cp-the-nerd

the sleeper effect can be fun Sure would be, if the Malibu had a limited slip or transmission that could handle anywhere near the power necessary. There's a perfectly good tune for the turbo that makes 300 hp and 330 lb-ft of torque, but this guy's making the insane leap to "125 whp" from bolt-ons because racecar and DI-turbo like Cobalt SS. It's super cheap and easy!! Until you grenade the transmission, burn up the turbo, or blow the engine. Ya might just drive into oncoming traffic because there's nothing keeping the front wheels working together. true. I planned to get m GTP in he 12s, but hen bad things started happening to it (the transmission grenaded with 13.9 1/4 mile HP lol. Of all people, I absolutely get the sleeper appeal. I'm still looking to get a bit more power myself, but it's all within factory limits and retains driveability. At least the GTP actually offered the aftermarket hardware to make the car go faster properly, and it was marketed as a performance sedan. Everything for a Malibu turbo would have to be custom fabricated.

Cadillac is done playing it safe. They're gunning for the Germans and the cars are there, they just need to let the reputation catch up, and for God's sake, they need some GOOD ADVERTISING. They introduced the ATS coupe with a dork walking next to it getting the attention of women. It was so stupid that I felt embarrassed just watching it. The year that the junior Caddy had its best sales, they ran the ATS vs the World campaign. They were great ads and they worked. Hopefully with the improved 2016 powertrains and two V-series models, they can pull their head out of their ass from a marketing standpoint.

the sleeper effect can be fun Sure would be, if the Malibu had a limited slip or transmission that could handle anywhere near the power necessary. There's a perfectly good tune for the turbo that makes 300 hp and 330 lb-ft of torque, but this guy's making the insane leap to "125 whp" from bolt-ons because racecar and DI-turbo like Cobalt SS. It's super cheap and easy!! Until you grenade the transmission, burn up the turbo, or blow the engine. Ya might just drive into oncoming traffic because there's nothing keeping the front wheels working together.

Currently trying to explain to someone why building a 12 second Malibu Turbo makes no f@#king sense. Even better, the debate is centered around a comparison with the Cobalt SS Turbo. Apparently modding a purpose built sport compact that once held the FWD Nurburgring record is the same as heavily modding a family sedan with an engine package.

I hope the name "PUG" doesn't catch on for the Pentastar V6. This is good news for enthusiasts, but I'm surprised not to hear a single high-volume 4-cylinder is in the works. Very interested in the turbo 4-cylinder, updated V6 and V8. I have high expectations for a refreshed Dart. I really wanted to like the current car, love the exterior, but everything only feels about 80-90% competitive. The powertrains never stood out in performance or fuel economy and IMO the interior left a lot to be desired. Very dark with an over use of course-grained plastic that make the dash and center stack look lower quality than they are. Beyond the gauge cluster and touch screen, every Dart I've seen or been in was dreary inside and lagged behind the perceived quality of the Civic, Cruze, and Focus.

Even so, if she really has the new car fever, now's about as good a time as any. Even if there's a new Lacrosse coming out in a year, you still might find a perfect '15 sitting on the lot with plenty of cash on the hood.

Impala. I prefer the exterior design, and it has a bigger trunk and slightly more interior space. Despite that, it also weighs less. The advantage for the Lacrosse is that the V6 comes with hi-per strut FWD, which I'd love to have on my Malibu. Less torque steer, better handling, grip, and steering feel. Higher trims also have an active damping suspension (I don't think it's magnetic ride, though).

You could always do what I did and trick a beautiful, successful woman into a commitment. Pharmacist = cha-ching!

I had that thought as well, but the Malibu V6 already has all the best Epsilon chassis equipment. The "upgraded" sway bar in the G6 is the one I already have.

