Da Guy’s Automobiles: Today’s Rides
Coupes have always been the thing for Da Guy, but as time has passed, perhaps he’s recognized they are not always the most practical for his situation — or maybe it’s just his old(er) age making him that way. In any case, he loves his Coupes — especially those hard top convertibles. Two vehicles in his garage: One great, but practical, and the other purely a Big Boy Toy — That’s optimum for this Guy. At the moment though, it’s just one vehicle in his stable.
Da Guy went green. AWD, bamboo pearl with light gray interior, Mark Levinson Sound, and all the rest. A great luxury SUV — quiet, improved performance over his previous RX300, and less global oil-reserve dependency. It’s not just another monster Mommy Mobile!
What’s in a ride?
It’s a real challenge to pin down what Da Guy’s exact priorities are when looking for a new ride. Certainly practicality (or lack there of) in terms of what his ride will be used for goes to the top of the list every time. Sure there’s some amount of excitement thrown in to have a new ride when the time comes around, but Da Guy is a research and analysis hound before going too far with any major acquisition. Additionally, he does not like to be hassled with rides that he’s worried may break down when least expected, or may end up in the shop too much. He’s not a do-it-yourself repair guy, but enjoys detailing and maintaining a clean and shiny ride with his one two hands. Da Guy isn’t one that “mods” his ride to any dramatic degree, but appreciates one that has good looks, gets the occasional thumbs up from passer-by’s and isn’t quite the same as everyone else. He isn’t a street racer, but a gut-less ride won’t hack it either. He does like his on-ramps and corners. Da Guy does care a lot about how his ride handles and appeases his geekie side with the latest gizmos and technologies, but it all has to be balanced with a luxury ride. Feeling every bump in the road or hearing the drone of traffic around him isn’t his game, unless of course the top is down. He expects to be treated right from a pre and post-sales service point of view. The key is some sort of balance between all these things, which is hard to do and why there are so many options out there for each of us. These days, the manufacturer of Da Guy’s ultimate ride would probably line up their product and customer focus like this:
- Reliability
- The latest technology for its day
- Service, both before and after the sale — at the dealer and what the manufacturer directly offers
- Luxury, quality and sensible/ergonomic appointments
- Performance and handling
Da Guy’s Opinion
While Da Guy thought he was close to finding perfection until 2008, his experience in more than 35 years of choosing rides indicates he hasn’t yet found a match aligning with any single auto manufacturer. There are significant differences in brand priorities and trade-offs making it impossible for Da Guy to say “who’s best” for him. He’s owned American and Japanese cars for years, and late in 2008 obtained his first German ride. Controversial as it may be, since you are after all at “Bert’s Place”, his view of how two major manufacturers line up based on his experience goes something like this:
Lexus: Rated #1 in reliability for years and as continually observed by Da Guy since 1995. No question this brand has some of the best luxury appointments both inside and out. Paint jobs with perfection to die for. Attention to detail and minute refinement is clear. If you look, you can see the little tweaks no one really talks about between model years. Quality is hard to question. Sales to Service, representing “total customer support” are well-integrated in the 5 dealerships Da Guy has been associated with over the years, although sales experience in recent years have just not been what they once were while Lexus was establishing its brand in the US. Da Guy’s faith in this regard was found in a new dealership in Fall 2012. While the warranty is now pretty ordinary, post-sales service on your vehicle is always superior and you’re treated like royalty after the purchase. The ride is crystal clear quiet — almost as if you’re in your own world headed down the road. There are limited options and most vehicles on the lot come packed unless you can find a dealer that will special order, and you’re willing to wait for months. Models at introduction utilize current technology for their day, but don’t see many mid-life model tweaks of any substance beyond minimal “tail light styling” as observed with his late SC430, RX300, and RX400h.
- Reliability
- Service
- Luxury
- Performance
- Technology
BMW: It’s all about “the ultimate driving machine”. Performance and handling first. Almost too many options with a focus on the new owner having a custom ride built the way they want it, delivered in just weeks to the local dealership. Sales fees that appear as a nickel-and-dime approach to pay for training and advertising as individual mandatory line items on your order. Inadequate BMW HQ communications and structured processes during the ordering and manufacturing cycle that can be a drawback for the enthusiast. “Acceptable” paint jobs, especially if you like the traditional Bavarian black, white, or shades of gray. Limited invigorating alternate colors. Be ready for varying degrees of the orange peel look. A constant influx of leading-edge technologies both inside and out. A strategy to make continued and not always insignificant mid-life tweaks over the life of a model to keep it fresh. Improving brand reliability in recent years over all other German brands and some major Japanese ones. Great brakes that do their job well, but way too much brake dust for anyone that cares about maintaining a clean set of wheels. You’ll likely want to add additional preventive service at your own expense on top of the “free 4-year scheduled maintenance” included with your warranty if you plan to keep your ride for an extended period. Car technology integrated with service that’s really slick, but a post-sales service experience that is not as refined — communication and interaction between sales and service is not connected as well as one would expect in a premium brand. When you schedule or go in for service, Da Guy feels like he’s in a squeezed-in-the-corner auto shop environment the whole time, but the real service to his vehicle is always first-rate. Customer service is definitely not a strength compared with other premium brands, but oh, what a ride you’ll have behind that wheel.
- Performance
- Technology
- Luxury
- Reliability
- Service
What a difficult set of trade-offs. Why, oh why, do Lexus and BMW almost seem as the flip of one another in terms of Da Guy’s perceived view of their priorities? It must be called “competition”, and we don’t all need the same thing do we? See Da Guy’s rides through history.
