Drew Dowdell

Did we go back in time to before Xmas? I'm glad I didn't take my tree down.

It's a marker so that the snow plow knows where the curb is when they are plowing snow that is higher than curb level. Here's the link http://www.discountsnowstakes.com/store/

I've received the same "suggestion" about what engine is going into the SRX from two completely separate sources now.

China has mobile execution vans for the speedy processing of the condemned and the harvesting of their organs for the black market. We have capital punishment here too, but at least we have due process to go along with it. You don't think there is a bit of a "values" difference there?

Please welcome your new Cadillac moderator: JamesBond. JB already serves on the Admin team, but he will be paying closer attention to the Cadillac and Motorsports forums now as their Moderator. :smilies-38096:

Please welcome your new Motorsports moderator: JamesBond. JB already serves on the Admin team, but he will be paying closer attention to the Cadillac and Motorsports forums now as their Moderator.

That's the DOHC V-6. If you look at it, bring a regular Philips head screw driver to pop the timing belt covers off an inspect the belt. It's only held on by 2 or 3 screws.

If only it were 3 years newer, then it'd have the 3.4DOHC and be a bit of a sleeper. As is, with the 2.8, I'm meh.

Your MKZ idea is fine, but every car above that needs a total replacement. Lincoln needs a Lincoln Only platform, RWD and AWD of course, and they need 3 sizes of that platform; Medium, Large, and Extra Large. Build sedans on each platform, a coupe/convert off the medium platform, and then do a crossover on each as well. There ya go, the entire Lincoln lineup, except the MKZ, replaced on one platform. oh... and drop the MK nomenclature.... even "Mark 1", "Mark 2", "Mark 3" would be an improvement if they don't want to go back to real names.

Japanese cars were utter $h!boxes in the 70s and even into the early 80's. It wasn't until the 1992 Camry that Toyota finally was able to produce a car that didn't turn to a pile of rust after one north east winter. There was a 70's Corolla in my family that was the first new car purchase for that person. It lasted 8 months because some wire in the dash shorted out, caught fire, and consumed the whole vehicle. The car that was traded for the Corolla was a used Corvair who's only offense was very leaky windows during hard Florida rain storms. The only difference between the $h!boxes the Japanese built and the $h!boxes the domestics built was generally the cost. By the mid-80s the Japanese had equalized with the domestics on cost and finally wrote a big enough check to Consumer Reports to get some "recommended" ratings.... (from the same company that "recommended" the Dodge Dart.) Toyota made it all of one generation of Camry before they started taking the short cuts that lead to the situation they are in today. Conversely, the Cadillac that is considered the worst for reliability, the 8-6-4, was simply the victim of being a product ahead of it's time, was pulled off the market in less than a year, and owners were offered replacement engines. Cadillac has been punished for 30 years for that attempt to innovate. GM has cylinder deactivation available in a bunch of vehicles today, but none in a Cadillac. To imply that the domestics wouldn't innovate without the threat of competition from imports ignores history: Airbags - General Motors Crash Test Dummy - General Motors Front Wheel Drive - General Motors Variable Displacement Engine - General Motors The Mini-van - Chrysler Unibody across an entire lineup - Chrysler The modern unibody SUV - AMC Electronic Fuel Injection - Attempted by AMC first, but Chrysler got it on sale first - 9 years before it was available on any German cars. 4-wheel ABS - Chrysler Imperial - 7 years before Mercedes introduced it on the S-class A V8 with self preservation mode - General Motors Mercedes took the Airbag (from Oldsmobile), the 3-point belt (from Volvo), and ABS (from Chrysler), added a belt pre-tensioner that was tied to the airbag trigger, and then claimed to have invented the whole system. Even in some things that weren't really "innovations" the domestics have been ahead in some of their offerings: The Oldsmobile Quad-4 was a DOHC 4-cylinder offered on the mass market while Toyota and Honda were still running SOHC 4-cylinders. It was also capable of 180hp in 1990, the Accord didn't exceed that power rating in a 4-cylinder until 2008. The Camry still hasn't. It took Toyota until 2004 to exceed the power rating of the 1989 GM 3.4 DOHC engine. GM made ABS standard on even it's small cars, but had to back off when the rest of the market didn't follow and was able to sell cars at lower cost without ABS. Ford started "aero" craze with the original Taurus. We look on that era with disdain today, but back then, in the words of Joe Biden, it was "A big f-ing deal!".

