ocnblu

LOVE LOVE LOVE the 130! This would be a fantastic rebirth of the Nova nameplate (or at least the Nova "idea"), in coupe, sedan and convertible. The true coupe roofline really does it for me. The 140 reminds me of a last-gen Celica with a Lambo body kit. Many more people are commenting on the 130 than the 140 over at Autoblog... the 130 has TWICE as many comments... a good indicator to Chevrolet on which car should be built. The 130 has people talking, and hoping anew for an affordable, smaller RWD sporty car from GM. The 140 is flash-in-the-pan trendy... it wears earmarks of many other small, sporty coupes that have had short shelf lives. Not what GM should be doing. The 130 is something no other manufacturer can do. The 140 smacks of Celica, Eclipse, even last-gen Cougar. It is a shocker that will grow stale quickly, imo.

I love the 130's upright, true coupe shape. The rear 3/4 view is amazing. It does come across as Monza Town Coupe meets BMW 135, but with a hot-rod dynamism that hits me more each time I take a look at it. I would LOVE for Chevy to have a RWD coupe smaller than the Camaro... but with this being on Alpha and the next Camaro there too... where would this fit? As a Monza, Nova or Chevy II, this would be such a great little car... but only if it is without the e-Assist junk, at least optionally. This car was made for 2.0t and six speed manual motivation! Bring it, Chevrolet! The 140 is oddly shaped and reminds me of a "Lamborghini" kit car based on a last-gen Celica. It also has its moments, style-wise, but I am much more interested in the 130 as a real production prospect smaller than Camaro. After having my memory refreshed with the Pontiac study photos, I am less impressed with the 140, as it seems it was designed years ago. It is evident to me after hearing the verbiage used by the GM honchos that they know the Cruze is a bit too sleepy, otherwise we would have gotten a straight-on Cruze coupe (which we may still get, as there have been spy photos posted).

TDI is Volkswagen's gem. This is wasteful spending trying to chase very few prospects. A bandwagon jump that may never bear fruit.

I really hate to say this because it is nothing less than a sea change of improvement... but the Dart, to me, suddenly, after seeing the rest of the debuts... looks a bit dated. Am I the only one?

thoughts

I said yesterday I thought the new Fusion was ugly. Already I am eating my words. Not too many modern designs seem perfect enough today to have the chance to become a future classic... but the Fusion just might be on that short list. Wow. And the interior doesn't seem near as intrusive as the Focus and Taurus, with a normal-sized center stack and console. Of course, real-world seat time will have to ultimately answer that question. Long-term reliability and repair expense is still up in the air with the turbocharged 4s V. a V6 for customers who want extra hp, but for now, this is one sweet looking 4-door.

The photos taken by the C&G crew seem to give more insight into the design than all these expensively staged, massaged press photos. Silver brings out the car's design better than the tri-coat red, imo, which is odd because darker tri-coats usually reflect bodylines to greater effect.

I like the play-by-play reporting in this thread. And the photos. Some of them have a deviant orientation (sideways!), but I'm sure we're all thankful for you guys taking the time to journey to Detroit and report back with original content. I wish I was there, too, but this thread is almost like being there. Thanks! And the car is a beauty. Cannot wait for more of your original photos.

Fuel economy is still hovering about the same. Non-Trail Rated 4WD Patriots are rated 1 mpg higher in city and 3 mpg higher highway with manual transmission, I believe, if that is your goal. Did not test drive one without FDII. FDII CVT shifts once like a 2-speed. Very decent to drive, I was surprised at how agreeable the powertrain combo is. It does not feel like a hotrod, but it has the deliberate throttle action an off-road vehicle should have. My advice: try a couple different configs to see which you like best.

Yes I read about the fan noise in the Malibu Eco too, but it was audible to rear seat passengers only. Those passengers likened it to an airplane taking off.

The teaser photo looks futuristic at least.

ooo... the dark one has the red interior!

... like twirling a dinner plate on a stick...

Mine would be in blue with black interior and 2.0t or 3.6L powuh. Although a nice bright white with the red interior would be cool, too. Not White Diamond, though, ugh.

Drum roll please...

So, you're saying there's no sense in me setting my alarm for 12:02 a.m.?

I agree with what smk is saying about recent GM interiors... unless you see photos side by side, there are way too many similarities between many of them. I like the XTS' horizontal vents.

Cool, you're there?

Are you serious... 10 cubic foot trunk? That's Vega-sized.

We've read that changes will be in store for the US version of this truck, and we've seen the Holden and Isuzu rebadges already in videos and press photographs. I hope we get some styling changes on the US version, and gas 4 and 6 cylinder options in addition to the sweet little Duramaxes.

Whoa... very nice looking car. Yes, a bit softer in some spots than I was expecting, but a nice, cohesive application of A&S in the front and rear treatments. The interior is cool as heck.

If you have a chance and the inclination, check it with pen and paper as well. My Cruze had an optimistic DIC.

http://www.chevrolet...ps/s10/s10.html http://en.wikipedia....iki/Isuzu_D-Max No reason for an explosion and no reason for namecalling.

It works. I got up to page 4 and it was extremely difficult to get out of there. Awesome!

The NHRA bumper sticker speaks volumes!