regfootball

i can slap a Honda badge on my aztek and its the same thing

NAIL in the coffin. but i thought GM would look past it, i really did. Next up, cancelling the manual transmission on the sedan! sad thing is, G8 wagon would have been awesome for me. they already nixed AWD zeta also however. yet, we still have rumored Aura wagon in a couple years and we still have sportcombi's despite wagons=bad. perplexing. I wonder if Maximum Bob is sore from the scrotum job the numbers guys are doing on him. I guess the twinforce powershift Flex is as close to a wagon as I may get. What will become of the rumored CTS wagon? ...but we still can justify a G8 Ute?

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2008-0...carmakers_N.htm tick tock? our politicans need to set up roadblocks in legislation so this does not happen

simply put....buff books don't like the plastic panels, creates HUGE panel gaps. journalists don't like it and neither do customers. in real world the benefit outweighs the marketing impediment of that, but the marketing impediment creates a tough sell. a managers job to success is to remove obstacles for the employees beneath him or her so the employees can just do the work. a marketers job is to remove the impediments to buying something so people can just buy it. plastic panels represented an impediment, so they removed it. Even though saturn's identity was from a space frame with skin, it clearly got to the point where people got fussier about the panel gaps than they appreciated the method of build. I am surprised they chaven't changed the corvette yet to steel body. Plus, Opel=Saturn and if saturn had to keep doing skin+spaceframe, it would have required opel to switch to that as well. NO can do. current delta chassis is too small. it needs to be sentra-sized. for stop gap this year and next, its ok. sky outsells solstice so i think sky in the lineup is justified. hey did anyone notice in the other thread where now basically caddies were going to be the only 'car' platforms developed int he US? I know GM is global now, but GM will probably have very few engineers left in the US for cars if that's the case. At least if its caddies its the premeire product in the GM stable. Saturn outlooks biggest flaw, it got an inferior interior to the Acadia. the outlooks interior is very nice but the acadias is just that much more dynamic. that plus the acadias grille is a bit nicer and the GMC name is 'tough'. Saturn could EASILY fix the outlooks market appeal with a few thing...... EXCLUSIVE COLOR PALETTE and GET RID OF CHROME REVISED PRICING AND MORE SENSIBLE / VALUE ADDED OPTION PACKAGING SPORT SUSPENSION and slightly lower ride. target CX-9 for handling etc. Revise the interior with interesting colors and cloths and swtichgear. maybe even upgrade plastics. NO WOOD! Exclusive engine options or at least upgraded (i.e. direct injection and paddle shifters) unique stereo options grille and headlight changes (more aggressive, get BOLD with it) TAKE GM CARD Basically if we can make an opelized outlook with red line performance and euro out the interior as much as they can...... then it is different than the acadia and chevy and then it is also a competitor they can target vs. the CX-9 which is the darling of the moment. also, give the outlook a dual mode hybrid yesterday and they will FLY out the showroom.

yeah, and they won't give us hardtops either..... j/k. i sure hope chevy doesn't export the camaro to AU with the crap interior it has planned.....the aussies won't put up with that cheeseball interior. no GTO=big mistake IMHO. THIS DOES, however, open the door to FIREBIRD. FIRE CHICKENS UNITE!

current Pilot's interior plastics quality is merely average. the seats in the pilot are good, in construction, support and leather quality. the design of the interior is merely average. the knobs, controls, switches are merely average. The Lambdas, their plastics quality is a bit shy on the outlook. I haven't seen the Enclave. The Acadia's plastics are good but still perhaps a bit shy of the Pilot. Where you lose me is using the Ridgeline as any sort of benchmark. the ridgeline's interior is deficient on many levels. The design is bad. The plastics quality is not good. The seats have some firmness to them but I did not see any exceptional material quality. Assembly quality on the interior of the Ridgeline is less than the Pilot. The overally execution of the Ridgeline interior is much closer to the merely average results of the Element, not the 'little but above average' Pilot. With the Pilot its wholly dependent on color also. That medium tan can be atrocious when it reflects light. Its definitely not 'low gloss'. Most of people's perceptions of why Japanese interiors are 'good' is because the seats are well done. As are the action of switches and panel gaps. But it often can detract your scrutiny away from bad design or lackluster plastics.

and I agree with this.

