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That is one of my points. That and the complicated suspension system. How much to replace a shock absorber? Or the shock module. More electronic crap.
Five driving modes? Who repairs that when it malfunctions.
An expensive rear wheel drive automobile where there in little market need.
Why not put all of the engineering and development and manufacturing costs back into the inexpensive sedans/SUV's ? Make them better and more comfortable.
Dumb management at the highest levels.
My buddy replaced one suspension strut on his MB. The part alone was $1200. Plenty of cars from different manufacturers come with a button/controls for different suspension ride modes. Your questions apply to other manufacturers also. I'm sure those are cheap and simple to repair.
As for who repairs them? The same people who repair MB r BMW or any car once it's out of warranty. You seem to think because it's not a "luxury brand" that somehow it's more complicate.
They are doing what MB BMW and any other luxury brand is doing. They are simply getting you in the door with the "cheaper" brand and hoping as you get more affluent in life you'll step up to their "luxury" brand. Or are tired of overpaying for luxury.
Look at Caddy. In the 00s and anytime before that they were THE choice for white haired matrons. If you were 55 and older it was a Caddy. Then Caddy totally revamped their line. The coma inducing ride and styling was gone. Why is it not ok for Kia or Hyundai to do the same?
To get us back on track and to sum up what I have been trying to in a few posts, the biggest problem with the Stinger is that, while it may be eminently capable and fun to drive (a benefit of the doubt assumption for now, at best), it isn't sure what it wants to be. Just look at this:
- It's a CD-sized car with D/E-sized wheelbase. Does it compete against the likes of the Fusion and Malibu or the Taurus and Impala?
- It has a 255 hp base engine which is a bit overkill as base goes for CD (Optima's high-po engine has 274, similar stats for Accord/Camry). Then it adds a 365 hp upgrade which is Taurus SHO (again, larger car) territory and 40 up on Fusion Sport. But, whoops, it's actually slower to 60 than the Fusion Sport (albeit marginally - by 0.1 sec - but still).
- It's RWD/AWD, which is a unique formula in the non-premium segment and there are indications of the premiums going away from RWD, as well.
- KIA itself makes no bones about it - it's designed by a German, it's designed for the Autobahn and it's supposed to compete with Audi/BMW/Mercedes. It's also premium-priced ($30-45K by all early estimates), which is basically Audi A4 territory. But it's not a premium brand and its performance, despite the large power numbers is middling by premium standards.
- It lacks a manual (or even a DCT) to have true cred among the performance crowd.
In short, it's a mess. It's an overpowered CD, an underpowered D/E and a non-premium premium, all the while boasting some fairly impressive (if not overwhelming) performance numbers and decent looks. My prediction is that it will go the way of the Chevy SS - a brilliant car nobody bought.
To get us back on track and to sum up what I have been trying to in a few posts, the biggest problem with the Stinger is that, while it may be eminently capable and fun to drive (a benefit of the doubt assumption for now, at best), it isn't sure what it wants to be. Just look at this:
- It's a CD-sized car with D/E-sized wheelbase. Does it compete against the likes of the Fusion and Malibu or the Taurus and Impala?
- It has a 255 hp base engine which is a bit overkill as base goes for CD (Optima's high-po engine has 274, similar stats for Accord/Camry). Then it adds a 365 hp upgrade which is Taurus SHO (again, larger car) territory and 40 up on Fusion Sport. But, whoops, it's actually slower to 60 than the Fusion Sport (albeit marginally - by 0.1 sec - but still).
- It's RWD/AWD, which is a unique formula in the non-premium segment and there are indications of the premiums going away from RWD, as well.
- KIA itself makes no bones about it - it's designed by a German, it's designed for the Autobahn and it's supposed to compete with Audi/BMW/Mercedes. It's also premium-priced ($30-45K by all early estimates), which is basically Audi A4 territory. But it's not a premium brand and its performance, despite the large power numbers is middling by premium standards.
- It lacks a manual (or even a DCT) to have true cred among the performance crowd.
In short, it's a mess. It's an overpowered CD, an underpowered D/E and a non-premium premium, all the while boasting some fairly impressive (if not overwhelming) performance numbers and decent looks. My prediction is that it will go the way of the Chevy SS - a brilliant car nobody bought.
I don't now if 39-45k is premium priced anymore. I priced out a loaded Sportage and it was 36,000. I was asked to price out a work truck and damn near ran into 46,000 for a base model regular cab long bed diesel F350 4x4.
I don't now if 39-45k is premium priced anymore. I priced out a loaded Sportage and it was 36,000. I was asked to price out a work truck and damn near ran into 46,000 for a base model regular cab long bed diesel F350 4x4.
Yeah, you can spec a lot of "regular" cars out to insane heights these days, but that price range is still generally the sweet spot for a premium mid-size. Obviously, with Audi and BMW you can easily crest the $60K mark in that segment, but few will.
Yeah, you can spec a lot of "regular" cars out to insane heights these days, but that price range is still generally the sweet spot for a premium mid-size. Obviously, with Audi and BMW you can easily crest the $60K mark in that segment, but few will.
What's funny is when my buddy went to look for a base price E350. Couldn't find one anywhere in So Cal. That's all he wanted. The cheapest E350 you could buy. It still was a "loaded" vehicle because base in a MB is considered fairly loaded in anything else.
I looked for a SUV for my wife. We didn't want base but we didn't need a platinum package either. In order to get leather we had to step up to the tech and convenience packages totaling 3-5k in additional costs we didn't want. It would be cheaper o buy the car and order the aftermarket leather kit. I think dealers order so few base or just above base models. This way they can steer shoppers into higher cost models.
Btw my buddy ended up ordering his base E350. He didn't care about the tech and chrome packages.
What Kia Hyundai has going for it is option for option they end up cheaper than the competition when you total up the final bill. Sure there is some difference in quality, but it's not much and it's offset by a less lighter wallet.
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