Dsuupr

One editing error note for the group. They post that the civic is a Best Buy within the category for 2011, but do not show it as a Best Buy when viewing the rating of the actual car.

This still does not explain the gas mileage ratings.

My example: VW Golf vs Cruze

They show 25.8-27.6 mpg average when testing the Golf gas engine giving it a score of 7. The Cruze shows they got 29.2 mpg and it got a 6.

For the record, the Golf gets 24 mpg city and 31 mpg highway as noted by the EPA, compared the Cruze at 24 mpg city and 36 mpg highway.

The Hyundai was given an 8 without any testing. This can be considered fair, as the EPA ratings are impressive at 29 mpg city and 40 mpg highway.

reg, can you link me to those lease rates? The dealer said with nothing down and no first month payment the Cruze is about $320 a month for 39 months. Seems ridiculous.

It should show up at Chevrolet.com. http://www.chevrolet.com/tools/currentoffers/results.do?zipCode=97401&region=10&county=41039

While helping a friend look for a new car I made sure to hope over to Consumer Guide for their comments and ratings. I was surprised by the car not getting a "Best Buy" rating because the score was so high. Upon closer review I found:

1. The Chevrolet Cruze showed an average of 29.2 mpg during the test cycle which gave it a score of 6, whereas the honda civic, which got 26.1 to 28.5 mpg, got a 7-8, and the mazda mazda3 which averaged 19.6 to 30.7 mpg got a 5-8.

2. The Chevrolet Cruze got a higher or equal overall score of 67-68 as compared to the honda civic (61-65), toyota corolla (55), mazda mazda3 (62-69), and VW Jetta (64-73) yet was not named a Best Buy like those vehicles.

I wonder how much more honda, mazda and VW had to pay for this to happen?

I've had a 2005 Cobalt and 2006 HHR. The Cobalt was near bullet proof in the 40k super rough miles we had it. I had a recall done right off the bat and that is all. A good friend, who was 18 at the time, used it frequently and he railed on it harder than one would with a rental car (I didn't know this until years later). To this day it still gets serviced at the same place I get my cars from and the guys in the service department say they only see it for standard maintenance. Amazing, considering how roughly it was treated.

The car was a little noisier than I like, the seats stain easily (make sure to pay extra for the scotch guard), we averaged 38 to 42 mpg (manual transmission), and always loved the car. The HHR was another story. I liked the function ability of the vehicle but never was comfortable in it. The dash got a fair amount of "buzzes" right of the bat and though we never had any major problems, it did eat brakes and rooters.

At $11k, you couldn't go wrong with a Cobalt, though from a safety and insurance cost perspective you might be better off getting a slightly used Malibu or waiting for a Cruze.

Happy Birthday!

I've done the HHR thing and did not walk away impressed. Mine was a 2006 2LT with 5 speed manual which I bought new and owned until it had 35,000 miles. The gas mileage was fair at best (mid to high 20s being light on the right foot), the front seats are uncomfortable, the brakes warped within 20,000 miles, the cloth seats stain easily, and the vehicle developed rattles galore early on. Besides an issue with the USB plug in (added after wards at the dealer in 2007), the vehicle only went to the shop for brakes warping and rattles.

For the record, you won't find a bigger GM fan than me and since the HHR I still have only owned GM products.

GM makes better products that get just as good gas mileage. My suggestions instead of the HHR would be a Cruze, Malibu or Equinox.

Change the fuel, not what we drive.

That is what I have been saying all along. Make the fuel from algae & waste and there will be no need to tear down mountains so that we can get to metal of which we will run out of. At this point we are looking at additional trade deficit with China to get the metals we need to build all the electric cars people are wanting.

If you have not already read the report I wrote over a year ago, with all of it now becoming a reality, check out http://www.scribd.com/doc/33118890/Cellulosic-Ethenal-Report-for-Yamhill-County

We don't need higher gas mileage, we need a different type of fuel.

One of those luxuries is QUIET. My biggest complaint when I ride in any of the small cars, Civic, Impreza, 3, is the amount of wind and tire noise is so bad as to turn me off to the whole idea of owning something that size.

So, until smaller cars offer the amenities, ride, comfort, and quiet that the big SUVS can...this trend will continue.

I couldn't agree more. At this point in time, I would probably save a fair amount of money if I traded my Tahoe in on a new Spark, Aveo or Cruze, but it won't happen. Part of that is image as well. Cars have long helped us define what we want the world to think about us and at this point in my life I don't want someone defining me in the Aveo category.

