greg_nate

Does anyone know the drivetrain specs for the American version? Think a diesel will be offered?

Actually, that's a brilliant idea.

I like it...hope a derivative makes it up here.

What engine are you talking about?

Looks nice - except for that whalefin of a spoiler. Its so big you could land a plane on it.

Are you serious about this? What exactly are they testing? The powerplant? Isn't the Blue Devil supposed to be supercharged?

I agree - hopefully Lutz won't be branded via guilt by association. Regarding Wagoner, I can only hope he is gone by the end of this year, but I am not holding my breath. There is one good reason to keep Wagoner aboard: Use him as the scapegoat for a UAW strike. No CEO wants to own a strike and make the tough decisions as a result. I say keep Wagoner onboard through the bankruptcy and/or strike. Let Wagoner be the fall guy and pin everything on him. Once the company energes from bankruptcy, then get rid of him. It would be a fantastic PR stunt timed perfectly with a leaner, meaner GM if they were also able to announce new leadership.

It would be nice to see GM take the lead in styling and innovation, rather than following the pack. But money is money, and GM isnt making much of it lately. Their main goal, before anything else, is to climb out of the pit. They've got to be able to turn a consistent profit. So if retro is worth a few quick bucks, then albeit!~ If retro sells, then let them hop on the bandwagon until the trend stops. At least they'll make some money in the meantime.

Its about time someone pointed out that the emperor has no clothes. Does it benefit anyone by postponing the inevitible for another 5 years, possibly ruining GM beyond repair? I say cut the losses now. Start with a clean, competitive slate as soon as possible. There are too many parties involved to achieve any kind of positive cooperation. And contrary to some people's posts on here, the UAW is not being cooperative. The only reason they agreed to legacy benifit cuts was because they knew that they would be challenged in the courts. The best case scenario is if: - GM files for bankrupcty - Unions are busted. - Excessive executive compensation is halted. Change of CEO. - Workers who want to actually work, go back on the job with competitive benefits akin to what Toyota and Honda offer here. - Ford follows suit. - GM is then allowed a fair playing field with its Asian competitors. - GM is allowed to focus on innovation and quality, sinking much needed money into development. - Ford follows suit. - American auto industry and auto workers then get a chance to show their true excellence and competetiveness. They gain dominant market share once again, and return to the status of an industry that is a keystone of our economy.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking too.

You mean St. Ides, the wretched fortified beer? Drink it, and its a tossup as to which comes first: Drunkenness or stomach cancer.

I may be way off on this one, but I am not aware of any technologies supporting variable compression. For the most part, its a static number determined by piston size in comparison to the head chamber. For me to change my compression, I'd have to either get a new set of milled heads, or swap my pistons. However, there is another type of compression that some people refer to that is not static, and has more to do with compression during a particular valve event. I am hoping an engine guru will chime in. I just don't see how they could do a variable compression motor...but then again, I couldn't see how they could do a DoD motor either, until I read about it

Say more about the LaCrosse Super. I am clearly in the dark on this one. It sounds interesting.

ADM is a small player in the ethanol industry. And so what about the farm subsidies? Notice who the subsidies are going to...American farmers. Your plan has our money, and 1000 times the amount of farm subsidies, going to the Saudi Kingdom, Iran, Qatar, Venezuela and Iraq. Your plan, has us involved in a near trillion dollar losing war with Iraq. Don't ya think there might just be a better way?

That's not even close to reality, let alone a valid argument. The U.S. annually gives away - as in *FREE*, more corn than we consume, to needy countries. FYI, Russia is one of them. To date, some farmers are still paid *NOT* to grow corn....and we *STILL* have a huge surplus. Even if your statement were correct, which it is not in any remote possibility, what would you suggest? Continue racing with India and China to see how quickly we can consume all the oil in the world? And then what? And so what if Iowa is the first presidential primary...it has been since the beginning of primaries, which predates any kind of oil crisis. The only thing "niche" will be the feedstocks used for ethanol. Ethanol is here to stay, and it is coming on strong. Corn is not the only feedstock. Remember, we have a huge sugar industry and soy industry. And these plants are used for traditional methods of ethanol production. Cellulosic methods will be the way of the future - and for that, just about anything organic can be used.

If the ION is supposed to be an Opel derivative, then it should be fair to assume this will be as well. Please correct me if I am wrong. The Astra has been getting a lot of good press, both here AND abroad.

