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Ford to purchase Rover brand name from BMW


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Using a British name on a line of upscale Mazdas?

 

Uff-da

 

Speculation at the Times around a crossover to be sold by LR dealerships seems most interesting--it frees Ford to offer a crossover at LR/Jag dealerships that is neither fish nor fowl. Jag can't sell a crossover. It's just not Jag. But no crossover is likely to meet the rigorous expectations of a LAND Rover.

 

Such a crossover might give Ford a productive use for the Halewood plant, which is absolutely useless, with the XType.

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Well, considering even the half a decade old Ford Mondeo is still better than a POS like the 2006 *Lincoln* Zephyr (save for perhaps the 3.5 V6 and AWD), using the Rover name to sell "Mercuries" would be pretty useless in a market like Europe. Ditto for an upscale Mazda. Kinda redundant since they already have Volvo for that segment of the marketplace (C1 variants, for example).

 

Richard's idea for Rover sounds more plausible, but I still don't think Jag "can't" have a Crossover, same thing could've been said about Porsche and look what happened there. Some people just overestimate the whole "purity of a brand" thing.

 

Fact is, a lot of people HAVE wanted a Jag crossover or SUV for YEARS now. It's not like BMW's, Mercedes' or Porsche's entries into that segment weren't controversial at the time, and just saying "bububu LR" doesn't mean the people wanting a Jag like that will ultimately buy another FMC product.

Edited by pcsario
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They're still selling, and besides, according to you on numerous discussions, underpowered engines are never an issue, sales-wise. ;)

No.

 

I will pay you $100 by PayPal, if you can tell me how much power the V8 makes in the 2007 Porsche Cayenne.

 

(hint: perhaps you should see if there's even going to BE a 2007 Cayenne, before you reply to this post)

 

http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti...041/PROMOBLOG01

Edited by RichardJensen
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No.

 

I will pay you $100 by PayPal, if you can tell me how much power the V8 makes in the 2007 Porsche Cayenne.

 

(hint: perhaps you should see if there's even going to BE a 2007 Cayenne, before you reply to this post)

 

http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti...041/PROMOBLOG01

 

Err... the Cayenne has been on the market for almost half a decade now, of course sales are going to be down. Mostly everyone's sales are down too.

 

Same thing happened with the X5, the old M-Class, and other luxury crossovers at that point in their lifecycles.

 

Tell you what, if the BMW X7 and Bentley's upcoming entry into that segment bomb, I'll admit you have a point. The only people against products like those are people who aren't even crossover or Porsche buyers to begin with. But lets just take Audi for example, their sales and profits have only increased with the introduction of their Q7 SUV.

Edited by pcsario
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Yeah. Looks like sales are down about 30% for the Cayenne. Down so much that they're pulling the plug on the '07 model because the '08 coming out next year is nothing but cosmetic touches because when the '08 update was greenlighted (in 2005) the Cayenne was the hottest thing since sliced bread.

 

The Cayenne is no illustration of how a lasting presence can be built in a radically divergent field by a niche player.

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Telling someone to find the 2007 Cayenne is like trying to sell oceanfront property in Arizona.

 

...or maybe not. I have no clue.

That was pretty much my point.

 

Anyone says that the Cayenne is proof that you can build a sustainable entry far outside your proven fields of expertise, should consider that. Cayenne was a 'one hit wonder' for Porsche. At least they didn't spend a fortune on the redux, because it's probably headed for the same place as the Edsel, the 914, and the Lincoln Blackwood.

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That was pretty much my point.

 

Anyone says that the Cayenne is proof that you can build a sustainable entry far outside your proven fields of expertise, should consider that. Cayenne was a 'one hit wonder' for Porsche. At least they didn't spend a fortune on the redux, because it's probably headed for the same place as the Edsel, the 914, and the Lincoln Blackwood.

 

 

 

IIRC, DeLorenzo flagged that before the Cayenne even hit the street

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