Does 'Cool' have a short shelf life?

About 53 percent of luxury S.U.V. owners who have traded in their models in the months since November did not purchase another luxury S.U.V., according to the Power Information Network, a branch of the consumer-marketing company J. D. Power & Associates.

Of that group, two-fifths went back to cars, while others bought smaller or less-expensive S.U.V.'s and some purchased pickup trucks. Ron Pinelli, the president of Autodata, said, "Cool has a short shelf life."

To be sure, luxury sport utilities are not going away, and Cadillac, Lincoln and Mercedes-Benz all have new high-ticket models coming out the next few months. But the waiting lists that many dealers came to expect for the industry's plushest vehicles — which typically start at $35,000 — have largely evaporated, along with their buzz.

Full article here

MercBasher - 3/24/2006 1:33:27 AM

+1 Boost

Very interesting article, if I were an automaker and had limited engineering / investment budgets then large SUVs would be near the bottom of my priorities (right above a developing a Ferrari fighter like the NSX).

The article did note Mercedes is spending big time on incentives. The R Class is an ungainly flop, and the ML will be a short term success. At the same time I expect sales of Infiniti, Lexus and Lincoln large SUVs to collapse.

lewissalem - 3/24/2006 4:12:30 PM

+1 Boost

Luxury SUVs have been popular for over ten years. It all began with the Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited.

Matthew1 - 3/24/2006 9:13:08 PM

+1 Boost

...The Luxury SUV started over thirty years ago with the Range Rover.