NINETY EIGHT REGENCY

Thank you for your birthday well wishes! It means a lot.

The way they are focusing Dodge is what they should have done to Pontiac. The question is.. how much of what they say is true? We have heard this before and the brand was killed( Mercury, Oldsmobile, Pontiac)

I think the concept version of the XTS had the styling right. I prefer the rear doors and the c-pillar on the XTS concept as it looks more Cadillac than the final product. Too many cars have this c-pillar and it looks like the 1990's Toyota Avalon too. The concept also had the headlights right too. I like the reconfigurable cluster.

Very much so correct Hyperv6. I cannot add anything to what you have said.

Hyperv6: Thank you for your clear and concise explantations. I had a conversation with some guy on another GM forum last night and I think he may have worked for GM because he was saying the same things you are saying about Opel and Buick and what GM is trying to do. They were detailed explanations just like yours. He said the same things about why GM is making the most of what they have and reinventing Opel and Buick in the processes. This why why GM is reabadging the Peugeot-Citroen vans to be in the Euro Van game. They cannot afford to lose out. GM and Ford did not count on the success of Ford Transit Connect. GM knows like you said they have to act instead of react. I was told going forward the Opels and Buicks will be designed and engineered for America, China, and Europe. Buick and Opel have to do a image change and just like Cadillac go through a renewal process that GM will have to invest and build on for years. It is about being competitive. Opels and Buicks will be aimed at high end Volkswagens and low end Audis. I was also told that Americans are more receptive to imports or Euro designs as opposed to Europeans who are not as receptive to American designs. The reason why Buick ended up with Opels was because Buick did not have anything in the pipeline and they used that money on the suvs as the suvs are making money and bring profit to GM. They also are converging things globally. Chevrolet- Holden Buick- Opel/Vauxhall GMC Cadillac- If you notice most of their products are unique to them with the exception of the Escalade. This is something Ford has not done with Lincoln yet. The current situation with Buick is a temorary fix until the real product can come. I was told the Monza concept car that was partitally unveiled is an example of the new Buick-Opel image and look. As far as these vans, this is just to keep GM in the game until they have time later to invest in a global commercial van. GM will modify them I am sure to look like GMC and Chevrolet. Looks like Volkswagen is testing their Euro Van in Arizona. No one knows why. Sighted: Volkswagen Crafter

Most likely Chevrolet would sell these vans and GMC too. Let's look at these commercial vans they sell at Peugeot- Citroen. The Peugeot Boxer: http://www.peugeot.com/en/products-services/vans/peugeot-boxer The Peugeot Expert: http://www.peugeot.com/en/products-services/vans/peugeot-expert The Peugeot Partner: http://www.peugeot.com/en/products-services/vans/peugeot-partner The Peugeot Bipper: http://www.peugeot.com/en/products-services/vans/peugeot-bipper My opinion is I do not think they are ugly. I think they would do well. How do you put the face of Chevrolet and GMC on these vans? Here is an interesting side fact. These vans are co developed with Fiat. So, basically Ram and Chevrolet and GMC will be selling the same vans. That is globalization for you. This is one of the many draw backs to globalization. Everything is becoming the same globally and we have fewer choices. Everyone's economy impacts the other's economy. I just hate how American things are being lost in favor of the European or Asian way or look of things. Granted, I do appreciate we can connect globally better with each other in many ways, but I just do not want to see our own personal identities and customs and traditions and identifying characteristics die in globalization. It is all about the dollar. Let's look at the Fiat/Ram versions: Ram Promaster: http://www.ramtrucks.com/en/2014/ram_promaster/#promaster/bright_white/mono http://www.ramtrucks.com/en/2014/ram_promaster/gallery/# Ram Promaster video: Fiat Ducato/ FIAT vans: http://www.fiatprofessional.co.uk/uk/ http://www.fiatprofessional.co.uk/uk/Models/Ducato_Goods_Transport This is my question if they are going through all this trouble to sell the Peugeot-Citroen van, then why are they not using the Renault version at Europe at Opel/Vauxhall? Wouldn't it be easy to do a global designed and engineered GM van?

Cadillac Still Has Plans for Halo Carhttp://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2013/07/can-caddy-cut-it-without-7-series-fighter/

The reason why GM used the Nissan van to make a Chevrolet version was for several reasons: 1. The small Euro van market is taking off in the United States. GM needs to be a contender. 2. GM had to act quickly and this was the fastest way to do it. 3. GM already had a van agreement with Renault-Nissan already in Europe. 4. It would take 24 to 48 months to get a new van in the segment to market. GM does not have that time. 5. This buys GM some time to design and create its own van that it will most likely use globally in the future. 6. The Nissan van is already built here in Mexico and federalized. It would be more of an issue and money to bring the Vauxhall and Opel versions here. The van is based on the Renault Kangoo: The only thing I do not understand is why GM did not use this vehicle instead: Chevrolet Orlando:

One of three: Ford LTD II, Mercury Cougart or Ford Thunderbird from the 1977-1979 era.

The 2014 Cadillac CTS: This car is 195.5 inches long It is 72.2 inches wide. The gas tank is 19 gallons. the trunk is only 13.7 cubic feet. the wheelbase is 114.6 inches long The XTS is too close in size to this car. XTS is not much wider or longer. It has a shorter wheelbase. The XTS is 202 inches long The XTS wheelbase is: 111.7 inches The XTS 72.9 inches wide The fuel tank on XTS is: 19 gallons and 20 gallons on AWD The XTS trunk is 18 cubic feet This compares to: 1985 downsized Cadillac Deville: The Deville length was 195.0 inches long The wheelbase was 110.8 inches long It was 71.7 inches wide The fuel tank was: 18 gallons The trunk was: 15.7-15.8 cubic feet The only dislike of the CTS is the headlights. That is all. The car should have a quad headlight design. The trunk should be one to three cubic feet bigger.

