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

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#4407 of 24700 VW/Audi by ljflx Mar 10, 2004 (9:12 pm)
Things looking pretty bleak at VW. CR's quality is an issue as is a lack of currency hedging on the Euro and as well what looks like a terrible decision to build the Phaeton. It's also not easy for European companies to get lean and mean given employment rules on the continent. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/10/business/worldbusiness/10volk.h- - - tml
#4408 of 24700 I like I- drive by ksurg Mar 10, 2004 (9:26 pm)
Wow you guys are over confident, narrow minded and seem to be able to convince yourselves of anything. I-drive may be a marketing disaster but you know what, the '04 addition is easy to use. I can get anywhere with minimal effort without leaning forward and without having to locate a button or screen half way down the dash. It is undoubtedly a better system than offered in most cars today. Too bad many of you made judgments based on limited experience and naively accepted reviews written by people who spent minimal time driving the car. As for the rest of the new BMW 7 series it has an award winning engine and superlative handling. It really doesn't matter to me what others on this page think. I just believe it's too bad that anything that doesn't carry a Lexus or MB badge is dismissed without genuine consideration. As for new technology give all of us a break. It would be absolutely ridiculous not to push ahead. Does anyone actually think that cars will not evolve in many areas... some good and some wasteful. For that matter is there a single vehicle on this thread that isn't wasteful. I get the sense that most of the people on this page are very set in their ways and expectations. What is going on in car market isn't meant for the over 50 crowd. What are the demographics of this thread anyway? The single best tangent I've seen was the discussion of upcoming hybrid technology. Maybe we could branch off on some other such issues.
#4409 of 24700 by merc1 Mar 10, 2004 (9:46 pm)
It's equally amazing that now the Germans are denying quality problems on the same scale as the Americans did back in the 1970's, yet Mercedes-Benz in particular has stated that they intend to get the brand back to the top of the surveys in the next two years. VW has clearly stated that they have a problem and that they are also working on it, yet for this board and the survey clutchers only the articles about the denials a while back matter. Sounds like MB couldn't care less about quality to me. Why else would they say they're doing something about a problem they don't think they have. Drove a Buick Park Avenue Ultra today, I swear it drove better than a S600 or 760Li, it was the Harley Earl edition. It started on the first try, unlike those cars. M
#4410 of 24700 That is true, Merc1 by scott1256 Mar 11, 2004 (5:39 am)
Merc/BMW/Audi are saying the right things about this quality question. They well may well take steps to correct the problem. Remember, though, that this deteriorating quality issue is of at least 5-6 years standing and has not thus far been effectively dealt with. I am at the stage of life that I am a potential Merc/Audi customer - but the current offerings have none of the pull of the MB uber-sedans of the 1980s. Those cars had me thinking every day that I couldn't wait to own one. Scott.
#4411 of 24700 merc1 by syswei Mar 11, 2004 (5:53 am)
Glad to see you liked the Park Ave Ultra. Maybe Buick's marketing tagline should be: "Rides like a Lexus, and more reliable than a Mercedes" Of course, the latter isn't exactly something to brag about these days. Let's see if MB lives up to its promises re improving reliability. I'm sure you know better than me...did MB start talking about improving reliability something like 5 years ago, after the ML's problems?
#4412 of 24700 by merc1 Mar 11, 2004 (5:56 am)
Don't forget that a Buick is more technically advanced and has controls that are much easier to operate than all of that German junk. Buicks rule. M
#4413 of 24700 RX400h by syswei Mar 11, 2004 (6:07 am)
I got an email, and Lexus is saying only 270hp (vs 230 for the RX330). I presume that they are tuning more for torque and mpg in the RX400h, as compared to the Italdesign sportscar shown at Geneva. They do talk about "4-cylinder family sedan fuel consumption figures combined with ultra low CO2 emissions for a SUV". Lastly, they say it is CVT, which is news to me. I thought it was technically difficult to do CVT with a heavy vehicle and more than a 2 liter or so engine, so this seems impressive.
#4414 of 24700 syswei by shipo Mar 11, 2004 (6:11 am)
Audi has been doing CVT for several years in heavier cars with larger engines. Best Regards Shipo
#4415 of 24700 shipo by syswei Mar 11, 2004 (6:17 am)
Thanks, I guess my info was very dated!
#4416 of 24700 CVT? by lexus0622 Mar 11, 2004 (11:21 am)
OK, let's help out the uninformed a bit. What does CVT mean?