Petra

Neat story behind it, but, like most Buicks of the era, it looks a little dated now. The automotive styling world has since moved on from the "droopy jellybean" look.

Adequate inventory, eh? Since when has GM had problems with inventory on any non-niche vehicles? Last I heard, GM is still producing far more vehicles that they are selling, mainly because the UAW will not allow them to halt or cut production while the inventory clears away. Look at automakers that are successful in the marketplace. They produce just enough cars to keep a steady stream flowing the dealer lots, and no more. It's simple supply & demand. You still don't understand that the problem isn't that GM can't sell cars. The Solstice, Corvette, Sky and the GMT trucks prove that wrong. The problem is that the majority of the cars GM produces are undesirable, and, thus, nobody wants to buy them. Too much supply, not enough demand. And trying to artificially create demand, as you have proposed, would not lead to any long-term benefits. It would have the same effect as the incentives GM has become enslaved to: Enculturate the customer to depend upon the deal, not the product.

Oh, puh-leeeeeeeeze. Don't put forward a theory or plan and expect it to pass through without citicism. Ever hear of the Scientific Method, for example? And don't dish out harsh criticism yourself and act all hurt and surprised when you get the same back. And just where, exactly, do you expect to find an unbiased party to review your plan on a GM Message Board? I, for one, would say that O.C put together an extremely fair critique of your plan given that circumstance. Like I said before, whenever anybody puts forth a theory or plan, they should expect nothing less than total and complete scrutiny, and should be prepaired to defend themselves for said scrutiny. You don't go into a debate and tell your audience that they shouldn't listen to your opponent because he's a mean jerk who hates you (at least, not a real debate, which does not include mud-slinging political campaigns, etc.). That I will agree with. These things take time and effort. A frail man can't expect to go to the Gym for a week and expect to walk out a bodybuilder. Nevertheless, I still hold to my opinion that the first 20 points of your plan are awfully specious and of dubious usefulness outside of the American Midwest. I await the unveiling of the, so to speak, meat & potatoes of your plan... because I sure am not impressed with the start of it. Any timeline on when the next chapter hits the cyber-shelves?

Looks like they were trying to clone the Golf (excuse me... "Rabbit" ). I'm not too sure about the Europe only thought, though. Hatches are hot again, and Toyota will need to replace the Matrix, anyway.

My thoughts with regards to Buickman's plan can be summed up with the following word: Specious adj. 1. Having the ring of truth or plausibility but actually fallacious: a specious argument. 2. Deceptively attractive.

Ghosn won't accept offers directly from GM, so I doubt that he would accept an offer from Tracinda. I agree with evok: this is likely just a move on Kirkorian's part to drive up the value of GM stock so he can unload it.

Is it just me, or is that one car Right Hand drive?

I know he's been having a rough time around here lately... Maybe this will cheer him up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NQI3BSVOKM

It doesn't matter, really. Every single one they sell is gravy, because the investment GM made to create the G5 is, for all intents and purposes, nonexistant.

I think that is a point that bears repeating. Pontiac will never sell as many vehicles as they did twenty or thirty years ago (same goes for Buick). As each GM brand becomes more and more of niche brand in terms of volume, it only makes more sense to build a stronger brand identity. And the best way to do that, in Pontiac's case, would be to develop a lineup with more RWD models. Not necessarily all RWD, as that is obviously out of the question. Just more. Of course, the trouble with niche brands is that it is difficult for their models to be profitable... Ask anybody who worked at Saturn in the '90's. My suggestion: Go back to the way things were in the '60's. Give each brand a basic platform and a broad set of parameters to use, and let them build their own car onto it from there. Smart platform sharing, you might say. Unfortunately, I don't really foresee this happening.

I'm very relieved that they haven't ruined the best part: The interior.

Why would you build a test mule for the next Viper out of a Viper? Seems like a great way to draw attention to yourself. I'd hide the engine inside a Ram or something and test it out there.

Woah, does everybody in Ontario have broken A/C??? Mine isn't broken, but my Mom just won't turn it on because "we can't afford it". So it's about 28 degrees celcius right now as I type this. Also, the A/C in my car doesn't work, so I have to roll down the windows. Even going 70 MPH down the 402, it doesn't really help with all that humidity.

It looks exactly like the Canada-only Acura CSX (which itself is basically a tarted-up Civic):

Here I thought I was the only one who had heard of that band. ..Whoops...

Whew!

