vonVeezelsnider

In no particular order:

2002-05 Ford Thunderbird

2005- Citroen C6

1961-64 Lincoln Continental Hardtop

1956 Cadillac Coupe deVille

1962 Imperial Crown Convertible

1959 Oldsmobile 98 Hardtop Sedan

1958 Buick Limited Convertible

1961-63 Ford Thunderbird

1958 Chrysler 300D or 1960 300F

Thanks guys, it was a great day. Appreciate the birthday wishes!

Still not out in Canada yet and I am really looking forward to seeing it. Based on what information is available I think the packaging and pricing is pretty much right on. It's an appealingly styled car although if I was to have one I'd want the blacked-out headlights and grille, it doesn't look quite right without them. I'm concerned to hear about the quality observations by others as they really need this to be a well built successful unit. I wouldn't expect it to have quite Buick-levels of quality control but certainly it should be competitive with the Cruze and Focus... Time will tell, could just have been that car. The reviewers who've been driving them have been mum on fit'n'finish issues.

It'll burn premium. It'll come without home link, may not come with an auto dimming rear view mirror and all of that at what price for the turbo?

Hardly anthing comes with homelink anymore and I am certain it has an auto-dim mirror as even the convenience model gets one. The Turbo model is basically the 1SL Leather Model plus the 2.0L engine + 6 Speed Manual Option + Suspension Upgrades. Factor in the addition of standard Rearview Camera, Blind Zone/Cross Traffic, and I would expect the price to be somewhere between 29,000 and 30,000

I kind of had a nagging wonder when I saw those popping up in the Sun Belt just how well they do in the heat... Apparently not very well.

Would make sense that it's the Corvette as I know the XLR had the laminated Balsa as well; a brochure I have lying around here somewhere had some bragging in it about that.

Congratulations Cort; I know how much you love being an uncle and two is quite assuredly twice as great as one is!

When might we see this in writing?

I am really looking forward to driving the new Impala. I have been mostly leaning towards a Verano for the last little while because I assumed that the Impala LT would price in comparison with the Taurus SEL which goes for 34-37k here, obviously given the choice between a Verano (or any small car for that matter) and this, the choice is pretty clear to me. If it prices more in line with the SE Taurus then that might make the difference for me. If the packaging for trim levels matches the new Malibu, the LT model should have just about everything that you really want standard. myLink is a must for me on top of that and depending on the real-world performance from the 2.5L, maybe I would have to tick the V6 option box too. I can only assume that they will offer the V6 option on the LT, it would be a sin not to.

Can't wait to see the first drives coming in and get to drive one in person. I don't think the Impala has had this kind of swagger in a long time! Part of the hangup for me that was pushing me towards small cars is that they haven't really been making big stylish full-size american cars that don't compromise on their core values in some way (like the LaCrosse with its tiny trunk).

Cadillac XTS4 Platinum

Everyone keeps mentioning the 2.5L being thrown in as the base engine... the GM order guide for 2013 still mentions the 2.4L as the standard engine. Anyone know if it's 100% definitely getting the 2.5 and if so, where did they hear it?

Still the 2.4L, they are probably going to roll the 2.5L out on a larger scale once they Malibu is launched and underway.

The Cadillac by a country mile. What might surprise those here is my second choice- the Silver Cloud. Absolutely love that generation of Rolls.

Overall you hit a lot of the same points I made about the car. Hyper is right about it playing to people who drive V6 cars and don't want something underpowered. I think I even fall in that category a little bit. I'd get a Cruze and I'd be fine but I think it's a little underpowered and I refuse to drive anything that is slower than what I already have. Even just the 2.4L in a car this size makes a big difference as some of the mags are reporting 7.5sec 0-60 times, which is just not something you really see in compact cars usually unless you plonk down the money for the rediculous "boy racer" edition with the "look at me spoiler" and shopping cart ride quality.

This car will find its place in the market I believe. It offers an unbelievable amount of value when you measure it up even against other cars like the Civic and Corolla. Why on earth you would buy an up-spec one of those when this gives you so much more car for the money for instance. IIRC they are on track to sell something like 30k of these this year and that is of course taking into account that February and January didn't really hit the stride because the car was literally still being introduced during that time.

