Mr.Krinkle

i was in PA a couple of weeks ago and noticed a couple people riding without helmets on. all i could think is wow, they must really not care. to each his own. but even if you are the most responsible rider, theres always the chance of some jackass doing something stupid, and in a car its no biggy but you usually dont win that battle against the pavement if youre on a bike. hell, a big dog could run out from no where and send you flying. i guess thats part of the thrill too though.

toyota could probably buy up that difference out of their own pocket if they were so inclined. it would be a drop in the bucket, assuming of course those numbers are accurate. id still rather see gm go to number 2 become profitable and then climb back on top. this all reminds me of Ford Vs Chevy wars. instead of ford though, its toyota. a little more competetion, this time on a global scale.

if toyotas brands were so clear then how come the older set are buying up all the scions. arent they supposed to be for gen xyz? or whatever it is. thats how it starts. eventually they will not know what to do to please everyone all of the time and things will get murky. or clouded. chevy--pontiac--buick--cadillac. thats pretty much the chain of success. caddy will become even more upscale. buick will continue on in the tradition of olds and buick, sport with luxo and power. pontiacs will be not only exclusively sporty, but a "step" up from chevy. chevies with an attitude. and chevy is chevy. what can yoiu say? the car for the any and every man woman child. time will tell if the turnaround, strike threats, union contracts, concepts cars, and overall plans will be successful. theres a lot going on and it all costs money. im hardly making excuse because its us and them that are paying the price, but i do believe once all the above messiness is tidied up well reap the benefits. 08/09 until then its do the best with what youve got.

sorry i missed that, but i think hes made up for it somewhat several times since then. every so often this comes back up like hes testing out his material. or massaging the ego. its like quarterly clockwork. i dont know whats worse reading this nonsense or thinking that he believes his own hype--or that others do.

Wow... judging by that response it would appear that you do & you clearly aren't too happy about it. Perhaps you aren't aware of just how obvious your emotions are. Thank you for your insightful and revealing response. your welcome, it was no trouble really. and i do know exactly what i said, but judging by the sarcasms dripping from your analysis, allow me to dumb it down a shade as you have not read between the lines or just like a snappy one liner to mix it up. honda does ok without being number one. look at toyota, and theyre number 2 right now. forget the "niche" markets. if anything,dropping down a tick will give the folks at gm something to shoot for again. my point who gives a hairy rats ass who is numero uno. do they need fly girls to root them on....yayy were no 1?? essentially the turnaround thats going on cost 10 billion dollars. thats the real meat of the losses. kind of the you cant make an omlet without etc etc. like the yellow dart said in the post directly above, "People would be more likely to forgive them for sliding from 'sales king' than for massive cuts or bankruptcy scares. I agree that profit is more important." i can think of plenty of products that i have that arent made by numero uno. does that make them or me any worse off? am i somehow personally affected? are they. what they dont get the blue ribbon to put on their lapels any longer. look at the trouble sony's got themselves into, im not sure of their numbers but theyre a pretty big player. ...so again who cares who is the biggest or who is no 1?

id take a g6 over a malibu any day of the week. id take a ws6 over a camaro--probably, but wouldnt complain either way. id even take the g5 over a cobalt there are differences. perhaps they need to be exaggerated more so but the framework is still there. im gonna go ahead and guess once the restructuring truly starts to take hold well see the changes. thats what makes the task at hand so difficult right now. for the last 20-30 years things were just floating along, no big deal. only recently someone woke up and realized slick names or radical concepts arent enough.

why is this guy still bitching from the sideline? is he going to be on the ballot next november? what the sh*t already. talk about bruised egos and sore losers. the f*ckin geraldo of the auto world. does anyone care? so how much time anyway would it take? if the return to greatness was implemented tomorrow how long is long enough? a week, maybe two? holy sh*t i wish it were that easy. even al gore moved on (i think) after a certain point.

as long as all the brands are different whats the problem? theyre all differentiated to some extent, perhaps theyve been homogenized more recently, but are again moving in different directions so what gives? how come this bothers you. its not personal, if anything it was a matter of finances but again its working itself out and becoming more clearly defined. chevy as a catch all? see the USA in your chevrolet. thats older thn i am. i think that chevy is relatively established and is trying to be unseated or dethroned however you want to look at it. if anything, toyota has been copying the generals game plan so again, what gives? only recently, too, so perhaps they missed the memo on how to conquer the world. nevertheless, it seems to be working quite well for toyota. as far as names go... lets see. chevy tahoe. toyota sequoia theres a suburban-- and then the land-cruiser... maybe toyota has been doing their homework. a little psy ops perhaps. everyone else made all the other good points already, thats what was left. see above.

its too bad bm couldnt be so passionate about curing cancer. this righteous holier than thou there but for the grace of god and gm routine is tiresome. if youre not part of the solution youre the problem. quit bein the f@#kin problem already. oh and knish.

whoopy woo. what exactly am i bracing myself for? am i not going to be invited to the "yay toyota is # 1 party" now? who gives a sh*t.

