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riviera74

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Everything posted by riviera74

  1. riviera74
    Bieber is not even 20. Of course he will do things that we know are stupid . . . and disgusting . . . . and just plain odd. Whether anyone will buy that leopard print R8 once he goes broke is another question entirely.
  2. riviera74
    Get the 300: IMHO that is the best choice.
  3. riviera74
    That new Impala steering wheel does look rather weird. Not sure if I like it.
  4. riviera74
    A Diesel Chrysler 300? I doubt they would sell it here. Maybe GM and Chrysler should sell all their diesel cars in Europe (once the car market actually recovers) and seed them a little more here. The problem with diesel around here (SW FL) is that diesel often costs as much as premium and only one of every five gas stations NOT on the interstate have diesel pumps.
  5. riviera74
    The Threat Warning package can be done more cheaply by simply buying a Valentine One from their website. Remember when Navigation was a high-ticket item (about 8-10 years ago, they ran about $5000+)? Nowadays you can get it included in a $2000 package (hopefully with a backup camera like a Lexus ES350!). These days, a decent nav goes for $99-299 depending on size and feature set, as opposed to five times that ten years ago. As for the other two pakages, those should be a go.
  6. riviera74
    For $54K (Tahoe), it's not going to help the image any. It hasn't in 6 years, anyway. $54K for a Tahoe 2-Mode Hybrid?! WTF? Why would anyone pay that much? GM would be better off following Ford's lead and have a much more MPG-friendly turbo v6 (or a TTV6) unstead and count the extra profits from higher sales. I do hope that the new Corvette engine will find its way to the trucks within a MY or two.
  7. riviera74
    Yep, and they keep rehashing the 5.3 liter V8 when they need to put a 3.0 liter turbo diesel V6 in that will make more torque and probably get 27 mpg, rather than 22. GM's first new commandment is "Thou shalt NOT leave money on the table!" Diesels are great and they should do them. But without the Vortec truck engines (and profits that come from BOF trucks) GM is in the morgue because of all the profits left on the table. Can the trucks get lighter? Sure, but will you pay for it? A $40K Impala sounds expensive, but compared to its direct competition, it sounds normal. The problem GM will face is that the Genesis and 300/Charger twins look fabulous at $40K primarily because of RWD.
  8. riviera74
    Tell him to finish building that kit car. Now.
  9. riviera74
    An optional TTV6 for an XTS? Questionable. An optional TTV6 on a CTS for perhaps a CTS-V (or close to one)? Brilliant. Right idea for the wrong car. TTV6 should go into the CTS and ATS stat!
  10. riviera74
    My ideal vehicle would be a lot like the 300/Charger twins in a Buick-like luxury package . . . sort of, with a few improvements in NVH. Crossovers are nice but do nothing for me. The trend away from torquey V6 to weak on torque V6 is rather sad if not pathetic. I guess I am spoiled by the Buick 231 (aka the 3800) for its torque, not horsepower. I have owned at least three cars in my lifetime with that 231 engine, and it is still a great engine in my 99 PA Ultra. Today's GM DOHC V6s feel more like something Honda would make these days, nice HP but lacking in grunt. No, the Chevy SS is NOT enough. Nothing against the truck engines (even the new Vette engine for 2014), but when will there be a V6 derivative that belongs in a car? As much as I hate to admit this, the crossover and the long-term trend towards higher MPG lead to torque-weakish V6s and fuel-sipping four cylinder vehicles. It is as if Japan Inc. has won the (popular) engine wars from the 70s without even firing a shot.
  11. riviera74
    Could not agree more on the placement of Cadillac going upmarket to make more room for Buick (and a little more for Chevy). As for the Aisin TL80SN transmission, what are the advantages of that one over a GM transmission, such as a 6T70(?) tranny?
  12. riviera74
    Wise decision on Cadillac's part. BMW and Daimler do not have the same options Caddy does in terms of leaving certain segments to other marques within the same corporation.
  13. riviera74
    Nissan needs to realize that the days of picking off disgruntled GM and Ford buyers is long over. It is a helluva lot more competitive now.
