[BAMxi]

^^I do agree with both of you. i know the money is in giving the non-enthusiast crowd big comfy cars to park at the mall. I just think BMW is slowly trying to make something for everyone. That kind of tosses out the exclusivity notion of owning one, but I think as long as there are brands building cheaper cars like our domestic companies and Kia/Hyundai, they will always bring in the bargain shopper over BMW. It's going to be interesting to see how things play out. It seems like some companies are trying to push themselves upstream while BMW pushes itself downstream. I think the timing of the 2GC will be cool to see how it stacks up against this new WRX/STi (if it's as cool as the concept car...not likely, but here's to hoping). I'd assume they'll be roughly in the same price range, (high 30s-low 40s) and BMW is going to start having competition with cars and companies it never had before. And, I think many BMW enthusiasts will venture outside of the brand, if their needs aren't being met by BMW. Most of the BMW fans I've met are first and foremost driving enthusiasts, and that's what drew them to the brand. If they find something that appeals to their driving needs/wants more elsewhere, I can see them venturing elsewhere. At least that is true of myself.