Quote:
Originally Posted by Efthreeoh
I'm not sure you did. The quote being "Sounds intriguing, yet I struggle visualizing a scenario with me owning a Caddy, short of waking up retired somewhere in Florida, starring at the wrong side of 80..." Says nothing about quality, or value of the current Cadillac offerings, but rather some stupid perception that Cadillac cars target market is 80-year olds, which hasn't been a relevant argument for the past 15 years or so. If the OP chooses to be ignorant regarding the driving quality of a current-day Cadillac, then he's possibly really just a badge whore anyway, and the lost qualities that used to make BMW the driving "envy of the world", is lost on him. A nice, soft-riding, poor steering, and lousy-braking, I-drive-centric, luxo-barge F30 is probably just the right car for him.
I'm old enough to remember when Mercedes Benzes used GM automatic transmissions, and wise enough not to limit my car choices to only the ones that have a Roundel on the hood, or only come from Germany. I find it amusing that once Cadillac has beaten BMW at its original game (excellent handling) the auto magazines all of a sudden start judging the beloved Roundel-brand by the design and usability of it's infotainment system.
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Sorry you can't grasp the concept of brand image. When you charge the same price as the competition, brand image goes a long way in the luxury market. And if he's an auto enthusiast and thinks that way, imagine what your typical luxury car buyer thinks. I guess everyone who glosses over Cadillac is an idiot, judging by their sales numbers...a lot of people are idiots.
Weird, most things I've read say that Caddie's handle and drive better than their current BMW counterparts (as do Lexus with F-Sport packages). That shouldn't be surprising, Cadillac benchmarked the E46 3 Series when engineering the ATS and have dinged it (rightfully so) on the terrible CUE infotainment system. There's other factors that come into play when buying a car other than how it drives. The controls in the center stack of a Cadillac are in this glossy black material, they're also all touch sensitive meaning not just the screen but the entire center stack becomes covered in fingerprints over time.
Funny how you're so quick to judge newer BMW's, even though it's doubtful you've really ever driven any of them, much like you probably never drove a Cadillac or any of the other competitors yet like to just assume they are all better than new BMW's.
Most of us (myself included) test drove other cars in the segment before making a decision, it's not like most of us mindlessly went into a BMW dealership and bought a car. If you like to engage in rosy retrospection then knock yourself out. Still doesn't change the fact that people won't buy Cadillacs without massive discounts because people still view the brand as one that makes subpar cars for the elderly. It took Audi 20 years to get out of their bad image, anyone with half a brain knows that it takes time to rebuild consumer trust. Building a good product typically isn't enough, when someone is ignoring your brand they won't magically start paying attention once you turn the corner unless you change your image.
Either way, this basic Marketing 101/Business 101 concept is completely lost on you. Maybe you're just too old to understand, unfortunately the luxury automotive market isn't, that's why no one is really buying Cadillacs despite a healthy and robust luxury market. But let's say you do just "get it" and the rest of us don't. Hop on over to Cadillac's HQ in NYC and let them know you have the answer to get more people in Cadillacs, just call everyone who'd rather spend their money on the competition (or maybe just BMW's) a bunch of idiots. That'll get people flocking into Cadillac showrooms for sure.