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Re: BMW diesels in Europe
Written by: jlbl on Feb 8, 2007 4:54:52 AM
"Just out of curiosity, what kind of turbo compressor does the current BMW diesel in Europe have?" 530d BMW has two turbos, as hpowders says. I am not familiar with its mechanics nor with those of Series 7 BMW diesel. My 2004 530d (manual, 6 gears) has one turbo, with the following characteristics: 3 liters, 6 cyl. with 4 valves per cyl., compression 17:1 5500 rpm, autolimited. Max. velocity: 152.24 miles ... Read More
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Re: Well, [dewey]
Written by: brightness04 on Jan 30, 2007 7:36:05 AM
75 percent growth for the A8 is amazing for this emerging market and there are no ifs and buts about it! Actually that kind of growth for a particular model is not unusual at all for emerging markets. We are talking about a base of only a couple thousand units a year; high per centage growth is common when numerical base is low, in any market. Just to put in context, ... Read More
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BBC Top Gear Survey 2005
Written by: houdini1 on Dec 6, 2006 1:35:05 PM
76,050 people, 159 car models from 36 manufacturers-It's the U.K.'s biggest independent car satisfaction survey. Top Gear Survey 2005- Each of the 76,050 viewers and readers who took part in our survey this year were asked to reveal how every aspect of the car ownership experience matched up to the expectations they had when they first took delivery of their vehicle. Each car is given an overall satisfaction score out of ... Read More
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LS460L
Written by: syswei on Oct 22, 2006 3:46:08 AM
There's an interesting early owner review on CL from a fellow who also owns a 2004 Phaeton and 2005 E55. He says among other things: 1. The Phaeton is bigger... 2. The Phaeton has more "road-hugging weight"... 3. The Phaeton cabin feels significantly wider, with commensurately greater shoulder room... 4. The Phaeton trunk is larger and more usable (our LS460L has the Tiny Trunk option)...[rear a/c and icebox] 5. A few ... Read More
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Re: As the dust settles, [tagman]
Written by: brightness04 on Oct 21, 2006 9:43:24 PM
On the LS forum, there is already notable criticism of the LS460. As in criticism posted by yourself?? and other Europhiles who have not even seen the car in person, much less test-driven the vehicle itself?? Your insistence on asserting "price advantage" only begs to bring the subject of actual price back again . . . after all, how can you even talk about "price advantage" without verifying the actual prices ... Read More
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Re: KBB details [hpowders]
Written by: brightness04 on Oct 20, 2006 9:02:37 AM
What's the percentage they gave? Try to be quantitative. We have both Edmudns and KBB giving 50% for 3yr old 745i (the lowest model, i.e. the one holding up the best among 7 series). That may be "excellent" compared to some other large luxury cars (like the A8), but nowhere close to the 60% residual that BMW offers on leasing the same car or the 63% attained by LS. Is CR ... Read More
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Re: More diesel news [tagman]
Written by: dewey on Oct 6, 2006 8:39:19 PM
This is interesting, as Toyota and Lexus move forward with hybrids, it would seem that diesels are getting poised to clobber them. Tagman that is a great post about diesels. But in terms of diesels the article below is a wretched fly in the ointment : J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Problems with Heavy-Duty Truck Engines Increase as More Manufacturers Employ New Emission Standards WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.: 5 October 2006 -As ... Read More
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The BMW-Pontiac thing
Written by: designman on Sep 16, 2006 10:05:11 AM
Pontiac has long wanted to be like BMW… This comes up periodically. Are you referring to the kidney grille? If so, below is one of my posts from a debate I got into three years ago. Pontiac had it first even though BMW had the wherewithal to patent it, and apparently Pontiac has been unrelenting in not conceding the issue with their grille designs through the years. I can't see how ... Read More
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BMW Misguided Approach
Written by: dewey on Aug 2, 2006 8:04:35 AM
