Niche Markets: The Long of it

When Honda, Toyota, and Nissan first decided to supplement their brands with Acura, Lexus, and Infiniti respectively, they were questioned as to whether the industry really needed to further cramp the heavily European luxury segment. As history illustrates not only was the market primed for competition, but introducing a "sister" brand proved to be the equivalent of marketing genius.

The industry has evolved, however, and a number of niche categories have been introduced including sports utilities, people-moving minivans and hybrids. There's even a segment for the space-limited urban driver. The trend for growth today is certainly geared toward filling as many niche markets as possible; even the Europeans are launching a long-overdue response in a couple of different ways.

LONG WHEELBASE

Leaving the family sedan, people-mover/SUV and compact groups aside for the moment, one area where we are seeing growth (literally) is in what we can call the "chauffeur range." The luxury brands all seem to be introducing an ultra-version (manifested in about five inches of space), to their flagship vehicles to create yet more room for gadgetry and luxurious opulence. AUDI, VW, BMW and most recently Jaguar have all added a LWB version of their top cars, leaving the door wide open for customization.

Mercedes-Benz has gone so far as to design an entire brand -- Maybach -- in the hopes of capturing the über-wealthy and diplomatic crowds. Several brands require their dealerships not only to employ specially trained technicians, but also to outfit their facilities with proper "suites" where the outfitting of these types of automobiles can take place away from the hustle and bustle of everyday dealer operations. In addition to offering their 760il LWB, the BMW camp also purchased Rolls-Royce, splitting it from stable mate Bentley.
Webster's Dictionary defines the French word Limousine as "Any of various large passenger vehicles, especially a luxurious automobile usually driven by a chauffeur and sometimes having a partition separating the passenger compartment from the driver's seat." Today's "limousines" as interpreted by the European luxury brands may still fall into this category, but aren't exactly appropriate for weddings and proms.

Anyway, what I personally find interesting is the question as to whether these cars were designed around the driver or the passenger. All of them "sport" mega horsepower, superb driving dynamics and performance figures, which can sometimes best those of sports and exotics cars. Does this suggest that when the chauffeur is on vacation the owners are hopping upfront to tool around themselves? Maybe…maybe not. But one thing is for sure: you won't be seeing these things lined up by the dozen in front of baggage claim for anyone willing to spend the extra ten bucks over regular cab fare.

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