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Sedans High End Luxury Cars
24697 messages, Last post on Nov 28, 2009 at 3:09 PM
You are in the Sedans Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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.
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For all its shortcomings in the U.S., Audi performs strongly elsewhere. Its brand is strong in Europe, where Audi's are seen as equals in image and performance to its better-known competitors and command similar prices. Audi has also moved aggressively overseas and has become the most popular luxury car in China. Overall, the company expects to sell 890,000 cars this year and is aiming for 1.4 million by 2015 - a position from which it might be able to claim luxury car leadership. Overseas the Audi brand is as strong as BMW or MB. But not necessarily in terms of luxury. The one reason Audis have a strong image overseas is based on their understated designs , their renowned top notch "fit and finish interiors", unique technologies, perfromance and last but not least their understated image . No the last words on the above paragraph are not there in error. In the past Audi has never tried to out-Bling their more ostentatious and conventional competitors like BMW, MB and Lexus. In fact Audi's understated image is one reason why I think Audis are far more successful overseas. People living beyond our shores are less concerned about image than us North Americans. (MB sold luxury for decades in Europe while every street there is covered with MB taxis). Just imagine what would happen to MB and Lexus sales if every other taxi is a Benz or Lexus in North America? The image of Audi is strong overseas mainly because they are considered a maker of good performaing cars for people who do not seek security and acceptance with establish luxury marques like BMW or MB. Although I am not denying there are image seekers overseas, they're just not as prevalent there as they are here in North America. And that is the reason why Audis sell better overseas. I prefer BMW cars over Audis but at the same time I prefer the low profile marketing of Audis. In fact an Audi is an anti-Lexus. An Audi is all substance with little image. While Lexus is all-image with little substance. To prove my point have you seen or heard the latest ads from Lexus. The Moments ads and in Canada there are ads "About the Most Important Things in your Life". Unfortantely both those ads have nothing to do with Lexus cars. As I said Lexus is all about image and little substance (and what little substance there is I still cant find )  SOURCE:FORTUNE link title |
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Replying to: dewey (Oct 16, 2006 7:58 am) Very big statement, dewey. If you are going to go down that path . . . here's another way to put it . . . Lexus is all sizzle without the steak, while Audi is all steak without the sizzle.  Good luck. TagMan
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Replying to: tagman (Oct 16, 2006 9:25 am)
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Replying to: unknown (Oct 16, 2006 5:00 am) One, Lexus had much higher expections of GS than Infiniti of M, I think, about 3 to 2. M exceeded expectations, GS fell short. Two, initially, GS outsold M by quite a lot. Now, they're even. Three, GS is doing its customary sales nosedive right on schedule, but still has a way to go. It did it twice before! |
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Replying to: dewey (Oct 16, 2006 7:58 am) Internal errors and missteps on AoAs part in the US, does not represent the core of Audi substance or culture in terms of its premier status on a world scale. Plenty of "sizzle" in an R8, S6, S8, RS4, upcoming RS6 (now being tested in Germany -debut Geneva 2007 with 530-550 bhp), and the list goes on....
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Replying to: houdini1 (Oct 16, 2006 10:23 am) When Johnny Carson was still host of the Tonight Show, he was teasing actor Paul Newman (one of my all-time favorites) about fooling around with some of the beautiful women co-stars. Newman replied "Why would I fool around with hamburger when I've got steak at home?" TagMan
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Replying to: tagman (Oct 16, 2006 1:07 pm) |
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Replying to: tagman (Oct 15, 2006 5:48 pm) I was starting to get concerned about you! Are you usually this slow?" Actually I think it's the opposite! |
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Replying to: hpowders (Oct 15, 2006 5:59 pm) You don't have to be a design genius to see the rear resemblances among the Camry, Avalon ES and LS." Attention please: Get off of it. If anything the Avalon lights resemble more of a Infiniti's lights. See the L-shaped design in the Avalon and Infiniti's??? Probably not. oh well. And if you turned the Camry lights 180 degrees, they would look totally the opposite of the ES's talights. Any genius would notice the ES's tailights taper down as they curve and meet in the center of the trunklid. If you decided, for some stupid reason, to turn the Camry's tailights 180 degrees, the tailights would curve up as the tailights flowed towards the center of the rear decklid. Yeah, I know, that to you guys looks the same. oh well, I tried!! ! And the new LS's tailights look like the Camry's, or Avalon's, or for that matter, the ES's? Please tell, which way you would have to turn each cars lights to make it resemble a LS's tailights!! About the tail lights: You don't have to be a design genius to see the rear resemblances among the Camry, Avalon ES and LS. "IMO,Lexus must break away once and for all from all this obvious Toyota-sharing and come up with their own unique innovative designs, drive trains, etc." Sort of like DaimlerChrysler is doing with soo much of their products? Ever notice the rear most pillar on the R-class and Pacifica? Looks almost identical that one would think both are based off the same platform. How about the S-class side profile and rear end looking like a Maybach's? Wow! What innovation! Let's not forget the S-class's dashboard being a rip-off of the 7-series interior. Wow! more innovation. Hey, did you read the recent articles that more Mercedes-Benz's and Chrysler products will share engines & transmissions. You know what? that's just the beginning, after that here comes.......platform sharing! Pretty soon you might see a Grand Cherokee and M-class sharing common underpinnings! A E-class and the Chrysler 300 sharing underpinnings. Oh wait, let's not forget about Audi & VW. Talk about how unique they are from each other. Let's see, TT based loosely on some VW architecture, either the A6 or A4 based loosely off the Passat platform, or vice versa(does it really matter), or the Q7 being based off the Toureg platform. And you say Lexus brand will earn more respect and people will pay a bit more if they differentiate from Toyota. Have you been living under a rock? A RX is priced right on top of a ML, the IS is priced right on top of a 3-series, the ES is priced just like a C-class, the LX470 costs $70K, and the LS460 now can cost upwards of $80K. |
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Replying to: dewey (Oct 16, 2006 7:58 am) (1) In a society where buses and subways go everywhere people would normally go, taking taxi is the up-scale way of getting around without having to drive yourself. In many parts of Europe, a Benz taxi is not something you wave to stop by the side of the road like in the US; it's something you set appointment for, or have the conciege get one for you in front of the fancy hotel. (2) There was a time when all VW and BMW offered were either too small or too unreliable as taxis. MB cornered the taxi market in Germany (see above, people did not need taxi to get around; they wanted taxi to get around in style) (3) MB sell models there intended for fleet sales; they don't do that for the US market, for obvious reasons. Americans are about average for image consciousness. Far more Rolls-Royces and S class are sold overseas than in the US. Audi was the Lexus in marketing (minus the reliability reputation) before there was Lexus. It's a brand for selling VW parts bin for more money. Audi has a decent reputation for some parts of the world because it is the perennial forerunner in exploring new markets in the developing world. Compared to what had been available domesticly in those markets, Audi was the best brand available in many developing world markets before the likes of MB, BMW, Toyota and Honda get into those markets.
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