SOURCE: Wall Street Journal dated Aug. 2 , 2006 ( First and foremost I, Dewey hereby disclaim any responsibility of the content from WSJ.com--drivel or non-drivel) 1)For well over a decade, BMW has focused its marketing almost exclusively on its cars' German engineering and technical sophistication, and targeted its message to one very specific customer group -- upscale auto enthusiasts. And that is exactly the way it should be. 2)In a ... Read More
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Re: Actually, [syswei]
Written by: merc1 on Aug 2, 2006 4:22:13 AM
I haven't really been reading what all the fuss is about with the surveys this time around, but I do think JDP should have broken the IQS into two surveys because certain brands (like BMW) rank differently when you break down the two categories they used this year: A little something I saw on MBWorld.org, someone posted the breakout for the study: Auto news More rankings June 8, 2006 Email this ... Read More
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Re: Everybody [blkhemi]
Written by: oac on Aug 2, 2006 12:25:21 AM
I've never ever read(and I read a lot) anything out of Germany that'll suggest a LS to be more reliable than a MB. That's not Germany's MO. Most rags there don't mention car and LS in the same sentence. Typical sentiment from a Germancarfan dissing Lexus, and the LS. Read that article syswei linked yet ? Maybe you'd not like this 2004 survey in this link as well, from Germany's Autobild ... Read More
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hybrid drivetrain complexity
Written by: dhanley on Jun 26, 2006 7:06:29 PM
It is true that both MB and BMW also have investigated hybrid technology. However, the approach is quite different than toyota. MB/BMW seem to be of the opinion that progression of the IC engine will allow it to remain the central component of the drivetrain. For example, in the hybrid X5 there is a small but very powerful electric motor attached to ultra-capacitors. The electric motor produces 479lb-ft. The ultra-capacitors don't ... Read More
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Re: baby boomers, gen-x, gen-y, boring price discourse and 1969-1993 [blcki
Written by: stevekilburn on May 24, 2006 7:54:20 PM
With increasing globalization, the heritage factor has assumed a new role and is no more the dominant factor. And yes the pace at which we are moving, 35 years is more than enough. I would say you can duplicate that success in 20 years. Which means in 2009, when Lexus celebrates its 20th, we will have a toast and to germans too, who have sustained such competition. Benz churned out million+ ... Read More
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Infiniti problems?
Written by: drfill on May 24, 2006 6:26:51 AM
Here's my accessment: The G35 works. Keeping the manual. Over 300HP this fall. I like the upgrades inside, and the coupes lines due next Spring. The FX is a great, edgy design, but it is not very space-efficient. Not good for families. Everytime I see one, a single male is driving it. I would deem it successful, but it is niche vehicle, unable to play in the RX330's sandbox. It will ... Read More
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Re: Merc1 [syswei]
Written by: merc1 on May 14, 2006 9:30:14 PM
You're so desparate to find fault with Lexus that if one of their models shows down yty numbers in the second year, you make it out to be a failure. I love it, this is exactly what Lexus fans love to do. Look at a MB's sales and cry crisis. It happens every year (usually in the first few months of the new year) when Mercedes' sales are the ones in ... Read More
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Re: The New Mercedes? [oac]
Written by: merc1 on Apr 23, 2006 6:52:37 PM
Actually, Merc1, u do a fair bit of excuse making yourself. Just today you had an excuse why the LS430 beat the S430 in the MY2004 comparo - the S430 was too old ! Not nearly as many as you. Did you actually read the post? I said that this time it will be different as in newer cars, I didn't cut the S430 any slack for being the oldest car ... Read More
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Re: MB, BMW?? what else you have? [hpowders]
Written by: oac on Jan 15, 2006 3:13:58 PM
2004? Who cares about 2004? Who's looking backwards? That's ancient history in this dynamic business. Of course its history bcos your German car brands lost to the LS430... Figures. These are auto rags who love the German cars but are objective enough to declare the LS430 as top notch among its peers.... Bitter pill for some German car fans to swallow, no doubt. BTW, the current 2006 versions of these cars ... Read More
