Can someone explain to me how Acura is outselling Audi in America?

[Desmo85]

Because if people want a VW they acctually buy one. I dont see a need to spend 10k more for a Golf with a nicer interior and different shaped exterior.

[gonzo]

Originally Posted by johanness

Why is everyone feeding the troll??
CarReviewBMW = GoingTooFast

That is exactly what I started sensing the more I read.
Same stomping feet while holding breath vibe.

Carry on..

[KingOfJericho]

You ignored it the first time so I'll say it again: Half of this country has no use for AWD.

[KingOfJericho]

Originally Posted by CarReviewBMW

So how come they don't get a "cheap" Q5? Over the more expensive MDX?
Explain that.

Your 'theory' only works when the price gap is massive.

Your 'theory' is flawed from the start since the Q5 comp is the RDX, which is $3k cheaper. The MDX comp is the Q7 and the price gap there is $5,500.

You were saying?

[Year's_End]

Originally Posted by gonzo

That is exactly what I started sensing the more I read.
Same stomping feet while holding breath vibe.

Carry on..

I'm not seeing the same levels of childish passive aggression and headstrong opinions though. Not enough emoticons either.

[gonzo]

^
I don't know. I just picture this cat with a 4C poster on the ceiling above his bed.

Who knows?
Bit of a weird rant with a thread topic such as this.
No emoticons could be a camo attempt...as hard as it is not to do.


----crickets----

[M3_WC]

Originally Posted by gonzo

^
I don't know. I just picture this cat with a 4C poster on the ceiling above his bed.

Don't forget the Kamui Kobayashi doll he dry humps every night.

[ep_83]

Originally Posted by KingOfJericho

Your 'theory' is flawed from the start since the Q5 comp is the RDX, which is $3k cheaper. The MDX comp is the Q7 and the price gap there is $5,500.

You were saying?

^^^ This x100000000


Also, as a Floridian I agree with your other point about AWD. Rarely do I see AWD versions of cars down here.

Outside of great AWD technology, what does Audi offer to the average American car buyer? Presitige? Status? You could easily get those from BMW and Mercedes (even more so and get a better lease rate while you're at it). Acura at least has the Honda reliabilty reputation behind it.

The MDX is a great value. The MDX owner has a vehicle with some luxury, 3rd row seating, and reliabilty all starting at around 43k. Hard to beat that.

[Law]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Acuras are Hondas Audis are Volkswagens.

FTFY

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by CarReviewBMW

The only Acura that is even competitive with Audi right now is the MDX(Maybe the TLX later on this year, we shall see) Audi is by far the better Brand. Audi have a full line up of Tier 1 Cars. I KNOW ALL THIS.

AND THAT'S WHY I'm very curious as to why it's selling so low.

Lease incentives are a big part of the reason, you are right.

Let's keep the discussion cool. The Acura as a brand has something that many people in US value and that is reliability and $ value. I had two Acura TL's and currently have 08 TL-S and have nothing but great memories and never had a major issue. Their warranty is fantastic, the current one has 8y b-b and it was a per-owned vehicle. It is not a luxury brand but a "near-luxury" one. It offers more than most people need.

For many people Audi falls in the same near-luxury segment although they clearly have luxury and performance vehicles like A7, A8 etc. However, many of their bread and butter models share parts with VW brand yet they cost much more. Therefore the value is not there.

As an example, my neighbor replaced their Prius and Rav 4 with 2011 135i vert and F30 328 xi. I helped a bit and they did consider other brands and quickly noted that Audi is an expensive VW. Note "EXPENSIVE"! They wanted a premium luxury brand and cross-shopped MB and BMW but MB was too soft, boring (their words) and many old people drive them kinda like Lexus.

[CarReviewBMW]

Originally Posted by Smooth 330i

Let's keep the discussion cool. The Acura as a brand has something that many people in US value and that is reliability and $ value. I had two Acura TL's and currently have 08 TL-S and have nothing but great memories and never had a major issue. Their warranty is fantastic, the current one has 8y b-b and it was a per-owned vehicle. It is not a luxury brand but a "near-luxury" one. It offers more than most people need.

For many people Audi falls in the same near-luxury segment although they clearly have luxury and performance vehicles like A7, A8 etc. However, many of their bread and butter models share parts with VW brand yet they cost much more. Therefore the value is not there.