that whole post has lots of topics in it that have been debated ad naseum and are all relevant. I think, this might be what GM is trying to do. GM finally learned that they needed to take the Chevrolet brand global. Worldwide, they are succeeding with this, and the GMDAT side of the equation is helping this tremendously. In the US, the product mix for Chevy is still more traditional then elsewhere in the world, but Chevy has to become both traditional and a Toyota alternative here at the same time. It's a fine line and may explain in some cases why for example you would end up with a FWD impala vs. a RWD one. In any case, Chevy has to utilize a wide mix of vehicle types and sizes, all with a common 'value' theme and a certain basic function aspect to them. How to steer Chevy in the US alone would be a whole sub topic, but needless to say, Chevy is doing well with trucks still I think, and the Camaro is out soon. Where Chevy needs a boost is upgrading and diversifying its small car options although the Aveo and Cobalt and such are not $h!boxes by any stretch. It's clear where Cadillac is headed although in my opinion they simply are not filling out their model lineup or updating it fast enough. What I feel hurts Cadillac is they are not follwing up on their Cien and Sixteen concepts, and the DTS, XLR, STS, all need upgrades now. They lack in smaller models, and lack model diversity that BMW and Mercedes have. Still, it's clear to see Cadillac is attempting to play the game right. Pontiac=mostly holden. RWD for its signature models based on Alpha and Zeta. To keep sales volume up enough to preserve the brand I believe you will always have a volume based Epsilon type product in the Pontiac stable. Niche models like the Solstice will round out the mix. Vibe to me maybe should not be pontiac but Vibe has become an icon of sorts and is a strong brand itself, so GM did not mess with that. G4 sedan (alpha) G6 sedan (epsilon) G8 (zeta) and GTO (zeta coupe) is where I would go with it. I would leave the door open to possibly a firebird down the line if they can distinguish it from the GTO. I would do a G2 (delta car) if market warranted it. I would do a G6 coupe or a G4 coupe / convertible. Losing the Torrent is a big plus. If the next Solstice is on Alpha I see it being a great car with real appeal. Buick= soft luxury. Mostly FWD based chassis with possible Park Avenue exception on Zeta. Enclave will continue but I feel Buick needs 2 other crossovers pronto. A 2 row version of lambda or epsilon 2, and a smaller Provoq sized crossover. The Lucerne would get remade with a large version of epsilon 2 and I would offer a 'Regal" as a 'small epsilon' car. Bucik cannot support any compacts in my mind. GMC- Acadia, Terrain, Envoy, all its models, I think is headed in the right direction. Hummer- I think they are headed in the right direction as well. they need to work on fuel economy and putting nice interiors in their vehicles more than anything else. The HX concept will bust the doors open. Saab- i just don't think Saab can move up in price until they put out any bombshell cars. Until then, they need to be 'VW alternatives'. the 'anti-passat' or 'snazzier volvo'. For now they should exist as a sister brand to caddy to generate exposure and traffic or to saturn. I would position them between VW and Acura until they can ascend to say, Volvo prices. If they had an AeroX in the showroom, a legit compact, a NICE looking crossover (the 9-4x is bland and needs work) and most of all, a new killer 9-5 in the showroom........they need a new 9-3 also. Saab simply needs to have new models! You could make an argument for killing Saab if you can only starve it, but GM wants to have Saab around elsewhere so they sell it here also. It will always be a niche, they just need to focus it and bring killer personality to the brand. I think Saturn is trying to be the GM gap filler for the Japanese and Euro intenders who may cross shop VW, Nissan, Honda, metrosexual type cars. Some folks want RWD camaros and some want the antithesis of that. Something like a next gen Saturn Insignia with real euro flavor and AWD and turbo and dsg and all that jazz may snag a Passat intender, or TSX intender or TL intender. Saturn was originally conceived as an 'import fighter' but I think today that means competing as much in 'euro style' or 'import style' as it does just by having a small car that doesn't break down. Saturn's succcess will be more on generating that sort of cultish love that urbanites and educated and such have for cars like VW's and Acuras.....not brutish old style American car types, but the little bit smaller, more tech eurasian flavored intensive cars that that competition sells. They have a chance to do it, if they don't screw it up. Opel needs to produce great designs and Saturn US cannot afford to eff up the marketing side. This marraige is the only way Saturn can exist without getting slaughtered because I believe chevy will have its day very soon. new malibu is proof of that.

