Robert Hall

That editorial seems right on the money...spending on infrastructure in this country has been ignored for a long time, while money has been wasted on nonsense like Iraq, new stadiums, etc...the article seemed pretty balanced...both political parties are to blame for ignoring infrastructure investments (this is true nation wide).

Looks like the old GM model is still alive..overlapping models that result in each brand competing with each other...brilliant.

On CNN now.. http://www.startribune.com/462/story/1338294.html

The staples went THROUGH the steel roof?? Powerful gun...

Interesting...the Trueno/AE86 was sold in the US in the early '80s as a Corolla, IIRC? I know there is a whole subculture of fandom around them, largely due to the Initial D anime.. (I saw the Initial D movie, fun flick).

Hmmm... I'd be down with this, as long as we can split it up into the 'The United States of Canada' (Canada + blue states) and 'Jesusland' (red states) ala some maps I saw after the '04 election..

It's certainly nicer than GM's tired FWD rentals...

I seem to recall somewhere reading that the '63-65 Riv was on a shorted B-body (it had the wierd X-frame like Chevy and Buick B's, didn't it?)

Interesting trivia..

I'm sure...when I was in Italy, I drove a Merc A-class diesel one trip, a Vectra diesel another trip...my Grand Cherokee felt huge when I came home...(the Grand Cherokees I saw in Rome looked huge, compared to the tiny Fiats, etc).

That's funny...my buddy George that drives a G35 coupe kind of fits that description...a Canadian of Greek ethnicity, thinning hair in a buzzcut, wears gold chains and fancy shades, goatee, open collared shiny shirts (not tucked in)... used to run a restaurant in Saskatchewan but is now a software project manager.

Welcome back..try and rest for a few days... I always find the jet lag to be brutal when coming back from Europe (I always end up flying London to Denver or London to Phoenix and getting in on a Sunday evening, and back to work the next day...next time, I'm going to take a couple days off before going back to work to recover).

It's going to come up short, though, if shoppers compare a 4cyl auto Malibu against the competition....

Interesting....I thought Alpha was a rumoured RWD platform...so now it's FWD? The Excelle's platform sounds more like a Delta II from the description...

It's not insane if they pay for themselves... besides, wouldn't Alpha be too big for a compact 2 seater?

I'd consider the Ridgeline.. I normally don't like trucks, but the Ridgeline is different enough to be interesting (if Chrysler would offer a version of the Grand Cherokee with a bed like that, I'd be interested). No way I'd drive a Kia, though.

Agreed...BMW cup holders do suck... one area the Germans have been very weak in is cup holder technology... I don't want a lame clip on cup holder or folding ones...give me proper fixed cupholders in the console (no stupid cover over them either), and if it's a luxury car, make them heated/chilled and lighted... Cup holder design is one of the reasons the Japanese car makers gained so much market share in the US in the '80s/90s, I think..

Columbus, Oh was a major distribution center for them, IIRC. As a kid I remember seeing dozens of them lined up in a fenced in parking lot sometime in '82..

A new updated deLorean would be interesting, but not with 1981 specs....though according to the article, someone has 200 of the original 2.8 V6s.. IIRC, the deLorean was more about looks than performance...

I can't recall the last time I saw any older Grand Prix...I saw a sharp silver '77 at a local 7-11 recently. It's been years since I recall seeing a '60s model (maybe at a car show).

I don't know...I know Ford made some 4dr Explorers in the '90s with a manual...I had a friend that had one. I'd love to have a Grand Cherokee with a manual...

Avis won't care if it's a 4 or 6 speed...

You have to laugh at the idea of a guy that drives an Aztek coming up with a list of 'dorky' vehicles...

Back in '02, I think. Then it came back in '05...hasn't gotten cancelled a second time AFAIK..

I saw it this afternoon...loved it. Went to the local Kwiki-Mart and had a Squishee also...(one of the 7-11s that were decorated as a promotion)....they have Buzz cola, but no Duff..