And therein lies the problem. Bush doesn't have a brain - never had one, never will. He's a wannabe humble man, trying to make himself good with God and his father. He doesn't know what he is doing on any other level. I can't recall in my lifetime, a leader of any industrialized nation posessing such a low IQ. He is in over his head...he was in over his head as Governor of Texas. He was in over his head in his bid for Congress. He was in over his head when he got married. He is in over his head when he wakes up each morning. What is best for Bush, is to be on a farm with a dog and a competent wife who can pay the bills. Playing fetch with Sparky and laughing at small critters, is about all this fella is equipped to do. ...and somehow this mess became the leader of the free world...

Seems like one of the more sympathetic, objective articles I've seen in a while...they even attempt to explain the reasons for American automobile's bad reputation. They said what get's commonly said on this very board. I see this as a good thing. Damn, I would love to be optimistic. A couple more years of quality and reliability, and the press in general might start coming back around. Each time I read an article like this, I get a little hope that we might truly be on an upswing, and not in the middle of a small blip on a downward slide.

Oh, you mean help the same way he helped Katrina victims? That sure makes me feel good.

Please re-read York's entire prepared speech. It softened my opinion after reading it. I too am concerned about the "IMMEDIATE" profit tactic, but in his speech he cites his strategy, and then goes on to show how well it worked for Chrysler and IBM. He goes on to say that the turnaround wasn't immediate, but took a few years to complete. ...and not that I agree with everything he offers as "advice", such as dumping Hummer. But even so, I am no business guru. Perhaps he knows more than we do.

The drunken sailor line cracked me up. Thanks for the insight on Fiat, although I am still unclear how it turned out so unfavorably at the end. I understand the mistakes going into the deal, but how did they get so scathed coming out of it? Seems like liquidating would have made more sense. There must have been some kind of contractual agreement against such. Or is what GM did, simply normal business - which just happened to coincide with a serious slump year and and high negative critical attention? In other words, would GM have gotten such the negative press about the Fiat mess, if they had been turning huge profits last year? I don't know what to say about the mega company blurb. It seems everyone is doing it, including Toyota. From what I've read, globalization seems to be the cost cutting solution to a lot of problems - from supply to engineering to labor. Maybe it is just the case that the first few attempts were less than fruitful. Getting somewhat back to the topic, here's what I think can be said about the "gist" of my original post, and many many others on this forum: We simply don't trust Wagoner in the competence arena...and as trust starts to deteriorate, it becomes a slippery slope toward not trusting his ethics - which some people such as BM seem to believe. To add fuel to the fire, you don't see much positive feedback about Wagoner - here or anywhere else. And it hasn't been that way just recently. Its been bad for three years now. People start to wonder. And when people start to wonder, they want explanations. As posted above, we don't get much of communication from GM, which makes things worse. The best we can do is speculate. Its not too difficult to see how conspiracy theories get started. All that is needed for these theories to *LOSE* traction is a little communicatoin from the company. We have a lot of insiders that frequently post comments such as "KEEP THE FAITH" regarding product line and direction. I don't see any of them posting "KEEP THE FAITH" with regards to Wagoner. Wagoner needs to be more forthcoming. When Bush isolates in the Oval Office, the same thing happens - and his approval ratings slide like greased lightning. Once he speaks up, no matter how ignorant he may sound, his rating go back up again. The public just wants to be informed.

Okay, let's just ignore the consipracy theory for a while and focus on the allegations. The article raises valid questions that deserve to be answered. If GM is truly doing givebacks to the Union, then that's just shy of fraud. GM can't announce a cost saving measure to the public, and then secretly not fulfill. That's wrong any way you look at it. Its not right to the shareholders, its not right to employees and its certainly not right to the consumers. And the questions about Fiat *STILL* have not been answered. Exactly *WHAT* happened there? Does *ANYONE* really know the details? From what we know, GM essentially gave away 4 billion dollars. Now that just doesn't make sense at all. I am not buying into the consipiracy theory, but I still think that details are being withheld.

Weren't we supposed to see another GM/Chevy RWD unveil at NAIAS?

Its not all about horsepower. If that were the case, GM would produce one car with 2000 horsepower, and be done with it. The Vette is a 2 seater for one - and is thus a COMPETELY different driving experience. Its much more personal, but it comes at a cost. What happens when you want to drive a few people to the party? Can't do it. Ask me how I know this? Went from a 4th gen SS to a C5. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. If Chevy were making the Camaro in 04, I would have picked one up instead of the Vette.

...here's another take. One group touts conspicuous consumption (H2 blingers), while the other seeks an image which depicts masculinity, ruggedness and freedom (Jeep kids). One says "look at me, I have money", while the other says "look at me, I have virility". The 4wd crowd doesn't seem to have the ability to censor like the Harley crowd, for example. Try imagining one of the frat boys pulling up to a biker crowd in his blinged out Sportster that daddy just bought him...ain't gonna happen.