Doesn't going from hollow to solid make a difference even if diameter doesn't increase? That's the impression I was getting from reviews. Can't seem to find anyone with an epsilon sedan that switched to a Dorman sway bar for a direct comparison, though. Depends in the thickness of the rod. Most of the times the difference is negligible. You really can't find any upgraded sway bars whatsoever? None. Hell the Dorman is the only readily available replacement AT ALL. I eventually dug up the GM part on a warehouse website, but it's not easy to find by any means, and it was only listed under the Malibu, not the Pontiac or Saturn cousins.

Doesn't going from hollow to solid make a difference even if diameter doesn't increase? That's the impression I was getting from reviews. Can't seem to find anyone with an epsilon sedan that switched to a Dorman sway bar for a direct comparison, though.

Just to specify: Dorman was just for the actual sway bar itself. The Moogs are the link replacements and I'm pretty much sold on them already. Not comparing the two brands against each other.

One of the stabilizer links on my Malibu is going bad. There's an intermittent rattle/knocking noise from the front right suspension that sounds very much like my girlfriend's Cobalt when her link needed to be replaced (it's actually the same damn GM part), except mine's behind 5x more sound deadening so it was hard to pinpoint. Anyway, I'm going to replace the sway bar links as a pair, along with the bushings, and I found Moog replacements (part K80252) that are extremely highly rated that also appear to be an improvement over the factory design. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QR12NG/ref=s9_simh_gw_p263_d0_i3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=0NTTYKQDN1DN0G70SD6Q&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=2079475242&pf_rd_i=desktop At the same time, since I was going to have the suspension work being done anyway, I was curious about upgrading the sway bar itself. There isn't an aftermarket performance part, however there's a solid forged steel OE replacement by Dorman, which in other models (like the W-body cars) has shown to be a serious upgrade over the hollow GM factory piece. http://www.amazon.com/Dorman-927-111-Sway-Bar-Kit/dp/B00HFLA1N8/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=0XFK8ECC9HYTMMJN2048 I can't find diddly squat as far as specifications or even pics of the GM part, but the part no. is GM 20841711 and it's supposedly 22 mm thick. Yay or nay on the Moog links? Is Dorman a decent brand, or should I shut up and keep the stock sway bar? Any input is appreciated. I'm not particularly worried about price, but I'm not trying to just throw money away. It would be awesome to improve my car's handling and reduce body roll.

It was a perfect storm of circumstances. GM was a mess internally, evidenced by the steady decline throughout the 2000s going into the bankruptcy, then you had the failure of the NHTSA to put together 1 + 1 = ?? when so many accidents involving failed airbag deployments had been occurring. And lastly, we as consumers and drivers forgot the importance of keeping our keychains light and teaching young drivers how to handle a stall. When you have a mega corporation in termoil, a safety organization that can't deduce whose ass a fart came from, and a dumbing down of consumers, it's a recipe for disaster.

You can find reasons to rank the D3 pick up trucks in any order you want. All of them are great, none of them are perfect. Until the GM trucks use the 8-speed automatic as standard equipment across the board, their only true class leading bragging rights come from the Corvette powertrain that you only get at a ridiculous price tag.

I hear that. I hate that bikes have 21+ speeds. I use 4 or 5 max when I'm on a trail, I usually just change between planetary gears.

