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This video’s been doing the rounds of the automotive blogosphere today and I just had to share it here, too, for those who haven’t seen it yet.
It’s a corporate propaganda video from Mercedes Benz called “That’s how we beat them all” – and it’s so incredibly tacky and bad bad BAD that you’ll want to watch it again and again and again.
OK, maybe just watching it once is more than enough…..
Something inside me is curious to see how a Saab version of something like this could turn out, though naturally I wouldn’t want the negative consequences for the brand that Mercedes are seeing today. But the thought of a Eurovision-like song praising the merits of a 10-year-old 9-5 and a five year old 9-3 are too much to resist in a self-flagellating sort of way.
——
You know I hate Cadillac, right?
So imagine how well the news that Caddy will consider a turbocharged four cylinder for future models is going down here at TS-central this morning.
GM are pimps and they will whore out whatever configurations they please to keep Caddy alive in market segments where it shouldn’t be seen. If it’s the peak of high-end luxury then set it up that way and leave the premium turbo four segment to the brand that started it all.
(I can hear the execs now: …and what brand is that? Saab? Who are they?)
A pox on them all!!!
——
To some happier news….
Here are your first pictures of a Saab 9-3 SportCombi fitted with BioPower – and in Aero specification. As you can see it’s got the full Aero trim with the deep bumpers, the foglight surrounds, dual exhaust and some fantastic new wheels to roll on, too.
These images have come from Germany, where it seems Saab is making a concerted effort to lift a drastically fallen market share. There’s been a lot of press release and marketing activity in Germany (from what I can tell) and with the release of XWD there, I hope it pays dividends for them. It’s a market that Saab definitely need to improve in.
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33 responses so far ↓
1 turbin
// Jul 31, 2008 at 11:30 am
Great looking vehicle but does it not dilute the Aero badge?? It seems you can option an Aero version of the 2.0T in the UK but the Biopower on E85 still has less power and torque, right?
2 Conor
// Jul 31, 2008 at 11:50 am
omg…is that video seriously legit?
3 2-don
// Jul 31, 2008 at 11:54 am
First off, I hope U2 sues MB for using the “WHERE THE STREETS HAVE NO NAME” riff at the end there! That video reminded me why I will never own a Mercedes! Second, Cadillac has been stealing SAAB ideas for a while now, this isn’t too big a surprise. Third, I imagine the Bio Power vehicles aren’t for sale in the states right? That would be a good/smart business decision and GM hasn’t done that in a while…. poor SAAB! When will GM do them some justice?
4 Markac
// Jul 31, 2008 at 11:59 am
GM should sign the band in the clip to promote Cadillac in Europe!
5 Tom
// Jul 31, 2008 at 12:00 pm
That video will not help anybody sell a single car in the whole world,
mmm maybe in a timewarp in the 3rd world after Dec 21, 2012
6 Tedjs
// Jul 31, 2008 at 1:35 pm
That video from Mercedes Benz is simply nauseating. Seriously, that is really bad.
Cadillac using a turbocharged DI Ecotec in its CTS? It will never work in my opinion. Can you imagine that Cadillac customer (and you would have to know what American Cadillac clientele are like to get this) checking under the hood and seeing only four cylinders? And a turbo?
Not that there is anything wrong with it, but I have driven a Solstice GXP and the song that engine sings at higher RPM would most likely not appeal to Cadillac’s customer base. Saab customers like that sort of song, and they don’t mind working their engines a bit and winding them out.
Cadillac drivers are a little different from my experience. Case in point here in America – Cadillac has been dealing with sticking piston rings (from carbon buildup) here in America on it’s high revving Northstar V8 for some time now. It is not because of ‘bad design’ – it is because that engine was built to rev and Cadillac customers just don’t drive like that here in the states for the most part. Yea – there are some that play with their Corvette inspired CTS-V’s, but the rest are just not driving like that.
CTS turbo? Wrong car, wrong customer.
Another case: I am in a Ford technical training class this week and the technicians were mortified to hear that Ford was twin turbocharging its venerable V6. They said that “turbo’s blow up”, and “what is wrong with our V8?” A lot of those boys represent Ford’s current customer base as well. The blue oval boys from Dearborn have a lot of work to do to attract new customers to the Lincoln store.
7 BrianL
// Jul 31, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Wow. That song is horrible. I’d love to hear Simon Cowell’s comments on that one. It was so bad, I had to reload to page to make it stop. The only a$$ that should be kicked is the guy who approved the video.
