You are right, especially about people being able to DRIVE the car instead of being driven by it.Not sure what % of BMW, Audi & Merc sales are in the US, but seems like more and more the dynamics, styling and content are geared towards us buyers. Unfortunately, it seems like most US buyers don't value performance as much as they do comfort & not having to be involved in driving. How else do you explain all the electronic non-sense: lane departure warning, automatic braking/collsion avoidance, active cruise control, wake the idiot up alert, etc. What the hell happened to actually DRIVING the car and paying attention to what you were doing?
If I had a dollar for every time some bimbo driving an X5, Jag, or LR has nearly taken me out becuase she's blabbing away on her cell, failing to signal and then turning right into the nail salon from the left lane.... grrrr.
But look at the U.S. from a driving perspective? Even on the "opne road", speed limits of 65 or 70 mph if you are lucky. No where to stretch a cars legs. No need to be involved (like say the autobahn) because people have no lane discipline, no awareness of surrounds and no real need for top end. So to while away the time, you get all kinds of electronic gizmos, gazillion watt stereos, heat/cool/ massaging seats, cupholders (ok, I like mine in the morning for coffee on my 65 mph highway jaunt to the office), lane departure warning (what, I was supposed to stay in my lane all by myself?), automatic braking (what, I have to judge stopping distances and decide how HARD to push the brakes, even with ABS since you can't even lock up the brakes in most situations), etc.
Yup, not really a surprise, but no less a disappointment. There will be a niche for car companies that can still put out an exciting product that the driver drives. I would have to say the Porsche is still in the lead, although they have to keep up with other car companies too.....
Regards,
Jerry