  14. riviera74
    So this is Honda's answer to badge engineering. Not working all that well, is it?
  15. riviera74
    Let us get two things straight: CAFE itself is thoroughly lame and deserves to be repealed NOW. Second, V8 power is great but unnecessary because most people cannot afford $3.50 for regular and $4 for premium for a gallon of gas. If I were in the market right now, I would get a Chrysler 300 or a Hyundai Genesis (sedan) with the v6 because the v8 is unnecessary AND fuel economy is somewhat better. Yes, there is a price premium for v8 engines in virtually every car that offers one now. One reason the v8 can be safely replaced by 4cyl engines is that of rising safety standards over the last 25 years or so. Higher safety standards tend to make cars themselves heavier, regardless of engine size or type. Compare a a Chevy Citation or Chevette to today's Spark: from a safety stanpoint there is no comparison. The only penalty is weight. As for a $40K Impala, I am unsurprised by this but I would like to see if the car itself merits such a price by being in one. I do think that GM should push the Malibu much harder and sell more of those (like 4:1 is a good ratio) to allow the 2014 Impala to be more exclusive than it is currently.
  16. riviera74
    Yes, Yes and Hell Yes, respectively. Europe, unlike the USA, is at best heading towards a depression and at worst stagflation. Maybe both, who knows? If I were GM, I would ditch Europe, let the continent implode economically (and the Euro die) and then buy when there is blood on the streets. Europe has far too many problems, especially given that the car market is essentially dying over there.
  17. riviera74
    A Buick convertible any of us could buy. That concept is intriguing as a convertible though.
  18. riviera74
    You know, I am wondering why Lexus needs this F-Sport. That is not Lexus's business model or anything. In fact, The RX was meant for comfort luxury, not sport luxury. I would so replace that lame dash with a MUCH larger screen and ditch the entire concept of an F-Sport immediately. If I want sport in a luxury CUV, that is what a BMW X3/X5 is for, not a Lexus. Remember when the first-gen SRX was released, it did not sell very well because it aped BMW. Once Cadillac shifted to aping the RX, SRX sales boomed. Sport in a luxury CUV is simply unnecessary. And I HATE that Predator grill!
  19. riviera74
    When was the last Riviera convertible anyways? That may well be what is coming that is special. As for the looks of the car, the concepts are definitely within our grasp of what the new Buick has become. I do wish that the e-Assist would just leave: it is simply not good enough. Now, the 2-mode Hybrid is actually better, but I think GM killed that a few years back. This trend towards 4cyl is especially annoying. I know that we no longer need V8 power on most cars, but the 4cyl engines (with or without e-Assist) still underimpress.
  20. riviera74
    But will a 4cyl be enough? I have sat in an Encore it is surprisingly roomy for the external size (not Equinox/Terrain roomy, but still). I would probably go for a compact CUV underneath the Nox/Terrain twins instead and have the Nox/Terrain drop 500 pounds at least.
  21. riviera74
    ^QFT. Why wait?
  22. riviera74
    GM is in a bind. They cannot get bigger because of the Traverse and Acadia. If the Equinox and Terrain dropped about 500-1000 pounds, that would solve most of their issues. Now, the real question is whether the Equinox and Terrain will drop weight by getting smaller instead of finding actual weight savings by other means.
  23. riviera74
    Mostly good for Australia. The Chevy SS should be manufactured in NA so that the 90-day wait can be cut down to 30 days or even fewer. Otherwise, good idea all around.
  24. riviera74
    I wonder how long it will take for the LT1 to reach other vehicles that take a V8. I also wonder if they will create an LT1 derivative for a V6 application. Nothing against the 3.6 HF V6, but a V6 derivative of the LT1 could be the best V6 (especially in the torque department) since the Buick V8-derived 3800 V6.
  25. riviera74
    Given the OP, the Equinox has come a VERY LONG way from its (rather lame) 2005 origins. I personally would avoid any of the 2010-12 ones with that pitiful 3L V6; they seem like the lame 3400 version in the previous generation Equinox. A question: would you buy/recommend an Equinox or a Terrain?
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