CARBIZ

Not as an empty a threat as one might imagine. Don't forget: we exist in a democracy, they do not. Just look at what happened in Tiannemen Square. Who would dare protest a food shortage as a result of an implosion of their economy? This may be just sabre rattling, but the ultimate signal in the world market is - who is running the show? The U.S. economy, or China's? This is just the nightmare scenario that I have been worrying about for a couple years now. Sooner or later, China will be calling the shots. It looks like they are already trying to influence the outcome of the next election. The U.S. may be in a safe place (or at least believe it is in a safe place) by making threats on the eve of the Olympics, but after the Olympics....hmmm? This has all the makings of the next big Crichton novel.

But towing capacity is at the expense of ride, and that is the reason that Detroit produces two or even three levels of duty. I would not want to drive around in the city with a Duramax 3500 with the 4.10 axle, but it would yank a tree stump out like it wasn't there. Since 80% of the pick up buyers only use them for show, I wonder if they'd appreciate the 'heavier duty' ride and suspension of the standard Tundra. Just asking.

Actually, the PCM and catalytic converter are covered for 8 years/80,000 miles, BTW. I find this discussion interesting, considering no other industry gets this kind of pressure. By a house, even a NEW house and some jurisdictions will cover it with a one year warranty (in Ontario anyway), by a $3,500 plasma TV and you get one year coverage. I understand people's concerns about the warranty coverage, but after two or three years of driving it is really more to do with the owner's driving habits/locality/adherance to maintenance that will determine a vehicle's longevity. None of these warranties are free (the manufacturer offers them at the expense of other incentives) and those, say in a moderate climate are subisidizing those in nastier states (such as in the north) or people in the country are subsidizing the city dwellers who are often stuck in traffic - and, yes, the older people are subsidizing the younger ones, since the old geezers aren't inclined to burn rubber.

Only the sedan was 'remodeled' in 2007. We sold more of the 5-doors here than the sedan, so it was disappointing to see the sedan done first. I understand the 5 door is being done for '08 but haven't seen it in the flesh yet. The powertrain, particularly the transmission needs upgrading. I have driven these vehicles extensively and although the power/performance is fine, the gas mileage is poor, considering its size. When this vehicle arrived FOUR years ago, it was ahead of its class (shades of the Tracker in mid-1998), but GM cannot rest on its laurels. This is an important market (at least in urban centers in Canada, over in Asia and in Europe) and already the competition has caught up or even passed us. The Echo-Aveo was a non-starter four years ago; now the Yaris has a lot of nice things going for it and the Fit, too. We cannot keep competing solely on price, is all I am saying. People have to WANT the product. From where I sit, people with means are buying the Hondas and Mazdas, and Chevrolet is competing with the Hyundai/Kia over the 'roaches.' Considering the number of deals I have lost in the past couple weeks because of poor credit/no insurance or just outright scammy customers, I am not in a very conciliatory mood just now.

...and they can't come soon enough here. I am seeing the Versa, Fit and Yaris EVERYWHERE around here. The Aveo was doing very well, but it is getting long in the tooth. I would love to see something small and cool that the twentysomethings could latch onto.

You can't, but your salesperson can. If the vehicle was just built, it could take a couple weeks to arrive at the dealer's door, depending on where you are. Maybe he was being overly optimistic?

But where are they going to get their guns when they are all imported from Korea and China?

"How American is that?" Is this guy for real? How many silly people out there read Toyota's publised PR pieces and truly believe ths BS? Undoubtedly, getting kicked in the teeth a few times in the '70s and '80s, while Ford and GM got fatter and fatter, has helped to make the soup Detroit is in today. I think this addresses some greater issues that we in the West face today: we are fat and lazy, to put it bluntly. What Toyota has really learned is how to use our own systems against us. Kudos to them. We are getting exactly what we deserve, on so many levels. In a street brawl, who would you rather put your money on: 100 randomly selected 18 year olds from the U.S/Canada, or 100 randomly selected 18 year olds from anywhere else in the world, outside of Europe? Other than a few whackos loose in the streets, there hasn't been a shot fired on this side of the Pacific in 140 years. Being bombed and invaded every couple generations or so has deeply effected the psyche of the Japanese and Chinese. Perhaps they are just better equipped to deal with the street fights of the 21st Century.

My middle name used to be Drama, but now it is more like 'Been There, Done That', or 'I'm sorry, but you have me confused with someone who gives a $h!.'

