trinacriabob

The Saturn experience is supposed to be a good experience. But, unfortunately, there are a lot of slimey salespeople out there -- some are hardly different from those pushy ones who sell gym memberships. (My motto: If you push me, you don't get my commission. Period). Well, I'm glad it ended well. Wishing you many years of happy and safe motoring!

The Saturn experience is supposed to be a good experience. But, unfortunately, there are a lot of slimey salespeople out there -- some are hardly different from those pushy ones who sell gym memberships. (My motto: If you push me, you don't get my commission. Period). Well, I'm glad it ended well. Wishing you many years of happy and safe motoring!

Haypops, shopping has 2 p's. :AH-HA_wink: Which GM Card do you have that has a redemption allowance of $ 3000 on a reasonably priced car? Or did you get one of those "tack on a little" offers in the mail? Which Chevy dealer? I think El Monte has some big dealers. That's where Longo Toyota is.

Not the kind of wheels I would want to drive, but it is definitely better looking than the Miata. Good going, Pontiac.

Now the Challenger! I saw it on the homepage. This is getting out of hand. Have auto designers lost their creativity to the point that they have to re-release such literal translations of old classics? Granted, the Camaro is the best looking of the lot. But the Mustang, the TBird and the Challenger? Way too similar. Heck, the Mustang's dash is an almost direct rip-off. I said NO. We need some fresh pony car designs.

How about this spin on it -- there are a lot of people out there who don't think owning a domestic car (be it GM or our competitors) is cool. Tonight, as I came back from my evening class, I noticed uninterrupted rows of foreign cars in the parking structure. I thought: "What's wrong with these people?" Well, maybe nothing, but I think there's a plethora of good products to satisfy their needs domestically. I, for one, have never cared if my car was cool or not...I was ecstatic to have a Cutlass Supreme (Rocket) 350 V8 coupe with almost all the goodies when I turned 16. Sure, my friends razzed me that it wasn't sporty or it was too big or that I was too young to have that kind of car as they drove their Celicas, Z's and God knows what. Back to the topic, a lot of it IS perception more so than media spoon feeding. Some people think that owning that foreign car speaks to their level of sophistication and savviness.

Thanks for the "a picture is worth a thousand words" lesson, Cananopie. It goes to show that Lucerne is modern, a stablemate of the Phaeton...only slightly better looking...and made in the good old U S of A

Like your plate says "You've got a friend in Pennsylvania." You guys dividing up my air fare so I can come too?

These are the only ones I am considering. If they don't change the LaCrosse grille in 2007 to look more like that of the Lucerne, I will get this car. Have rented 5 to 10 of them thus far and put enough miles on GPs to take me from LA to NY. Thus, it's a car I can live with. I really feel the lighter colors are more flattering for this car. I don't like any of the others and don't want the silver because I have it now. Would go for a light metallic blue but it's not in the fold. These are the choices. Please chime in.

LaCrosse was $ 1,000 for 2005. It is now $ 2,000. I myself have $ 2,218 on my card. I am practically down to a "trickle" in terms of using the card now and am pumping up my Air Canada Master Card (they are "in bed" with United and I would rather accrue miles from any UAL flights on an airline from a "socialist" country that only has one dominant carrier -- you Canadians know I love you and your country :AH-HA_wink: ). Lucerne has more mark-up margin inherent with the higher price point. I would have been pissed if a car meant to do some series volume anchoring Buick's top end would have come out with a $ 1,000 redemption allowance.

I probably should get over the 2 engine over the water issue. It has been with us for as long as the "67" has been around -- that craft has been dubbed the "transatlantic workhorse." As for 747 variants, such as the 500, I think it makes more sense than the cattle car they call the A380. The "47" will always be a looker. The A380 will always be ugly. Ok, back to GM

Z, I usually see your point, but not this time. I thought this was one of the ugliest rear panels and grilles ever (though better than the bathtub RWD mid 90s Impala). Thank God for the current freshening. I agree to some extent. However, keep in mind that the effect is beyond the lens. The lens design itself may be unique and more flattering during the day when you will probably concentrate on the design of the lens ... and not the red circles behind it. Also, keep in mind that someone did research on perceptions. Red circles may be akin the red traffic signals, and thus grab your attention more than another geometry.

I have read numerous comments in auto mags and auto guides that newer engines are more efficient and lasting longer? I am in the 200,000 mile club myself (the first time). So what are the reasons? Lower rpms by additional gears, better tolerances in the factory, fuel delivery systems? Please chime in on what is making engines last considerably longer. I am curious. The one that stumps me the most is fuel delivery? How does multi port fuel injection improve the longevity of the engine over carburetion?

Thank you, Vipes. While the Lucerne won't cause orgasms, it won't make you barf like the Avalon either. The first Avalon was nice...somewhat Intrigue-like in its silhouette (no Olds pun intended). The last 2 renditions have been nothing short of hideous. In fact, there are a lot of ugly cars from Japan on the market at this time...the Avalon, the 350 Z and on and on.