2 things that stuck out to me: a the cabin noise, as it has been proved one of if not the most quiet cabins around and b) the way they get that shot in the end with "it pales in comparison, unrefined or unpolished and not as good as anything else made by everyone else, BUT it is the best buick you can by. why do they have to prove anything? it starts off listing their faults. not worked throughout the body of the review like everything else. its a blatantly biased attack, and quite repulsive. if you ever need info about cars, check www.consumerguide.com its much better and believe it or not more in line with actual objective reviews. what jackasses.

pontiac is pontiac. thats what always made them special. thats what makes all these cars what they are, i just want to know if they can stand on their own. if pontaic had no affiliation with GM what what that mean for them? all the brands are separate, thats how i like to think of them. even when parts are shared its like, ok, at least the people at pontiac..or buick know what were after. at some point theyll figure it out because after olds its kind of known what happens to that core fan base once you let it go. does anyone think gms sinking marketshare can be compared with the loss of that division? would numbers like that even exist? perhaps not all of it but a part. amyway, there has to be a better way with better people and more ideas to create, embelish, or even exaggerate what would and could be done with the proper foundation. pontiac may only sell what 2/300k but thats still more than not selling any at all and its foolhardy to think another gm division, and at this time i use it lightly, will pick up that slack. its not that damaged but once its gone...its gone, and there aint no bringin it back.

its bound to happen. pun definately not intended.

this months cr reviewed the tahoe among others both big and small. it still didnt have the kindest words for it, found many a fault, isnt recomended and overall ranks the armada and seqouia as 1 and 2. i didnt know that it weighed almost 6,000 lbs. i knew it was heavy but 5,7-- lbs. and it still gets 14 mpg. that alone should be a selling point. but i digress, business as usual.

maybe if we listen close enough well hear buickman heckling the board.

ok so we all like analogies. ill take a marshall or vox all tube vaccum amp from any era especially with 12ax7 and 6s or even an 84 as opposed to a transistor solid state amplifier from now. nothing can compare to that sound from that configuration. end of story period. now see why analogies are useless. the v8's not going anywhere its been here for a long time and only getting better. hell they just squeezed 500+ horses from it in the fastest car gm ever produced. yeah lets call it a day now, good night. ok so it might not be standard in my cam cord. ok then its useless. the v8 hasnt been on an only option on cars since who knows when? besides trucks and 4x4's we always had a choice. and still do today. and if you want an f150 you better want the triton v8 at least. at least they offer it in the impala now. wonder how many people bought that cr just because they made the v8 an option? or did the guy who wanted the base 4 say oooh a v8? hmmm dont know, maybe? as long as its an option people will want it. sure sounds like the basis of a business case for me. and for everyone else who needs it, its there too. i guess it would be do-able to live without a v8 configed motor but why if you dont need to? it just cant do the same things no matter how much you tll us it can, its not the same. obviously, of course bcause its missing two cylnders. there will always be a need or as lexus says a strong want is a justifiable need or some $h!. the whole topic is a waste of time. death of the v8 what was the whole point anyway?

yeah, he seems to be holding on to that arm a little bit too tightly.

i was glad to see the fast lane response and hope they do more to assert their postion. they have nothing to lose. as for the NYtimes...id rather read the post or daily news...i know what i get from them. the times has been losing for credibility and respect for a while now, probably since it came to light that one reporter made up his articles. unbelievable, ive never read anything like this and understand its opinion but sh*t whoever let it go to press should be horsewhipped.

