Hapa DC5

another one...

"german design are new, engines new. j-series debuted before my visa was granted. TL matches fuel economy of new german designs. wait till 2014 when new TL arrives and shows matching hp and superior fuel economy and superior side mirror design. germans will see new TL in shock and back to drawing board"

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

I wonder if that's before or after the fact that we consider the Germans have yet to be "shocked" by Acura with anything other than the NSX, which was a Honda product anyway (well not that Acuras aren't Hondas but . . . . well you get it).

Hapa DC5

Acura is the prime competitor of the established German 3....

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

You incorrect. Germans have never been competitor to Acura. Acura always dominated throughout history in all areas. Acura TL faster than competing S4 (0-60 in 5.3 compared to the Audi 4.8), and Audi with its combined 21 mpg is not comparable to TL's average 20 mpg. Germans never can get Acura history, road presence or superior aerodynamics, such as larger mirrors and increased ground clearance. Germans need nice wheels to look good. Not true of Acura.

You don't understand market.

YEH

Uhm, that's even taking out sales of the Genesis coupe (unlike you, I don't make ridiculous claims).

As usual, the rest of your claims are hogwash.

Yes, b/c the Sorento is only 6 inches longer than the CR-V, has both an available V6 and 3rd row seating option which the CR-V does not have - but, I'm sure buyers overlook that.

Since when was the Pilot a body-on-frame SUV w/ an available V8?

The Borrego was a competitor to the likes of the Explorer (well, the old Explorer, anyway).

pttl

Ahhhh...good times on AZ.

Hapa DC5

You dont understand market and principles of business.

Picture speaks for itself. German see Acura as prime target. Acura is threat to industry. Grille will be new craze like Bangle butt. Raises over headlights like TL, similar in color. When grille takes hold Germans will innovate and reinvent. They will respond like Axis powers, invade Poland via higher ground clearance and torque vectoring SH-AWD technology. Acura planned deployment to Poland is crushed. Leave Russia alone. Billionaires want German 3 anyway.

Once Eastern Europe markets cornered, Germans move west to France. Britain will be last to hold out using Jaguar and Rovers. Battle of Britain 2 will begin. Cadillac will deploy CTS-V, Japan Joins with 6speed Auto Honda Accord. Headlight washers will blaze London in flames. German win luxury market there. Move west over Atlantic to America. Acura uses grille to shield onslaught.

You have no business plan. Model after WWII with lessons learned.

Best side mirror wins.

Costco

I wonder what he thinks when he reads stuff like that. "What an eloquent way of making posts, they finally see the light"

oh, and boobs

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

I'm sorry Hapa. I was going to formulate a response but once I got to this part I literally spit out my strawberry onto the screen (thanks for that, by the way) you asshole.

"They will respond like Axis powers, invade Poland via higher ground clearance and torque vectoring SH-AWD technology. Acura planned deployment to Poland is crushed. Leave Russia alone. Billionaires want German 3 anyway.

Once Eastern Europe markets cornered, Germans move west to France. Britain will be last to hold out using Jaguar and Rovers. Battle of Britain 2 will begin. Cadillac will deploy CTS-V, Japan Joins with 6speed Auto Honda Accord. Headlight washers will blaze London in flames. German win luxury market there. Move west over Atlantic to America. Acura uses grille to shield onslaught."

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

I like her shields. What a superior design and it gives her some real road presence.

No honey . . . . I'm not looking at women.

Hapa DC5

Hey man I do what I can. My wife is out with the girls tonight so here I am posting away.

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

That E63 looks excellent, it must be said. A quietly styled monster, as Jeremy would say.

Hapa DC5

I'd rock one if I won the lottery.

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

The overall length Sorento is 3.6" longer then the CR-V, not 6". The wheelbase is 3.1" longer as well. Interior headroom and legroom are damn near identical.

The Rav4 has a third row and an available V6, and its overall dimensions are even closer to the Sorento than the CR-V. Does that mean the Rav4 competes with the Pilot as well?

The Pilot is 7" longer then the Sorento overall. The Pilot has twice the cargo capacity as the Sorento with the third row up, 10cu ft more with the third row down, and 14.5cu ft more with both rows down.

Just for reference, the Borrego is 2.2" longer then the Pilot and offers very similar interior dimensions. Im pretty sure most of the people looking at a Pilot dont give a shit if its body on frame or not. And if they do, A) they wouldnt be looking at a Pilot and B) they sure as hell wouldnt be looking at the Kia either.

Hapa DC5

When I run with my dog every morning I see a Borrego. It doesn't look very large. Still confused why Kia even produced it?

smarty666

OMG! Hapa and you got him nailed down to the T. It is freakin hilarious! Keep up the good work!

PortlandRL

Ira...you got me dyin' here. I am now doing my part to help.