8 Alex
// Jul 31, 2008 at 1:59 pm
After hearing about the whole 4-cylinder Cadillac bit, I’m crossing my fingers and hoping that GM continues to see month after month of record low sales so that they are forced to unload their fuel-efficient luxury brand to someone who would actually understand and appreciate them. Like the French.
9 Nico
// Jul 31, 2008 at 2:15 pm
Granted, that video is bad. I had to listen to it twice, and they seriously have a bad choice of words in it.
“increasing ambition” sounded to my like “increasing emision”, listen for yourself.
I hear Cheech and Chong are back together, now that is increasing ambition. You have to be on something to like this Merc video.
Saab 9-3 looks hot, though.
10 Nico
// Jul 31, 2008 at 2:17 pm
sorry, it’s late, well up here that is and not down under,
my = me
11 Dan S.
// Jul 31, 2008 at 3:36 pm
IMHO, those rims look goofy! But they are original… Is somebody still trying to push that Born From Jets campaign?
Otherwise, that SportCombi looks sweet!
12 rogan2915
// Jul 31, 2008 at 3:57 pm
That’s really funny about the video, because today I was thinking… hrmm why don’t I like Mercedes. It would be kind of fun to have a big hunk of a car with a massive engine, RWD and huge couches of seats and a big fat slushbox…
Now I remember why.
-Rogan
13 Adrian
// Jul 31, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Please tell me that video was actually put together as a propaganda-style spoiler by BMW, Audi and the rest?
Surely nobody in Merc is _really_ that stupid as to think that’d do anything positive for the brand?
(for the record, I lasted until they started to name-check all the models in the lyrics – even that was an ordeal)
Eurovision? Nul points.
14 saaboy
// Jul 31, 2008 at 6:39 pm
can someone please post a link to the video? For some reason im seeing a big blank spot on that part of the webpage…
15 lance
// Jul 31, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Sod the video- what about those new Saab wheels?
There are too fussy for me.
Anyone else?
16 MarkS
// Jul 31, 2008 at 8:47 pm
I’m gonna say it again…….someone needs to find out what sort of kool-aid they’re drinking over at GM corporate!! A four cylinder turbo for Cadillac, huh? I’m sure that will go over like a turd in a punch bowl with Cadillac customers. Just more wasted time and resources. Someone over there needs to clap two brain cells together before it’s too late!!!
17 MarkoA
// Jul 31, 2008 at 11:21 pm
Just out of curiousity, a bit off topic sorry .. but does anyone know performance figures for 2.0TS SS/SC XWD model? It´s got 100kg of extra weight, but on the otherhand it has more traction. Is it slower or quicker compared to 2.0TS FWD?
18 zippy
// Jul 31, 2008 at 11:38 pm
Ok I got to the part where ‘the customer is always right’ then turned it off. Tacky does not even begin to describe it! The wheels on that Saab are too busy, IMO.
19 Conor
// Aug 1, 2008 at 12:11 am
Intresting question markoa..anyone? My bet is its really close. 0-60mph on a straight/dry run.
20 Tom
// Aug 1, 2008 at 1:33 am
I agree that the wheels miss the mark and
“TURBOS BLOWS UP ” coments from gearheads makes me laugh and laugh and laugh. Oh those good ole boys @ Ford
21 sam
// Aug 1, 2008 at 3:05 am
Swade, I think that you spend too much time worrying about Cadillac. Cadillac trying to improve it’s gas mileage with smaller motors isn’t the problem. Making a GM corporate rule that only Saab can have turbocharged 4 cylinder engines is just plain silly, since Chevy, Pontiac, and Saturn already use super/turbocharged Ecotec 4’s in various models. Smaller supercharged/turbocharged motors are the way all the car manufacturers are heading in engine technology. Saab may have gotten there first back in the 80’s, but frankly that is ancient history in the automotive world. If all that makes Saab distinctive is a 30-year old engine innovation, then it has much bigger problems than Cadillac getting a similar motor.
22 NineTwoX
// Aug 1, 2008 at 3:07 am
What sort of Cadillac buyer would want a small displacement turbo in their vehicle? I am guessing a small percentage of them would. According to the blog post, GM is ready to offer a turbo-4 only when customers are ready for it. It may be a while before that happens and hopefully GM builds Saab up to that point where it can fill that void.
23 Steven
// Aug 1, 2008 at 3:24 am
@NineTwoX: Think about that fact that substantially(!) more buyers are going for the V-6 than the V-8 in some Cadillac models. So much so that it was one of the reasons the GM chose to discontinue the their plans to update the Northstar. Cadillac spokesman Kevin Smith said, “We’ve really seen the V-6 become the predominant engine in sales on the (2008) STS because it’s so close in power to the V-8″ and added that the V-6 is about 150 to 200 pounds lighter too. So if you follow the same formula, it follows that buyers will be willing to go for a 4cyl turbo as well.