As an example, my neighbor replaced their Prius and Rav 4 with 2011 135i vert and F30 328 xi. I helped a bit and they did consider other brands and quickly noted that Audi is an expensive VW. Note "EXPENSIVE"! They wanted a premium luxury brand and cross-shopped MB and BMW but MB was too soft, boring (their words) and many old people drive them kinda like Lexus.

Acura is an upscale brand. We all know this. The 2% of car shoppers that actually post on forums can say this or that about Acura.. but it doesn't change the fact that the AUTO INDUSTRY and stats sheet list Acura alongside Audi/Lexus/BMW/Mercedes when they show the 'luxury sales' stats and numbers. Acura is often compared in the auto industry to other Luxury cars.

It is just amusing to me how the Audi A4 can't even outsell the Lexus IS(Lexus's third seller)...........

The Audi A4 is honestly the WORST car in that price segment.
Even the Volvo S60 is a better buy. Yet Audi A4 is their premier model(for sales).

Audi in the USA Auto Market is over hyped and sales numbers in the USA proves it.

[MicrophoneMic]

I've owned 2 Acuras in the past and have had ZERO problems with either cars. And I mean ZERO. No reliability issues whatsoever. Can the same be said for Audi? Reliability/Dependability goes a LONG way here in the US.

But Acura's been in a major slump these past years. However, the new upcoming TLX looks pretty solid and the Acura NSX flagship should help with the brand in the future.

http://www.acura.com/future/TLX#1

[IEDEI]

most of the answers I'm reading are wrong.

Audi only bring a certain number of cars to the US to sell; so in other words they have been restricting their supply purposely in order to have limited supply to ensure sustained and predictable growth.....and this odd plan has been working for the past 10 years. You will rarely find Audi 'experimenting' like BMW does by selling multiple bloated variants of the same car (refer to BMW going GT and Gran Coupe and now 'Active Tourer'). You will also rarely find 'unsold' cars sitting too long at Audi dealers like you will find at Acura or BMW dealers.

the reality is that Audi is still a red hot marque globally and is on the heels of BMW in global sales numbers. The US market suffered all those years ago with that whole 60 minutes debacle and it's taken them a long time to recover but they have.

Most Audi shoppers do not cross shop against Acura but against BMW and Mercedes. Most Acura customers are cross shopping against Lexus and Infiniti.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by Smooth 330i

Let's keep the discussion cool. The Acura as a brand has something that many people in US value and that is reliability and $ value. I had two Acura TL's and currently have 08 TL-S and have nothing but great memories and never had a major issue. Their warranty is fantastic, the current one has 8y b-b and it was a per-owned vehicle. It is not a luxury brand but a "near-luxury" one. It offers more than most people need.

For many people Audi falls in the same near-luxury segment although they clearly have luxury and performance vehicles like A7, A8 etc. However, many of their bread and butter models share parts with VW brand yet they cost much more. Therefore the value is not there.

As an example, my neighbor replaced their Prius and Rav 4 with 2011 135i vert and F30 328 xi. I helped a bit and they did consider other brands and quickly noted that Audi is an expensive VW. Note "EXPENSIVE"! They wanted a premium luxury brand and cross-shopped MB and BMW but MB was too soft, boring (their words) and many old people drive them kinda like Lexus.

Oh boy are you in for a world of hurt. You actually helped a neighbor go from Toyotas to BMW?

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by majin ssj eric

In America Acura still has a strong reputation for reliability and quality which counts for a lot given its target consumer base (old people). Audi also has a reputation here, though for the exact opposite thing. Plus, as silly as it is, I really believe the unintended acceleration farce of a story still to this day is hurting Audi in the States.

So this is an interesting comment. I'm an old person, I guess, so I'll chime in. So when I was 27, long ago, Acuras had really just come on the market as Honda's answer to Toyota's Lexus to take on the Europeans. Back in the day at the same time Audi had a terrible reputation for quality. Regardless of the 60-minutes BS about unintended acceleration, Audis just did not have very good build quality, and they also sold the Brazilian-made Fox (which was a just total POS).

Acura on the other hand was a Honda and came with all the reputation for reliability that Honda's rightly earned from the late '70s and '80s. Now as that age group (my age group) is becoming "old people" we old folk still remember how reliable Hondas (Acuras) are and how bad Audis were.

