Drew Dowdell

That looks right

Yup, it's going to be sports car year at Detroit this year. Mustang, Z06, Supra, ATS coupe

Superchargers do need oil changes too, but you should be able to get a used one for a lot cheaper than that.

Happy birthday

They re-launched Chevy in Europe in 2005, so about 3 to 4 years before the big event that prompted talks of the sale of Opel.

That would be a stretch. We got our Encore almost completely loaded and it stickered at $32k. The only things we didn't get were engine block heater and chrome wheels. I can't see a $7k premium on the Encore for being a diesel. In the Opel Mokka, the diesel is only a €1,595 premium over the gas model, roughly $2,178. That gets me a 1.7 liter diesel with 221 lb-ft That would be a very easy decision for me to make.

Eh....Nissan has been hanging out with the French too long

Not at the estimated $31k starting price it isn't

Escalade is coming next year plus some addions to the ATS line late next year. SRX should be in 18 months to 2 years.

The 2014 CTS didn't really make it into dealers in any great numbers until the very late in the month. It will pick up more.

Why you always carry a fire extinguisher. A Facebook friend of mine was driving his 1928 Buick Master Country Club Coupe and spotted this VW Passat on fire. He stopped to help, and though he couldn't put out the fire completely, he was able to keep things under control until the fire department arrived. Apparently she had just picked up the Passat from the shop and the shop may have left a shop rag or two in the engine compartment somewhere.

Each month we chronicle the sales figures for each of the manufacturers in our Sales Figures Forum. Here are notes from the "Who's Who" for November 2013. The luxury brands posted mixed results. Some brands posted healthy overall numbers, but when you dig in to where that growth came from, we find that it comes entirely from one or two models. Others posted more modest brand growth numbers, but spread that growth over a larger number of product lines. Generally, we feel that a 10% sales increase over a majority of a brand's product line is a healthier gain than a 20% increase owed mostly to a single model. The two biggest selling German luxury brands also had the most to lose. Mediocre results for both Mercedes and BMW this month. BMW's 1.7% sales increase supported entirely on the growth of just two models, the X1 and 3-series. The Mini brand was down double digits across the board. Mercedes Benz did a bit better with a 13.4% increase with that growth spread primarily over the CLA, E-Class, and M-Class models. Audi gained a similar 13%, but spread that increase over a sturdier base of 5 models and didn't suffer losses as great as the others where losses occurred. Other European Luxury manufacturers posted mixed results. Jaguar was up a healthy 41% with Land Rover up 15%. Volvo fell a shocking 31.1% with total sales coming in at 4,233 units. Porsche posted just a 3% gain. Maserati, which joins our sales ticker for the first time this month gets the prize for the biggest increase, with the Ghibli contributing to a 319% sales jump. Asian luxury auto makers posted similar mixed results. Toyota's Lexus division had the most solid gains with a 12.7% increase spread throughout their core products. The Lexus IS and ES posted solid gains while all of Lexus's SUVs were up. The best selling Lexus RX even notched up 7%. Nissan's Infiniti division posted a gain of 10.5%, but nearly all of that gain comes from the new Q50 model that replaced the G-series and the new QX60 with all other models posting substantial losses. Acura posted an 18.9% gain with most of that coming from a dramatic upswing in MDX sales. Hyundai's Genesis line dropped by about 400 units for the month, but as they do not break out sedan and coupe sales we have no way of knowing which one (or both) took the hit. Of the U.S. domestic brands, Lincoln posted the largest percentage gain with a 17.4% upswing, almost entirely from a jump in sales of the new MKZ, though 762 Lincoln Navigators found new homes as well, which was an improvement over this time last year. Cadillac had strong growth overall with a 11.4% gain owed mostly to the ATS and XTS sedans. The CTS sedan, with a new model just rolling in to dealers last month maintained pace with only a 5.5% loss for the month. Chrysler performed terribly with only the Town & Country Mini-Van posting any increase. View full article

in your "auto class" Are there any Autos that clock in over 7500lbs?

I was thinking about this over lunch and feel that I have to amend this comment. The exception to this rule is Ford. Europeans, and Germans in particular, tend to see Ford of Germany vehicles more as European cars rather than American cars.

+1 Putting in the 2.8 L Duramax would be an awesome engine for the Encore to get. Not a chance. It would be a 1.7 liter not currently sold here, but certainly not over 2.0 liters.

Pretty much. I thought from the start that putting Chevy in the EU was a bad idea because... well.. I've been there and talked to some of them. The Germans don't think much of Opel's old $h!ty cars... and Opel still carries plenty of that baggage... but at least they are German old $h!ty cars. Chevy started out there selling rebadged Daewoo $h!ty cars. So you can take a guess what the Germans think of American branded, Korean built, $h!ty cars.

