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Automotive News & Views Can GM make Cadillac the standard of the world Again?
6098 messages, Last post on Aug 14, 2009 at 4:43 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Replying to: circlew (Jul 18, 2008 5:36 pm)
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Replying to: laurasdada (Jul 18, 2008 6:33 pm) What a shame. Regards, OW
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Ok, what can I say. The Caddy XLR just has some kind of hold on me. For the fun of it, on the way home I stop at the Caddy dealer. Two XLRs with the tops down, one a new '08 the other a used '06. After a few minutes, salesman comes over with the keys, figured he was going to see if I was interested. He basically ignores me (like he's my wife!). So, I say, "Takin' it for a ride?" He replies, "No, just putting the tops up, closing soon." He hops in the '08 and the dance begins: Trunk opens high, panels fold in, top comes up and lowers onto windshield and then...nothing. Trunk won't close. Sales dude sits there for a couple of minutes, kinda shaking his head. Reversed his field, top goes down, properly. Waits a minute, then top goes up properly. Hey, you hit .500 in the bigs and guaranteed Hall of Fame! As he headed to the '06, he just looked at me and kinda shrugged. I got into my uber-shiny TL and opened/closed the sunroof without incident as I left... |
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Replying to: circlew (Jul 18, 2008 6:46 pm) |
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Replying to: circlew (Jul 18, 2008 11:31 am) The Cadillac from the last half of the 70's were good cars, although the diesels may have been less reliable. The problems really started with the 1981 8-6-4 engine and was then follow up with the 1982 4100 engine which was very unreliable with something like 25% of them failing. By comparison the Cimarron was a very reliable car. |
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Replying to: marsha7 (Jul 18, 2008 5:03 pm) I dunno Bob - I remember my father making disparaging comments about VW Bugs and their lawn mower engines when we'd tool around in his '53 Buick. I never bought a Buick but I've had at least 4 VWs. My wife grew up in a Fastback/Squareback family and she hates VWs. She made me sell this one after we met. So all those kids growing up in Camcord families may wind up enthralled with CTS's. |
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indeed, I've nelected the Chinese auto indutry's history, which is all tied up with volkswagen... but I cant find anything on Subaru being sold to toyota, got any link? thanks.
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Replying to: m4d_cow (Jul 19, 2008 8:23 am) Toyota Boosts Stake in Subaru's Parent (Inside Line) |
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I cannot argue with you, except to provide what I believe, as of 2007, was a fact or darn close to a fact, that the imports now have about 50% market share of the American auto market...that speaks for SOMETHING, and we can discuss what it is for quite some time... But, I assume my theory is at least PARTIALLY correct, considering that car buyers today in their 30s and 40s would have been old enough, as children, in the 1980s to see Mom and Dad complain about much of the junk back then made right here in America...those OVER 40, like me, would have lived the 1970s and 1980s...you may argue that is ancient history, and it is, but the union really has not changed much, so it is easy for oldsters to remember the boat anchors they had... Add to that the number of over-50 that now buy MB, BMW, Lexus and Infiniti, and it is my opinion that they have NOT forgotten the ancient history from 25-30 years ago...they ain't buying as many Cadillacs or Town Cars, as the competition has been gaining for two decades and does not seem to be stopping... Lexus LS has been improving over the years, Town Car is virtually unchanged for, what, over a decade???...every time an over-50 buys an import, that would have been a guaranteed Caddy/TC sale 15-20 years ago...competitors have been upgrading while Town Car, which should be one of the top sellers to those who want luxury, just ain't there... I think the memories of the junk of the 1980s (and somewhat into the 90s, which isn't quite ancient history) will haunt the Big 3 for a long time...when one is bitten and ripped off with a luxury purchase, it may be quite some time before you try that brand again, especially when the competition has products that are, minimally, equally competitive, and possible even better... And, when the teenagers hear their parents complain about the shoddy treatment, poor quality, constant repair of their Caddy or Lincoln, just how much brand loyalty do those teens grow up with???...basically none, almost being programmed to avoid the Big 3, which makes then lean to the imports... Management abused us, union workers abused us, dealers abused us, and now they sit and wonder why we buy imports...they are reaping what their arrogance has sown for 2-3 decades of crap, and now that we have alternatives, they cannot figure out what to do...it is almost like the thought of a quality vehicle never even crossed their minds...the only good coming out of this will be the near-term destruction of the UAW When non-union southerners who can lose their jobs for poor quality start making American cars, then it will be Lexus will be wondering why Caddys are so good and why Lexus showrooms are empty, but as long as the union keeps threatening to strike while plants are being closed due to lack of sales, they will only push MORE Americans to buy imports...when is the last time a Honda plant shut down for a strike???...
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Replying to: marsha7 (Jul 19, 2008 5:11 pm) Does anyone really think that theses companies can offer cars better than ToyHonSan for the masses to fight high energy prices?? With their current problems, the cash will run out before the products win out. People will pay more for quality earned by these "invaders"! Lexus blows Caddy into the weeds on pure luxury and quality, period. Even Hyundai has an unintended Caddy Killer as their target was Mercedes and Lexus but at the same time annihilates the price vs. Caddy. I viewed one at the dealer this past week. $35-37K LOADED and a 10 year warranty will ensure complete and utter success for this car. The Asians are just getting warmed up will GM bleeds to death! Since I'm not dead yet, I will continue to never visit a Caddy dealer until their products surpass global competition. I, however, wish everyone who buys a Cadillac much pleasure and satisfaction with their ownership experience. Regards, OW Regards, OW |
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