trinacriabob

Haha. "Relaxed" might be a good word, indeed. Sounds like it lasted for a long time, though. I haven't a clue as to how later Pontiac (small block) V8s held up and if they had any weak spots. I liked the way they were laid out. Chevy and Olds V8s are usually discussed more thoroughly.

The Cutlass Salon, when it wasn't a Cutlass Calais, was the best of the lot. There were fewer things more comfortable than those oversized bucket seats. I forgot. While getting a value breakfast burrito at BK this morning, I spotted a 2000 to 2004 genre Bonneville in the drive through in something close to purist form. I actually like them without any spoiler at all, as found in some LEs. I was invited to test drive one in 2000 at a horse track, I believe, and it was fairly agile for being such a hefty sled. I also liked the dashboard and their simple front end that still said Pontiac clearly enough. We also got to test drive the equivalent Chrysler product and the Pontiac was definitely more appealing, at least at that time.

Really thorough write-up, Reg. I won't go out of my way to drive one. I sat in one and didn't like the rear visibility, but I'm picky about that and I'm of average height. I like to sit high and see a lot of glass around me, with thinner pillars. That will be the day. You seem to like the new thematic Buick dash. It's simple and convenient, but it also seems to be a retro throwback to the late 60s, with a heavy ridge across the top of the cowl. I'm not so sure. I like dashboards that have 3 defined zones, so to speak, or more sculpting if not 3 defined zones. I don't know how the steering would compare to the outgoing Regal. I found the last one to be nimble with enough road manners and isolation, but I believe you. I'm guessing these are all electric P.S. units, with hydraulics now gone. I will agree that I am warming up to the new LaCrosse. I have not warmed up to its MSRP. They can sticker at 2x the one that I bought! I don't like a console where its surface is way above the seating surfaces like the LaCrosse, and even this new Regal, have. I will say that, even if the final experience isn't very Germanic, the car (2018 Regal) definitely looks "more" Germanic as it's approaching you if you're going in the other direction.

Spot on. I remember that the '75 (getting nicer at that point) started with a 400. I had forgotten about the 301 V8. I knew it existed. I've only known a 265 V8 owner and rode in such a car, but have never seen or ridden in a 301 equipped Pontiac. And, the following year, the GP got pared down and could run with a 3.8 V6. Who'd have thunk? In the '78 downsize, the GP was the one that benefited the most in its looks. This one is a little too plush - an LJ - with a heavily padded roof and the wire wheel covers. http://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/comment-image/439205.jpg The 1981 GP update was even nicer. However, those cars would have CCC (Computer Command Control) during its teething years. With that refresh, the 1981 Cutlass Supreme was on top again as the best looking of the mid-size coupes. http://www.adspast.com/store/skin1/images/pics9/pont8081dgprix.jpg

Ok, I see. That '77 LJ is a hoot. The treatment of the rear lamps on the '77 is vastly inferior to those on the '76. They only work for a luxury car and not one that could be sporty, i.e. the SJ. They started out with a pale enough blue that year, but that one has seen the years and the fading. It's got a console but, inside the round bezels, it's got idiot lights. Idiotic! The profile is unmistakable. It's good and then it's sort of bad. I maintain that if the Grand Prix of those years was proportioned like a Cutlass Supreme or Regal of the same years and less sculpted, they would have sold more of them. Maybe it was a deliberate GM move. They didn't want cannibalization. Plus, Pontiac was running the LeMans at the same time. I once found a '76 Grand Le Mans on eBay in LJ form and with the 260 V8 they got from Olds, but they wanted too much for it. Maybe around $6,900. In those years, there were 6 opera windowed coupes by B-O-P and Chevrolet, and that doesn't even count Rivs, Toros, and anything Cadillac had to offer. Times sure have changed.

Did you see how much they wanted for the GP? Any details on trim level and wheels (rallys, honeycombs, etc.)? I like it already.

Now, this was a car! Scaled much like a Monte Carlo of the same era, but at a higher price point. I actually drove one once for someone for less than 5 miles. It was in pristine condition and I was very careful with it. It probably had the 400. I don't believe 350s were offered in these, but were definitely offered in the Montes. Still, I'm a little partial to the '76 and less so to the sort of mucked up '77 with its funkier front and rear fascias. The LJ version was my favorite, either with buckets or 60/40s.