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Re: MB, BMW?? what else you have? [oac]
Written by: hpowders on Jan 15, 2006 2:43:16 PM
2004? Who cares about 2004? Who's looking backwards? That's ancient history in this dynamic business. My prediction may come as a shock so brace yourselves, loyal readers: The BMW 760Li will win the next Car And Driver HELM Comparo, assuming the testers don't die of boredom after testing the Toyota/Lexus entry and are still around to test the other vehicles. Hope they test that one last, so we will at least ... Read More
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Re: MB, BMW?? what else you have? [dewey]
Written by: oac on Jan 15, 2006 2:10:01 PM
The Lexus LS beat the MB S in head to head competition. Please englighten me with the facts? It appears the world and myself are quite ignorant. You asked, and I am pleased to inform: Better be ready with excuses.... 1) 2004 Motor Trend Comparo (1st = A8L, 2nd = LS430) http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/luxury/112_0409_class/index14.html 2) 2004 Car and Driver $70K sedan comparo (1st = LS430) Ranking (last place = S430) 6. Mercedes-Benz S430, ... Read More
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Re: MB, BMW?? what else you have? [oac]
Written by: lexusi on Jan 15, 2006 2:09:24 PM
MB sales did increase, but well not tremodously!! they did a good job, thanx to lexus that taught them how to build luxury cars, i say, this belongs to lexus, otherwise MB cars were/will be the same until now if there was no lexus :) 2004 - 221,610 1993 - 61,899 something around 3.6 % ! will you compare it to lexus growth!! hmm NA! Lexusization of the world Lexusi
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MB TREMENDOUS sales increase???
Written by: lexusi on Jan 15, 2006 2:00:43 PM
Although in my IMHO I do not judge the car by its sales, but thats why manufacturers produce cars? to sell no to display?! anyhow, Lexus sales were shown against BMW sales, and here is the other part of the story, the MB sales (USA only), lets see how tremendous it is! yah BTW, here is an intersting point: "Posting its best sales month with 31,192 units sold in December, MBUSA ... Read More
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Re: A little perspective, please [garyh1]
Written by: oac on Jan 14, 2006 9:55:58 AM
Well said, Gary... Ditto Len... The LS sales, even in its worst slump year(s) have always been higher than 7 series sales in its best years. That's saying something, isn't it ? We have 3 S-class sedans (430/500/600), 3 7-series sedans (745i/L/760), against 1 LS430, and they cannot even come close to beating it. 2004 C&D comparo had the LS430 #1 against its peers... Which means that the LS430 comes closest ... Read More
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Re: 2005 sales [syswei]
Written by: dewey on Jan 5, 2006 12:04:23 PM
It wasn't you but maybe dewey or someone who not long ago was touting BMW as being the leading US seller of luxury CARS, to the exclusion of SUVs. True and BMW is the number one luxury car seller in USA! And according to the latest statistics BMW cars have more momentum than BMW SUVs. Up to now nothing has changed. Spin-Free Analysis of Undistorted Data Annual sales of BMW's two ... Read More
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Re: I Repeat [hpowders]
Written by: brightness04 on Dec 27, 2005 10:32:07 PM
I can only conclude that the 71,177 people who bought or leased the G in 2004 did so because they simply couldn't afford to move up to the ultimate driving machine which is the amazing and incomparable 330i, the undisputed leader in the entry level luxury performance sedan category. You can conclude whatever you wish. My conclusion was that, until the arrival of the 2006 model year E90 330i in the ... Read More
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Re: With The Fabulous [dewey]
Written by: brightness04 on Dec 27, 2005 10:24:08 PM
Your G35 and BMW 3 series sales figures are both wrong. Please follow thread before making accusations. Those numbers were not mine. They were quoted from bdr127's post regarding 2004 sales. As for G35 vs 3, please note: (1) only 330i is really relevent; 325i is a poser mobile that has no counterpart in the G; 325i accounts for something like 70-80% of 3 sedan sales (2) I never claimed G ... Read More
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Re: With The Fabulous [brightness04]
