great Audi article...

[highrustler]

http://biz.yahoo.com/special/autos05_article2.html

enjoy,
james

[RS4Ever]

yeah , some intresting stuff in there.

nice write-up.

:thumb:

[J0X]

American articles about Audi is always about how they're struggling to enter the luxury market, whereas in euro equivalents, they've been in it and ahead of the rest for what, 15 years now? Why is that?

[nene]

Must be because we don't get the Recaro seats!!!
Blame AoA! USA Audi owners know the truth, so don't worry. Our cars are as luxurious as the others, if not more so as you point out.

[J0X]

Originally posted by nene
Must be because we don't get the Recaro seats!!!

:D

[JAXRS6]

Originally posted by J0X
American articles about Audi is always about how they're struggling to enter the luxury market, whereas in euro equivalents, they've been in it and ahead of the rest for what, 15 years now? Why is that?

One reason might be a CBS "60 Minutes" story, originally aired in the early 80s I think, which claimed that Audis were causing accidents because the accelerator would get stuck. I've seen numerous posts indicating that the report was incorrect, tho I have not seen proof of that -- and I don't recall what the original "60 Minutes" evidence was, either. In any case, it didn't happen on later model Audis, but at the time "60 Minutes" was the No. 1 show in the US -- so the impact was wide and, obviously, long-lasting. Audi here didn't really get back into the game in a big way until the late 90s, after the B5 A4 was introduced with rave reviews from almost everyone.

Still, it's been an uphill battle. Mercedes-Benz had established itself as THE prestige marque here long before the B5 A4 came out, and BMW had become the darling of the then-so-called Yuppies (young urban professionals).

Now that Benz is having quality control problems and BMW styling has been tainted by Chris Bangle, there is great opportunity for Audi in my opinion. But, and again this is just my opinion, I'm not sure Audi's new big mouth grille will prove appealing here. I know I'm not too nuts about it, and others have reservations too. Plus BMW's new 3 Series ditched the Bangle trunk, so ... we'll just have to wait & see what happens, eh?

[RS4Ever]

Originally posted by nene
USA Audi owners know the truth, so don't worry. Our cars are as luxurious as the others, if not more so as you point out.

i dont even own an audi and i see them as better than the rest, IMHO of course.

[clam]

Originally posted by JAXRS6
One reason might be a CBS "60 Minutes" story, originally aired in the early 80s I think, which claimed that Audis were causing accidents because the accelerator would get stuck. I've seen numerous posts indicating that the report was incorrect, tho I have not seen proof of that -- and I don't recall what the original "60 Minutes" evidence was, either. In any case, it didn't happen on later model Audis, but at the time "60 Minutes" was the No. 1 show in the US -- so the impact was wide and, obviously, long-lasting. Audi here didn't really get back into the game in a big way until the late 90s, after the B5 A4 was introduced with rave reviews from almost everyone.


I read that 60min actually modified the gearbox to 'enhance' their report. There was a courtcase, Audi won, but the damage was done.
The unintended acceleration was caused by the euro-style pedals that were closer together than what the American driver was used to. This lead to people stepping on the gas instead of the brakes.

I think what is really holding Audi back in the US is the lack of nich models like Coupés and SUVs. I guess these are the high-end models the article refers to. But they are adressing that.

Funny how the name "Piëch" pops up at the end. He certainly put Audi on the right track, with quattro and ASF. Too bad he went off the handle a bit, toward his retirement.

[Nordschleife]

Its an interesting article but woefully inaccurate when it comes to specifics.

Every school boy knows how many times Audi has won Le Mans, but not this writer, however. The utter rubbish about the forthcoming Quattro Le Mans car being based on the R8, is complete nonsense, there is no commonality at all between the cars, apart from the fact that each car has 5 wheels and an engine. Yeah, sure the FSI comes across, but that's generic.

Do not be too impressed by all these German Ph.Ds; firstly, in terms of academic vigour they are most closely analagous to a long Batchelor's honours degree with a substantial dissertation, but usually not original work, so less rigorous than what English speaking people are accustomed to regarding as a Ph.D course. Secondly, German speaking businesses form strong links with their local universities and in return the senior executives get showered with honorary degrees and professorships. German culture takes thee very seriously. Even "Doctor" Porsche's degree was an honorary one, he was not a 'real' doctor of engineering.

Having said that, Doktor Professor Winterkorn is a charming man who loves his cars and still drives over 20,000 km a year testing new models, which is something the Daimler boss used to do, but not any more. I first met Martin when he was driving a car round an underground garage with his head hung out the window listening to the exhaust, I felt this was a positive sign, a real petrol head.

