Robert Hall

I know Lexus does it, but that's because the ES is the weird one in the group and is positioned below the "entry-level" IS. The way I see it, the XTS will end up being the weird one in the Cadillac stable if that happens. But as Carguy had posted, his lineup consisted of 4 RWD sedans. Positioning seems weird that way, with STS and ULS both essentially occupying the top spot. Ah..I missed that they were all RWD...I suspect there will be at least 3 RWD ones eventually, with the XTS being the ES/LaCrosse/MKS/ competitor and Avis staple...

I see that as possible..they had 3 sedan lines up until this year, the XTS is coming to replace the DTS, the ATS is being added, and a flagship RWD sedan has been rumored forever, so 4 sizes of sedans seems likely in a few years..

On my lunchtime stroll I came across a gorgeous silver '65 Olds Jetstar 1 hardtop (Starfire style roofline) w/ tasteful 20 inch chrome wheels. Like a mirage in the vile desert heat, it was quite a surprise to see such a car amidst the usual Prii, BMWs, Mercedeses etc in a downtown Scottsdale parking lot.. Saw a black Ferrari 458 Italia in the same area yesterday afternoon...1st one I'd seen, pretty sweet. Also, I've probably seen 1/2 dozen Nissan Leafs (Leaves?) this month so far..

Econoline.

Nobody said Mercedes-Benz's alphanumeric system actually made sense. Do I agree with Cadillac's decision to ditch names for alphanumerics? Not really. Then again, words do have different connotations around the world, even assuming the same language. MB naming used to make sense....SL is for the German words for Sporting and Light, and SLK is Sporting, Light, and Short (Kurz)... C-class for Compact, E-class for Executive, etc. The 'E' in SE, SEL, SEC was for the German word for Injection like fuel injection, etc..the L in SEL was for longer (Lang)..

I saw a '53 Studebaker coupe an a car hauler a while back...red w/ a black roof. What I really liked about the '53-54 Studebaker hardtops and coupes were how low and clean they were...very little trim....so many cars in the early 50s were tall, humpy and still had tacked-on looking rear quarters, followed by the excess chrome gorp and fins of the late 50s--the Studebaker coupe in contrast was so clean and linear... For the earlier Studebakers, I liked the wrap-around rear window of the Starlight coupe, but found the front end of the '50-51 hideous.

Thought that myself, but there it was sans square roof, Gran Turismo script on the door. Interesting...maybe it was an earlier Hawk someone had put GT doors on for some reason or another..I like the very clean '53-55 pre-Hawk coupes and the GT more than the finny ones from '56-61.

You must. It answers a lot of things we thought we knew but were not sure. Also it reveils how bad somethings were. I waa amazed when he said Saturn was mad bland because people who bought Saturns were not car people and like bland post modern styling. The first Vue's nose was pointed out as being plain because that the buyers wanted it that way. Who in their right mind would ever think that. It just points out how much lack of common sense and out of touch GM was. There is truth to that, though...Saturn catered to the car-as-appliance crowd, like Toyotas do...styling was not a selling point.

That happens in my Mom's barn in Ohio...parking cars on the bottom floor on sheets of material (fiberboard or plywood) instead of directly on the concrete helps, IIRC.

I've been reading for 10 years or so that Alfa is coming back...I'll believe it when I see it. It will be nice to see the brand back, their small FWD models have more character and style than the usual FWD generics sold here IMO... I'd esp. like to see a coupe and spyder of some sort (something to replace the Brera).

Speaking of TV show themes, a long time ago I had a cassette (it was the 80s) of Mike Post TV themes...A-Team, Rockford Files, etc...have no idea what I did with it though. Also had a couple cassettes of Miami Vice (series) music.. I have found a lot of TV music on iTunes.

I wouldn't say homely, but awkward. I think the wheelbase needed a bit more stretching to get the proportions better in tune. It has the unfortunate FWD proportions that so many FWD models have had over the years...front wheels set back waaaaay to far. I always liked the rear end of these, esp. the coupes. The digital dash, though...ugh.

Alas, cruise nights are out of season here, I think. Winter is when the best ones are, when hundreds or more cars show up.

Saw a white Hyundai GX350 this morning that I see around the neighborhood occasionally with the plate 'KRNBCK' (Korean Buick)... and a red Dodge Ram w/ the plate 'RGHTWNG'.

Yeah, the old 5 C's of the AZ economy. The new 5 C's I've heard are chips (computer chips), call centers, cubicles, cells (private prison industry), and crime Hit 113 today, still a balmy 106 at 8:30pm..

It's on my Kindle...looking forward to reading it.

<cynical> Because the Regal has a younger demo that wants more connectivity in their media...</cynical> No order guide yet for the Verano (it's coming for '12, isn't it?)

It's too bad they didn't evolve a 2nd generation Lincoln LS. Bad name, but decent hardware w/ potential.

It would need a total restyle..the greenhouse and rear 3/4 of the Falcon are so dull..not a very distinctive design. Good hardware, though. A Falcon based model w/ the 3.7 Ecoboost V6 and 5.0 V8 would be great for Lincoln, IMO. The buzz a couple of years ago was that Ford was working on a new global RWD platform to be shared by the Falcon, a TC replacement, a CV replacement, and a future Mustang, but that hasn't come to pass since Ford decided to go FWD/AWD only in NA for sedans...

Pool felt cold at 6:15... water was still 86, though.

Facts about the heat in Phoenix

That was the mistake I made..moving from Colorado to AZ because of family reasons. I still despise myself for doing it... (but I've also contemplated moving back to Ohio or Pittsburgh area for family reasons also). 60..that's cold. With the A/C running pretty around the clock, I keep the house at 75, but the electric bill averages about $400/mo May-Sept.

So its a 4 degree difference between "105 don't notice" and "109 notice"? When it hits 104 in NJ... in Spring... thats 24 degrees over normal. In any case, you forget... we have humidity. 104.4 here rates a "feels like" 119 on the heat index. Our heat index has been flirting with 90 for quite some time. Sounds lovely... hot and sticky. Supposedly the heat index is about 100 here now. 100-105 or so feels mild to me, but 109-112 definitely feels hotter...I think the hottest temp it's been in the last 3 summers I've lived here has been around 116. I try and avoid being outside (except in the pool) for more than 5 min at a time, otherwise stay in A/C. I've lived in S. Florida and the Midwest so I definitely know how nasty a hot and humid summer can feel, very different from the 'dry heat' oven horror here. If all goes well, this should be my last summer in AZ..

Yeah, June has been pretty mild so far...my pool is only 86 so far.