24 NineTwoX
// Aug 1, 2008 at 5:44 am
Steven – In 2005, the CTS was available with a 2.8L V6 as an engine choice and yet people opted for the larger displacement V6 and even the V8. In the second generation(current) CTS, only the larger displacement V6 engines are being offered. One could infer that is what the customers want in a luxury vehicle.
25 NineTwoX
// Aug 1, 2008 at 6:59 am
On a side note, the 2008 Cadillac CTS weighs about 3900lbs. The 2008 Saab 9-3 tops out at 3300lbs. Just imagine driving that heavy of a car with the 2.0T ecotec off boost. I bet it would turn a lot of people off that engine.
26 albert
// Aug 1, 2008 at 7:04 am
About the MB video: at least they focus! They know what their goal is. At no GM brand you know what their goal is. If you want to be number one, act like it!
27 Swade
// Aug 1, 2008 at 7:35 am
Sam, I do carry on a bit about the Cadillac thing, I know. But not without reason. GM ar about as passionate about Cadillac as I am about Saab and I know beyond a shadow of doubt that they’d jettison Saab if they could. This 4-cyl Cadillac story is just more evidence of the favour they give to Caddy.
The problem in a nutshell – Caddy, who represent high luxury that’s typically got big quiet engines can have the direct injected turbo four pot if they want it – no questions asked. That engine’s been around for several years now and Saab, who specialise in Turbos and have a history of technological innovation have never had access to that engine.
GM will feed Caddy whatever it wants/needs to survive. Saab get crumbs from the table. I’m sick of it, sick of the feeling that the mothership just doesn’t give a crap about the brand I love and just pays it lip service instead. If I had one ounce of desire or respect for Caddy the that’d help, but I don’t. I’m more attached to Pontiac to be honest. At least they had the screaming chicken and I’d rather that to a bloated vehicle that just says “look how rich I am”.
Sorry. Just woke up (literally – I’m writing this in pyjamas). It’s a new day and I’m just totally sick of waiting another 12 months or so for something new from Saab. By the time the 9-5 and 9-4x are actually released and driveable, this site will be nearly 5 years old and they’ll be the first all-new vehicles in that 5 year period for Saab.
28 Conor
// Aug 1, 2008 at 7:58 am
Sad but true, and the Classic Saab 900’s/9000’s, and early 9-3s i guess arent getting any younger, eventually your goin have to move forward instead of backwards when it comes to new vehicles. that said, its seems as if saab might be gaining some momentum…only time will tell though.
29 Markac
// Aug 1, 2008 at 11:02 am
Swade: I agree totally. In the early part of the nineties I thought GM was a good thing for Saab. In the beginning of this decade there were some promising signs, but the only concepts to come to fruirition have been the 9-3 wagon and also the 9-4x SUV that we eventually see. Excuse me, but I find neither of them exciting.
It must be so frustrating working for Saab. Having all your good ideas ending up nowhere or being passed on to someone else for use on a different brand. I’m sure there’s a sign on the wall at Trollhattan that reads “That’s a good idea but…..”. My heart goes out to all of you.
After 18 years I think GM have had their chance and to use an Aussie expression, “We’ve given them a fair go”, but I think it’s high time Saab found a new corporate parent. In fact if GM was my parent, I’d divorce it!
30 Conor
// Aug 1, 2008 at 11:16 am
Can they divorce them? I thought it’s GM decision. If it isnt…does SAAB have the financial ability to stay afloat throughout the exchange period…which would almost assuredly push back releases on models that saab desperately needs asap.
31 Swade
// Aug 1, 2008 at 11:29 am
Conor, in a word: No.
Saab don’t sell enough to stay afloat. Rarely have. It’s a miracle they’ve lasted 60 years really. That’s why we’re supposed to sit and be grateful for a meagre existence.
32 Markac
// Aug 1, 2008 at 11:58 am
Connor: I was just saying what I’d do if GM was my parent. Unfortunately Saab doesn’t have that option as Swade has pointed out. It can only hope that someone else might adopt them. Someone with a lot more understanding of what Saab really is about.
33 mark_belfast
// Aug 2, 2008 at 12:01 am
Yup, those rims are ‘minging’ as we say in N Ireland. As for the M-B song, ugh. But does anyone recall their track of a few years ago – Janis Joplin’s ‘Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?’ – now THAT’S a song. If Saab could reach those levels of public awareness through a contemporary song……….