I will say though that the faux metal in the Verano is actually pretty good in my books for the same reasons Balthy listed. I'd certainly place it near the top of the list for fake stainless I've seen in the mass market and even premium price points.

Front suspension has been a never ending pain in the butt on our 06 as well, but nothing bad to say about the powertrain.

Re: Park Ave v. Deville that says more about the Deville than it does the Park Ave in that they were nearly technological equals, Northstar aside. There is a large technological difference between the XTS and Lacrosseon everything except the engine. Magnaride+air spring, Cue, haldex AWD, Capacitive touch, automatic braking both front and back, available limited slip differential in the rear.

It is more than a dressed up Lacrosse.

Even the Park Avenue and Deville of the last generation weren't even technological equals. The Deville had a more refined and sophisticated powertrain, the availability of heated and cooled seats, massaging seats, those really crisp CRT gauges, Night Vision, Nav, etc, etc. This is largely a continuation of that reality with the XTS and the LaCrosse. It's also about 7in longer and has double the cargo capacity.

I can't believe that such a big company can be so stubborn and obstinate about this.

Cadillac needs to have a flagship vehicle, they cannot be a serious competitor in the market they aspire to be "the standard of" without it. So what if it's expensive. So what if the first generation or two loses money. It will bring people into Cadillac showrooms and have a synergistic effect on the sales of other cars (ATS, CTS, SRX). It will raise the profile and "cred" of the brand which can't do anything bad in the public eye.

It's time to plug in some quarters or leave the phonebooth.

The old gal certainly has the right idea...

1. Buick

2. Cadillac

3. Pontiac

4. Chevrolet

5. Oldsmobile

I'm driving a relatively base Verano this week. It is a great little car and feels very premium.

Ah nice to know it isn't a Verano that was prompting a bad review from you a few weeks back. Come to think of it, did you ever post said review?

Seconded. I was hoping that it wasn't the Verano.

Seeing reviews like this are really tonic for the long suffering GM fan... The Cruze is a great car and deserves to be recognized as such.

This is a great addition, and it does change the character of the car- 0-60 in 6 seconds? That's legitimately quick.

Can't say I like that blue colour though- when I heard they were adding a blue colour I was kinda hoping it was closer to the Dark Ming Blue on the LaCrosse. I guess my top colours for this car are still Crystal Red, Mocha Bronze, and White Diamond. Can't say I would shell out the extra money for the Turbo as I've driven the NA version and it suits my needs just fine, then again if I was buying I might get the convenience model and not even bother with the leather. Looking forward to test-driving one, though. Maybe I could be swayed if it\s really good.

Both the 3400 and 3900 are smoother engines than the 3.6 when driven in a normal fashion despite what the buff rags will tell you about pushrods and the like. It is only when you crest 5,500 rpm or so does the DOHC make any difference on smoothness.

Basically yes. I've driven numerous Impalas of this generation with both the 3.5L and the 3.6L and you really hardly even notice the extra 80 horsepower unless you absolutely flatten it. The 3.6L sounds nicer at high revs but honestly the 3500 is just a better engine. You do notice the 6-Speed transmission though, having the extra two gears is nice.

I also noticed more NVH on the 2012 model, both in the form of engine vibration at lower RPM (the 3.5L and 3.9L run smoother at idle), and the rather intrusive and annoying whistling noise when you dig into the throttle to get going, merge or pass, which I believe has something to do with the direct injection system.

My guess is Nissan although my first thought was a Miata for some reason.

New car in Spring/Summer 2013 (Verano/Malibu/Regal/Year-old CTS or MKZ?)

Long term I'm putting some money aside for something cool, ideally a convertible- maybe one of those 2002-05 T-Birds but not sure yet. This is probably five years away and in parallel with buying a home. Also always keeping my eyes open for a nice D-Body Cadillac which could be a nice cheaper intermediate project to tide me over until then.

Good condition but honestly to me the GCC is like the only redeeming feature this car has. Much preferred the generation this one replaced.

Got to be either the Malibu or the Verano. Since I'm certainly shopping both along with the Regal for this time next year, I could use the straight dope- like Camino said they can't all be winners.