Can we arrange for a bus-load of them? That reminds me of the old Canuck joke: A plane with Joe Clark (then Prime Minister), Pierre Trudeau (then leader of the Opposition) and Rene Leveque (leader of Quebec and trying to break up the country) crashes into the ocean. Who is saved? Punchline: Canada. Insert your 'favorite' Senator, Congressman, President - it's all good.

I know a thing or two about airports. The key word: patience. The key thing to do: bring a good book and a bottle of water (or vodka!) When travelling in Brazil, we bought a 4 city pass for the phenomenal price of $550 Canadian; however, it involved a lot of visits to smaller airports. We had one 6 hour wait in Recife, which I thought might be fun so we could do a little sight-seeing, but then after we rushed back to the airport at 7 pm, the flight to Salvadore was 90 minutes delayed. we pretty much lost the day, and got to our friends' place in Salvadore at 1 a.m. on the Sunday morning. His poor maid had to stay up and wait for us. It ruined our plans for a night on the town. Air travel sounds so glamorous, but a lot of time it is boring or stressful.

This is going to be an epidemic all over North America. A major bridge collapsed on a freeway in the outskirts of Montreal last year. Shoddy workmanship, poor design and the elements were blamed. I remember when Simcoe County suddenly closed a bridge over the Nottawasaga River about 13 years ago and for about 18 months we had to use a temporary bridge they built off to the side while they tore down and rebuilt the original bridge. Considering not alot of traffic used that highway (connecting Barrie, Ontario with medium towns like Collingwood and Wasaga Beach), it was kind of surprising that the bridge was suddenly closed. Of greater significance, is the Gardiner Expressway, downtown Toronto's major east-west artery. The city wants to tear it down, but politics won't let them, so they are clearly starving it of repairs until there will be no choice but to tear it down. The asphalt is terrible. All the other major highways are being upgraded, but this elevated expressway (which should never have been built in the first place - HELLO, northern climate, salt and sub zero temperatures!) is just rotting while the city dithers. Knowing what I know about the graft and corruption in the construction industry (my step-father used to work for a major cement supplier in Brampton), I think we are reaching the tip of the ice berg. In our quest for to build faster and cheaper (China, anyone?), we are going to be dearly paying for our over sights in the past. Anyone who has ever had any professional work done around their house knows that the cheapest quote is not usually the way to go. A lot of roadwork is done by unionized or union approved contractors, and - well, I'll say nothing more about that.

Just an observation from the Hinterland: DUMP THE FRIGGIN TRUCK ALREADY!!! We haven't stocked the Trailblazers in a year. I know dealers that are glad to be out of them. Good grief: the truck hasn't changed since it came out, and even then it had some of the worst fit and finish I have ever seen. Give me a Jeep or Explorer any time. If there was any evidence of the obscene amount of holes in the dike that GM is trying to plug, the latest 'roll-out' of models is a clear, clear sign. The Equinox is going into its 4th year with - what, a performance option? We lost the Tracker and the Blazer, gained the Equinox which is shared with Pontiac anyway, and the Trailblazer is a 6 year old dog. I have sat back and watched as the Xterra, Pilot, Tuscon, Sante Fe, Liberty, Escape, Edge, Sportage, CR-V - Gad, the list is too endless, have all chipped away at the market dominance that GM once had. It took 20 years to update the Blazer. Sad, very sad. GM owned this market 20 years ago. The Blazer set the market on its ear in '82. I worked at a dealer then - and it was remarkable when the vehicle was launched. GM needs small to mid-sized SUV and pick ups to battle the imports at the lower end of the price field and for those who want a smaller truck. Chevrolet has nothing. I understand there is more money in the Acadia/Enclave end of things, but GM can't continue to give up ground to the imports in the lower priced trucks. One of my best customers just showed me a deal he was offered on the Ranger - $8k less than a similar Colorado. Okay, I said, the Ranger is 20 years old, but who can argue with $100 a month on a payment? We have Tracker leases being dropped off left and right. We have nothing for these people. At $4 a galllon, the Tahoe makes a great boat anchor. The only truck we sell is the Uplander. The Equinox was a great truck - THREE YEARS AGO. Where is the rumored GMDAT small SUV? We needed that two years ago. Too late now, the Tracker people have all gotten Sante Fes and Sportages. GM has way-overpriced their Canadian trucks and high end cars. I know of people that have gone over the border to buy Corvettes and Tahoes because they are nearly $20k cheaper down there - or has somebody in Detroit not realized the Canadian dollars is damned near PAR? Leasing is big up here, but explain to someone why a new Avalanche is going to be $75 a month more than the one they are dropping off??? (Sir, go to Buffalo, I am sure it's cheaper there.) Just my two cents.,

My dad and the BEST LOOKING CAR EVER BUILT......................... Okay, maybe I'm a bit biased..........

