史托克俱乐部(Stork Club)发明了一个“俱乐部中的俱乐部”的点子。这个俱乐部会给明星大腕专门开一个房间,好让他们躲开粉丝的围追堵截。如果你觉得一辆4.7万美元的宝马5系不够显示身价?花90,695美元来一台特殊配置的5系如何?奔驰的“黑色系列”(Black Series)把这种手法上升到了一个新的高度。它在奔驰AMG的基础上对性能进行了升级,外观、内饰和座椅均采用特殊设计,整车重量更轻了,但同时这样一款C级轿跑的价格也飙升到了12.5万美元左右。
10. Everybody else is in second place
10.对手不争气
Really, who can go up against this quartet of winners? Lexus may deliver higher quality and better service, but its tentative presentation and lack of heritage consign it to second-tier status. Cadillac has labored mightily to raise its game to international standards -- and nearly gets there with its high-performance V-series -- but will need to execute at this level for another couple of decades before being taken seriously. And for all its panache, Ferrari is a boutique competitor to Porsche, which sells more than 20 times more cars.
的确,还有谁能与这四家德国厂商争锋呢?雷克萨斯(Lexus)的质量和服务也许更胜一筹,但它缺乏霸气,也缺乏历史传统,因此只能居于二流地位。凯迪拉克(Cadillac)凭借高性能的V系列车型几乎已经达到了高端车的国际标准,但是它必须在这个水平上再保持几十年,人们才会真正拿它当回事。至于法拉利(Ferrari),尽管名头甚大,但它只是保时