) oac (Jan 16, 2006 10:45 pm)
#13434 of 24700 Re: 1990 LS400 [oac] by ljflx Jan 16, 2006 (9:04 pm)
Replying to: oac (Jan 16, 2006 8:21 pm) There have been so many stories and in fact, many business case studies on how Toyota pulled this off starting back in 1982 or 83. The Lexus book is just one of them that gives the details. Some of the other indepedent articles heap a lot more praise on the company than anything they could write themselves. Some of the details include the design and development of the robotics that were used to build the Lexus models to the sophisticated factories and the specialization techniques used in the choosing of employees, auto parts etc that would fit the development of such a high end car. The precision used to build this car was the highest in the industry from the get go. This was a design from scratch investment and buildout of the initial car models and the planned future models, none of which were anything like Toyota had built before. The entire car design was set-up to fit the US market as the primary market and the Japanese market as a secondary. Europe was never even a thought. The reason the Lexus name wasn't used in Japan is due to local political issues and the pressures of the existing dealership network already established. Most, if not all Toyota dealers in Japan sell the high end Toyotas which came to market at the same time as the US Lexus models in a differently partitioned showroom or a different floor altogether than the more economical models. It is a cast system there and the service to the wealthier crowd mimics the difference here between Lexus service and Toyota service. The reason for the change to the Lexus name now in Japan is due to the global rollout of Lexus as a brand. There's a synopsis, the rest can be found in many business books and articles written since 1990. I'm sure some of it found its way into college textbooks. Replies to this message: oac (Jan 16, 2006 10:45 pm)