Robert Hall

Right...no doubt Cadillac has the Germans in their sights, but it's the press proclaiming it an M5 'killer'...

Peace and quiet...I plan to get plenty this holiday weekend...out on the pond, floating around in a little wooden boat, in the wooded foothills of Appalachia. Peace.

Autoblog...it's inevitable this car will get compared with the Teutonic 3 + the Lexus F. With the Germans, it will no doubt be compared against both the compact (M3,RS4,C63) and midsize (M5,RS6,E63) because of the price/size positioning.... Speaking of press hyperbole--the lead article on Inside Line calls the CTS-v an 'M5 Killer'... Road And Track has a CTS-v vs M5 article posted also.

Speaking of engines and usage, AMG is definitely spread the 63 V8 far and wide.... in at least 12 distinct models, I believe ---3 sedans (C,E,S), 3 coupes (CLK, CLS, CL), 3 SUVs (ML,GL,G), 1 CUV (R-class), 2 roadsters (SLK, SL). No A, B, Sprinter or Vito AMG 63s though... And I've read the GLK isn't getting one either. It is impressive--no other automaker has a dozen V8 high performance models, across a wide span of sizes and body styles.

But more importantly, are the cupholders heated/chilled/lighted?

I've read that the next M5 will have a twin turbo V8 instead of the V10.

Yes on the headlights..the '76-77 Cutlasses looked better than the '73-75 up front, at least...I like the rears of the '73 A-bodies, they had the smallest bumpers. I've always thought it was odd that GM went to 2 headlights on all the A-bodies in '73; most of them from '64-72 had quad lights, which look much better on a car of that size, IMHO.. For the Cutlass, I like both the regular and Cutlass Supreme front ends in '76-77..nice job with the waterfall grille.

Yes, it's pretty special....this summer, I've been asking myself why the hell I'm in Arizona. Flying back there for the holiday weekend.

Sounds nice....my family's barn in Ohio is a big, slate roof Amish horse barn...2 stories, built into a hillside so you can drive in the top and bottom. Room for up to 8 Mustang/Camaro sized cars up stairs (or 6 cars w/ a 33 ft Winnebago). Downstairs, there are probably 10 horse stalls on each side w/ room to store parts and stuff and a concrete-floored area down the middle (with sliding doors on each end) with room for 5 Mustang/Camaro sized cars end-to-end, with back-in spots for 2 more cars amongst the stalls. Currently, my Mom has 3 cars in there, I have 2 in there, my brother has 3 plus a John Deere tractor stored in the barn. Wood construction, with sandstone block on the lower part. Was featured in the 1978 TV movie 'Centennial' posing as a Lancaster, PA Amish farm. In addition, there are 2 late 1800's vintage 'carriage houses' on the property, each of which hold two cars parked end-to-end. Plus the house (also 1859), 2 guest houses, and 2 6 acre farm ponds on 150 partially wooded acres. Here's a pic from about 15 years ago..the barn, the Winnebago in front, my '87 Mustang GT and an '86 Mustang LX I had in college after the Escort. One carriage house garages is in the background (red building).

'4 years salary'??? Someone's paying waaay too much for a car... i.e. someone making $25k/year buying an $100k car? I don't think so! I couldn't imagine buying a car that was much more than 1/3 of my yearly salary...

Here's an article about the Trabant revival... it's a model car from Herpa, though...not a 1:1. New Trabbi

That is a neat beast...needs some TLC.

True...in many things, I've been called overly negative or pessimistic...I consider it realistic. I need to tone it down, but the automakers disappoint me so often with decisions that seem so wrongheaded to an outsider...

By the way, did you see Trabants when you were in Checkoslovakia? I heard someone is designing a new Trabant. I've seen the modern Skodas, but would love to see some old Skotas and Tatras in person....the Tatras were wild designs!

The description for Pontiac buyers reminds me of the really lame TV ads for the Acura TSX that have been running lately..

In the front seats of my '87 Mustang GT with the big side bolsters and the parking brake up was sheer pain...argggh... but I did have fun w/ my high school g/f in the back of her father's '86 Caprice Estate wagon..

Yes, Renault 8..those were badass in Gordini trim, I've read...

I bet the CTS-v will be $75k or so, what with the regular CTS topping out at around $50k.

That's funny..it was sold out the night I saw it also...it was a new theater, big one with stadium seating in Colorado Springs...the ushers were asking people to move in and not leave any seats empty..I liked the first one, 2nd was so-so (liked the cars, though). The third was not bad, the plot a bit overly implausable (not that the first two were plausable)...way too much CGI, though. Looking forward to the 4th, nice to see Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez back for this one to provide eye candy..

Speaking of fast cars, possibly the fastest (in a straight line) I've ever had the pleasure of driving was my brother's '68 Camaro SS 396...rough shifting 4 speed, loud, raw, brutally fast car.....a totally different sensation than my '87 Mustang 5.0 or my refined '96 M3. No cupholders, no a/c, only an AM radio, though...totally impractical. Le Mans blue w/ the white stripe over the front header panel and down the sides, chrome thingys on the hood..what a wild car. He should have kept it.

Yeah..I'm flying out Thursday to Pittsburgh, going to get both Mustangs out this weekend and enjoy them (they are stored in Ohio).

About ten years ago, I took the '87 to a BMW club track day...took the '96 M3 I had then also (had a friend drive the BMW to the track). I took both of them out on the track (Second Creek near Denver, no longer exists--now is a subdivision), had a blast...the crappy stock disk/drum brakes were the Mustang's limitation. The M3 was an absolute joy on the track. A couple years ago, I went to a track day event in Pueblo, Co with the NSX club and took turns driving the course in my buddy Steve's NSX...that car is a blast on a track..

I think so...I seem to recall reading that somewhere...I've seen a few grainy B&W photos of it parked in front of my folks' house in Guam from back in the day.

Yeah, I'll never get rid of the 5.0 or the '69 351 Sportsroof...both have sentimental connections to my late father...my dad bought the '69 before I was born, and willed it to me, and he bought me the 5.0 as an early HS graduation gift. The '87 5.0s, though rated at only 225hp, were light and deceptively fast cars...

Old cars are cool, no doubt. But in <reality>, whether it is the heat of summer or the dread of winter, or the dark of knight, I like having something that I know pretty much 100% is going to start and get me where I'm going and back without breaking down. And driving something current, made in this decade, I don't care if it gets totalled--the insurance will buy me another one. I love the creature comforts of a modern car---the heated seats, good cupholders, cold A/C, factory integrated sound system (no aftermarket hacked in crap), etc. Old cars are fun toys for the occasional drive or to take to a car show, but I wouldn't want to be depending on one to get me to work, to the airport, to the grocery, etc. My GC is starting to be an old car now (8 years old, almost 100k miles, but it has never let me down, I keep up w/ the maintenance religiously), so I need to figure out what my next new car is going to be...