Drew Dowdell

Him!? I'm doing most of the work. He's mostly supervising or being an extra set of hands. Sure it's his car, but I'm the one driving this project because it's going to be my wheels for the rest of my time in the states.

I agree with you about the TL. However, even back in 1991 the Legend was in a weird position. I was priced at 29k, right between the 3-series, which could base at 20k for the 318i while the more reasonably size 325 started around 25k, and the 5-series which based at 34,5k. At the same time it was sized substantially larger than both BMWs. The Legend was 10 inches longer than the 5-series and a full 2 feet longer than the 325i. In fact, looking at what was available in 1991, it's very hard to match the Legend up to any of it's contemporaries. Either it's priced way above the competitor's entry models <ES250, G20, M30>, or pricing matches but it towers over them in size <190e, 325>, or size matches but it's price many thousands less than the competitor's mid-lux/full-lux entry <5-series, Q45, LS, 300SE, Continental>. Strangely, the cars that match the Legend closest in terms of Price and Size class are the Lincoln Mark VII, Cadillac Seville, Buick Riviera, Cadillac Eldorado, Oldsmobile Toronado Trofeo....... Not that I'm saying any of those were direct competition... they just all sit around the same price for the size. So, back in 1991, it sounds like the Legend was a screaming deal if you wanted a subtle yet tasteful midsized luxury car. It was also one of the most powerful, putting out 200hp with it's V6 while Cadillac was doing the same but with two more cylinders. Only the Mark VII had more HP. Fast forward to today and Acura is pretty much in the same spot with the RL.

Not with a recession here..... maybe in a year's time, but we're safe from interest rate hikes for at least 6-8 months. of course, they don't really have anywhere else to go but up right now....

Wouldn't a V8 RWD Acura Legend be M45/GS competition?

oh, and I was wrong about the mileage. It has 55,000 miles. He bought it with 49,000 miles for $750.

Starting to take shape....

Who said there can be only one halo car? BMW has 3.

it was a boat anchor

Fly?..... Toyota?...... am I in the wrong thread? I was expecting pics of a smashed up Aurora/Bonneville or a LeSabre with a paint scratch....

Escalade sells extremely well for what it is.... as long as GM is ok with Escalade volume decreasing as gas prices increase, they can add features and improvements that make the vehicle even more exclusive. No, GM isn't going to be able to sell the Escalade to McMansion dwellers much longer, but put the right things in it and can take it's place with the super high end Range Rovers, Hummers, and G-wagons. Make it something only NBA stars and search engine authors can afford. Let the Yukon Denali serve the McMansion set....... well.. the ones that haven't been foreclosed on that is..... It becomes a halo vehicle and starts to lift the rest of the lineup along with it. Time the updates of the STS/DTS right, bring out a 3-series spanking BTS, and Cadillac will definitely have arrived.

That was a typo on my part.... the numbers are correct, the model number was not. BMW does produce a s/c4.4litre 7-series that returns 14 / 21 mpg. And yes, I would expect a smaller and lighter X6 to get better fuel economy, however that's not what SMK was saying. He's saying that Cadillac should put the 4.4l TT into the Escalade and it would get better fuel economy than the current 6.2 litre. I really think not.

Diesel is also used as heating oil..... as the temperatures are colder people use more oil.... additionally... even people with multiple storage tanks who filled up in late fall are now probably starting to run low.

Buying credits from other companies is effectively investing in green technology and research if a particular industry can't yet make changes. It's better than paying the government. We cannot live in a mandate free world. There have to be some regulations and there has to be enforcement of those regulations. Giving industry a method of letting the market figure it out is much freer than simply fining industries. BTW, as I understand it, a company can get credit for investing in their own pollution control research as well.

uh, the s/c 4.4 gets 14 / 21 mpg in the 760i with RWD..... the Escalade gets 12 / 18 mpg with AWD. aerodynamics alone is going to cost you 2mpg.

what on god's green earth makes you think that?!

Can I get an AMEN!?!

I like the idea of free markets, however I am quite cynical about the motivations of private companies. Exxon/Mobil, Toyota, Tyco, Enron, Adelphia Cable, Microsoft, Sony, Walmart.... do you really trust any of those companies to do the right thing for the common good? If Exxon weren't regulated and threatened with fines, they would have no incentive to not pollute. What carbon credit trading is doing is putting a different financial incentive on not polluting. If you're a major polluter, you have to pay into the carbon system.... that gives you an incentive to clean up your act. Once you're below the threshold level of pollution, you now get to sell the credits for pollution you don't create to the highest bidder. That gives a second financial incentive to you and the trading market price you set creates an additional incentive to other polluters. The money earned from selling carbon credits can be used <if the company is smart> to buy additional pollution reducing equipment and then get more carbon credits. I'm sure there is a point of diminishing returns, but this is a system that rewards investment in pollution control rather than penalizing for lack of pollution control. Rather than the money going to the government, the money is exchanged between companies. The system isn't sustainable in a static state, so the pollution threshold will have to be adjusted from time to time, which would be the sole role of the government. If anything, carbon trading is MORE freemarket than just fining companies who don't comply with pollution law because it creates an entirely new market <like the stock market>, and government for the most part stays out of it other than setting the bar.

I think some of the people here who claim to be fans are actually just trolls from other brands.

BMW had exclusive use of the design at first. GM got to use it later, but didn't have to pay for the development.

So.... BMW admitted defeat by outsourcing 5-speed auto development to GM for however many years? just askin...

GM could produce a fully working model of Christ himself and people would still complain that the water to wine function only dispenses merlot.

Would you explain it away like this if the vehicle in question were say.... the Cadillac BRX? I'm guessing no. Then of course, if it were a Cadillac, we'd have SMK in here ranting about how it should be a diesel electric hybrid fueled by baby smiles, have a 37 speed transmission, weigh less than 2,500lbs, and be priced like the CRV because Cadillac isn't A-tier. I'm just hatin the fact that you guys are giving the "Fuel Efficiency Leader" a pass on this...... and this thread will arise from the dead if I start seeing rants about BRX fuel economy.

I'm not sure the Queen would use such language.

What is "fraud like" with the idea that you have to pay to pollute?

two words; Bush Administration . two more words; Exxon Mobil