Brazilian Audis

[cobram@Channel1.Com (Cobram)]

 -=> Justin Fidler illuminates us with <=-
  
 JF> E-classes, but no S-class because they're too big and no one could
 JF> afford them.  Anyway, it's no surprise that the vehicles are grossly

  According to Morgani, the Mercedes importer, the opposite was
  the reason, there were no S-class Mercedes available because
  they were on backorder at the time of the show. The one
  they did have was already sold and was out getting armoured.
 
 JF> I did see some interesting models there.  The Ford Ka which is a
 JF> hatchback that looks to be smaller than the old Festiva (I'd like to

  The Ford Ka is know as the "Ford cu" in Brazil. Cu means
  A-hole in Portugues, it's given this nickname because it's
  "tight and ugly".  No need for a rear window defogger either,
  just wear a hat and rub your head on the rear window while
  you drive.
 
 JF> What really surprised me is that Audi spent major $$ marketing the A6
 JF> during the auto show.  Literally 80% of the billboards nearby (and
 JF> many throughout the city) advertised the A6.  I found this a bit odd
 JF> since very few people could possibly afford one, so I'm not sure what
 JF> the ROI was (there's a reason you don't see Rolls Royce ads on
 JF> billboards here in the U.S.).  No other car company there did this kind
 JF> of marketing blitz. 

  Senna Import (Audi exclusive representatives in Brazil) know
  how to do things right.  Like everywhere else, there is a
  luxury market that is highly competitive, and unlike the
  sorry job that Audi USA does, Senna Import is a world class
  model of how distributors and dealers SHOULD all be.  I
  travel several times a year to Brazil, and whenever possible
  try and be there for the autoshow. I have a few connections
  and attend the "VIP" events, Senna Import serves all the
  French Champagne, 12 year old scotch and hors'ders (sp)
  in "VIP" areas of their very large displays. Not to mention
  the shows they put on with scantily clad models.  They
  also publish a glossy magazine, and now have a television
  show on Sundays pushing the "Audi Lifestyle".

  Their ads are great too (they ran a national magazine
  ad with two strips of velcro holding the pages together,
  when pulled apart the velcro represented tire tracks with
  a caption about how quattro sticks to the road), most of
  which can be seen on their web site.  Their sales are
  up, and they have already smoked the competition (BMW,
  and Mercedes) on unit sales.  No small feat when you
  consider that an A4Q goes for around U$70,000 and an
  A8Q goes for U$160,000.00.  When you're in this kind
  of income bracket, do you really care about the
  price of fuel?

  As for the Audi's being "expensive" in Brazil, it's
  all relative.  A Brazilian made Chevrolet (OPEL)
  Omega costs almost U$45,000, and a Chevy Turbo
  Diesel Dual Cab Pickup truck will cost you between
  U$50-80,000. A Harley Davidison costs U$40,000
  down there. When you take into account the very
  high resale value compared to the US, depreciation
  sometimes actually costs owners less money
  there, depending on the model.

  Audi USA should also take note of how Senna Import
  takes care of it's customers.  I was out in the
  "jungle" near a road building project when an A6 owned
  by one of the engineers got stuck in  "Park".  One call
  to Audi in Sao Paulo and 12 hours later (that's how
  far this place was from the closest dealer) they
  delivered him an A4 to use and flatbedded his car to
  get serviced at the dealer....all this at
  no cost.


  BCNU,



  ... Life is a sexually transmitted disease with a 100% mortality rate
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