[derryck]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

Median price. The A4 may be slightly cheaper than the TL, but Acuras come with nearly no available options and you can add about 50% to the base price of many Audii. Further, the MDX and RLX are the only Acuras over $40k, while the A3 and A4 (and A5 before destination, in a non metallic color) are the only Audii available under $40k. A fully loaded RLX is $63,830, Audi offers twelve cars with base prices over that price.

Actually the ZDX (out of production but still in dealerships) is over $40K and the upper TL line up is also over $40K but Honda/Acura has established a reputation for building solid reliable cars that hold their value extremely well. We just sold our 01 MDX with over 300K on the clock for $5,500. Also, as was mentioned...Acuras come pretty well loaded and it's pretty easy to price and A4 up to around $50K and that's with the 2.0T 4 cylinder. Honda/Acura is a global company that caters to the masses...they will always sell more cars than Audi.

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Oh boy are you in for a world of hurt. You actually helped a neighbor go from Toyotas to BMW?

hahaha well indirectly yes, I think. What happened was he asked a few questions since he likes my car and then we went for a ride. After 15-20 mins we arrived in an area with some nice curvy roads and I let him drive it. I gave him a 30 sec crash course of what not to do. The funniest thing was he would stop 30+ feet ahead of traffic lights and the he looked at me and said what is wrong with this car - it stops instantly!? hahaha It took him 10+ tries to get used to it, I laughed my butt off every time. As he was driving I told him don't brake before the curve just ease of the throttle and turn in slowly - smooth inputs. He just kept repeating "I can't do any of this in my car". After two weeks he had 135i and his wife thinks it's a raw sports car compared to her F30 and she does not like it.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by Smooth 330i

hahaha well indirectly yes, I think. What happened was he asked a few questions since he likes my car and then we went for a ride. After 15-20 mins we arrived in an area with some nice curvy roads and I let him drive it. I gave him a 30 sec crash course of what not to do. The funniest thing was he would stop 30+ feet ahead of traffic lights and the he looked at me and said what is wrong with this car - it stops instantly!? hahaha It took him 10+ tries to get used to it, I laughed my butt off every time. As he was driving I told him don't brake before the curve just ease of the throttle and turn in slowly - smooth inputs. He just kept repeating "I can't do any of this in my car". After two weeks he had 135i and his wife thinks it's a raw sports car compared to her F30 and she does not like it.

I hope you told him Bimmers break... I've seen too many Japanese car owners convert to BMW and then say WTF!

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I hope you told him Bimmers break... I've seen too many Japanese car owners convert to BMW and then say WTF!

He said he will keep it for 3-4 years and get a M model or P. They are well off and aren't concerned about repair costs but also have warranty

[majin ssj eric]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

So this is an interesting comment. I'm an old person, I guess, so I'll chime in. So when I was 27, long ago, Acuras had really just come on the market as Honda's answer to Toyota's Lexus to take on the Europeans. Back in the day at the same time Audi had a terrible reputation for quality. Regardless of the 60-minutes BS about unintended acceleration, Audis just did not have very good build quality, and they also sold the Brazilian-made Fox (which was a just total POS).

Acura on the other hand was a Honda and came with all the reputation for reliability that Honda's rightly earned from the late '70s and '80s. Now as that age group (my age group) is becoming "old people" we old folk still remember how reliable Hondas (Acuras) are and how bad Audis were.

Just as a correction, Honda beat Toyota to the punch with Acura as they launched the brand in 1986 while Toyota didn't get Lexus off the ground until 1989...

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by majin ssj eric

Just as a correction, Honda beat Toyota to the punch with Acura as they launched the brand in 1986 while Toyota didn't get Lexus off the ground until 1989...

Yeah, you're right. I forgot the Legend came out in '86. As I was writing that I WAS thinking that Acura came out first, but I was too lazy (and confident IKE) to double check. Man am I getting old...

[secretsquirrel]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I hope you told him Bimmers break... I've seen too many Japanese car owners convert to BMW and then say WTF!

Good point. I've had a couple of "non car" people ask my how I like my BMW. I always tell them that I love it, but I'm handy with a wrench (which save me a lot of money). I don't want to be responsible for anyone with a Japanese car coming over to Euro cars thinking they'll get the same level of ease of use.