Drew Dowdell

The Saab has a very distinct roofline that the Continental doesn't (and shouldnt) have. If you're just talking about the shape of the tail lights, that's a design trend on just about everything these days.

1... what in the hell did you do to that post? 2. I'm not seeing any of what you describe in the Continental... certainly not the 9-5. There might be a touch of Bentley in there, but there are certainly worse comparisons to be made. One thing it does look though is bold. I will say that it is bolder looking than the CT6 and any of the Genesis line at the moment, although the Genesis line is growing on me. I like it far better than anything at Lexus as well.

I believe Mercedes already stated that the car would act to save the occupants first. So that's one manufacturer's stance. It seems to me, on the surface, to be a well reasoned path to take. In such a case, the car has greater control of the safety of the occupants (pretensioning seatbelts, rolling up windows, any other safety countermeasures that can be activated ahead of impact). I think the biggest thing to torpedo autonomous driving technology, in the US at least, is our refusal to invest adequately in infrastructure. Here in Pittsburgh, a self-driving Uber went the wrong way down a one way street, however, the reason was because the street was not well marked. I was driving in a less desirable part of town recently and nearly ran a stop sign. The reason? The stop sign was no longer reflective, so my headlights didn't make it shine and I didn't see it until I was right on top of it. Even just today, the power is out in parts of town due to the ice storm. Duquesne Light has signs up at an intersection that are non-standard stop signs. Passing back through that same intersection later, they have a cop there directing traffic. How will an autonomous vehicle handle that sort of situation? A couple of accidents related to this stuff is what will kill autonomous vehicles here..... not other drivers.

I think the Continental styling is in the unusual position of being at once classic and also ahead of its time.

Attendance is not what I am talking about. The number and importance of the debuts being shown there is dwindling. The Pittsburgh Auto Show is fairly well attended by the public also... but we get zero debuts, so there is practically no media participation, no headlines, no reason for me to even go.

Of course, it will always be one of the big 4, but just looking at the schedule, it now has fewer releases than LA just did. If 2017 NYC stays the same size as it was in 2016 then that means Detroit has fallen to 3rd out of 4. It could just be product cadence by the manufacturers (which I suspect is most likely) or is could be a longer term trend. I've been doing this long enough to remember when it started Sunday afternoon, continued 6:30am Monday, and basically didn't stop till Tuesday evening.

LA, SEMA, CES, Texas State Fair, and the Chinese shows have been growing. Chicago has shrunk dramatically to the point were I now have to consider each year whether it is worth the travel to cover it in person.

Detroit auto show is rapidly losing relevance. It's down to one day of car debuts this year.

Wait, how is displaying upcoming tech at auto shows "rushing things"? Furthermore, GM is far from first to show off the tech, though they've obviously been working on it for years.

Nudging this back on topic.... The Continental

My last flights of 2016 are tomorrow and I'm going to....just... barely... squeak into gold status. What's crazy is that I'm Platinum now which means I flew twice as much in 2015.... Yet I still feel like I got hit by a truck.

Ditto

@A Horse With No Name there's no harm in being smitten by a 2017 Lacrosse.

1 car and the zl1 is a niche within a niche and was at the end of its product cycle with a fantastic new model already seen. Ford's answer to the same issue is to hit the speed dial button for Hertz. Miata, WRX, Golf R, Civic SI.... Don't get much in incentives.

Rarely - happening at low rates of occurrence. Gosh you try to nit pick everything

Cars desirable to enthusiasts rarely get incentives.

I wouldn't be surprised of further platform consolidation in the near future. Even if the XTS goes to 2020, that's only 3 model years away. By that time: SS is dead. XTS is dead. Lacrosse would be on its first refresh of the current body. Impala.....???? CTS become CT# CT6 would be on its first refresh of the current body. Some other Omegas come on the scene.

My thought is far more cynical. I think they kept it going because they need something high dollar to share with Impala in order to justify Impala's existence. I wonder if the XTS will get the 8 speed or 9 speed and if that will address my complaint of the lack of torque in the non-turbo model.

I am far too stressed out to go with a high strung car right now. I'd end up in a tree. I need comfort, quiet, smooth, relaxing...... But I still want my torque.

Yes, GM needs to dial back production... Just like Ford and all the others have needed to do in the past.

I'd go with an XTS V-Sport over a CTS V-Sport any day of the week... so I'm with you there. I'm one of the few who really like the way they look... plus... air ride suspension. And GMC sold over 100k Denalis so far this year.... but it doesn't matter because it is unlikely someone is cross shopping nearly anything with a Denali badge against nearly anything with a Lincoln badge..... the only direct comparison I could see is Navigator to Yukon Denali, and the Navigator is cheaper. Rather than chase volume, I would rather see Lincoln be a purveyor of boutique automobiles of fantastic, untouchable quality, but appealing only to a rather selective audience lest they become *sniff* "common".

Everyone around here wants cars and brands to be some sort of team sport. It really isn't. Cars today, with few exceptions, are excellent at what they do and anything left is primarily nit-picking. I like the Continental and I like the CT6. I hit the powerball tomorrow and I could see both in my driveway simultaneously with a Chrysler 300C Platinum hemi thrown in just to get the trifecta. Why? Because I ♥ Cars. I'm not worried about which one gets me to the grocery store faster because even a Corolla would do the job. There really is no more "better".... it's all just preference. If one sells more than the other (regardless of fleet or not), it just means that more people prefer one over the other for any multitude of reasons. Some people prefer Avocados.... I personally really dislike them..... my parents on the other hand bought an Avocado plantation a few years ago. My opinion of Avocados or the sales of Avocado in general makes no difference on how good or bad they are. The LS and 7-Series are both excellent choices in that market, but personally, I'd go with neither. I think the Genesis G90 would get my dollars before either of those two and certainly the Lincoln or Cadillac above that.... but that's just my opinion. I'm driving a V6 300C this week in Houston and loving it.... No it's not on the same level as the Conti or the CT6... but it's still big, good, American iron. It moves well, rides comfortably, and looks good. Just plain fun. Guys, we're here because we love cars. If you want to root for sports teams, there are plenty of places on the web for that.

They compete the same way an ATS 3.6 and an ES350 compete.... but sure.... if that makes you feel better.... they compete on that level of being in the same general price class. And again.... Continental Taxis So I take the sales numbers of the Continental with a giant grain of fleet salt.

My personal health and wellness focus is entirely mental at this point. About 15 years ago my dad's employer drove him to the brink with stress and excessive work demands. One day, my very level headed dad simply walked out of a job he had been in for 10 years.... never to return. The stress of my current job is getting to the point where I may follow in his footsteps.

I think customers already do split into two lines. Lexus LS and BMW 7-series both sell and both have very different attitudes.