Written by: bdr127 on Dec 27, 2005 4:30:00 PM
Facts, and only facts. The last go-around meant before the recent and upcoming new designs. I personally know several people who picked G over E46, including several sedan buyers over the past four years and a coupe buyer only a few months ago. So is that "factual evidence" or "anecdotal evidence", then? Sounds like the latter.... How about we use the actual sales numbers from BMW's and Infiniti's annual reports. We'll ... Read More
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Re: Fact checking !!! [oac]
Written by: merc1 on Dec 10, 2005 12:55:06 PM
First let me be quite clear here. I do NOT care about being credible with YOU. Obviously you have a huge ego about yourself, more power to you. You are a poster here like everyone else. As to reliability, wow... where do one start ? There is too much track record here of your statements.... Lets just let sleeping dogs lie. Thats all fine and good, problem is posting incorrect sales ... Read More
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Re: Fact checking !!! [bdr127]
Written by: oac on Dec 9, 2005 11:25:23 PM
Facts: As of Dec 1, LS430 YTD sales = 23723, 7-Series YTD sales = 15989, S-Class YTD sales = 14124. 30113 COMBINED. Unvanishedly made up. Good job. Bravo.... Why not look up what MB + BMW sold in the entire 2004 v the LS over a full year performance. Hint: Its 745/760 + S-430/500/600/55 = LS. Even the 2005 numbers should be shameful to these German cars. They are outselling one ... Read More
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Re: Fact checking !!! [merc1]
Written by: oac on Dec 10, 2005 12:26:30 PM
Must have taken a while to come up with this one OAC. I haven't called anyone anything. It amazes me how you holler "personal" and/or "foul" when you can't compete on the facts. I have shown in many posts how you personalize everything in your posts. What was your response to it ? Paraphrasing you here: it was your way of getting back at those who continually remind you that you ... Read More
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Re: Fact checking !!! [oac]
Written by: merc1 on Dec 10, 2005 11:31:59 AM
The vitriol against Lexus and Lex fans is disturbing. There is so much name calling, it is just not funny. Why ? You and others now fancy calling any rebuttal to your German *we are the world* posts as "spin". You are still waiting for us to "unspin" the so-called Toyota helping GM thingy. That was a red herring thrown out here by BMW fans to get us all knotted up, ... Read More
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Latest figures: BMW ROCKS HARD.
Written by: tagman on Dec 7, 2005 8:48:22 PM
Put any spin you like on this: FRANKFURT, Dec 7 (Reuters) - German premium carmaker BMW (BMWG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) widened its lead over arch-rival Mercedes Car Group in November as sales grew by 9.5 percent, fuelled by brisk demand for its BMW 3-Series saloon, data showed on Wednesday. Sales of 114,044 cars last month put year-to-date deliveries above BMW's level for all of 2004 and reinforced its bragging rights over ... Read More
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Re: Merc [merc1]
Written by: designman on Apr 26, 2005 4:32:43 AM
How ironic it is. With 911 sales at 1744 units for the quarter and Boxster at 1752 the article goes on to say this: “The Cayenne SUV was Porsche's sore spot. U.S. sales were 3,093 units, down 23.3 percent from the first quarter of 2004.” I hope MB learned a lesson with SLK. Actually, I hope EVERYONE learned a lesson because of it. Are you listening BMW?
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Re: Jaguar [xkss]
Written by: merc1 on Apr 8, 2005 3:55:13 AM
Though I did like the XJS way back in the day, I really never really gave Jaguars too much thought until the 1997 XK8 showed up. Then came the 2000 S-Type and now the 2004 XJ. The XK is still as timeless as day one. Remarkable. The 2000-2002 S-Type was not up to the Jaguar name imo. The cheap Ford touches were everywhere. Then for 2003 the car got its first ... Read More
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Car & Driver's long-term XJR
Written by: xkss on Apr 4, 2005 3:21:16 AM
read this article Car & Driver picked up their long-term 2004 XJR in the summer of 2004, which was shorty after production of the new aluminum XJ began. Car & Driver's long-term 2004 Jaguar XJR Also, the 2005 Jaguar Super V8, the flagship XJ, gets better fuel economy than the BMW 760Li.
