Quote:
Originally Posted by littlecammi
The problem is that all things have not been equal for years, since the car magazines have done too good a job of convincing the American public that imports are good and American cars are bad. And that poisoning by the press is part of the reason that a Porsche or BMW is someone's dream car instead of an American car (like a Z06 or GT500).
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Again, I agree with that in the commuter car arena. However in the cars as objects of Passion portion of the world, I'm going to give you an example:
http://www.porsche.com/usa/eventsand...ry/racingcars/
When I was in High School in the 80's, I'd be look at cars like the 959 with my mouth gaping open. America's investment in racing and performance has been VERY inconsistant. That's America's fault, not the magazine's. Really only Corvette has been around as a halo car with any consistancy, and Corvette lovers are just as passionate about their Vettes as Porsche lovers are about their Porsches. Vettes get great press too, at least they do when the Vettes are good like they have been for a while. Did you read the press the Bullitt version Mustang got? It was great. Put some passion in the car and you get good reviews and you get rabid fans. Lose passion and focus and you'll spend a lot of time and money getting it back.
I can't really personally connect with the GT-R, and I don't know it's history. However I know there is a contingent who have been dreaming about GT-Rs since they were early teens. I also know the GT-R used to be born and bred for racing. They're more GT than R now it seems, but that R is important to a group of people and more power to them. Again, that's not the magazine's fault-that's Nissan's for getting a good tap on a halo car (and a PS2 game as well I believe).
*edit*
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If people had a more realistic view of how the M3 may compare to other cars like the SS, etc. then maybe they would be less inclined to pay so much for them. If they continue to think that everything from detroit is JUNK and that everything from BMW is PERFECT, then it seems logical they would pay 2x as much for a BMW. If the secret that BMW is slightly better in some areas and slightly worse in others gets out then maybe the price people are willing to pay for one will be less."
Well they can't compare it to the SS, because the SS isn't on the market. The only problem with your theory above is there really hasn't been a slightly better, slightly worse dynamic with anything American until the CTS. Now the CTS is on the 10 best list 2 years running and the winner last year. The BMW really is the complete package and you pay a premium for that. Now if the CTS can be a competitor for 5 years, and Cadillac can build a second true competitor- then you'll see BMW paired with Cadillac when they discuss best in class. Again, this isn't the Magazine's fault- Cadillac is late to the party.