Hapa DC5

Best side mirrors in the business!

pttl

Dude.....where did you get that avy!?!?!

I'm jealous.

PortlandRL

You have BMW...look at blocky side mirror. Not aerodynamic at all. Acura has superior mirror shape design because design team uses wind tunnel. BMW sales will plummet when people realize Acura is true driving machine.

Colin

Actually, the autoblog story you quoted from had paraphrased the original Autonews story leaving out the length of time the car has been on sale. So the original the Autonews story (and conclusion) said:
Now Autonews has posted a retraction on their original story:
So 4373 units in five months is only 874/month, but the same number in three months is 1458/month. Would this change the 'conclusion' that the car is under-performing?

SSFTSX

Acura is true driving machine. it didnot got bald tires on ultra performance tires despite worst weigth distribution than BMW.
Acura does not need to give assurance of 4 year maintiance to sell. I wonder what will happen to all thos lease returns of BMW. they will need to be write off.
Acura RL unique shape & best fit/finish helps in maintainning resale values. it never is a bad investment.

PortlandRL

Costco

That's much better. We'll see how the sales come along through the course of 2011, but if sales don't drop off too much after the initial hype fades away they should be well on their way to meeting the 15k goal.

They obviously desperately need to change up the Insight and Crosstour though. The reason for the decent sales of the CR-Z and the poor sales of the other two aforementioned models could be that the CR-Z is in a relatively niche market; I don't know of any other "sport hybrids" while on the other hand, your typical vanilla commuter car hybrid market is totally saturated, as is the crossover market.

Hapa DC5

You don't understand market. RL bad investment. RL is Bernie Madoff of luxury car business. Look good on paper, false returns. RL will soon be imprisoned for fraud.

RL's son TL will be found dead of apparent suicide due to self mutilation from enormous grille. Good business means 4 years maintenance all luxury marques will be that way before you know it. Why fight progress.

Your understanding of side mirror design is shameful. Your use of ground clearance is not developed.

No SH-AWD for you.

biker

Even mainstream makes like Toyota and VW offer this.

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

I see I missed much while I was away at the hospital the last threeish days.

Hapa DC5

What happened? Everything okay?

Back on topic. It's a good idea to have maintenance plans. It brings people back into your store. It helps with retention and once those maintenance plans expire customers are more likely to just continue going to the dealer as opposed to aftermarket shops.

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

I agree. Despite Volkswagen's quality concerns people ignore that and go for their free maintenance. I suppose one cancels the other anyway, at least partially.

I'm okay. TL not lucky. Not enough clearance means Durango make TL its bitch in snow storm accidents. Thankfully I wasn't actually driving the car at the time, but the person who was will be fine, and I thank God and the good doctors for that.

So now I'm a full time Ridgeline driver!

smarty666

Shit man, sorry to hear about the TL. Glad though everyone involved is alright! Apparently the TL's superior aerodynamic side mirrors was not enough to turn it out of the way in time

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

I'm sure it will be totaled out, but I probably won't find out until the end of the week at the earliest. It was hit on the driver's side and pushed into a rock hard 7-10' snowbank, so it was crushed on both sides. Since I wasn't there I don't have pictures, but I'll try to get some when I go get it (or am told to get my things from it . . . . )

I'm going to look on the bright side. It was an aging car (low miles though), it won't be the TL driver's fault, so all will be okay. I'm long, loooooong overdue for a new car.

Hapa DC5

CTS-V

MyCarIsntInMyWifesName

Right . . . .

fsttyms1

that doesnt have the road presence, superior ground clearance, non tire wearing suspension and best in world cd as RL does

Colin

Well hype by it's very definition means that it will fade with time. IMO, that is what MMCs are for.

Re. Insight and Crosstour. My guess is that they're probably OK with the Crosstour, it's taking a small bite out of a segment that they had/have little presence in anyway. So it's incremental gains with small investment.

As for Insight, I don't think they really want to sell that many at this point, they're not in a good profit position on that car since it was designed when the Yen was much higher. From what I gather, that car should have sold at Fit prices, not Civic prices but the change in exchange rates meant otherwise. The car is doing OK in global markets and they don't seem to want to 'lose money' to gain market share in North America, so my guess is that they're where they expect to be.

CL6

No but it's got a V8, more power, RWD, and a 6 speed manual, and no beak.

SSFTSX

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010...n.html?_r=1&hp
Toyota Global Production Falls in November
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: December 24, 2010
TOKYO (AP) — Toyota Motor Corp., the world's No. 1 automaker, reported Friday that its global production in November fell for the third straight month, even as Japanese rivals Nissan and Honda expanded output.

Toyota, whose reputation took a hit this year from massive recalls, said its worldwide production fell 8.7 percent from a year earlier to 656,924 vehicles. Production outside Japan rose 0.3 percent thanks to higher output in South Africa and elsewhere in Asia.