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Jaguar
Written by: xkss on Apr 4, 2005 12:40:42 AM
is past their glory days, as is just about every other car maker (except for perhaps Aston Martin). The new 1995-1997 Jaguar XJ is a reliable luxury car. The new XJ has also been much more reliable than the previous XJ while having more quality. That article I posted about Jaguar and aluminum pointed out that the HUGE investment for aluminum Jaguars is continuingly being developed. The next XK will use ... Read More
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New Jaguar XJ
Written by: xkss on Apr 3, 2005 8:11:08 PM
The new Jaguar XJ's 4.2 liter V-8 does NOT have the Nikasil coated engines and water pumps problems of the old 4.0 liter V-8. The new XJ has a curve in its rear doors that starts at the end, like old Jaguars. The previous XJ didn't have that curve. The new XJ's outer headlights are bigger than the inner headlights, like the original XJ. The new XJ's wheels are pushed out ... Read More
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Re: CR and the X5 [syswei]
Written by: hpowders on Mar 10, 2005 8:10:03 PM
All well and good, but what about the 2005 BMW 5 series? 13 full or half red circles indicating above average reliability and 1 clear circle indicating average reliability. So no below average ratings out of 14 possible trouble spots for 2004-the first year for the new model. A very impressive showing! From this, CR gives this car a much worse than average projection for 2005? I believe CR has some ... Read More
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Re: accident avoidance [sv7887]
Written by: hpowders on Mar 9, 2005 6:55:10 PM
The BMW 530i was also rated the highest for accident avoidance along with the 2 Mercedes in the April 2005 CR Auto issue. Both Mercedes were reviewed with 5-speed automatics. The E in June 2004. The S in November 2003. Both the E and the S received CR's worst reliability ratings when reviewed in these issues. The BMW 530i received the safe "new" reliability rating in the June 2004 issue of ... Read More
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Re: take off the German blinders II [tiag_m5]
Written by: hpowders on Mar 8, 2005 7:34:36 PM
I agree that CU can probably do a better job on reliability. I notice that the reliability rating for the 2005 BMW 5 series in its auto issue is the worst they give out-a black circle(bottom of page 42). Yet if you go to the back of the issue where all the cars are rated for reliability scores listing 14 trouble spots from engine down to body hardware(page 83) for the ... Read More
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Re: Side Airbags [sv7887]
Written by: tiag_m5 on Mar 8, 2005 5:45:36 PM
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety would probably disagree with you. You seem to ignore that frame construction is the Number ONE factor whether it be an airplane or car. Wrong. That article mentions that a good structure is necessary in addition to side airbags. A good structure alone simply isn't enough. Besides, why does it matter? You talk as if Lexus has a better structure than Mercedes when there is ... Read More
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iancar
Written by: merc1 on Mar 5, 2005 8:59:49 PM
think there is a reason for why Japanese cars look bland to you. The reason is many new cars are Japanese brands. For example, everytime i stop at traffic lights i will see either corollas or civics. For some occassion, i even saw 3 or 4 civics at once. Therefore, even the car with greatest style in the world will look bland after millions driving in one. Nah a good looking ... Read More
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Oac
Written by: merc1 on Mar 5, 2005 11:43:28 AM
"And why should production be the concept ? I work in a firm that puts out prototypes. Trust me, the final product is often much different from the prototype. That is what marketing input and meeting market demand is all about.... Here is the problem. It seems that all Lexus types like to equate the car business with other type of business and they aren't always the same. Carmakers use concept ... Read More
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2005 CR Reliability Rankings are out
Written by: oac on Mar 3, 2005 8:50:37 PM
