[rescue] Help needed with Sun V65x

[Andrew Jones]

On 02/19/2014 10:56 AM, Lionel Peterson wrote:
> Fair enough.
>
> Just because two manufacturers cut costs to make something 'affordable'
> doesn't really make them comparable.
>
> Mercedes has a new CLA class car that they view as a low-cost, entry-level
> vehicle at $30K. It wouldn't 't be fair to compare that to a low-cost,
> entry-level Kia at half the price, would it?
>
> I see your point, do you see mine?
>
> Lionel

I think you've hit on a great metaphor there.

The European prestige brands face a lot of problems similar to the 
old-time UNIX workstation vendors: ugly cost structures, problems 
hitting volume numbers, selling products based on prestige instead of 
performance or features, etc.

People absolutely will compare a $20k Kia to a $30k Mercedes, and 
long-term, that might prove a serious problem for Mercedes.

The difference is more in magnitude than kind: an Ultra 5 was closer to 
3x the price of a comparable PC.




p.s. Average new car price in the U.S. is now around $31k. Targeting 
$30k for "entry level" luxury seems like a reasonable goal for M-B.