The maker of the Corolla and Prius hybrid recorded a 9.4 percent fall in exports and a 35 percent slide in domestic sales, which tumbled industrywide because of the expiration of government subsidies for eco-car purchases.

Tokyo-based Honda Motor Co. produced 317,473 vehicles globally in November, up 5.4 percent from a year earlier and the 12th straight month of growth.

Production in China and Asia hit a record high for the company, Honda said. In China alone, it made 61,955 vehicles, up 2.7 percent from the previous year. Honda's exports rose 71 percent, while sales in Japan plunged 37 percent.

Nissan Motor Co., based in Yokohama, Japan, made 372,106 vehicles during the month, up 19 percent and a record high for November, the company said. Robust demand for the new March compact car and the NV200 van drove China production up 19 percent on year to 91,633. That helped offset an 8.6 percent output decline in the U.S.

Among other automakers, Mazda Motor Corp.'s global production jumped 22.6 percent to 120,991 vehicles in November. Mitsubishi Motors Corp. produced 103,848 vehicles, up 11.2 percent.

TSX69

American Honda December Sales up 25.5%

American Honda Motor Co., Inc., today reported December monthly new vehicle sales of 129,616, an increase of 25.5% on a daily selling-rate* basis. American Honda's 2010 annual vehicle sales totaled 1,230,480, an increase of 7.6% compared to 2009 results.

The Honda Division's December monthly sales of 114,127 represented an increase of 22.6% compared to 2009 results. Honda Division's 2010 annual sales of 1,096,874 increased 5.6% compared to 2009 results. The top-3 best-selling Honda models for 2010 were Accord, 311,381; Civic, 260,218; and CR-V, 203,714.

"Increased sales of core models - Accord, Civic, and CR-V - along with the strong performance from new introductions, including the Accord Crosstour and Odyssey, all contributed to make 2010 a year of steady growth for American Honda," said John Mendel, executive vice president of sales for American Honda. "Moving into 2011, we look to build on this momentum with multiple all-new or revised product introductions. We are confident that the entire Honda and Acura portfolio of vehicles will be well-positioned to meet the demands of an evolving market."

Monthly Civic sales increased by 31.3% to 28,263, setting a new December sales record. The CR-V, the country's best-selling SUV for the 5th year in a row, increased sales by 28.3% to 23,125, also setting a new December record. Accord monthly sales increased 18.9% for December to 32,381.

Additional models with monthly sales gains included the redesigned Odyssey, up 17.4% to 10,147; the Pilot, up 16.7% to 10,337; and the Fit, up 10.3% to 4,860.

The Acura Division's year-end sales totaled 133,606, up 27.2% compared to 2009 results. December Acura sales totaled 15,489, an increase of 51.9%. The MDX led the division with annual sales of 47,210, followed by the TL with sales of 34,049.

December TSX sales increased 55.7% to 4,393, setting a new December record. Additional Acura models with monthly sales gains included the MDX, up 110.6%, to 5,887; the TL, up 7.2% to 3,275; and the RDX, up 24.5% to 1,540.

Acura Announces Dec & Year End Sales Results

Acura sales for 2010 totaled 133,606, up 27.2% compared to 2009, based on the daily selling rate*. Strong December results for MDX and TSX helped Acura achieve 15,489 sales, a 51.9%** increase compared to December 2009 sales, and the 11th straight month of double-digit sales increases for Acura.

“For Acura, 2010 has proven to be a remarkable year,” said Jeff Conrad, vice president of Acura sales. “With sales up more than 27% for the year, an improving economy and exciting new products like the TSX Sport Wagon, Acura’s future is looking bright.”

December sales of Acura light trucks were up 86.9%, with 7,680 units sold. For the year, light truck sales totaled 65,444, up 59.1%. In December, the MDX luxury SUV once again led Acura sales with 5,887 units sold, up 110.6%. RDX sales were up 24.5% for December, totaling 1,540 units.

Overall sales for Acura cars were up 28.3% for December with 7,809 units sold. For the year, Acura car sales totaled 68,162 units, up 6.7%. TSX had a record month leading Acura car sales with 4,393 units sold, an increase of 55.7%. December marked the launch of Acura’s all-new TSX Sport Wagon, which went on sale late in the month. TL sales totaled 3,275 units for the month, up 7.2%.

For media information and high-resolution photos of all Acura vehicles, please visit www.acuranews.com. For consumer information, please visit www.acura.com.

YEH

Overall, a good month for Honda (the increase in Civic sales in mighty impressive.)

biker

All the marketing and incentives for the TSX and MDX are working - not so much for the TL.

The RL has settled into its normal monthly rate.

What was the projected sales for the CR-Z?

Biker, who finally saw one on the road yesterday and thought it looked OK.