Paladin06

I'm not trying to be mean here but it is 2006. If you think you can get what you're asking for at that price, you need to start shopping for another car. IMO!!!

sambo77

[quote]ORIGINAL: Paladin06

I'm not trying to be mean here but it is 2006. If you think you can get what you're asking for at that price, you need to start shopping for another car. IMO!!!
[quote]

IF FORD can do it with the baseV8 Mustang-GT then WHY can't DODGE offer us a price competative/comparable model of the Challenger???

WHY is that asking for too much????[&:]

Paladin06

I think Ford knows the end of Ford as we know it is very near. They would do anything to keep their head above water. DCX is not in the same situation. They don't see RED when they wake up everyday. Besides, a Ford, is a Ford, is a Ford and always will be.

RLSH700

There is no other way to explain it other than Ford=Chevrolet, Dodge=Pontiac, Chevrolet=Plymouth=Ford (when it still existed), Dodge does NOT=Ford, Dodge does NOT =Chevrolet, Pontiac does NOT=Ford, Pontiac does NOT =Plymouth. It is comparing apples to oranges. Dodge does not see Ford or Chevrolet as their competition beyond the truck market. It is just the way business works. It is a marketing strategy that is now flawed because Plymouth no longer exists. Dodge is not a volume brand as Ford is. Plymouth was the volume brand. Does this make sense?

RLSH700

Your right on target!

sambo77

So let me get this straight....

From what you are saying, only Ford can offer a price competative base V8 pony/muscle car???

I STILL think that Dodge could too... If they want to really sell alot of them and really make a huge overall profit, THEN they had better gear up to make say 60,000-100,00+ of ALL comparable variants of the Challenger to the Mustang at comparable MSRP prices....

Rembemer it is better to sell 100,000 units at $2500-$3500 profit each than to sell 10,000 units at $5000-$7000 per unit profit for each....

SIMPLE ECONOMICS....

THat is if Dodge is STILL in the business of selling cars for the masses.... NOT the elite/rich of the world...

sambo77

WHY is that asking for too much????[&:]
[/quote]
There is no other way to explain it other than Ford=Chevrolet, Dodge=Pontiac, Chevrolet=Plymouth=Ford (when it still existed), Dodge does NOT=Ford, Dodge does NOT =Chevrolet, Pontiac does NOT=Ford, Pontiac does NOT =Plymouth. It is comparing apples to oranges. Dodge does not see Ford or Chevrolet as their competition beyond the truck market. It is just the way business works. It is a marketing strategy that is now flawed because Plymouth no longer exists. Dodge is not a volume brand as Ford is. Plymouth was the volume brand. Does this make sense?
[/quote]


So what you are saying is that DODGE=PONTIAC

SO, using your logic then... CHALLENGER=GTO... [&:]

I SURELY HOPE NOT! [:@]

The GTO was a way overpriced at $35,000-$38,000 compared to $25,000-$28,000 for the base V8 Mustang-GT, which GREATLY contributed to this limited production car's lack luster sales less than what was hoped for by Pontiac. The GTO was almost recently canceled and is currently being re-designed on a more economical chasis setup to try to lower production cost as well as to INCREASE potiential volume of sales...

I SURELY HOPE THAT THIS IS NOT THE WAY OF THE CHALLENGER.....[][&o][&o]

RLSH700

NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!

This is what I'm saying Challenger=Firebird, Camaro=Mustang, Cuda=Mustang, Cuda=Camaro, Firebird>Mustang, Challenger>Mustang, Challenger>Camaro. Remove the GTO from your mind for a minuet. The Firebird cost around $1,000-2,000 more dollars than the Camaro, it was classified as a superior product to the Camaro do to the status symbol. Dodge will probably charge more for the Challenger because they can. If Dodge ends up selling the Challenger with models to compete against the Mustang GT here is what will probably be the match up Mustang 4.6L V8 300hp vs. Challenger 5.7L 350hp. Dodge is going to charge a higher price because the higher hp number is going to bring people into the dealership, and because they will probably offer more luxury options. They will NOT make another V8 specially to compete against the Mustang, it would be cost effective, and it would cost MORE to build the 4.7L to compete against the Mustang 4.6L, since it already costs more to build.