I thought it was just me, but they did not have to go there with the Town Car. Town Car was not a bad car, but why show it like this?

Thank you for the mention. It is appreciated. Oh, there is more coming of the type of posts I did in 2012.

Oldsmobile and Pontiac to return once other GM brands have been fixed and other GM business has been taken care of as well.

How far can ATS's platform be stretched is the question. I was told it was not a large or medium sized car platform as they said Camaro was going to shrink on Alpha. We have seen small Rivieras before ( 1986-1988) and you know how that turned out. GM is looking to get a return on its investment. Right now this is all speculation and we will have to wait and see. There a lot of gaps in GM's line up.. Right now the biggest Buick is La Crosse at 197 inches and the Enclave which is not a sedan or coupe.

That car should have become Cutlass Supreme instead of Intrigue. That name Antares was to be used on some other Oldsmobile that never happened.

Sad and yet powerful. You see what was right and where it went wrong.

I did not know you came through here to Houston. Interesting.

Ninety Eight Regency indeed......

Sad era and sad time indeed for the Riviera. The 1989-1993 model really helped when they upsized thye car. The 1989-1993 model should have come out in 1986 instead of this one. This was a bad time for GM and the beginning of the trouble. That car in the photo was a 187 inches long. That was a sad thing to happen to that car. It did not help it looked like the Skylark too.

Sad day indeed....It is so obvious this is what has happened. Most cars on the road are now these midsized Euro-Asian sedans. If it is not that, it is some suv or truck or some crossover. If not that some compact car. People are more concerned with fuel economy now and GM and Ford have globalized their lineups. I just do not like how to stay competitive, they had to make their cars Euro-Asian looking and sized them as such. Everything looks like everything else in the world. I cannot believe some of the cars these two articles above said were fullsized cars. I noticed the Buick La Crosse was not mentioned. I have said that car is not large. This is the very reason I have to hold on to what I have. I remember back in the day all these cars would be classified as midsized. The Ford Taurus even at over 200 inches long is not any bigger than a midsized car on the interior.

The front end is all wrong on the car. The front end grille reminds of a 1982 Oldsmobile 88. The angle of the rear reminds me of the 1st generation Oldsmobile Aurora. I so want Lincoln to have a great turn around and compete with Cadillac and take on the world. The other issue is that quarter window in the c-pillar. Too many cars have that same window in the c-pillar theme. I never liked it, and it is over played. These cars listed below have that same theme in one variation or another. I wrote this elsewhere the other day: Too many of these new cars have that six window design I cannot stand. Cadillac XTS has it as you know, now Ford Fusion/Mondeo, Lincoln MKZ( 2013), Nissan Altima( 2013), Hyundai Sonata, Hyundai Azera, Volkswagen Passat, Buick Verano, Dodge Dart and all the Audi sedans and Chevrolet Impala have that design too. Too many of these cars are starting to look like each other and the globalization is all about saving money and appealing to the masses. What happened to style, character, distinction, and identity, looking American and history and heritage? 1982 Oldsmobile 88: 1995 Oldsmobile Aurora:

Thank you sir.

I was so ready to like this car. I really was. I knew something did not seem right when I saw all the spy photos. I do not like the rear door and that window behind the rear door design. That is called a opera window or quarter window. I do not like where it is placed because so many cars have that same six window design that looks like an after thought. The Chevrolet Impala has had it for years, The Toyota Avalon used to have it, the Hyundai Sonata has it, Audi uses it on every last sedan it makes. It is too common and over done. The last time Cadillac had a six window design like this was 1976. I am not a fan of the headlights. It looks like one projector beam headlight on each side of the grille work. Not a fan of that. I think a car should have two headlights on each side of the grille work. The sides with the swoopy line looks too much like Hyundai Sonata and Mercedes Benz E Class. The inside is nice, but of course no bench seat and the seat controls are most likely on the side of the seat instead of being on the door. Not everyone wants bucket seats. GM and everyone else who makes cars seems to think so. The car looks more Asian than American Cadillac. This tells me this car is going to be exported. It looks ready for the Chinese market. I think the concept car looked better. I do feel it will be a hit and a success in the market.

DAIMLER, BMW TEST THE WATERS OF CAR SHARING PROGRAMS By Drew Johnson New car sales at Mercedes-Benz and BMW may be booming, but the luxury automakers are hedging their with car sharing programs in Europe and the United States. Luxury car makers are poised to post strong 2010 sales figures, but a shift among younger buyers has Mercedes parent Daimler and BMW experimenting with up-scale car rental programs. Daimler’s Car2go program is currently running in Austin, Texas and Ulm, Germany and BMW recently launched “BMW on Demand” in Germany. BMW’s car sharing program is unique in that it lets renters choose specific vehicles and trim levels. Naturally the cost is based on the vehicle, with a 1-Series renting for $21.20 an hour and a 5-Series going for $30.49 per hour. BMW says it eventually plans to expand the BMW on Demand program to other European cities, but hasn’t announced a timetable. Although car sharing programs could eat into new car sales – it is estimated that one rental car can take away up to 15 new car sales – the segment looks to be a growing part of the market. About 30,000 people have signed up for Daimler Car2go program and major cities like Paris are pushing for similar systems to help reduce overall congestion. Widespread car sharing programs may still be a few years out, but it appears the idea of a communal car is here to stay. link: http://www.leftlanenews.com/daimler-bmw-test-the-waters-of-car-sharing-programs.html