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Originally posted by dnewma04:
Originally posted by RT and his SE:
You all can split hairs all you want but the body styles as a whole are the same. I'm not talking EXACT replicas of each other but you can't deny the similarities. Let's try it from another angle. Do any of these cars look unique compared to the others? Shift a light here, move the antenna there, the body of the car still flows the same. Take the average car buyer to a Pontiac dealer and ask them to differentiate between the three cars and I bet they couldn't.
You obviously must agree with the above that Ford was guilty of the same thing with the contour/escort/taurus, right?
Absolutely!
99 Contour Sport SE MTX
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Green car silver hood (because silver is faster)
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Zippy Zetec on his last legs.
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Zippy Zetec on his last legs.
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what about cadillac!!! OMFG... everything is looking so similar i cant see straight!!!! with the exception of obvious differences (sedan vs SUV etc) most of cadillacs cars/trucks look damn near identical to each other...and it sux...lets have some variety people... on another note, i think the 2 most similar NEW cars on the market are the Explorer and the Expedition...the only REAL diffeence being size.   
Regards, Cole.
Relegating to troll status sometime this week.
New Whip: 1990 Lexus ES250.
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I feel Guilty, Oh so guilty
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I feel Guilty, Oh so guilty
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Originally posted by joe:
Why does no one have a problem with BMW doing the same thing?
For some reason, brand identity is bad except in cars people like.
"If you are flammable and have legs, you are never blocking a fire exit"
-Mitch Hedberg
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Quote:
You all can split hairs all you want but the body styles as a whole are the same. I'm not talking EXACT replicas of each other but you can't deny the similarities. Let's try it from another angle. Do any of these cars look unique compared to the others? Shift a light here, move the antenna there, the body of the car still flows the same. Take the average car buyer to a Pontiac dealer and ask them to differentiate between the three cars and I bet they couldn't.
Dude, have you never heard of "Brand Identity"?
All their cars are supposed to look the same.
Look at Mazda, Nissan, Toyota, Saturn, Chrysler, bigger names like Mercedes and BMW, or even Aston Martin and Jaguar.
You're supposed to look at a car and recognize it for what it is solely based on its' general look. It's called Branding.
One big benefit, aside from Customer and Consumer brand recognition, is that people who can't afford the next car higher up on the chain can get the cheaper car and get roughly the same 'look' still. They might not be able to afford that GTO, but they can buy that Grand Prix and still feel like they're driving a cool car like that one.
And, yes, before someone brings it up -- virtually every car has some seperate car that is totally removed from their normal look. Nissan has the 350Z, Mazda has the Miata, Ford has the Mustang, etc. Exclusivity is a different kind of brand identity, but it functions on the same basic marketing premise of Consumer Identification.
That said; that is probably what Pontiac should have done with the GTO. I understand why they went the traditional route of making it look similar to their other styles, but it should have been their exclusive niche car. They should gone an entirely different route with it and used it to get their name and image out and people into the showrooms.
The GTO is selling horribly -- less than half of company expectations. It's styling is a primary reason why. When you get a car like the GTO you, generally want to be set apart from the other Pontiac owners. You want people to recognize the GTO more than the Pontiac -- like the Mustang, 350Z, or Miata -- all are purely recognizable on their names, not their manufacturers.
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Veteran CEG\'er
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Originally posted by sigma:
Dude, have you never heard of "Brand Identity"?
All their cars are supposed to look the same.
Look at Mazda, Nissan, Toyota, Saturn, Chrysler, bigger names like Mercedes and BMW, or even Aston Martin and Jaguar.
You're supposed to look at a car and recognize it for what it is solely based on its' general look. It's called Branding.
FINALLY someone gets it. Thank you.
2000 SVT Contour -- SOLD! New car coming soon...
1980 Triumph TR7 -- Needs a new home...
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Originally posted by sigma:
Quote:
You all can split hairs all you want but the body styles as a whole are the same. I'm not talking EXACT replicas of each other but you can't deny the similarities. Let's try it from another angle. Do any of these cars look unique compared to the others? Shift a light here, move the antenna there, the body of the car still flows the same. Take the average car buyer to a Pontiac dealer and ask them to differentiate between the three cars and I bet they couldn't.
Dude, have no you never heard of "Brand Identity"?
All their cars are supposed to look the same.
Look at Mazda, Nissan, Toyota, Saturn, Chrysler, bigger names like Mercedes and BMW, or even Aston Martin and Jaguar.
You're supposed to look at a car and recognize it for what it is solely based on its' general look. It's called Branding.
One big benefit, aside from Customer and Consumer brand recognition, is that people who can't afford the next car higher up on the chain can get the cheaper car and get roughly the same 'look' still. They might not be able to afford that GTO, but they can buy that Grand Prix and still feel like they're driving a cool car like that one.
And, yes, before someone brings it up -- virtually every car has some seperate car that is totally removed from their normal look. Nissan has the 350Z, Mazda has the Miata, Ford has the Mustang, etc. Exclusivity is a different kind of brand identity, but it functions on the same basic marketing premise of Consumer Identification.
That said; that is probably what Pontiac should have done with the GTO. I understand why they went the traditional route of making it look similar to their other styles, but it should have been their exclusive niche car. They should gone an entirely different route with it and used it to get their name and image out and people into the showrooms.
