Drew Dowdell

draw your line, but make sure he knows it's there.

much more available in junk yards.

No kidding. The thing is, though, that you and Camino seem unable to think of the other perspective...you know, how people get through life without driving. I grew up with a family where one parent was blind and the other was legally blind. No car. Somehow they managed to survive, and their kids thrived. Ever think of the disabled? Many of them physically cannot drive. Horror of horrors, they must be complete shut-ins, right? No, they find alternative ways of travel. It really isn't that hard and awful, people. You are talking tiny numbers here. America is still a nation on wheels. there is ZERO reason those wheels can't be steel for more people going forward..... except F.U.D.

These all happened in the course of 2 weeks. Left CV joint, headlight/dashboard flicker, A/C dead, AWD malfunction(?) Power steering hoses blew back in the winter. It typically gets less than 150 miles a week, mostly just commuting 7 miles each way through suburbia. He's not rough on it. He bought it new. It has 82,295 miles as of today. Honda released a service bulletin that specifically says if the A/C compressor goes, you have to replace the rest of the system as well since it is impossible to do a flush. The name "Equinox" has already passed his lips with no prompting from me. We'd probably fix all the low hanging fruit except for the A/C and hang onto it as long as we can till it's at least paid off.

apparently the A/C issue is a $2500 fix that is frequent occurrence for Honda's of all models from this year. Getting it fixed at reduced cost requires fighting with Honda Motor America and citing a class action lawsuit.

The XTS went to Cadillac instead of Buick because they are the ones missing two vehicles in the lineup right now since the DTS and STS are dead. The Lacrosse is doing pretty well in it's market.

And the GMC Terrain Denali is on it's way.

Isusu

To quote an elected representative who recently said "How many gay people does God need to create before we realize he wants them around?"

Cars that sold poorly, but you still see everywhere There are some models out there, like the GMC Envoy XUV shown above, that have a reputation for selling very poorly. Yet in some cases, these poor selling vehicles seem to pop surprisingly frequently. The Envoy XUV sold just over 12,000 copies during it's abbreviated lifetime yet I see them all over my area. Within a mile of my house, there are not one, but two families with two of the poor selling, popular to bash, Pontiac Aztecs sitting in each driveway. Our local Isuzu dealer did a good job clearing out the remaining I-series pickups because there is a huge amount of them running around lately. So what do you see out there that should be rare, but shows up regularly?

Honda Reliability What? The A/C went out on the trip back from DC last night.

What they are trying to avoid is having to slap $9,000 in rebates on the trucks to move them. Demand is likely to drop due to current gas prices. They need to match supply to that demand as best as possible. Or is it? Gas speculation is down since Osama Bin Laden died... and some people are claiming prices could be headed back down for a stretch. They will retreat a bit after Memorial Day, but $3.50 a gallon is the new "good deal!"

What they are trying to avoid is having to slap $9,000 in rebates on the trucks to move them. Demand is likely to drop due to current gas prices. They need to match supply to that demand as best as possible.

The top action in the Camaro works VERY well. It would be a good starting point for Cadillac.

BMW sells so many 3-series because it fleets them like crazy in the EU and because people like you buy a 328i with 230hp for 33k and then tell the guy in the CTS that his 270hp car sucks because it uses a key instead of a button to start the engine.

QFT. +1. GM needs to ditch about 1000 pounds in their trucks, and that will solve just about everything. and the tired old V6

Aside from the fact that I've seen transverse northstars mounted longitudinally in engine bays large enough to allow it (a '55 Cadillac), why use the Aurora V8 if you're going to do an engine swap? Find a wrecked STS, of any year. The external dimensions are the same, but you get 50 HP more. Myself, I would swap in an LT-1 at the first hint of a coolant leak.

BV and I got 27mpg driving to Detroit and 34mpg driving back in the Cruze LTZ

I'm 5"10" and I had no problem riding in the back seat.

I could care less the valve train configuration as long as it gives me the performance I expect or better. I am not convinced that the common mindset of "DOHC is always smoother" is always true. I've driven DOHC V8s that the LT-1 makes sound like a Quad-4 without oil. I've driven the 3900 for 25 miles in the wrong gear because the engine was so smooth, the only reason I noticed something was up was when the fuel economy average started dropping like a rock. Conversely, even the same DOHC V6 can have very different personalities depending on the application. The 3.6 VVT in the Camaro Convertible was annoying and buzzy, yet simultaneously lacked feedback.... The 3.6 VVT in the Cadillac CTS was fine.

I think the name matters less than the car actually being here.

I think it's just the reverse of taking it off. I'll see what my service manual says when I get home.

I know I like to bash the CR-V and most of you will agree with me on it. But in it's defense, it's a useful little CUV with a ton of space when the seats are down. We've stuffed it to the roof with tools and supplies. About the only thing I can't haul with it is 4x8 sheets of stuff. I can put 8 foot or 10 foot 2x4s in the car with the front passenger seat down and the rear glass lifted. Add a small utility trailer (I already have the tow hitch installed) and the utility the CR-V offers at little to no cost to me will be hard to beat. It will be the reliability that eventually does it in. We keep having some basic reliability issues that shouldn't be happening on an 81k mile vehicle.

Technically, it's not mine. The Toronado is still my daily. The CR-V would just be for Apartment work.

The regular regal is a great compromise of handling and ride. The turbo with magnaride makes this adjustable and there is a noticeable difference in the settings.