Your general opinions about car brands

[Bladefist]

Let's make a thread summarizing your opinions about car brands.
Let me start with Honda:
Once a maker of affordable, fun and practical now making boring beige cars which mostly are driven by OAPs. Only standout quality about them is longevity and reliability although even that seems to have dropped a bit recently. Obviously, there is a new NSX coming but even that seems a bit off as we still don't know horsepower number and the car obviously will be heavy with it's hybrid technology.

[Sump]

This will end up being an argument about Audi and BMW drivers.

[Fittster]

I feel this thread will go quite badly once people start expressing their opinions about BMW and Audi.

[Thankyou4calling]

I've put out previously a league table which got some healthy debate. I agree mostly about Honda as an image but their product isn't bad. Just that people's perception is that it's for OAPs.

I think the Maserati Ghibli won't enhance their brand though it will their sales and to my mind, although Mercedes, BMW and Audi are volume sellers I, and in think many who aren't into cars, do still consider them to be premium and prestigious.

[HaloGen8]

Thankyou4calling said:

although Mercedes, BMW and Audi are volume sellers I, and in think many who aren't into cars, do still consider them to be premium and prestigious.

^^^ This - unfortunately. Given the choice 'the masses' will still rather opt for an Audi / BMW / Mercedes to be on their drive as a status symbol when in reality the cars are mainstream average fodder with a previously regarded 'quality' badge on which the car company milk.
Look at Skoda - once the butt of many jokes but these now are fine cars yet from the same stable as VW/Audi. How many folk would choose a Skoda on their drive over an Audi apart from price?

Vauxhall have gone down the pan and produce bland built to a price tat. Renault have always had that budget image which is a shame considering the RenaultSport stuff is really very good just held back with their poor quality label.

Then there's Lexus who came out of nowhere and in very few years have established themselves as a quality brand right up with the big boys.

Comes down to badge snobbery I guess while the big car makes can mass produce fancy but unreliable tat then it will continue. Branding. Media advertising. Percevied image. That what keeps the big players big.

Moan over.

[daemon]

Thankyou4calling said:

Just that people's perception is that it's for OAPs.

Their products are also just average these days.

[daemon]

HaloGen8 said:

Thankyou4calling said:

although Mercedes, BMW and Audi are volume sellers I, and in think many who aren't into cars, do still consider them to be premium and prestigious.

^^^ This - unfortunately. Given the choice 'the masses' will still rather opt for an Audi / BMW / Mercedes to be on their drive as a status symbol when in reality the cars are mainstream average fodder with a previously regarded 'quality' badge on which the car company milk.

Speaking specifically of BMW -

I dont agree with the cars being "average" - they do make some very good cars.

Most people i know that buy them, do so because they like the cars.

The cars still tend to be of a higher quality than rivals, but not leagues ahead like they used to be.

HaloGen8 said:

Look at Skoda - once the butt of many jokes but these now are fine cars yet from the same stable as VW/Audi. How many folk would choose a Skoda on their drive over an Audi apart from price?

Skodas problem is that they are now not a whole pile cheaper than the class average, so you're buying a "budget" brand car, but paying mainstream prices. If you're going to be paying mainstream prices anyway you may as well buy a VW.

HaloGen8 said:

Then there's Lexus who came out of nowhere and in very few years have established themselves as a quality brand right up with the big boys.

Lexus have flatlined in terms of market share. They're not really making further inroads and are seen as a bit niche.

HaloGen8 said:

Comes down to badge snobbery I guess while the big car makes can mass produce fancy but unreliable tat then it will continue. Branding. Media advertising. Percevied image. That what keeps the big players big.

Moan over.

I dont agree. I think they generally have a good product and they're there or there abouts on reliability. Certainly not unreliable.

And realistically, if you can have a 3 series for what a mondeo would cost you monthly, then why not? Mondeo man is long dead.

[DaveH23]

I don't have an opinion of any given brand but more the models those brands produce.

[trickywoo]

I'd never buy a Renault as my perception is that a number of expensive things are highly likely to go wrong and be difficult as well as costly to fix.

[skyrover]

I usually associate brands with their nationality

Japan - Best built, generally boring
Korean - Second best built, generally boring
USA - Third best built, generally interesting
German, Swedish, - Overpriced, bland
British - Overpriced, interesting
French, Italian - Poorly built, quirky

[Riley Blue]

I don't have a general opinion about brands though I would never own a French, Italian or Japanese car. Korean and other far eastern countries' products have passed me by and I haven't a clue what's coming out of America these days. Since living there in the 1960s I've always thought German cars were well engineered which is why my last twenty or so cars have been from that country, with one exception all VAG models.