As of last night, she's sitting on 2 NOS A/C Delco front shocks and 2 new Monroe SensaTrac air shocks in the rear. The automatic leveling works just fine, and now also has to work a lot less because while they had the back wheels off, I also had them installed two new rear springs so her ass doesn't sag. Rides tremendously better.

It hasn't been launched yet. This information is about 45 minutes old.

<a href="http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2011-01-03/" title="Dilbert.com"><img src="http://dilbert.com/dyn/str_strip/000000000/00000000/0000000/100000/00000/9000/600/109699/109699.strip.gif" border="0" alt="Dilbert.com" /></a>

OnStar to be made available to all non-GM Vehicles At a CES press conference today, Onstar President Chris Preuss announced that Onstar will be made available on all vehicles, even non-GM vehicles. Starting in early 2011, OnStar will be offered as an aftermarket package for $299 plus $18.95 per month. Follow the jump for more details as I get them. OnStar to be made available to non-GM Vehicles

OnStar to be made available all non-GM Vehicles Drew Dowdell - January 4th, 2010 At a CES press conference today, Onstar President Chris Preuss announced that Onstar will be made available on all vehicles, even non-GM vehicles. Starting in early 2011, OnStar will be offered as an aftermarket package for $299 plus $18.95 per month. The entire capabilities of the OnStar System will be included including Automatic Crash Response Stolen Vehicle Location Turn-By-Turn Navigation Roadside Assistance Hands Free Calling The kit will be installed by Best Buy technicians for a guestimated $75-$100 Press Release: OnStar Expands Beyond GM Cars: OnStar "Blue Button" Safety, Security and Connectivity Now Available for Most Top-Selling Vehicles on the Road Today * For the first time, OnStar's industry leading safety, security and connectivity services are available to consumers in a standalone rearview mirror * Retail product to offer key OnStar features including Automatic Crash Response * Available in the U.S. in spring 2011 for $299;Best Buy announced as first strategic retail partner, with over 1,100 stores; other selected retailers to follow Las Vegas, Jan. 4, 2011- OnStar today announced that it is responding to repeated consumer requests by offering its industry leading safety, security and connectivity services for non-GM and older GM vehicles already on the road. A standalone rearview mirror packing all of OnStar's core technology will be available this spring through consumer electronics retailers, and is compatible with most top-selling vehicles from major manufacturers. The OnStar retail product offers the key features that have made OnStar's "blue button" an icon, including Automatic Crash Response, Turn-by-Turn Navigation, Stolen Vehicle Location Assistance, one-button access to emergency and roadside services, and hands-free calling, including Bluetooth connectivity. "For years, thousands of drivers have asked us to get OnStar in vehicles that didn't feature it as standard," said Chris Preuss, OnStar president. "With the retail product that we've introduced today they certainly can. This move in to the consumer electronics space represents the biggest development in our business model since introducing OnStar as standard across all GM products several years ago. It represents a quantum leap forward in our plans to grow our business and provide a strong new revenue base for GM and OnStar from which we can further develop our core offerings in the factory-equipped market." OnStar will offer the mirror in the United States through Best Buy, its first strategic retail partner, beginning in spring 2011. The product will also be available through other selected consumer electronics retailers. The mirror will be priced at $299, plus installation (expected to cost between $75 and $100). A range of service plans will be available, starting at $18.95 a month or $199 a year. "We're proud to be OnStar's first strategic retail partner for this innovative offering, which is one more way Best Buy can help our customers stay connected whenever and wherever they want," said Lisa Farrell, senior vice president and general manager portable electronics customer solutions group at Best Buy. "We provide a one-stop solution for consumers. In addition to purchasing the device at Best Buy, we offer our customers the convenience of having it installed by our Geek Squad Auto Techs – all at one location." Ingram Micro will serve as the key distributor of this product and is the main contact for interested retail outlets. Currently, the OnStar mirror is certified to work on 99 percent of the top 20 selling non-GM vehicles over the last 10 years, or approximately 55 million cars and trucks. OnStar expects to certify additional models in the months ahead. Key features of the OnStar mirror include: * Automatic Crash Response. An accelerometer built into OnStar the mirror detects the sudden shock of an impact from the front, side, or rear of the vehicle and automatically calls an OnStar advisor. If the driver doesn't respond, or responds to say there has been a crash, an OnStar advisor will direct emergency responders to the exact GPS location of the vehicle. * Link to Emergency Services. By pressing OnStar's red emergency button, drivers are immediately connected to a specially trained emergency advisor for assistance in situations occurring inside or outside of their vehicle. * Stolen Vehicle Location Assistance. If the vehicle is reported stolen to local law enforcement, OnStar subscribers can call 1-888-4-OnStar (1-888-466-7827) from any phone. OnStar advisors, available 24/7, can attempt to locate the vehicle through the mirror's internal GPS and provide the location to law enforcement. * Turn-by-Turn Navigation. With OnStar's most popular service, drivers can press OnStar's blue button and ask OnStar advisors for directions to a specific location or ask the advisor to find a point of interest such as a gas station or nearby restaurant. The directions are then downloaded to the OnStar system, which provides spoken turn-by-turn directions for reaching the destination. * Roadside Assistance. In non-emergency situations, drivers can push the blue button or call 1-888-4-ONSTAR for help with problems such as keys locked in the vehicle, a flat tire, or running out of gas. * Hands-Free Calling. OnStar allows drivers to make hands-free, voice-activated calls either through a Bluetooth connection to the driver's mobile phone or through prepaid packages of minutes purchased through OnStar. All these services are available directly through the OnStar mirror, without requiring the driver to bring along a mobile phone or even own a mobile phone. In the event of an accident, emergency services are alerted even if there is no mobile phone in the vehicle, the phone is damaged in a crash or the driver is unable to use a phone. OnStar is now in its ninth generation of technology. The first-generation OnStar product in 1996 was comprised of 38 individual components and could take up to four days to install. Now all of the technology required to deliver the OnStar experience fits inside a rearview mirror weighing only 23 ounces, and professional installation is expected to take less than an hour. This requires removing the vehicle's current rearview mirror, replacing it with the OnStar product and running an electric power source to the new mirror. For more information on OnStar's innovation, the new OnStar mirror and a list of the compatible vehicles at launch, visitwww.onstar.com.