I believe it is selling on both aspects. If it was a crappy truck, it wouldn't sell despite price and size. i loved the Z71 I rove and it had basically everything I would want plus some. Well... no... I feel that the GM trucks are rather expensive for their size. As some have pointed out, full-size trucks aren't much more expensive. The GMers are selling in-spite of their price... not because they are cheap. I still disagree. The Colorado i drove was an extended cab Z71, it had all the power stuff, my-link, backup camera, tow package, locking rear, a few dealer add-ons (bright exhaust tip, yadded, yadda), and it still was only 34k. price a silverado out with all this truck had and i would bet you are 10k more in price. Heck, i have priced out a minimal options regular cab Z71 and sticker was over 40k and it didn't have everything the Colorado had. I used to think they were overpriced myself, but GM has reall stuffed a LOT of content for the price in these trucks. Another thing besides price and size is that these are such sublime driving trucks. Super smooth, excellent ride, beautiful interior, etc, etc. As I said, they have raised the bar. Anyways, back to the topic at hand. If FCA does a midsize, they have to do the Wrangler based pickup. There are people just salivating at this thing, especially paired with the Ecodiesel. they can make a Dakota off the same platform with more traditional styling and higher focus on the on-road portion of things. I'm with you on this one. The Colorado/Canyon twins are priced right. They start just above $20k, you can get a capable V6 for $30k. The Silverado LT with a double cab starts at $35k. There's a perfectly reasonable gap in segment pricing, significantly more than people pay between compact, midsize, and fullsize cars. The difference between a $23k compact sedan and a $23k midsizer is vast, people make a choice for their priorities. The monthly sales prove there's minimal canibalizing between Chevy's truck models.

To Hegbloom, a midsize truck from Ram would have to achieve 35 MPG on the highway. The Ram 1500 EcoDiesel can achieve 29 MPG on the highway. "If full-size now is pushing 30 [mpg], you're going to expect a midsize to be at least at 35. You're also going to expect it to be significantly less expensive. But to bring the technology in to deliver on 35 mpg, then you're going to raise the price," said Hegbloom. That is such an incredibly weak excuse, GM's midsize twins are a big win in the truck market. It's clear that a less expensive, smaller, more efficient truck has a solid consumer base. They wont build a midsize truck because it can't match the ecodiesel? Come on. We all know the real reason is that their resources are stretched thin right now. Ram as a brand needs another consumer product.

I have had those and I always use water from the inside of the filter to push the dirt back out the incoming side. I first vacumed it and then hosed it out. After a good run and what looks like clean water, I then let it dry in the sun and put it back on. Mine have worked really well for me so far. Thanks for the response! No soap? Any idea as to why they don't suggest a more thorough cleaning method, or are they just trying to get you to buy a replacement every few years?

I can return the favor from earlier, my girlfriend does ASMR all the time to wind down before bed. My favorite vids are by a person named "Heather Feather." She has some odd roll playing that I'm not into, but she also has several guided meditations and one called an "aural message" that will relax you from head to toe, it's crazy! Gotta use headphones though to get the best effect.

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll PM him if he doesn't see it.

Need advice cleaning a dry cone intake filter. It's an Amsoil nanofiber and their website has very little by way of cleaning interval or method. They just say to clean with a vacuum (!?) from the dirty side but not how often, and suggest replacing the filter entirely after 4 years. Other dry filters as well as oiled filters suggest soaking with soapy water and rinsing from the inside until the water comes out clear. Is this bad for nanofiber? It's been a year and ~10,000 miles as of now and I took it out to examine it and vacuum clean it, but that doesn't seem adequate. The filter is still in good condition, so this isn't an urgent situation.

Won't help, if enough people like those idiots to keep voting them in, then they'll find another one just like them and go for it again. Term limits won't help until the people electing those officials become more educated on politics and the available candidates. That goes for both sides of the political divide, no one has been exempt from electing morons. What makes it extra tough is the moron bit is subjective, one man's moron may be another's genius, it just depends on how their views align. Of course it will help! Christ, man, you see some of these career politicians in congress? They're in office half their life and they are barely human anymore. Do you think they give one sliver of a f@#k about constituents at that point? At least fresh politicians have to work to at least give the appearance of working for the people. In Maryland I've had to listen to sh*theads like Michael Busch and Barbara Mikulski just wipe their ass with the budget and stonewall any legislation--no matter how bipartisan or logical--from the opposite party.

^^^ Not sure if you meant wings or TAF, but they're both here.

Yeah, it's about time Buick got some new metal and some more potent engines. I know there's a new Lacrosse and a new Verano right around the corner. I'm not sure what their plans are for the Regal since it hasn't been the sport-sedan success they hoped for.