are these year over year percents results of the "fleet"sales? i noticed the toyota sales figures include the fleet sales, too as most tend to include them. GM still outsells with the most overall volume but the drop in overall sales seems to me as a result of selling less fleet vehicles. granted the camry sold 40,000 and the accord was close to that number but other than that everything else seems to be fair game. i think the point of the nh reports reflects a perfection that is somewhat suspect. yes sales are down and perceived quality is a head scratcher but if everyone wants to paint a picture they should be using the same paint. if nobody truly cared gm sales would already be irrelevant. signs of a trend? perhaps. but one segment doesnt necessarily make you a leader. if we wanted to only look at suv, trucks, and all 4x4 sales where would that leave toyota and honda? the plan from the best i can tell is to turn a profit and sell cars. ingenious, i know. if it means selling less cars then you used to but make more money, increase resale value, and improve quality and perception(items such as the new harbour reprt) then it becomes a little more tricky. down the road this should make more sense but still, can anyone clarify for me if these lower percents are a result of a reduction fleet sales?

heres my prediction... 4 cyl will only be found in cheap econoboxes and smaller cars..they will only recieve recognition if a jumbo turbo is attached to it or it recieves 40 mpg. v6's will pick up the slack after that. the v8's will only be for anyone else that wants one. especially if they need to tow or haul or,... just haul ass. v12's will always be around as long as you have the money.

i think the v8 is just about what its always been...still. the whole topic was basically just for the sake of discussion. the v8 isnt red dye #2 or asbestos. its not killing anyone or damaging us in anyway. the v6's and souped up 4's are great for display purposes. if anyone ever drove them in a way remotely close enought o achieve their suggested performnce numbers theyd be seriously let down by the mpg and overall results. the ol' switcheroo nt going to fool anyone regarding the essence of what it is to have a v8 under the hood. the v8 is the truest expression of american ingenuity. around the world it is admired for its most tangible and obvious distinctions. the sound, feel, and presence as it rumbles along. bmw just only now decided a 6 isnt good enough for its m3...a car that has long ben a benchmark in its class. the v8 isnt going to go anywhere, not anytime soon anyway. it will in all probability exist as it does today. trucks, suvs, towing, hauling, kick ass cars--sports models, large passenger sedans and so on. diesels are another story...the most serious threat to the v8 would be if toyota released some sort of press regarding how after many studies have concluded its so awful and has decided to never produce another one. then people may listen. but then again, given their drama lately with recalls i dont know if i can seriously believe thatd even be enough.

i dont know how it was back when gm first started dealing with their recall problems, but im guessing now an ipod and a thank you wont tame all of the collaterall damage that the news of a recall tends to unleash. it happens to everyone, its a downfall of massive mass production.an eventuality, if you will... i just wonder how this filters down to the average car buyer. do they care enough? or is it more of an apathetic tone when it concerns the legend of toyota? sure, general motors everyone kind of expects this to happen to, but not honda...surely not toyota.

cadillac needs to get back into lemans racing or some other kind of competitive road racing. they were in alms a few years back running prototype cars along with the audis. they were relatively decent, especially since they were against the most respected and arguably greatest racecar auid r8 and also as newcomers. i think they learned some valuable lessons and gained good experience which translated into their street cars(im guessing). i would venture to guess thats why they got involved in the first place.. but they need more. edit: just to clarify, the prototype racing program was underway at around 2000 (after 50 years of nothing.) They no longer run that class, just the cts-v's. i think they gain more from prototype racing than any other form. thats where they should be racing.

beats me, sound like they were trying to save a buck in the wrong place. i figure it was bad glue and not a serious design flaw. something inherently dangerous that was engineered improperly. im not trying to diminish the seriousness of the recall, after all its not the owners of the cars wholl have the biggest problems its you and me driving behind them on the interstate wholl be more pissed off if something were to happen. my point is you could probably fix it yourself. there are airplane designs that dont use bolts or rivets but rather held together by glues and adhesives. thtas all they need--some good sh*t to hold their car together.

i cant believe at this point statesman name is written in stone. it is a boring name that projects no anima in any way shape or form. even the regal name accomplishes the same thing without sounding as pretentious, i think. i wouldnt mind in the least having anything called an invicta. especially a kick as rwd buick with presumably a monster engine. statesman on the other hand...i better have some golf clubs and a sweater knotted about my neck. or something to that effect. i cant imagine gm being gunshy about tossing around revered names from the past....malibu, impala...and a host of others. especially if this car is all its cracked up to be, hell go for the throat. its walk or, yhou get the idea. just because theyre going after lexus doesnt mean they need to give their cars the most mundane and boring names they can come up with. skylark, roadmaster, invicta...even the enclave projects the classic buick image. and then theres the statesman. .