[lamboman100]

skyrover said:

I usually associate brands with their nationality

Japan - Best built, generally boring
Korean - Second best built, generally boring
USA - Third best built, generally interesting
German, Swedish, - Overpriced, bland
British - Overpriced, interesting
French, Italian - Poorly built, quirky

Combining Japanese reliability with Italian beauty, perceived German solidity, British handling and Chinese costs would pretty much get you the perfect car.

Of all the countries, there is no doubt the German brands are the most overrated. Nowhere near as reliable or unbreakable as widely believed.

[Urban Sports]

BMW is the default choice for pricks.

[cat with a hat]

VW - people who purchase seem to have a false sense of prestige, their reasoning for purchasing also comes down to 'German quality' and 'residual value'. Wouldn't be seen dead in a Skoda and don't realise the brand is actually mass produced white goods or the translation of 'peoples car'.

[E65Ross]

skyrover said:

I usually associate brands with their nationality

Japan - Best built, generally boring
Korean - Second best built, generally boring
USA - Third best built, generally interesting
German, Swedish, - Overpriced, bland
British - Overpriced, interesting
French, Italian - Poorly built, quirky

So USA cars are generally interesting? Yeah, the few that we hear of or get here, but most of the cars they make are absolutely crap.

German cars aren't cheap, but to say they're overpriced?? They often produce cars which are better than the competition, by spending more money on development which must be recovered some how. Sports saloons like the M3, C63 etc aren't bad, they offer good practicality and performance not THAT far off much more expensive metal.

Most German cars may be bland, but they do interesting stuff as well. Most American stuff is bland, but also absolutely crap with the exception of most of the Ford models we get here and the muscle cars... Everything else tends to be pants.

[HaloGen8]

Near where I work there is an Infinity dealership opening. A bold step, aren't Infinity a premium brand in the States?
How many UK punters will purchase an Infinity even though it is probably going to be far better build quality and feel than the mid sized VW / Vauxhall / Ford they have just bought?

http://www.infiniti.co.uk/

I didn't realise this.... just spotted it on the bottom of their website:

© 2014 Nissan International SA. Infiniti is a trade mark of Nissan International SA.

[E65Ross]

HaloGen8 said:

Near where I work there is an Infinity dealership opening. A bold step, aren't Infinity a premium brand in the States?
How many UK punters will purchase an Infinity even though it is probably going to be far better build quality and feel than the mid sized VW / Vauxhall / Ford they have just bought?

http://www.infiniti.co.uk/

I didn't realise this.... just spotted it on the bottom of their website:

© 2014 Nissan International SA. Infiniti is a trade mark of Nissan International SA.

ROFL if you didn't know that about infiniti. I think they're more BMW/Merc/Audi pricing rather than Ford and Vauxhall.

[johnny fotze]

Honda never made the most of it's impressive motorsport pedigree, and has always been associated with old people. German car makers continue to trade on a (deserved) reputation for solid reliability they built in the 70's and 80's. Standards have since declined, but the reputation remains. French brands suffer from a poor rep gained around the same time, despite being every bit as good as Ford/Vauxhall for the last 15+ years.

[daemon]

cat with a hat said:

VW - people who purchase seem to have a false sense of prestige, their reasoning for purchasing also comes down to 'German quality' and 'residual value'. Wouldn't be seen dead in a Skoda and don't realise the brand is actually mass produced white goods or the translation of 'peoples car'.

Thats your perception of vw buyers, not buyers perceptions of VWs.

I've a golf. I've no sense of prestige at all with it. I bought it because its anonymous and harmless. I can park it anywhere with no real risk of it getting keyed, yet it doesnt look out of place pulling up to a nice hotel.

I didnt want an octavia as its only real advantage over the golf is that it is significantly bigger and i dont need a bigger car, and wasnt really any cheaper to buy.

So yes, its white goods - which is exactly why i bought it.

Of all the VWs i sold when i was trading, not once did anyone say "oh this will impress the neighbours" or "wouldnt be seen dead in a skoda" or "this is much more upmarket than a stty ford". They just liked the car.

Interestingly, my perception of a lot of bikers is that they treat roads like the race track and as such need to catch themselves on.

Oh Look...

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

Edited by daemon on Sunday 6th July 13:41

[selym]

daemon said:

Thats your perception of vw buyers, not buyers perceptions of VWs.


Interestingly, my perception of a lot of bikers is that they treat roads like the race track and as such need to catch themselves on.

Oh Look...

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

Edited by daemon on Sunday 6th July 13:41

TT standing for total tit in this instance!