thread brought forward from:
http://drivetimedhaka.com/forum/viewtop ... 3&start=15
On Vacation
On Vacation
Last edited by Monk on Tue Apr 13, 2004 9:12 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Lot of Americans are skeptic about American cars. Thats why Japanese manufacturers are going to be leading the North American market by 2005. I guess the Americans just dont show this skepticism because they feel it compromises their patriotism. I am personally very fond of American cars. All though they are gas guzzlers and SOMETIMES trouble prone I'd rather buy an American car then anything else out there. In Bangladesh the number of luxury vehicles consumers, are on the rise. Most of these consumers are looking to buy Benz or Beemers, which have dealerships in Bangladesh. some of you have said that these cars are expensive to buy and to maintain. Thats why I brought up Chrysler. My belief is that Chrylers are more reliable than most American cars. And from my estimate, if a dealership could be established in Bangladesh the price of these cars would not be very expensive. Infact luxury cars like the Chrysler Concord and 300 will attract the potential Mercedes buyers since the cars could be sold at 2/3 of the price of a S-Class and tend to be more reliable. When it comes to family sedans, cars like the Chrysler Intrepid, 300 M and Neon could be sold for cheaper than the Camry and Accord. For example the base price of the 2004 Camry in Bangadesh is 36 laks. Thats $60,596 USD. But the base price of its counterpart the Intrepid is about 16,999 USD(in US) which is about 9 laks in Bangladesh. and after the 210% tax and import cost, it stands around, 28 laks maximum. 8 laks cheaper. Chryslers are the most popular cars sold in Mexico. Mexicos's weather and terrain have lot of similarities with Bangladesh. Therefore, if these cars can function well in Mexico, I think they'll be ok in Bangladesh.
On Vacation
36 lacs is an absurd price for the Camry in Bangladesh, and I’m sure a lot of people feel the same. I can’t figure out how people can justify spending if not asking so much on a car like that with no substance. With 36 lacs you can wet your hands in European luxury. I’m not talking about Benz’s or Beemers rather Alfa and Volvos. The Alfa 156, fully tricked was being asked 25 Lacs in the motor show last year. But they still haven’t generated much interest here and it gives a fair example of our giving reluctance to approach anything new. As for the Volvo, the S80 2.0 liter engine is around 35lacs. I did however manage to bring the price down significantly, but was later put off by the way it drove. Volvo has a fairly large percentage of customers in the new car market, mainly given to the fact that they were one of the first to operate here. And they didn’t face much competition either from other European brands like Peugeot and fiat. The reason behind these cars being moderately cheaper than their German siblings is because they are being subsidized by the manufacturer, since they are imported to a developing country.
Even Mercedes technicians acknowledged that they were being subsidized. But, their deceitful way of charging 60 Lacs for a c-class was what provoked me to import mine privately. When you are saying 28K I suppose that is in reach of most moderately well off family. But, when you are getting into 2/3 price of an S-class or Mercedes customers, you are talking emotional values. Will it be able to outweigh the emotional value of owning a Benz?...one can only hope.
Chucky, all European cars suffer from severe electrical defects. And Mercedes is in the roots. I’ve had my door control modules, seat control modules, the retention clamps and motor on the front passenger window and the air mass controller replaced before the 1st service came up. And yes aside from the price that’s the main reason Asians buy Japanese.
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Even Mercedes technicians acknowledged that they were being subsidized. But, their deceitful way of charging 60 Lacs for a c-class was what provoked me to import mine privately. When you are saying 28K I suppose that is in reach of most moderately well off family. But, when you are getting into 2/3 price of an S-class or Mercedes customers, you are talking emotional values. Will it be able to outweigh the emotional value of owning a Benz?...one can only hope.
Chucky, all European cars suffer from severe electrical defects. And Mercedes is in the roots. I’ve had my door control modules, seat control modules, the retention clamps and motor on the front passenger window and the air mass controller replaced before the 1st service came up. And yes aside from the price that’s the main reason Asians buy Japanese.
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About having American cars namely Chrysler in Bangladesh as on of the members imply, LEFT HAND DRIVE may not be difficult for you and me to handle but can u imagine what these drivers here will do with LHD cars....they can harldy handle RHD!! the intrepid is a beautiful car and would be a hit here i am sure. I have a 1971 Dodge Charger which is also a Chrysler (MOPAR) product and i tell u it doesnt run much differently than a V8 Lexus 400. I have had the car for quite some time now since my dad graduated and brought it along with him in 1975! it has since then 47000miles only! Do chk out the snaps in the classic car section.
Keep writing in you guys. good to hear from ppl who know and appreciate such cars and not just jap metal....
Keep writing in you guys. good to hear from ppl who know and appreciate such cars and not just jap metal....
So you are the owner of the charger. I must say that it is a fine car. You are right, one of the barriers in bringing American cars to Bangladesh is the fact that they are left hand drive and people in Bangladesh are used to the other way around. But recently I have read the Chrysler's shareholder's report where they were discussing expanding business into Asia. They were saying the cars would either be assembled in an asian country (most probably India), or they would be assembled in Southern Ontario or Michigan and then be exported to Asia. Keep in mind they would be right hand drive to best suite the asian drivers. Recently the luxury car market started to grow in Bangladesh as BMW and other European car manufacturers poured in to the country. After doing some calculation it made me realise that these chrysler luxury vehicles could be brought to Bangladesh and sold for much cheaper than the European luxury cars. And Chrysler's family sedans like the Intrepid and the 300M could be sold for cheaper than the Accord and the Camry. Now as Monk said, there is an emotional value in Mercedes. It is the icon of luxury in the automotive sector. I am not aware of the exact price of a Mercedes Benz S-Class but from my calculation the Chrysler concord could be sold for 2/3 of the price. This is after the 210% tax, export cost and any other costs attached. And the Concord provides the same amount of luxury as the S-Class does and from my point of view is much more reliable. If a dealership could be established in Bangladesh then I think this could be possible.
It would be great if someone could make an educated guess as to how much it might have cost to establish the Mercedes dealership in Dhaka.
It would be great if someone could make an educated guess as to how much it might have cost to establish the Mercedes dealership in Dhaka.
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On Vacation
Asking price for the last batch of S350 Elegance were 1 core 50 lacs each. The C200 Kompressor Elegance with AMG skirts and aprons went for 60 lacs. The E200 prior to the price hike was floating around 70 lacs. I’ll put up the quotes for their full lineup and will try to find out the exact establishment cost.
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Woooow Monk, thanx soooo much. When I said the Chrysler Concord would be 2/3 of the S-CLass i thought the S-Class price was somewhere around a crore. Now after hearing its about 1.5 crore, than the Concord would be a bit more than half the price of a S-Class. I guess for those who care more about the prestige than the actual metal, the extra half price is worth it.
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