R+C

[JAXRS6]

Originally posted by clam
I read that 60min actually modified the gearbox to 'enhance' their report. There was a courtcase, Audi won, but the damage was done.
The unintended acceleration was caused by the euro-style pedals that were closer together than what the American driver was used to. This lead to people stepping on the gas instead of the brakes.

Wow! :bigeyes: Very interesting! Do you remember where you read that? Got a link?

[Finnus]

I think AofA's problems relate to 1) poor quality and small showrooms and 2) pathetic service to and treament of actual and prospective customers. Someone buying a marquis brand should get marquis treatment.

I'm not just talking about bringing the car in for service (and my customer service guy Patrick is GREAT - perhaps the one bright spot - he does the best he can within the system). Every aspect of buying an Audi should make the buyer feel special and respected - great treatment before and after the sale!!!

I feel like I'm imposing when I talk to the general manager - and I've purchased the most expensive car in the product line and the most expensive 4-series at the time I purchased my S4!

I've asked them to let me know when details on the RS4 & LeMans Quattro are out and I haven't heard one word from them.

It's not rocket science. It really is pathetic.

Have others on the forum had a similar "Audi Experience"???

Audi, I hope you're listening ...

Finnus
:addict:

[Aronis]

When that BS about unexplained acceloration came out, I was 'this close' to picking up a loaded Audi 90 (if I recalled) with manual transission for a SONG, but it was just a few grand too much at the time......

But hell plenty of people got killer deals on GREAT CARS back then soley because a few lame drivers crashed their hot performing cars...

Unexplained Acceloration MY ASS. Poor drivers not used to a car which can move!

Mike

[R8isGreat]

One problem AOA has is lack of advertisment compared to BMW and Benz. I drive to grad school on thursdays in NC and I hear 3 or 4 BMW ads talking about how great they are. I Head Benz ads all the time too. In NC the local dealers for BMW and BENZ advertise on the television, the radio, sportsevents, you name it. The BMW and BENZ dealerships are huge as well, while the Audi dealership is beside the VW dealership. It even has a HUGE VW sign on it bigger than the Audi one. There is NO sign visible from the road that says Audi on it. They are currently building a new Audi one though.
I was talking to my friend and he said he was going to get a BMW, and I told him to check out Audi. He said he wanted something more establshed!!! People in NC for the most part drive BMW because everyone else does, and Benz because they are a status symbol. They see my car and ask "What is that." I am amaized how little people in the area know about Audi.
If Audi put $ into ads here in the US, people would fall head over heels in love with them as I did.

[Finnus]

R8,

You're right - Audi has to do a better job getting prospects into the showroom. But once they're there, they have to treat them right. And perhaps more importantly, once someone is a customer they should bend over backwards to build brand loyalty. Don't underestimate the power of word-of-mouth both with respect to good or bad experiences with a dealer.

Finnus
:addict:

[Aronis]

I drove back to back BMW's 1994 325is and 1997 M3 Luxury. Great cars, but when I compared the Audi to the 5 series BMW I simply found the design more appealing on the A6 regardless of performance numbers. The styling of the older 5 series was quite nice, accept the interior, which was great for the driver, but had limited leg room for all passengers.

The A6 (4.2 sport) which I had, obvouisly identical interior to my RS6, was much more roomy for front seat and rear seat passengers than the M5 I test drove. The AWD was the more important issue. Once the RS6 came to be, there was no reason to even look at an M5 for me at least since I refuse to have Two Cars...winter/summer car. I would not be happy driving a sweet M5 in the summer and a GD truck in the winter....LOL

As far as the rest of the lines I found that the interior space on the A4 is very similar to a 3 series BMW, but the A4 Quattro was and still is a far better value than a 330ix.

I agree more advertising would be helpful to Audi's whole line, but you can't say they are not trying, just look in any car mag and you'll see their ads. I am not sure if radio ads are as effective?

Radio and television ads are trusted at you, while ads in Magazine which You Choose to BUY and Choose to read, have ad's which you can either read or skip over. I find TV and Radio ads to be a pain in the rump since I tune in the boob tube for a particular show or news not for the ads.

My 2 cents.

Mike

[clam]

Originally posted by JAXRS6
Wow! :bigeyes: Very interesting! Do you remember where you read that? Got a link?