Time to break the myth about the GTO being overpriced. If the GTO is overpriced, then why does the Corvette manage to sell perfectly at around $10,000 more dollars than the GTO while offering the same powertrain? The difference in acceleration is marginal but favors the Corvette, while the GTO offers more options, better interior, over all a better, but a heavier car. The Corvette manages to do better because it is unique within GM. No one else has the Corvette's styling. The Corvette has been around for years and has developed its own status aside from the division of Chevrolet to where it is perceived as being a superior product. The GTO does not look like the classic at all. It looks like the Grand Prix, which got its styling from the Grand Am. It is also a sign that Pontiac is losing their superior product image. The GTO was trying to compete against cars like the Mercedes CL-class, BMWs, and expensive luxury cars by offering a high quality product at around half the price. The GTO did not =the Mustang, and it was never intended to do so. The GTO does not =Firebird Trans Am, it is a completely different type of car. The most recent Ford product that it would compete against would be the 91-97 Thunderbird/Cougar twins (I'm not refering to that tacky, poorly done retro car that was recently discountinued) because both are classified as being mid-sized where as both Mustang and Camaro/Firebird twins are/were classified as subcompact. The GTO has more in common with the 80s Grand Prix/Monte Carlo/Cutlass Supreme/Regal Grand National coupes, than it does with the Camaro/Firebird. With th

sambo77

Do I Understand some of it makes a little sence
BUT most of it does not because how can you say what you do and how do you figure in to this marketing equation of yours the likes of Ford's Ultra-retro/performance, limited production, higher dollar, GT that sells even higher prices than the Dodge-Viper???

You CAN'T compare the GTO to the VETTE...
The VETTE is a 2 seater enthusiast performance car...
The GTO was originally and recently marketted as a 2+2 MUSCLE car just like the Original GTO being a car of the masses...

AND...IF you think that the higher/over-pricing of the GTO had NOTHING to do with its lack luster sales, THEN I think you are wrong...

The original GTO WAS a car of the masses with a price within the average normal range of most domestic automobiles of its day...
The NEW GTO tried to be something different than what the original GTO was and the masses rejected it partially because of HIGH-PRICE...[&o]

IF DODGE makes the same marketing mistake with the new Challenger likewise it will be a mistake since the original Challenger was a car that was ment to compete with the likes of other contemperary pony/muscle cars of the day and was priced to appeal to the masses instead of the elite/rich auto-enthusiast few......

RLSH700

Well the the reason why I can say that about Dodge for the Viper and not say that about for is the fact that the Viper has been successful for 14 years and the GT has failed. Ford couldn't make it work, Dodge was able to work. Look at Dodge's offers for the last ten years vs. Ford's (outside the Mustang). The Intrepid still had its sporty image vs. the Taurus has been reduced to a Grandparent mobile (just like the Crown Vic) since it lost the SHO model. The Stratus is still being made and attracts a younger crowd, vs. the Contour was dropped after its first generation with most of its market being again old people and some girls. The Neon actually had a performance model to talk about vs. the Focus had nothing that could compete against that model. Currently, Dodge is able to sell a more expensive top model sedan than Ford.

Dodge has more credibility than Ford and as a result can sell for a higher price. With the exception of the Focus, Ford's cars mostly have appealed to senior citizens vs. Dodge has been able to keep a younger crowd that expects more out of their cars. The Plymouth division was killed off because not enough people wanted a car that was more basic than Dodge and less expensive to make it worth while. You need to learn more about marketing and why Dodge is not intended to compete against Ford or Chevrolet. You might think this is a foolish strategy to charge a coupe thousand more, but it works.

Just look at the results. GM and Ford are pushing their budget brands harder than they ever have before, doing what you think is the right decision, and guess what, they are failing. DCX is doing what you think is foolish (charging a couple thousand more, selling less, but making it worth that extra couple thousand and then some), and guess what, they are succeeding. The Japanese charge more for their cars their either Chevrolet or Ford does, and they are taking away the market from them. If budget was the pure way to success, then KIA would be the most popular brand around.

Your right that the current GTO is nothing like the original, but the difference is you and many people misunderstand what it is. GM was intending to compete against the Mercedes and BMWs, not against the Mustang. If that was their intent, they would have recreated the GTO. Considering the cars it they were intending to compete against cost around $50,000-80,000, it is a bargin. Don't believe me, here is one review that proves my point. http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...pe_comparison/

That is what GM was intending to do, NOT compete against the Mustang. The styling doesn't do