If I may ask, evok, I'm working which specific V8 engines you are referring to here. Because when I think of V8 engines that are available in passenger cars, pretty much all of them are already niche or low volume models. The Chrysler LX cars are perhaps the biggest sellers of all V8-powered cars in the last few years, but even they have nothing on the big dogs in the passenger car market: Accord, Camry, Altima, etc., etc. The way I see it, the V8 really and truly died in the family sedan market about 20-25 years ago. Consumers were looking for something cheaper to own, maintain, and fill up. Enter the Japanese with cars like the early Accords, Civics and Camrys. They started the push towards FWD cars with economical 4 cylinder engines (remember: the V6 engines didn't start coming until around the early '90's). The Big 3 jumped on the FWD bandwagon, and, well, history has never been the same. You might even say that V8s were as good as doomed back in the early '70's, when fuel and insurance concerns and a lack of available technology emasculated them. A 400 ci. engine that only makes 150 horses is pretty woefully inefficient. It was only a matter of time before a smarter solution arrived. I, for one, relish the chance to drive my big, V8 powered car. I just love the power... It comes on strong from a standing start, a tidal wave of torque. You could ride that wave all the way up to 100 MPH, put the car in cruise control, and just sit back and watch the scenery go by for hours on end (if it wasn't illegal). It's a great feeling, and a rare one, too. I realize that there will probably never be another time when cars like my Mercury cover the automotive landscape. It's the last of the big V8s that managed to escape extinction. And to me, that just makes my car all the more special.

I just wanna say that the GM Kool-Aid Man rocks, and I hope to see more of him in the future. He brings some much-needed levity to the site.

Neat, but it doesn't really say "SAAB 9-5" to me. It says, "Pontiac G8".

Well, I tend to think of it this way: If you can't find everything you need in the interior of a car from the first few minutes you spend inside on the test drive, then that minor irritation is going to become a huge PITA in the future if you buy the car. Some cars have very stupid interior designs, like these Subaru cupholders, which made using the HVAC/Radio extremely difficult: Some cars (my parents '96 Caravan, for one) have very shiny plastics on the dashboard that reflect sunlight right into your eyes. This is especially fun in the winter. My Mercury isn't without its interior foibles, either. Most of the time, I love the digital dash. But it can be easily washed out when driving into the sunset. Also, for such a large car, there is a distinct lack of storage nooks and crannies. I've been storing my CDs underneath the armrests and hoping that nobody will notice them. Now, I'm not big on having the finest plastics available in my car's interior. All I ask for is an interior that is pragmatic, that serves its purpose. It doesn't glare, it doesn't squeak or rattle, and you can find anything you want in a matter of seconds. The trouble is, most cars are so close these days in so many respects that the interiors are about the only things that set them apart. If you can't nitpick on the engine, suspension, handling or styling, what is left? Hence, why interiors are so important. And, if nothing else, this shows how far the automotive world (and GM) has come in the last decade or so. On paper, the Aura pretty much equals the Accord V6, Camry XLE and Altima SE in just about every respect. But the Aura's interior is still living a few too many years in the past. That is where the Aura will lose, because it is the only place where it is noticably deficient. That is how much better GM is today. If they can just get those interiors nailed down, things will finally start to look up. The Chrylser LX cars had the incredible good fortune of having people not really care about their interiors. The big selling points for those models are/were the RWD, the styling, and the HEMI engine. Chrysler knew that, and they used it. And, in a rare piece of PR success, they were able to divert pretty much all the attention of both the reviewers and the buyers to the cars strongest points, while ignoring the weakest ones. Suddenly, the whole of Chrysler was "hot" as an effect of the positive reception toward the LXs. The Caliber is still riding on that wave of popularity. Like I said, its not often you get people to totally ignore the interior of car. But it has somehow worked big time for Chrysler these last few years.

It's a moot point, anyway. Read this quote from the article: Toyota doesn't build many cars with "character" or "soul" (whichever definition you prefer) because it knows it doesn't have to. Why should they? They get along just fine selling boring appliance cars. That is Toyota's niche in the marketplace, their raison d'etre. If you want a high performance car, go to Mazda, Nissan, BMW, or (in some cases), Pontiac. If you want a luxurious car, go to Audi, Lexus, Infiniti or Mercedes. If you want a car that you don't have to think about, you go to Toyota. Trust me: they've cornered the market.

...However, you can transfer to another department. At least, I can.

As enzl said, this next stage will be the true test for Cadillac. They will have to stay focused despite diminshing returns and much increased competition. One lazy, half-baked car at this point could ruin everything, and, as the article says, they messed up on a lot of those all-important little things with the Escalade.

"The Adventure" by Angels & Airwaves. Neat stuff... I never would have thought Tom Delonge would come up with something like this!

Well, let's just say the phrase "Welcome to T-Mobile Activations" has been known to be interpreted as a licence to be a total wad. I share your pain, Josh.