Synthetic oil lasts longer. If you follow the GM service monitor, you'll get 10,000 mile changes out of it.

Check out Toyota's twitter page and the PR they were spinning today..... "we may have slipped, but Camry is still #1"

All GM vehicles are requiring synthetic these days, but not specifically Mobile 1. BTW, Mr. Goodwrench died a few months ago....

Let me guess... you didn't click on the Ebay link in the Fundraiser thread first

I'm surprised at you Camino. CSpec tells me that those products make you feel richer because you can buy more of them.

December 2010 Sales Ticker General Motors - 223,932 - up 16% Ford Motor - 190,976 - up 7% Toyota Motors - 177,488 - down 2% American Honda - 129,616 - up 25.5% Chrysler Group - 100,702 - up 16% Nissan North America - 93,730 - up 27.7% Hyundai Motor America - 44,802 - up 33% Kia Motors NA - 30,444 - up 18.7% BMW Group - 27,600 - up 16.9% Subaru of America - 26,694 - up 16% Volkswagen Group of America - 23,867 - up 17.1% Mercedes-Benz USA - 22,039 - up 5.5% Mazda NA - 21,479 - up 17.7% Audi of America - 10,546 - up 16.8% Mitsubishi Motors NA - 4,874 - up 12% American Suzuki - 2,647 - up 40% Porsche Cars North America - 2,567 - up 21%

there's more to life than the quarter mile. I drive a CR-V daily. The Terrain was simply peppier around town.

What do you need photos of? I just might be at a car show next week. Posts requests for shots: Make/Model/Angle.

Equinox/Terrain have much better low end torque and a 6-speed instead of a 5-speed.