The GTO is selling horribly -- less than half of company expectations. It's styling is a primary reason why. When you get a car like the GTO you, generally want to be set apart from the other Pontiac owners. You want people to recognize the GTO more than the Pontiac -- like the Mustang is just the Mustang, 350Z, or Miata -- all are purely recognizable on their names, not their manufacturers.
So what's your point? Brand idenity is a good thing for me how? Marketers benefit regular people by telling them what they should buy and that their life is somehow deminished if they don't value what the rest of the sheep covet.
I think the point you're making is why this thread was started in the first place! That we as consumers should want and expect more! Benz and BMW and get away with it because it's not all about the style that you are buying their cars. There's the engineering, the quality and the prestige factor of these two name plates that has less to do with marketing and more to do decades of build a reputation of delivering a quality automobile.
I agree with you that the GTO was not well thought out. Throwing a big motor into a Grand Prix does not recreate an automotive legend which the original GTO was. You don't look at this car and say "WOW". When Ford did the retro T-bird I think that had "WOW" factor, I think the new Mustang has it too.
PS I get it but it doesn't mean I want it!
Last edited by RT and his SE; 05/25/04 04:02 PM.
99 Contour Sport SE MTX
KKM filter, B&M shifter
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Green car silver hood (because silver is faster)
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Quote:
So what's your point? Brand idenity is a good thing for me how? Marketers benefit regular people by telling them what they should buy and that their life is somehow deminished if they don't value what the rest of the sheep covet.
I think the point you're making is why this thread was started in the first place! That we as consumers should want and expect more!
This is what consumers want!
For the same exact reasons you listed under BMW and Mercedes -- Engineering, Quality, and Prestige.
Most people buy a car that they like. That they're proud of. Americans are intensely proud of their vehicles, it doesn't matter if they're driving a Porsche or a Kia. But most people can't afford to get a BMW. So they show off by buying that new Nissan Altima. It might not be that distinguished, but people can instantly recognize it as a Nissan -- and to those who bought the Altima, that's as good as buying a BMW or Mercedes is to those that can afford to buy those.
Other people don't like hacing a car that looks like everyone elses (though you did buy a Contour). They are generally 'enthusiasts', like you or myself, and it's for those people that cars like the Mustang, the 350Z, SRTs, the entire SVT lineup, MazdaSpeed, Redlines, etc, are create for. They want to stand out a bit.
That's why SVT owners bought the SVT, why you mod your SE, or even why I bought my Mazda6. Granted, with the production of the Mazda3 it's not quite as unique, and if you look at the MPV and Tribute there are definite design cues that yell "Mazda", but production-wise it's still a relatively rare car that gets a lot of attention, and that's what I wanted.
But we are a vast minority. Most people just want a car that gets them from Point A to Point B; and one they can be proud to drive. It might not be a BMW -- but it is to them. And they want people to recognize it for what it is, because they are just as proud of it as a BMW owner is of their car.
2003 Mazda6s 3.0L MTX
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CEG\'er
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GTO is based on the Australian Holden monaro coupe, you can see this. http://www.1-18thmodelcars.co.uk/Motor%20Show/Vauxhall.htmwith some cosmetic adaptations to "pontiac looking" the car is the new GTO. so, the reason for what the cars of the same brand look similar its to lower production costs, continue the same design tendecy for familiar looking, and keep the pontiac enthusiast consumers.
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Contour 98.5 GL V6 Manual, 115,000 KM
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Originally posted by RT and his SE:
I agree with you that the GTO was not well thought out. Throwing a big motor into a Grand Prix does not recreate an automotive legend which the original GTO was. You don't look at this car and say "WOW".
Get your facts straight. The GTO is NOT, I repeat NOT a Grand Prix. It has nothing in common with the GP, not one iota! 
It's a totally unique car to the GM line-up built and designed entirely in Australia. A Holden Monaro to be exact; that was uglified by the choads at GM/Pontiac.
This car has plenty of "WOW", If you'd actually driven on, you'd know. It's an awesome car to drive and is very responsive to modifications.
It's brother, the Commodore is a successfully campaigned race car in the Australian Supercar Touring Championship, who's rival is the Ford Falcon (also no relation to ANY US or European Ford).
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Originally posted by Stazi the Aussie:
Originally posted by RT and his SE:
I agree with you that the GTO was not well thought out. Throwing a big motor into a Grand Prix does not recreate an automotive legend which the original GTO was. You don't look at this car and say "WOW".
Get your facts straight. The GTO is NOT, I repeat NOT a Grand Prix. It has nothing in common with the GP, not one iota!
It's a totally unique car to the GM line-up built and designed entirely in Australia. A Holden Monaro to be exact; that was uglified by the choads at GM/Pontiac.
This car has plenty of "WOW", If you'd actually driven on, you'd know. It's an awesome car to drive and is very responsive to modifications.
It's brother, the Commodore is a successfully campaigned race car in the Australian Supercar Touring Championship, who's rival is the Ford Falcon (also no relation to ANY US or European Ford).
Settle down big fella you can love the car if you want MY opinion is that I don't. Look at the car, the American version because that's the one we are talking about. What sets it apart? What makes it unique? Sure it may be a kick to drive but for me I have to like the outside before I consider what's inside!
Yoda voice on\"National pride is is strong with this one!"Yoda voice off/ 
99 Contour Sport SE MTX
KKM filter, B&M shifter
No res, BAT kit
Green car silver hood (because silver is faster)
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