Cars you want to see (more of) in your country.

[Suburbanist]

Originally Posted by zaphod

^You'd think with all the small farms, large pickups would be sold in the Netherlands.
.

They are a rare sight. Small trucks (6-ton) are common though. But for all purposes they are commercial vehicles, not big private "cars".

[nerdly_dood]

Opels and Citroens. The VW Scirocco. Utes. Australian cars. The Toyota Hilux (the Tacoma wasn't what Top Gear tried so hard to destroy.) More cheap compact pickups and more body-on-frame truck-like SUVs. More part-time 4WD instead of AWD.

More rear wheel drive. More diesel. And most importantly, more station wagons. Preferably, all these last three in the same car.

[xrtn2]

All american cars

[Dahlis]

For sweden i would like to see more proper luxury cars (Rolls, Bentley etc.).And less japanese economy cars.

[Mr_Dru]

I want to see more electric cars no Mather which brand.

[Chilio]

I want to see more and more campers...



...so the market gets oversaturated with them and they become really cheaper

[nerdly_dood]

Originally Posted by Dahlis

For sweden i would like to see more proper luxury cars (Rolls, Bentley etc.).And less japanese economy cars.

Part of what makes them luxury cars is that they're very rare, so the things they offer are actually luxurious. Far as I'm concerned, the only luxury cars (if you could call them that, being a cheap five-digit econobox) that interests me are the Mercedes E-class wagon and the Audi A7, because they aren't sedans.

For that matter, and more relevant to the thread, I'd like to see a lot more non-sedan cars because I genuinely do not understand the purpose of a sedan: What does a sedan do better than a wagon? What's it good for?

[Dahlis]

Originally Posted by nerdly_dood

Part of what makes them luxury cars is that they're very rare, so the things they offer are actually luxurious. Far as I'm concerned, the only luxury cars (if you could call them that, being a cheap five-digit econobox) that interests me are the Mercedes E-class wagon and the Audi A7, because they aren't sedans.

For that matter, and more relevant to the thread, I'd like to see a lot more non-sedan cars because I genuinely do not understand the purpose of a sedan: What does a sedan do better than a wagon? What's it good for?

Mercedes E klasse is not a luxury car, we have plenty of them they are what you might consider "normal cars" used as taxis etc. I wouldent consider any Audi a luxury car an executive car perhaps but luxury is something else.

Sedans are better than wagons because they are more comfortable mainly insulation wise.

[shree711]

Originally Posted by Dahlis

Mercedes E klasse is not a luxury car, we have plenty of them they are what you might consider "normal cars" used as taxis etc. I wouldent consider any Audi a luxury car an executive car perhaps but luxury is something else.

Sedans are better than wagons because they are more comfortable mainly insulation wise.

That's just a German (and to some extent European perspective). Also in Hong Kong. I think that they are still considered luxury cars in most places.

[nerdly_dood]

Originally Posted by Dahlis

Mercedes E klasse is not a luxury car, we have plenty of them they are what you might consider "normal cars" used as taxis etc. I wouldent consider any Audi a luxury car an executive car perhaps but luxury is something else.

Sedans are better than wagons because they are more comfortable mainly insulation wise.

What are their retail prices, and how do they compare to, say, the Opel Insignia? In the United States, the E-class starts at a minimum $51,000 MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price, which is usually about 5% higher than the actual negotiated sale price for most cars). The MB S-class starts at $92,350. The Audi A7 starts at $60,100; The Cadillac XTS starts at a minimum MSRP of $44,075; the Buick Lacrosse, a midsize sedan sold as a luxury car, and a good one at that, starts at a minimum $31,660 MSRP. The Volkswagen Passat, a modest midsize sedan, starts at $20,845; the Ford Focus starts at $16,200, and the Chevrolet Spark starts at $12,245. Judging by those numbers, I'd say the E-class is most certainly a luxury car.

Here's a meter I use to judge what a luxury car is or isn't: Is the E-class available without leather seats, i.e. cloth or cheap vinyl? No American with any sense of dignity would be caught dead in a Mercedes with cloth seats.

Also, my impression is that the VW Golf isn't thought of as a modest, cheap little hatchback in Europe, as it is in the US. Its prices in the US are minimum $17,995 for the base 2.5-liter 5-cylinder; $23,995 for the sporty GTI; $24,235 for the fuel-efficient 2.0-liter TDI diesel; and $33,990 for the red-hot Golf R.

Also I'm actually looking for an answer here - and don't give me any of that baloney about sound insulation, new cars are plenty quiet enough for anyone.

Originally Posted by nerdly_dood

For that matter, and more relevant to the thread, I'd like to see a lot more non-sedan cars because I genuinely do not understand the purpose of a sedan: What does a sedan do better than a wagon? What's it good for?

[Halfpipesaur]

Originally Posted by nerdly_dood

Also, my impression is that the VW Golf isn't thought of as a modest, cheap little hatchback in Europe, as it is in the US. Its prices in the US are minimum $17,995 for the base 2.5-liter 5-cylinder; $23,995 for the sporty GTI; $24,235 for the fuel-efficient 2.0-liter TDI diesel; and $33,990 for the red-hot Golf R.

