AutoGuide First Drive....2018 Buick Regal GS
09-06-17, 07:44 AM
#31
Lexus Champion
I wonder if sales of wagons in NA might improve if and when the CUV trend starts to cool off and consumers start looking for something different. I'm not holding my breath though. The new gen Audi A4 Allroad sales are +78%, but that's only about 200 per month (2,005 YTD) vs. Q3 12,800, Q5 34,600 and Q7 23,200.
09-06-17, 07:55 AM
#32
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
I wonder if sales of wagons in NA might improve if and when the CUV trend starts to cool off and consumers start looking for something different. I'm not holding my breath though. The new gen Audi A4 Allroad sales are +78%, but that's only about 200 per month (2,005 YTD) vs. Q3 12,800, Q5 34,600 and Q7 23,200.
I'm not saying it won't sell (only time will determine that).....but my point is that I don't think we should over-hype it.
09-06-17, 09:35 AM
#33
Lexus Test Driver
Originally Posted by mmarshall
Yes, it will be somewhat of a niche product. But I disagree that it will appeal only to the AARP crowd. Most of them don't care about sport-sedans....comfort is paramount. And, as far as "buying German", don't forget that, apart from the drivetrain, everything else about the Regal IS German. It is, in fact, a rebadged Opel Insignia....a well-respected product in Germany. As far as the argument about sedans being a dying breed, that is true of all sedans, not just German-derived sport-sedans. The only reason that sedans like the Camry and Accord continue to sell is that they they were so enormously popular to start with that it will take them time to really get the numbers down.
There will always be a Camcord, 3 series, C class, A4 and IS. There will not always be a Regal.
09-06-17, 11:33 AM
#34
Lexus Fanatic
Lol. Learn the history. Regal dates back to 1973. I think it will be around for a long time coming.
09-06-17, 04:38 PM
#37
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Also, sometimes, you don't need to really study and follow the industry to see what is obvious. I remember when I first saw the Mazda Navajo SUV in the early 1990s....I could tell, from the looks of the body and feel of the doors, before I even climbed inside, that it was not a true Mazda product, but simply a rebadged two-door Explorer. The interior only verified what was obvious outside. It was the first of a series of Ford-rebadged Mazda products.
09-06-17, 04:46 PM
#38
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
You're correct that the Regal was introduced in 1973, with the redesign of the GM mid-size sedans and coupes. Unfortunately, that was when Buick (and much of the rest of GM) was starting on its long downhill slide in build-quality and the cheapening-out of its vehicles (the GM full-size cars had already shown a noticeable decline from 1970 to the all-new 1971s). Those relatively poor-quality GM years (with the plastic-body Saturn S-series being a rare exception) were to last basically up to the 2008-2009 bankrupcy.....one reason why I did not buy another new Buick for 40 years after I left college, even though I dearly loved the ones I had in college.
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