Ok, I don't speak Dutch. But I do know a few words in German. For the following video, one German word sums it up - verruckt (needs an umlaud). And this lady was even holding a child in her arms. Stupid. Verruckt (crazy) behavior in wildlife park - utterances by those taking the video sound very guttural Could make for a great but twisted commercial - VW saves the day!

Did the fuses prior to my appointment time. They didn't work. I took it in and they changed the headlight bulbs. I waited for it and they worked quickly. They also charged me a fair price. Time to wean myself from the dealership for most things. The time has come. Thanks again for the tips. And, hey, I now have an assorted fuse pack for about $4 that I can keep along with my car supplies in the trunk. Let there be light.

Q: How many alcoholics does it take to screw in a light bulb? A: Two. One to hold it and the other one to keep drinking heavily until the room starts spinning around.

I think the alternator is o.k. My D.I.C. provides the voltage when I push that button and its performance is consistent. Now that I've tried the headlamp module, and it didn't work, I could go to the fuses. I should have done that today. I will do it early in the a.m. Most auto parts stores open at 7 a.m. and I've identified the fuse locations. Or could it just be age ... slightly over 10 years? Some of my friends say that. One friend said his mom had a 2002 Olds Intrigue and it was coughing up quite a few inside lamps and headlights after some years and mileage. Thanks. I will go fuses first and then ... you know. The YouTube to replace a headlight bulb is mind boggling. Halogen or not, gone are the days of reaching into the back of the assembly and changing it out.

Looks like I'm not alone. The car doesn't appear to have many electrical problems, except up front ... overwhelmingly so. http://www.carproblemzoo.com/buick/lacrosse/buick-lacrosse-exterior-lighting-problems.php And, true to CR, the car's weak points are electrical, power equipment, and suspension. I'm thinking that's much better than other systems. I tried the cheap fix - a solid state "plug and play" hdm, which was the cure for many, but it didn't work. I'm still open to suggestions and opinions. They were crafty and/or stupid in the design department. The headlight bulb replacement up front is a major job.

Hey folks. Need some help with electrical issues on the Buick. Tonight, I lost low beam lighting on one side. Not only that, the backlighting for the light switches, at the left of the dash, went dark, too. Within the last month, I lost 1 low beam light, the most used one on the D.I.C., and I noticed the console lamp was also out. Coincidence or connected? (Considering the age of the vehicle and/or the sequential nature.) I looked at the owner's manual. There's a fuse center at the right side of the dash, but not for my issues. For those, the (mini) fuses are located in a plastic box under the hood. I'm wondering if fuse replacement is the place to start. And, if this is interrelated, where to go next. Mechanical issues are almost easier than electrical ones. They are easier to conceptualize. Rear lighting, CMSL, interior lighting, gauges, A/C and radio functions, theater dimming, and turn signals work. I would certainly appreciate some input.

Hyundai Blvd. in Montgomery, AL and Kia Blvd. in (possibly) West Point, GA. Both seen along the I-65/I-85 trek from Pensacola FL to Atlanta. I did see a lot of Hyundais in Alabama. I've acquired some respect for that brand along the years. I spotted a Kia Amanti (with a for sale sign) or whatever the hell that upscale sedan of the 2000s is named. It reminds me of something British and looks like it rightfully has a place in a cartoon. I was once invited to test drive a quartet of cars and this was one of them. Surprisingly, it handled very quietly and nimbly, but I couldn't stomach its exterior appearance. I'll put up a few photos.

There's that ... and more - there's a pressure to be cool and drive foreign iron, especially around people with more coin. And younger kids and their first cars, too. When I would tell people what I drove - either an Olds or a Buick - you could see a slight wince or the slight curling of their lip. All of these proved to be very reliable cars, but trying to educate them would have been a waste of time, so I just let it go at that. I am dyed in the wool B-O-P, even though there's no more O-P. Sigh.

Good grief, I see NO domestic cars in that photo - well, there's a Jeep way over by Hallmark. Is that the Trader Joe's at or near Totem Lake?