Then of course there's the Audi 5000 "sudden acceleration" story carried in 1986 on "60 Minutes":

The Audi, it seemed, was a car possessed by demons. It would back into garages, dart into swimming pools, plow into bank teller lines, everything but fly on broomsticks, all while its hapless drivers were standing on the brake -- or at least so they said.

"Sudden acceleration" had been alleged in many makes of car other than the Audi, and from the start many automotive observers were inclined to view it skeptically. A working set of brakes, they pointed out, can easily overpower any car's accelerator, even one stuck at full throttle. After accidents of this sort, the brakes were always found to be working fine. Such mishaps happened most often when the car was taking off from rest, and they happened disproportionately to short or elderly drivers who were novices to the Audi.
So naturally "60 Minutes" set out to investigate as it wasn't buying into it being the fault of drivers. The assumed conclusion was it had to do with a design flaw.

It found, and interviewed on camera, some experienced drivers who reported the problem. And it showed a filmed demonstration of how an Audi, as fixed up by, yes, an expert witness testifying against the carmaker, could take off from rest at mounting speed. The expert, William Rosenbluth, was quoted as saying that "unusually high transmission pressure" could build up and cause problems. "Again, watch the pedal go down by itself," said Ed Bradley.
All by itself? I mean there it is on camera, no?

Well yes, but no.

Bradley did not, however, tell viewers why that remarkable thing was happening. As Audi lawyers finally managed to establish, Rosenbluth had drilled a hole in the poor car's transmission and attached a hose leading to a tank of compressed air or fluid.
The tank with its attached hose was apparently sitting right on the front passenger seat of the doctored Audi, but the 60 Minutes cameras managed not to pick it up. It might have been for the same reason the Jeep weights were tucked away in the wheel wells, rather than being placed visibly on top.


Freakin' incredible.

So next time you see that arrogant and sneering excuse for a former executive vice president at CBS remind him his panties aren't at all as clean as he'd like to pretend and that his system of checks and balances obviously didn't work in the past. Also remind the twit that we guys (and gals) in pajamas in our living rooms aren't buying into his spin and nonsense.

Now excuse me, my wife wants the CJ so I'm going to have to go to the store in the Audi 5000.

http://qando.net/archives/004097.htm

[5000S old skool]

Originally posted by clam
I read that 60min actually modified the gearbox to 'enhance' their report. There was a courtcase, Audi won, but the damage was done.
The unintended acceleration was caused by the euro-style pedals that were closer together than what the American driver was used to. This lead to people stepping on the gas instead of the brakes.

I think what is really holding Audi back in the US is the lack of nich models like Coupés and SUVs. I guess these are the high-end models the article refers to. But they are adressing that.

Funny how the name "Piëch" pops up at the end. He certainly put Audi on the right track, with quattro and ASF. Too bad he went off the handle a bit, toward his retirement.

It was my car ( Audi 5000 ) that was the victim of this propaganda paid for by BMW and Mercedez Benz.

[s42ski]

Unintended acceleration was what got me into Audi's in the first place - I was an american muscle car owner and builder ( 1969 Camaro, 1972 Vette etc.) when I saw the 60 Minutes show - I was literally screaming and yelling at the TV about the absurd accusations. Launching a big V8 powered muscle car required revving the engine to about 2500 RPM while holding the car on the line with the brakes, these were American car brakes, the kind that were good for 1 stop from 80 MPH. There on the tube was a 160 HP 4 wheel disc car accelerating while the brakes were pushed...... javascript:smilie(':vgrumpy:')
Very grumpy

In any case I started looking at Audi's and bought my first one in 1990 an 1989 200 with 35K miles for $18000, new the car was $45K. 5 years later bought a one year old S4 with 8500 miles for $33K - now a happy RS6 owner.

Point of this rant is it takes YEARS to get back a reputation in the luxury car market - Lexus has done it from scratch, but Infiniti has not and Infiniti nearly left the US market after the terrible marketing launch. Here in Southern California Audi is a less flashy way to have luxury and performance.

MB has quality problems and I have heard a number of my more affluent friends stating that they will not buy a MB product until the quality improves, some are getting Audis, and some are getting Lexus.

What holds back Audi is the not yet stellar dealer experience ( compared to the near perfect Lexus dealerships in the So cal area) and of course the sitill lingering effects of "60 minutes". In my mind if Audi can maintain and/or improve quality they have a real chance to voertake MB - especially as the problems with MB electrical systems continue - as fo BMW, well as long as they continue with I-drive and 7 series back ends... nuff said.