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High End Luxury Cars

24723 messages,  Last post on Jan 28, 2013 at 6:55 PM

You are in the Sedans Forum.

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.

Messages Page 1439 of 2473

#14375 of 24723 5-Series??????? by blkhemi

Mar 27, 2006 (5:47 pm)

Replying to: hpowders (Mar 27, 2006 4:37 pm)
"Chris Bangle so ruined the 5 series, that since its introduction in 2004, it has absolutely creamed the competition."
 
Nice assumption, albeit a little far-fetched. The Infiniti M35/45 and M-B E-Class are very formidable 5-Series opponents. The M35/45's are more stylish IMO. The "flame- surface" technique that BMW applied to the otherwise class benchmark just "ruins" the whole apparatus.
 
The 5-Series may still have the "crown", but with competition like the E55 going against the M5, and the E55 is faster still, the crown is up for grabs.

#14376 of 24723 Re: S550 [hpowders] by ljflx

Mar 27, 2006 (5:51 pm)

Replying to: hpowders (Mar 27, 2006 4:37 pm)
In reality the 5-series may still be the leader but on a marketshare basis others are taking a larger incremental share of an expanding market. If the 5-series were a stock instead of a car shareholders would be bailing. A smaller share (even if it is the leader) of an expanding market is viewed as a weakening position.

#14377 of 24723 Re: Once the envy, now...... [lexusguy] by syswei

Mar 27, 2006 (6:17 pm)

Replying to: lexusguy (Mar 27, 2006 2:55 pm)
HAL was a rather sinister computer, as was the computer Colossus (as in Colossus the Forbin Project), also a male voice. So maybe people came to associate male computer voices as sinister...hence the carryover into modern day computer voices.

#14378 of 24723 Re: S550 [ljflx] by hpowders

Mar 27, 2006 (6:38 pm)

Replying to: ljflx (Mar 27, 2006 5:51 pm)
No doubt it is highly competitive out there on the LPS and HELM circuits.
 
But don't sell BMW short quite yet (pun intended.) You may get burned.
 
I can't wait to get back out there in 2.5 years and test the best from Infiniti, Lexus, and BMW all over again!
 
All I think about is cars and HDTV's.
There's gotta be a cure!

#14379 of 24723 Re: S550 [hpowders] by ljflx

Mar 27, 2006 (7:00 pm)

Replying to: hpowders (Mar 27, 2006 6:38 pm)
I'm not selling BMW short. But creaming competition as you state and having less market share than 5 years ago are opposite extremeties and both can't be right. If you have a 60% share of a 10,000 unit market but a 50% share of a 20,000 unit market, you are still strong but any business investor will view that as a weakening position and a sign that the competition will keep eroding your position. Hence my point that if the car was a stock investors would be bailing as growth is occurring elsewhere.

#14380 of 24723 Re: S550 [hpowders] by lexusguy

Mar 27, 2006 (8:05 pm)

Replying to: hpowders (Mar 27, 2006 6:38 pm)
"All I think about is cars and HDTV's.
There's gotta be a cure!"
 
Hah. I have the same disease. Unfortunately, there is no cure.

#14381 of 24723 Re: S550 [lexusguy] by hpowders

Mar 27, 2006 (8:32 pm)

Replying to: lexusguy (Mar 27, 2006 8:05 pm)
Just got the new Bravia KDL-V32" XBR LCD for the bedroom.
Impressive blacks for an LCD.
Having it professionally calibrated this Sunday.
The guy is coming from Maine down to Tampa to do it.
Can't wait!

#14382 of 24723 Re: S550 [hpowders] by lexusguy

Mar 27, 2006 (9:16 pm)

Replying to: hpowders (Mar 27, 2006 8:32 pm)
Nice work! Our bedroom set is now a 27" Toshiba LCD, and I finally have a proper sound system to go with it, thanks to tiny Mirage Omnisats mounted on the walls. (For some reason the wife wasn't impressed with the idea of giant tower speakers in the bedroom).
 
Let me know what happens with your ISF video calibration, I'm curious to know if that really does make a big difference. So far I've just done the calibrations myself, with the help of a D.V.E. disc.

#14383 of 24723 Re: S550 [lexusguy] by hpowders

Mar 27, 2006 (9:36 pm)

Replying to: lexusguy (Mar 27, 2006 9:16 pm)
Thanks!
I have it adjusted pretty well on my own but from what I've read on the different video threads, people are absolutely ecstatic after the calibration.
The guy I'm using is supposedly one of the best ISF guys.
It will take 4-5 hours.
The new Sony is about as good as an LCD picture can be: quite breathtaking. Not plasma, but getting pretty close.
I will let you know if I feel it was truly worth it.

#14384 of 24723 More on the S550 by blkhemi

Mar 27, 2006 (9:43 pm)

After having my day made better by the sight of a new S550, I managed to drive crosstown to the M-B dealer for closer scruinty of the S.
 
The Interior: As some may know, I'm a self-proclaimed Audi nut, so I look at interiors very closely. My intitial close-up of a '07 S early in the year revealed that Mercedes shorted the S yet again of overtaking Audi in the interiors department. BUT, I saw the interior in a different color scheme and WOW. The graining and seaming of the upholstery is top-notch. The choice of materials inside are appropiate for the class. But I'm still out on the switchgear. I wonder why M-B chose to use those 70's style window switches? Retro maybe? But it throws off this otherwise classy interior, albeit not Audi classy.
 
The Exterior: The panel gap tolorances are within millimeters. I don't think you could stick a quarter in the gap. The painting process on the cars seem to be of more good quality than before; absolutely no runs. The Bangled-trunk isn't so Bangled in person. The dreaded wheelflares aren't quite as big as they appear on print.
 
The Drivetrain: That 7-G tranny is one miracle piece of machinery as it is able to squeeze every once of the 362-hp hidden in that 5.5L motor and get the car 0-60 in under 6 seconds(wonder if M-B will one-up Lexus with their upcoming 8-Speed Autobox in favor of a 10-Speed?). That's no easy feat considering the cars mass at 21/2 tons. The suspension is the M-B norm, plush yet compliant and firm when need be.
 
Summation: M-B has built another car worthy if the 3-pointed star.

Messages Page 1439 of 2473

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