RIght. The one before was mostly white. Maybe I was thinking of Massachusetts. I like the old N.Y. license plate - dark yellow/almost orange, black letters, no bells and whistles - looked great on black cars in movies - very GANGSTA!

If the license plate frame covers a portion of a state's name, it would then make it easier to ply the streets of Manhattan in one's sled and not appear to be as much as an out-of-towner. Of course, the license plate base color would have to be the stock off white in both states and, in this case, it is.

Today, I focused on something appended to a car as opposed to the car. I can't stand it when a dealership sells a car and then decides to place their applique with their name on the rear deck lid, sort of competing with the car's very nameplate. I've always tossed the dealership license plate frames into the garage. I did know one guy, an avid car enthusiast, who liked to get frames from a dealership if he thought the dealership had some cachet, even if he didn't buy the car there, and put them on a car. But this was in SoCal, so this can be expected.

I couldn't believe I once stumbled onto a paperback Seattle joke book, given how it tends to be on the forefront of politically correct protocol. However, from the cover and its fonts, you could tell it was hatched before that era. Q: What do you call an attractive person in Seattle? A: A visitor - - - - - Q: What is a Bellevue housewife's favorite position? A: Facing Bellevue Square

Exactly. Loss leader service. Even loss leader cars. When I was a teen, you'd see them advertise random new opera windowed Regals or Cutlasses that were priced super low, and of which they only had one or two, because they came with the base engine (a 6 when all others were V8s), crank windows, wheel covers, and no air conditioning. I actually liked pawing these cars, lifting up the hood and seeing all the space, and how simple they were inside. And, no, I'm not even minimally Scandinavian. But, as for loss leader LOF, I don't mind if they find brake pads that are thin or belts that need attention. What I mind is when they are lying and/or when they want to drum up work for something that barely needs attention, like a seal that keeps on going, because it's all labor and no parts. I've stopped going to dealers with whom I've had a long run when it went this route AND I had also given them tune ups and trans fluid changes along the way. I would much rather pay $35 or $40 for the LOF, not be upsold and pressured, than pay $27.95 and be lied to or feel pressured. Then, if what they identify is outlandish, can you even trust them with your car going forward if you keep turning down that extra work? In many cases, there's no visual connection between where you're supposed to wait and where the car is being worked on.

The above indicates that there's no such thing as a free lunch. I'm also wary of coupons and specials for LOFs "on the cheap," real cheap, at car dealerships. If they're charging $19.99 for a LOF, "it's about something else." Live and learn. Pass.

If you Google Cheers and Gears, the site and the forum may not be the first thing that comes up. In the past, I've gotten this! Cheers and Gears restaurant and bar! Looks very "klassy" and the reviews don't bust past the 4 star mark.

I forgot to update this. After 2 calls from the sales manager, to which I responded once to tell him that the original person I met with was just fine, I got a voice mail from the "Customer Care Manager," yet a third person, to see how I was coming along with my decision. What decision??? The whole message was very scripted and she had one of those interesting gravelly voices of an older cocktail waitress in an off-Strip Vegas casino who had just gotten off a smoke break, so I hit the save button for the message. I tried to call her back because I got such a kick out of her voice, but it went into a general message box so I didn't leave a message. Then, the first salesman called me back and I had to (fictitiously) tell him that this would be an adjunct car to my primary sled and that I wasn't really on the bubble to purchase. Hopefully, they got it. But what a complete turn-off. I guess the lesson is to wait until a person can snag the updated version of this compact car for $19.95 for a day from Enterprise or Budget to go somewhere within 100 miles of home, familiarize themselves with it at their leisure, and not have to deal with all these phone calls ... about 7 in total ... and from 3 different people.

I saw a 70/71/72 (?) Monte Carlo in olive green. It was in near mint condition. It was driving toward me and I was going the other way. It had that unmistakable grille. This car had an important place in automotive history. It put the personal luxury coupe in just about every new car buyer's reach via the Chevy price point. Within 15 minutes of that, I saw a very clean charcoal Pontiac G8. While I liked the G8s more than the current Chevy SS because they started at $29K (MSRP) and could be had with a V6, I still like the Chevy SS. Either way, the lines on either of these 2 cars are timeless.