kverges
Enthusiast
I duped this because I don't think of myself as a whiner and that thread was gettin' a might long. Does this ring true to anyone else or am I a tree falling in the forest with no one around?
The SRT is definitely intended to broaden market appeal and capture folks that want a more mainstream car. You think I am wrong? Look at the thread on dinner with PVO managers and the questions posed:
1. Stripes?
2. Chrome exhaust tips?
3. Hardtop & how to attach it?
Most of the performance numbers asked about were "braggin" stats like 0-60 times and top speed. Precious few questions on hard-core track driving prowess were posed. Heck, I was surprised no one asked about cup holders and the stereo ;-)
Let's face facts; the market is nearing saturation with the current car and what it represents. Also, the economy is such that a broader market appeal and some comfort/practicality are probably essential to sustain sales. My friends in the business are literally selling UNDER INVOICE for the "beloved" GTS in its current iteration. If the market loves the GTS so very much, and the new car is so dreaded, why aren't the last GTSs being snapped up in a feeding frenzy?
DC is changing course with this car, which has the potential to offer greater performance, more conservative styling and comfort. IMO, DC is not going after the Corvette crowd as much as BMW, Porsche, Jaguar, Lexus, and maybe to recapture some M-B folks who have left the fold because the SL-series has gotten TOO soft. Remember we are talking a $80,000 sports car and many buyers want classic, understated prestige as much as anything else. DC can now point to European racing heritage and success and has built a marque with some panache in the last 10 years. This car may be poised to capitalize on the past, while appealing to buyers who find the current car too brazen, cartoonish and attention-getting. Some folks want to quietly impress the way a Benz will impress, rather than draw every teenager and hotrodder at every gas station. The deomgraphics of this car has owners who are primarily 50-something and successful business owners, not 20 year old rich hotrodders (and the easy money dot-com days appear to be behind us, so the age bias will likely remain or strengthen).
As far as I am concerned, the jury is out. I have one ordered, and if it does not spank my GTS at the MotorSport ranch and other tracks, it is gone to the first poseur with $ I can find, before word gets out that the car is wimpy, wimpy, wimpy. I am optimistic, though, that the car will more than make up in performance anything it might lack in outrageous, ****, styling. Plus, I admit that I enjoy my '01 in large part because I can daily drive it, unlike my '93. I have put over 8,000 miles on my GTS in the first year, rain, shine, even through ice storms. I can go to the track or go to a mid-day appointment with a suit and tie in August heat. I look forward to daily driving the SRT, too.
Lets face it, change hurts but in the long run can be a good thing.
Enough drivel from here . . . .
The SRT is definitely intended to broaden market appeal and capture folks that want a more mainstream car. You think I am wrong? Look at the thread on dinner with PVO managers and the questions posed:
1. Stripes?
2. Chrome exhaust tips?
3. Hardtop & how to attach it?
Most of the performance numbers asked about were "braggin" stats like 0-60 times and top speed. Precious few questions on hard-core track driving prowess were posed. Heck, I was surprised no one asked about cup holders and the stereo ;-)
Let's face facts; the market is nearing saturation with the current car and what it represents. Also, the economy is such that a broader market appeal and some comfort/practicality are probably essential to sustain sales. My friends in the business are literally selling UNDER INVOICE for the "beloved" GTS in its current iteration. If the market loves the GTS so very much, and the new car is so dreaded, why aren't the last GTSs being snapped up in a feeding frenzy?
DC is changing course with this car, which has the potential to offer greater performance, more conservative styling and comfort. IMO, DC is not going after the Corvette crowd as much as BMW, Porsche, Jaguar, Lexus, and maybe to recapture some M-B folks who have left the fold because the SL-series has gotten TOO soft. Remember we are talking a $80,000 sports car and many buyers want classic, understated prestige as much as anything else. DC can now point to European racing heritage and success and has built a marque with some panache in the last 10 years. This car may be poised to capitalize on the past, while appealing to buyers who find the current car too brazen, cartoonish and attention-getting. Some folks want to quietly impress the way a Benz will impress, rather than draw every teenager and hotrodder at every gas station. The deomgraphics of this car has owners who are primarily 50-something and successful business owners, not 20 year old rich hotrodders (and the easy money dot-com days appear to be behind us, so the age bias will likely remain or strengthen).
As far as I am concerned, the jury is out. I have one ordered, and if it does not spank my GTS at the MotorSport ranch and other tracks, it is gone to the first poseur with $ I can find, before word gets out that the car is wimpy, wimpy, wimpy. I am optimistic, though, that the car will more than make up in performance anything it might lack in outrageous, ****, styling. Plus, I admit that I enjoy my '01 in large part because I can daily drive it, unlike my '93. I have put over 8,000 miles on my GTS in the first year, rain, shine, even through ice storms. I can go to the track or go to a mid-day appointment with a suit and tie in August heat. I look forward to daily driving the SRT, too.
Lets face it, change hurts but in the long run can be a good thing.
Enough drivel from here . . . .