I like the fact that base Golf in Europe has engine half the size of US one (1.2) and 2.5 isn't even sold (2.0 is the biggest)

I would split cars into categories like that:
-Budget: Dacia, (formerly) Skoda, EU Chevrolet e.t.c
-Standard: VW, Opel, Ford, Honda...
-Premium: Mercedes, Audi, Volvo, Lexus...
-Luxury: everything that's hand made and costs hundreds thousands somethings

[shree711]

Originally Posted by Halfpipesaur

I like the fact that base Golf in Europe has engine half the size of US one (1.2) and 2.5 isn't even sold (2.0 is the biggest)

I would split cars into categories like that:
-Budget: Dacia, (formerly) Skoda, EU Chevrolet e.t.c
-Standard: VW, Opel, Ford, Honda...
-Premium: Mercedes, Audi, Volvo, Lexus...
-Luxury: everything that's hand made and costs hundreds thousands somethings

Skoda and Dacia are not on the same level of being budget. Skoda has good cars such as the Superb.

[nerdly_dood]

Originally Posted by Halfpipesaur

I like the fact that base Golf in Europe has engine half the size of US one (1.2) and 2.5 isn't even sold (2.0 is the biggest)

I would split cars into categories like that:
-Budget: Dacia, (formerly) Skoda, EU Chevrolet e.t.c
-Standard: VW, Opel, Ford, Honda...
-Premium: Mercedes, Audi, Volvo, Lexus...
-Luxury: everything that's hand made and costs hundreds thousands somethings

In that case, your category of Premium is roughly analogous to my version of Luxury, and for stuff like Bentleys and Rolls-Royces, they'd be categorized as "Damn, you rich ain't ya".

We don't really have much distinction between your Budget and Standard categories - pretty much the only brand that I'd call a budget brand here is Suzuki, but that's only because its cars are all less than midsize; for each of their respective categories, their vehicles are just as well-equipped as one from another manufacturer, and similarly priced. The closest things in recent memory we've had that were meant as a budget brand were Geo, Saturn and Plymouth, but they have all been discontinued. Kia and Hyundai also used to be budget brands, but they've since vastly improved their vehicles (and increased their prices) so they now compete well with the likes of Ford and Toyota. So I guess the Budget and Standard categories are combined for us, and are comprised of... (gasp)

Chevrolet, Chrysler*, Dodge, Fiat, Ford, GMC, Honda, Hyundai, Jeep, Kia, Mazda, Mini*, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Ram, Scion, Smart, Subaru, Suzuki, Toyota, and Volkswagen.

* Chrysler and Mini are brands that are either making a very poor effort at being higher-end brands, or are... well that's about it really, their cars are just as (not) well-equipped as most other cars the same size, and they're not even priced significantly higher. I was amazed to find that the low- and mid-range Chrysler 200 trim levels don't even include leather seats. I'm guessing the new deal with Fiat will see Chrysler moved upmarket to compete with the likes of Buick and Lincoln.

[kiteni]

in peru, I would like to see.

more electric cars
pagani zonda

[Dahlis]

Originally Posted by nerdly_dood

What are their retail prices, and how do they compare to, say, the Opel Insignia?

Its not just about the price, its about the image and heritage of the brand. I dont think its possible to start a new luxury brand for example, Daimler failed with the Maybachs and that brand had a history.

[nerdly_dood]

Originally Posted by Halfpipesaur

I like the fact that base Golf in Europe has engine half the size of US one (1.2) and 2.5 isn't even sold (2.0 is the biggest)

Now that I think of it... I'm guessing that 2.0 you mention is a two-liter, naturally-aspirated four-cylinder, producing 115 horsepower? That's the base engine for our Jetta sedan, and let me give you a little quote from the Edmunds review on the Jetta:

Pros

Spacious interior and trunk; smooth ride quality; fuel-efficient diesel TDI model.

Cons

Lackluster interior materials; high price of TDI; sluggish throttle with automatic; weak base engine.

In other words, your top-level engine is our smallest and weakest. The others available here are, in increasing order of cost for the lowest trim with each engine, 2.5-liter 5-cylinder, 170 hp; 2.0-liter turbo diesel, 140 hp (but with tons of torque and great fuel economy); 2.0-liter turbo gasoline, 200 hp.

[Dahlis]

The key in that quote is "automatic". You just shouldnt put automatics in small cars.

[nerdly_dood]

Originally Posted by Dahlis

The key in that quote is "automatic". You just shouldnt put automatics in small cars.

You can't sell a car in the States without offering an automatic. Observe the punctuation in the original article - based on that and the "Driving Impressions" section at the end, I'm pretty sure it's just the engine they're talking about, regardless of the transmission.

[Dahlis]

Originally Posted by nerdly_dood

You can't sell a car in the States without offering an automatic. Observe the punctuation in the original article - based on that and the "Driving Impressions" section at the end, I'm pretty sure it's just the engine they're talking about, regardless of the transmission.

It might be so, still automatics are for big barges not small sedans. You americans just need to learn how to drive.

Some european countries have car tax based on engine size my country (Sweden) does not. Thats the main reason for all these small engines.

[Halfpipesaur]

Actually most powerful is Golf R (2 litre, turbo 270 HP). 115 HP would be a 1.4 TSI (they like to put turbochargers in everything lately).

I guess that Jetta had a classic hydro-kinetic transmission. VW made a double-clutch automatic 'DSG' gearbox that is faster and more fuel efficient than traditional manual transmission. It is suitable for even the smallest cars.