Croc

BV...its SUPPOSED to be in chinese

It'll sell well, assuming of course the interior isn't made from plastic salvaged from trash dumpsters by the homeless like many other GM vehicle interiors. All kidding aside, it looks pretty good.

?No. There is no magical transformation occurring 1 January 2007 that suddenly allows all these programs to exist. This is the reality for the next 5 or so years. GM is finally learning to efficiently allocate their cash resources.

That's consistent with what I've heard as well. Also, that interior doesn't look like it will be any better designed than the AURA interior.

I doubt it, actually. They will likely be the same corporate units. C'mon Chevy...prove me wrong!

Awesome...thanks for clearing that up!

Correct. The current EPI AURA is a gussied-up G6.

I think the different colors represent different materials/color combos.

Based on what I have known/seen/a good bit of logical speculation...the Malibu refresh is just that--a 2008 EPI refresh. Interior design is improved slightly, but only slightly. Imagine a cross between the EPI AURA & G6 interiors and the current Malibu interior. The center stack air vents won't look deranged, and the chintzy controls on the center stack will be upgraded to the current corporate units. Instrument cluster will be a 3-guage version of the G6 cluster. Steering wheel will be the corporate 3-point unit. In fact, for your sake I hope you like the corporate 3-point unit as you will see it used VERY frequently within GM. There may or may not be a storage compartment on top of the center stack a la Ford. Expect an AURA-like center console treatment. Much of this is speculation, but I wouldn't get your hopes up...afterall this interior only lasts +/-3 years. Given GM's financial situation, they prolly won't spend lavishly on a +/-3 yr. interior. EDIT: aaaaaaaaaaand evok's beaten me to it

Agreed...as long as it improves GM's profitability. There's no point in creating a money-losing vehicle. If GM can get a feasible vehicle on Kappa, then great...but if engineering costs make it too expensive then wait until the next RWD platform comes around since I'd rather have GM make cars for a long time than to put out a couple low-volume awesome models and promptly go Ch. 11 on us.

OK in the links Bobo posted, it's clear the "white chimney" isn't a chimney, but a portion of a retaining wall...that said, the other chimney is clearly visible. I still wanna know where the bedroom window went, though.

RE: chimneys...naw, the one in the original house is high enough you'd see it...but in the original pic there clearly is no chimney where the one in the "today" pic is...and why would they get rid of a front-facing bedroom window? I think it is a similar house, but not the same. A lot of late 60s/early 70s houses were cookie cutter...

HA! Didn't know that.

Why not?

I thought about that...but the things changed don't make sense. Like why was the 2nd story window removed (under the pointed roof)? Why were windows ADDED by the front door? Why was the chimney moved?I can see the windows added, but not any of the other things. Especially the chimney. Just doesn't make sense.

The houses are similar, but clearly aren't the same one.

Hi, my name is Northstar, and I want to saturate the market!

Yea, it's all about living in the ghetto. I bet when you park your car curbside in LA there is zero chance of a homeless person slashing your car looking for something valuable to pawn off for money. Yea...except that's a pretty common occurrance in LA.Nice try...you're just sounding ridiculous defending this point after you've been pointed out some obvious pros of a hardtop. What about a reduction of road noise? What about better driving dynamics resulting from the increased structural rigidity of having a sturdy hardtop roof versus a flimsy soft top? The sun cannot rot your hardtop. Get a pinprick in the soft top and you got a leak in the rain! Hardtops aren't flammable. Ever had debris land on you on the freeway? What about landslide debris as you're cruising PCH? I bet the Wicked Witch of the East wished she had a hardtop over her head... Seriously...there are so many practical advantages...

A lot of the smell has to do with the fuel blends.

I love the radios where you can have BOTH time AND music display simultaneously.

Mopar has always been big on style. Back in the day, Chryslers were big on style and short on service...the second part's changed for the better these days, but thankfully the focus on style and design hasn't.

Well duh...I'm just saying I wish it were...I'll settle for either gas engine in the SRX, but a diesel would make it impossible to turn down.BTW--is the 07 SRX interior refresh meaningful or is it halfassed?

Why no diesel for you? Better mileage, and plus I want to be able to drive my car AFTER fossil fuels run out...which really isn't too far out there...

Of course, businesses who cater to those speaking other languages have some real comparative advantages as the foreigners see them as welcoming and accomodating and therefore get their business. Money talks, and it is more cost effective to hire multilingual employees than to lose the business of foreign customers.Since the US does not have an official language, English has no more official status than Spanish or Swahili.

Those features have been there since the early 90s, and my uncle's 1992 Silverado (a work truck, BTW) has them all.I fail to see how the availability of certain features proves their use as personal transportation...but whatever I'll engage in a suspension of disbelief for a minute. SUVs are widely used as personal transportation. Pickup trucks are...but to a much lesser degree since they are not as flexible as SUVs. I really would like to know why you think RWD trucks have been the selling point when the sales trends have indicated a preference toward AWD, especially for those using them as personal transportation. People in the snow belt have turned to AWD (up until recently only available on trucks and SUVs) for its superior snow handling. Really, the only trucks that I have seen with a large personal transportation (versus strictly work) use are the Avalanche and Escalade EXT because they provide the flexibility for cargo and passengers. Unless you buy crew cab, a pickup isn't that passenger-friendly, and even then, less so than a comparable SUV. Again, I don't think the Zetas will steal sales from F-150, Silverado/Sierra, Ram, etc...they will steal sales away from Avalon, 300©, Charger/Magnum, Crown Victoria/Grand Marquis, Maxima, and the other similar cars in the same size classes. Wouldn't you rather them do that, anyways? Trucks are a stronghold of the Big 2.5, and I would never advocate internal sales cannibalization. I'd rather the sales be taking heat off of the foreign competition, and I think they will. If anything takes the heat off of trucks, it will be crossover SUVs and other similar vehicles that offer comparable features to trucks: AWD, command seating, cargo flexibility, V8, etc...I just don't see very many people forsaking the open truck bed and command seating for the enclosed trunk and butt to the floor seating just because of RWD and V8. I really don't. Let's just wait and see what happens when the Zetas come to market...then we will see who is more and less correct.