Sidebar -- sidebar -- but that's cool: Yes, Boeing knows where the market is, more so than GM does. Boeing's 777 and 787 have great versatility and there is more growth projected for short to medium haul flights, which the latter plane ought to handle well. Boeing has the option of doing another variant on the "47" which, as anyone who knows me well on the site can attest, gives me goosebumps...I love it. (Incidentally, are you sure that the A340 consumes that much more fuel than a Triple 7? Each engine on the Triple 7 puts out some 90,000 to 105,000 lbs. of thrust which is mind boggling. Each of the 4 engines on the A340 puts out about 30,000 to 40,000 lbs of thrust. They are considerably smaller in size. It's obvious by being near one. However, take note that A340 literature really plays up that you are traveling on your "over the water" flight with 4 engines). Yes, true. GM needs to identify their 777s and 787 Dreamliners.

Just thought of another one. I hate it when people call me "buddy." My company has a contractor client who always ends a phone call or meeting with this term. Today, his project manager ended a phone call with this term. First, I think it's kind of unprofessional in the work setting. Second, I am not his buddy, nor do I want to be.

There were a lot of courageous people and a lot of skanky people in the N.O. disaster. Most of us knew how painful that could be - I know that my mom and I each donated a nice check to "Catholic Charities" earmarked for Katrina relief. (And, no, I am far from being a "holy roller.") I calculated that if each American, per capita, donated $ 50 to $ 150 dollars, the money raised would be astronomical. I am actually shocked at how little was collected. Rich Beverly Hills entertainment moguls and Westchester County NY execs could certainly afford a lot more, yet I doubt they sent in $h!. On another note, a lot of crass e-mails circulated with names "N.O. survival checklist" and the like, making fun of some of the foibles that went on (the looting and all else). They were sometimes funny and sometimes sad in that they made fun of people who were dealt a $h!ty hand.

GM has its share of problems and they are multi-faceted. I think what GM is trying to do is attack their problems synergistically...across their product lines, cost structure and overall corporate strategy. Cutting a dividend is a very, very serious thing. Stock prices are computed as a present value of all prospective outflows from a company. It generally reduce's the stocks value. However, in time, if the market perceives that the action was the correct thing to do (as it did in the case of Florida Power and Light - a case study I had to read), it will bounce back. I think they need to really dissect what is going on and take a multi-faceted approach. They have to ask "What's wrong with EVERYthing?" They can't be in denial. There's a lot wrong. It needs to become a leaner organization, for one. Boeing, another giant, has "ebbed and flowed." It's stock is in the mid 70s at this point. Hopefully, the General can make a comeback. I'll be standing by them.

I started the topic and voted "yes." There is so much infrastructure already in place...did you see the footage of all those tall buildings, streets, bridges, universities and the like. Some will have to be torn down, but most will be able to remain. Again, there is an important port and, of course, the French Quarter. The problem was the shoddiness behind what kept New Orleans safe. Many other cities in the world (particularly in the Netherlands) have this problem taken care of. That NO's infrastructure be substandard is a governmental misallocation. There are people that have to stay. They have homes that survived, they work at Tulane, they own a pub in the Quarter. Rebuild it. Do it right. In time, others will return.

No, I'm almost sure there is a homo erectus in some high school science book showing the evoluation of man at the point where he can stand up and he's not dragging himself on the ground.

I have more of an issue that it doesn't have a telescopic feature as standard. But, with the given positions of the steering wheel, most normally sized people ought to find one that works. I am not a big fan of the dash. It's a scaled up LaCrosse/Allure dash, much the same way that the Alero had a junior version of the Intrigue dash, if you recall. I think that there are enough economies of scale that they didn't have to replicate the LaCrosse/Allure dash.

Hey, this is how sheltered and bookish I was...growing up on the west side of LA, no less.I would go to high school and periodically come across this unusual smell. I now know it is patchouli oil. But I didn't know it then. And this smell was almost always on surfers or surfer chicks. For years, I thought that smell was marijuana!

Five months ago this time, all we saw was Katrina aftermath footage. It was pretty grim. Most sickening was the dead guy in his lawn chair near the Superdome as well as the things that reportedly took place inside the Superdome. Now, we don't see much about it. In about a month, Mardi Gras will be around. People ask the question as to whether they should rebuild. I say "absolutely." I've been to some places but I have never been to N.O. because every time I was driving through on 10 back to LA, I had too much stuff in the car and did not want to invite "curiosity." New Orleans is an important city. At the mouth of the Mississippi, its harbor handles more cargo than that of any other US port (at least that's what one almanac said). Not only that, it is home to a unique history (Cajun / Creole / Acadian), architecture, culture and food. It is also the home of Tulane University and other schools. Where they messed up was in the levees. I couldn't believe they were so rickety. I would assume that any place under sea level would have an incredibly monolithic concrete seawall holding back "Mother Nature." Galveston learned from their 1900s hurricane and put up a huge concrete seawall embankment.

Oh, man, that's great.

Bobo, It sounds like you subscribe. Thanks for the accuracy of the wording. It does sound kind of apologetic, doesn't it?