Consumer Reports had the largest response to its latest annual auto reliability survey ever, allowing the nonprofit organization to compile reliability portraits on more than 810,000 vehicles, up from 675,000 vehicles in 2003 and 480,000 in 2002. This is the second year in a row that Consumer Reports surveyed subscribers to both its magazine and its web site, www.ConsumerReports.org, a total of more than 5 million consumers throughout the U.S. The ... Read More
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Re: reversing the spin [denaliinpa]
Written by: brightness04 on Feb 20, 2005 9:34:36 AM
It's funny how you accused bais when I provided a link that listed a table of hard data comparing aluminum vs. steel tensile strength, then cite a link that has no hard data at all just promotional fluff . . . "talking to you is like a martian trying to have a discussion with a fungo"{Bull Durham). Do you dispute those tensile strength data are inccorrect? or you just have no ... Read More
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Re: [brightness04]
Written by: reality2 on Feb 17, 2005 11:04:57 AM
Check the stats for European sales before you say that the LS is more prevalent than the A8L. Also, the A8L beat the Lexus in a comparo from Motor Trend last year. It all depends on the magazine. The A8L has garnished more world-wide accolades than any car in its class. A3s aren't sold in the US first of all. Audi moved 12100 A8s in Western Europe, BMW moved 12150 7-Series, ... Read More
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Re: [denaliinpa]
Written by: reality2 on Feb 17, 2005 12:45:02 AM
First of all anyone who is says Audi is not luxury automobile company doesn't know squat about automobiles. That is the most ignorant comment I have ever heard. Aside from many opinions posted here by Lexus fans thinking they actually know anything about other brands...like the guy asking whether Audi had heated seats. Not only do you get heated seats in an Audi, but you get a dual DVD rear entertainment ... Read More
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Re: MBs problems
Written by: jvcn on Feb 15, 2005 8:21:46 PM
This is purely anecdotal so make of it what you will: I met someone this weekend who is a bit of a car nut in So Cal. Very rich guy with several big houses, etc. He says that for him, MB doesn't provide a good fit either for luxury or sportiness. He still likes BMW but he independently brought up the WSJ article about MB's problems. He has ... Read More
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sv7887
Written by: merc1 on Feb 14, 2005 6:50:54 AM
"But these sort of things contribute to the buyer's decision. I just picked up a Financial Times detailing MB's profit and reliability issues..Are you saying this has NO impact whatsoever on the public? Why would a reputed newspaper like the Times bother to report it then? Regardless of what you say, people to pay attention to the likes of the FT, Consumer Reports and JDP. We've been over this before ... Read More
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no title
Written by: sv7887 on Feb 14, 2005 5:39:11 AM
Hi All, Toyota prices the LS for less because it's more efficient to begin with. The TPS mantra they follow is the best in the industry. They fully utilize the benefits of platform sharing and not offering numerous engine types..Hence their strong financials. Their cars are built primarly by robots, hence avoiding the union worker mess the Germans have to deal with..Basic economics will tell you the most efficient producer is ... Read More
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Oac
Written by: merc1 on Feb 14, 2005 11:01:42 PM
"Can you provide your views of the Chicago auto show ? I am sure you'll have a lot of interesting viewpoints at what's going on in the auto world. Looking forward to reading your report. In the middle of all of this I've almost forgotten what I saw there!!!! Well I must preface this with the fact that Chicago isn't what Detroit is in presentation or brands represented. Chicago ... Read More
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Mercedes is more history than future
Written by: footie on Feb 14, 2005 7:14:22 PM
MB has had a great run in the automobile business. They have many patents because they were there when the technology was originally being developed. They are no longer the leader, either in total number nor new issues. Toyota has been for some time. Unfortunately the company evolved, as do many early leaders into complacency, arrogance, and wrong-headed customer attitudes. "Vee know vat the customer vants and neets". Failing ... Read More