Chevrolet has sold just 179 copies of their just launched, limited edition SS High Performance Sedan so far, and already the Australian built vehicle is threatened with extinction. ABC News in Australia (no relation to ABC news in the United States) is reporting that Holden is threatening to pull production out of Australia by 2016 if it does not get the government sponsored support package it is angling for. Adding to the pressure is Holden's apparent demand for a Government decision to be made before Christmas. Automobile manufacturing in Australia has been on the decline for years. After reaching a peak of 334k in 2007, production has dropped to 224k as of 2011 with further declines since. Ford Australia has already announced their departure in 2016. If Holden ceases production in Australia, it could cost upwards of 50,000 jobs. Now Holden and the Australian Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane have denied the report and say talks are continuing. "Consultations are continuing in good faith with Australian carmakers, the components industry and workers. The Productivity Commission is continuing its work assessing the Australian automotive industry and will report to the Government. That process is unchanged and will continue," said a spokeswoman for the Industry Minister. Holden is responsible for most of the design and production of the Chevrolet SS and Chevrolet Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle sold in the United States. As a limited edition vehicle selling at base price of $43,475 , Chevy only expects to sell about 3,000 units per year, so expect to pay some additional dealer markup if you are shopping for one of these.... and better head out there soon. What do you think? Will we miss the Chevrolet SS in the U.S. or will it be no great loss? Sound off below! Source: ABC News / TTAC View full article

Europeans are rather particular about the nationality of the brands they buy, though where the vehicle is actually manufactured appears to matter a lot less. Home Country > European Country > Foreign Country American branded cars are not well thought of unless they are the "icons" mentioned in the article... or the Dodge Caravan or Chrysler 300 strangely.

Drew Dowdell Managing Editor - CheersandGears.com General Motors announced today that starting in 2016, Chevrolet will no longer compete as a mainstream brand in Europe, instead focusing only on what GM calls "Iconic vehicles". GM's mainstream role will be carried by the Opel and Vauxhall brands. Most of Chevrolet's mainstream vehicles sold in Europe are produced in South Korea. GM expects Chevrolet to maintain its mainstream position in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. The remaining Chevrolet vehicles in Chevy's EU portfolio will be models such as the Corvette and Camaro. Cadillac is continuing its 3 year plan for an expanded presence in Europe. GM expects a number of one-time charges in the $700 million to $1 Billion range for the final quarter of 2013 and first quarter of 2014. What do you think of GM's announcement to pull Chevy out of Europe and concentrate on Opel? Sound off below. Press release on Page 2 For Release: Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, 3 a.m. EST GM Strengthens its European Brand Strategy · Opel/Vauxhall to compete as GM’s mainstream brands across Europe · Chevrolet to focus on iconic products in Europe · Cadillac to expand in Europe DETROIT – General Motors today announced plans to accelerate its progress in Europe by bolstering its brands in the mainstream and premium segments. Beginning in 2016, GM will compete in Europe’s volume markets under its respected Opel and Vauxhall brands. The company’s Chevrolet brand will no longer have a mainstream presence in Western and Eastern Europe, largely due to a challenging business model and the difficult economic situation in Europe. Chevrolet, the fourth-largest global automotive brand, will instead tailor its presence to offering select iconic vehicles – such as the Corvette – in Western and Eastern Europe, and will continue to have a broad presence in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. This will improve the Opel and Vauxhall brands and reduce the market complexity associated with having Opel and Chevrolet in Western and Eastern Europe. In Russia and the CIS, the brands are clearly defined and distinguished and, as a result, are more competitive within their respective segments. Cadillac, which is finalizing plans for expanding in the European market, will enhance and expand its distribution network over the next three years as it prepares for numerous product introductions. “Europe is a key region for GM that will benefit from a stronger Opel and Vauxhall and further emphasis on Cadillac,” said GM Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson. “For Chevrolet, it will allow us to focus our investments where the opportunity for growth is greatest.” “This is a win for all four brands. It’s especially positive for car buyers throughout Europe, who will be able to purchase vehicles from well-defined, vibrant GM brands,” Akerson said. Chevrolet will work closely with its dealer network in Western and Eastern Europe to define future steps while ensuring it can honor obligations to existing customers in the coming years. “Our customers can rest assured that we will continue to provide warranty, parts and services for their Chevrolet vehicles, and for vehicles purchased between now and the end of 2015,” said Thomas Sedran, president and managing director of Chevrolet Europe. “We want to thank our customers and dealers for their loyalty to the Chevrolet brand here in Europe.” The majority of the Chevrolet portfolio sold in Western and Eastern Europe is produced in South Korea. As a result, GM will increase its focus on driving profitability, managing costs and maximizing sales opportunities in its Korean operations as the company looks for new ways to improve business results in the fast-changing and highly competitive global business environment. “We will continue to become more competitive in Korea,” said GM Korea President and CEO Sergio Rocha. “In doing so, we will position ourselves for long-term competitiveness and sustainability in the best interests of our employees, customers and stakeholders, while remaining a significant contributor to GM’s global business.” With the decision that Chevrolet will no longer have a mainstream presence in Western and Eastern Europe, GM expects to record net special charges of $700 million to $1 billion primarily in the fourth quarter of 2013 and continuing through the first half of 2014. The special charges include asset impairments, dealer restructuring, sales incentives and severance-related costs, and will pave the way for continued improvement in GM’s European operations through the further strengthening of the Opel and Vauxhall brands. Approximately $300 million of the net special charges will be non-cash expenses. In addition, GM expects to incur restructuring costs related to these actions that will not be treated as special charges, but will impact GM International Operations earnings in 2014. View full article

I thought Toyota was going to avoid turbo-charging for now.

The Buick Encore gets some competition.... maybe this is why there are rumors of an Encore Diesel?

The problem I have with this is: Why should a Nissan Sentra (2,832) pay the same tax per mile as a Nissan Armada (5,500)?