Not a 'third world nation;' but 'emerging market'. Let's see what we can afford at $2.36 a LITRE (about $9.50 a gallon.) There is a lot of money in Brazil, but their standard of living is much different than ours. Electronics and high end purchases are about double the price of here. How about paying $500 for a basic digital camera? All furniture, appliance and electronics stores advertise payment, not price. Interest rates are still up in the double digits. Food, housing and clothing are quite a bit cheaper than what we are used to, but since most finished goods are imported, they are pricier. When a car costs about double what we could buy the same thing for here, people tend to buy a lot more modestly than we do. But there are a lot of cool, small cars from Citreon, Renault, Fiat and others down there that we can't get.

Ah, but you missed the BF's all-original, stock Omni in the back ground. Yes, those were the days. We really knew how to live, surrounded by all that Mopar muscle.

Okay, my new computer allows me to do stuff like this in under an hour. So, instead of slobbering all over many of the pictures I've seen here, I'll post a couple of mine: A little too young, perhaps? How about something more recent? Yes, indeed, that is a BRAND NEW 1982 Dodge Rampage. I know, I know, you're all in envy that I got to own one and you don't....

Get some sleep. It sounds like you need it. I feel your pain. I know how glamorous international travel sounds, but my first month in Brazil was fun for about 2 weeks. If you can imagine, I was in Rio, laying in bed, looking up at some statue (no, not Corcovado) on top of the mountain beside our hotel, just wishing to go HOME. One of the most beautiful cities in the world, but three weeks and five cities later, I had had enough. And I missed decent coffee!!!! Rest up!

NinetyEight, it may not be as bad as all that. Unfortunately, whether gay or straight, being young can often suck. We all made mistakes when we were young - and you are right about the emotional part. We tend to WAAAYYY over-react when we are teenagers and in our early twenties. I nearly offed myself when I was 15. I shake my head about that now, but the feeling of isolation (and being threatened by one's father because you are gay!) doesn't help. Truthfully, the 3 or 4 people who really wronged me when I was at that tender age really didn't mean any harm by it. One was masking his own sexuality. Another thought it fine to sleep with me behind our friends' backs, but in public he had to ignore me. And when I ran into my first 'true love' about 5 years ago (we had a torrid fling in grade 10) - he barely remembered me, but my experience with him had been earth-shattering. All in all, we get back what we give, and youth is for learning from our mistakes. I hope Myer can learn from his - before he ruins any more lives, including his own.

I remember 30 (I have a good memory, okay!) Happy b'day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Regardless of what Washington's motives are, nobody can deny the fact that the United States cannot sustain the current account deficit that it has been running for the past few years. If Americans keep buying cheap imported goods which they are financing by selling T-bills to those same countries making the cheap imported goods, eventually Fort Knox will be mortgaged to the nostrils. Wall Street may be calling the shots, but when push comes to shove, you cannot eat Securities!

I am just very, very sorry to hear that this kind of crap still goes on in the world. I was 'outed' when I was 16 at the department store where I worked. I confided in a female friend that I was gay, and as soon as our break was over the entire store knew about me. It created quite the panic. It spread through my entire school the next day (many of my co-workers went to my highschool) and by the end of that day I had no 'friends,' except (ironically) a Jehovah's Witness kid in my English class, who was a bit of an outcast anyway. It turned out fine for me in the end: I left home about 8 months later and forged all new (gay) friends. New school. New town. And boyfriend! But it can be very traumatic, for sure. Not the recommended thing to do, in my books.

...........HEY, WAIT A MINUTE! YOU STOLE MY BIKE!!!

I spotted this on my way to the Gay Pride festivities a few weeks ago. I wanted to find the owner, but my other half didn't approve.

For better or worse, there are three levels of trim within the LS/LT line up alone. Forget about the wheels/tires combo (and the scandalous 'LT wheel package' with the cleverly disguised plastic covers over steel wheels), the dash trim changes between the LS, LT and the LT sport package. I can't see how that is very cost effective, but sit in a new LS and then sit in a new LT2 and there is a significant difference: the radio is better, there are armrests, the trim has that brushed metal look. Then, to get the decent looking graphite cloth you have to order the coupe. As with most car makes, its important to compare apples to apples. Most brands have their cheapo models to advertise cheap.