A Horse With No Name

...to add to this...the community college thing won't work. Most of the students graduating from Columbus State (where my wife works) are 40K in debt and unable to find a job. There is a movie called Shopgirl. with Claire Danes and Steve Martin IIRC, where one of the lead charactors is working in a mall after graduating thousands in debt. This will be the new reality for our children. Chris

Actually I've lived in the midwest my whole life, and summer is quite nice here. Chris

Congrats, you said it about eleventy billion times better than I did...But this puzzles me. It is almost like they need to look down on blue collar workers to find their own self worth. Chris

Yes, you do! Chris

Why? Chris

...what's the lyrics of that one song by Green Day..."one nation controlled by the media" Couldn't be more true. Sadly, I think you, mr Carbiz, must be the LAST qualified salesperson left on the continent. My 12 year old daughter, Joanna, knows more about cars than most of the salespeople I talk to. Finding some way to get an educated slaesforce, and make it financially worth their while, would go a long way in helping GM. However, when you've got 15 salespeople in a dealerhsip that sells 5 cars a week, someone is going to go hungry. Chris

Sadly, I think your right. We are going to rival Bolivia in our standard of living in about ten years. And I'm not kidding. Chris

GTO For the Win, dude. You have enough old cars, and another "old" car will just compete with your other "old" caqrs for time and attention. Buy a GTO (for me a six speed is a must, but to each his own) and don't look back. Hell, I like small cars and I am even thinking a GTO would be nice. Plus, newer cars don't seem to rust like older ones. With proper care, that GTO would last ten years or more. Again, GTO FTW. Chris

I would agree. Maybe we can form a Cheers and Gears Convoy to Florida to find Flybrian? Chris

When I was a boy growing up in rural Wisconsin, there was a 57 Chevy with one of those wild 70's custom paint jobs and the 4X4 Treatment, as well as a 68 Camaro SS/RS that was made 4WD as well. I've also seen it done to a couple of mid 70's firebirds and a 73 Buick convertible. Still trying to understand the appeal. Chris

That Thunderbird is sweet, its sister car (literally) is pink and lives here in Columbus, was one owner until 2007. The 57 Ford is a great design, there is a retractable like that in that junkyard I keep telling Balthazar about. Chris

That thing needs to be the personal car for Larry the Cable Guy. Chris

For some reason the 307 4V V8 seems to like the cold. The one in my Cutlass started on the first try on some very cold Indiana mornings. Chris

I really don't see an ugly box coming from GM. The Beat prototype looked good, and GM seems to be pretty spot on with their styling lately. Chris

Nice looking Lark! Chris

The second gen Miata is nice as well. Don't really like the 240 thing, but the Prelude is a fabulous drivers car if you don't mind FWD. Also, hell yes to the Firebird thing. Chris

HHR is wonderful, but it appeals to more of the 30+ crowd. We need a car that appeals to the 18-30 age group. Not that the xB, Element, and company don't appeal to older people as well. One of the GRANDFATHERS of one of the boys in my sons scouting group has a first gen xB with undercar neon...that he tows behind his motorhome. GM would also do well to follow the Scion example of personalization. There is a real market in dealer aftermarket for the HHR that I think is going untapped. Chris

I don't understand it. Wealth is created by having lots of people do lots of interesting things, from building cars to running Italian resteraunts. Wall street types seem to think that real welth is on the trading floor, when what is swapped on the trading floor is only a symbol of real wealth. Chris

This is why Gm needs niche cars...they build a loyal following. The Prius isn't my cup of tea, but owners seem to love them. Chris

My 66 Mustang was white like that, and a fastback. I miss it. Chris

No kidding. I think that there is a long term bias against blue collar work in this nation, and no one seems to have it worse than the wall street elite. Chris

Let's bring this back around to the positive-GM needs to build a car in this group. I think it would look good and sell well. And actually both Saturn and Chevy would be a natural sales outlet for such a vehicle. Chris

The Intrigue is a nice, modern car. Wouldn't mind one as a backup/family type of car. Chris

+1

...it even comes with Panasport wheels and a rollbar. The green color is great on it also. Yes, it's not perfect, but it would be just the right car to play with before you restored it. Chris