A Donnie Iris song applies here..... "Give him shock treatment, give him one more treatment" i think the design would come off better had they not resorted to the nasty fender flares on the side. the greenhouse itself is not atrocious. the flanks are flabby.

next solstice is alpha and please do not give them any ideas to change that.

not one that cheesy and upright.

no, the press would have grilled that big time. saturn's only hope for continued existence was simple. "your only option at this point is to become Opel America". The folksy cute car from kentucky yearly picnic BS had worn thin and was out of date. And you cannot make a living for a brand off small cars alone. considering that buyers are always supposedly clamoring for more euro cars here in the US, it was about the only path which allowed saturn to exist. Saturn remained because of their customer service appeal. Their entire car lineup was changed over, it needs time to register. The Astra, being an Opel was a better way to communicate the new brand DNA.....that being 'American Opel'. Astra sedan is available but can be confused with the Cobalt. They should have an Astra sedan here, yes. I agree. But at least to some degree you are not at all confusing an Astra with a Cobalt because there is no Astra coupe or Astra sedan. Next astra better have sedan available. There should have been an Astra redline. My guess is GM thought it too expensive and too reliability risky for the 2 year planned run. I contend that Saturn needs to actually change the Saturn experience now. Remodel your bland dealerships. Start taking GM card. Have flashy ads. Saturn's entire problem with the folksy image bit is that it's not sexy and sexy sells cars. Dull and lame does too, (ask HOnda and toyota), but Saturn's only way to appeal to anyone based on cars is to sex them up. Sexy cars + great customer service can = a success for saturn. However, if they are missing either piece, they are screwed. To me, Saab muddies up Saturn. That's the real mess, but I think both brands may benefit if Saab and Saturn were sold together. Or, sell Saturn and Saab with Hummer and Caddy. At least sell Saab with Caddy. Saab needs to be paired with other GM brands to gains some exposure!

truth is GM didn't have global organizational structure in solid place until recently. the next delta is to be a true reflection of common platform. the next delta will be efficiently utilized on many continents and in many countries. at the time GM was considering how to fix the Ion debacle, GM risked spending a lot of time and effort on a unique solution yet again that cost way too much. In fact, we all recall the next gen Ion renderings that surfaced here on this site. That was to be a remod of the current platform, if which had carried through, would have meant the current ion guts would likely still have been for sale until like 2013 or something. this is even similar to the ford thing with the focus. ford had no organizational functionality or confidence in the economics of it to be able to ably incorporate the eurofocus platform here. new car, new manufacturaing equipment, no organization, no concept of cost, etc. 'lets plug the hole for 2-3 years until we can regroup and get on the big wagon'.

see, that's what gives it away right there. even you admit the car sells basically on rep and H on the grille and yet GM puts a car out that is clearly a class player and is an upgrade from the previous model and you don't acknowledge the good it is doing for Saturn and GM. If the Astra is break even, or loses a bit of money, etc........long term effect of its presence is far more positive and was determined at the time to be best best interim fix to get back on the small car bandwagon. I'd rather dwell on the things GM is trying to do to right the ship quickly, instead of doing what the journalists do, to bleat endlessly about the wrong doings in the past and consistently whipping a beaten child until it bleeds when the child is in fact worth saving. This is my point on the car. Sure it still has some segment weaknesses but dammit its in the top 1/3 of the segment for sure, and sets the stage for the next big move in just two short years.

wow, KOOL AID RIVER........... assuming the dash comes in at a level of quality equal to the ridgeline and element as is suggested above, we are looking at a pretty awfully done interior, no bones about it.

they market it like an Edge or Murano competitor, but its much more wagony and longer (look at the rear overhang). thing is, it will sell, its got a "T" on the grille, and its base engine is a 4, which will give this typically undersized frame chassis good mpg, and allow low prices for cheap dumping leases. this will probably steal more 'family' sales than the edge or the murano. it allows the highlander to continue to be the dud it is, also.

VW should also have a Passat BCC...... (rim shot)

I am sure plenty of C/Gers will wait in line to buy your used one.....

Dear God, I can only imagine, I moistened the screen from only the pics. Sonofabitch Caddy is on a roll!

because letting the chinese design it is a good idea too? yup, chrysler is a whore now. full on, unashamed. this is the beginning. next, rebadging tatas or something.

move your arm / hand forward and backward. MMMMMM. feels nice! now, lift your arm up and down while trying to keep your hand in the same vertical line while exercising your thumb. if that were a manual tranny gear shifter, would you stick it out the dash like they have it?

this is why honda sells so many cars? hahahahaha at least we didn't get this....... the civic exterior pays nice homage to the Ion, like so many other cars do today. i suppose this wouldn't even be good enough......there's no H on the front http://www.km77.com/marcas/opel/2005/astra/opc/g01.asp -edmunds it's good that honda is selling all those fits and civics. i wonder if those sales gains make up for the big acura losses lately. to me it just suggests a lot of acura fans home equity lines ran out and now they are stuck driving fits and civics.........good for honda, those small cars are soooo profitable........

kill chrylser now

tonight i'm gonna party like it's NINETEEN NINETY NINE!!!!!

second look, er, ok.