Besides that, I know my vehicle uses the same amount of oil a prius uses and spews less emissions, so I am doing my part for the environment while still getting all the benefits of a big, quite, comfortable SUV.

Consumer Reports has long denied vehicles their recommendation based on crash test results by NHTSA. I wonder if they will stop recommending both the camry and sienna now that they both scored so poorly.

Should we put money on this?

Yes, it was a very bad month for GM relative to the rest of the industry (up ~30%).

There is not a GM dealer within 100 miles of my home that does not have an inventory problem, unlike the toyota, honda and Ford dealers. It makes it very tough to have great numbers when the dealers don't even have the product to sell.

Congrats!

1. DuraMini
2. \

I like the "DuraMini", though I don't think it will do much in the marketing department.

The Ecotec brandline needs to be expanded and pushed more. I think it still has good vibes and great marketing potential.

I offer you mad props for selecting that cool new retro License Plate.

Yeah, that extra plate and registration cost almost $300 for a car I paid $500 for, but it was worth it for the retro look.

Hey is your instrument cluster lens dulled out? Try polishing it with toothpaste, I hear it does a good job.

Only the paint has any dulling to it. Everything else looks likes it's three to four years old at most.

Never cared for the dash design. Looks too much like giant Viewmaster.

I do get a little confused with the speedo at times, since the numbers don't line up with the lines. I figure if I get pulled over, I'll just use that as the excuse for speeding.

wow! that IS a rare find! Something worth holding onto!

My youngest daughter wants to keep it forever, even stating that it will be the perfect second car when she becomes a doctor. She is 12now, so that means it must last at least 16 more years.

Here are some pictures of Marie right after my daughter cleaned her.

They probably wonder why would be so dumb to use such things and are watching over us to make sure we don't blow up our own world.

Glad to hear you are ok.

Armenian Dances - Alfred Reed & Osaka Municipal Symphonic Band

Happy Birthday KnightFan!

Congratulations!

I like it. This is an area where I wonder if the "New GM" is the same as the old one in that they won't offer it because it might be considered to much of a "risk". I hope the new management realizes that a vehicle like this isn't made to be their bulk seller, but rather it should be done to attract attention to the product line so that enthusiast speak highly of them, which is what will ultimately help sell more product.

Should we put bets on the new GM taking chances on something like this or are we all thinking the same thing?

Three things come to mind.

1. The new CTS has proven Cadillac can build world class product and win in the market place.

2. The Escalade does sell for over $75,000. It also happens to be a strong seller for them. If nothing else it got people to notice Cadillac, which is what a halo car is supposed to do.

3. Being environmental stewards has become important even for the wealthy. If Cadillac can get a V-8 to have the horsepower of a V-12, that can use alternative fuel and get the gas mileage of a V-6, the wealthy will buy it in droves, just like people have with the Equinox.

My youngest daughter won't allow swearing in our home. Both of my girls are dead set against it and surprise, surprise, we live in the liberal Northwest, are not a Southern Babtist type of family and I'm a registered Democrat (yes, I fit in with where I live). Both girls have associated little education, low social status and violent behavior with those that use foul language on a regular basis.

It's just very sad that GM, once such a multi-faceted and innovative company, can't even get the basics right anymore.

With this new birth, those of us who truly knew what GM was, swallowed our pride about abandoned divisions, models and visions in hopes that a newly energized business plan would finally give us something to be proud of.

GM was built on bold business moves, moving design and great innovation. New GM seems to be built on a poorly executed Toyota business plan with a visionary scope that should be targeted by a company the size of Honda. It's just another golden opportunity; squandered...

It took 5 years before the negative effects of Roger Smith were noticed throughout the company. It will take atleast as many years for the positive or negative effects of this new team to be felt. Remember when Lutz first showed up and every one complained about the new (at the time) Buick LaCrosse (2005). His work did not show up at Buick until 2008 with the Enclave and though a new Malibu was introduced in his first years (2005), the changes he made did not show up until the 2008 model year.

Don't forget, some of the products so many around here love had been conceived and designed during GMs darkest days.

I'm not saying these guys are perfect and will make GM the worlds best automotive company that all of us fans dream about, but I am saying that we really don't know what is happening behind closed doors right now that could make the company that way.

Or have we all come down with a case of Fall Blues?

Yes, this includes:

-Bickering about the Aveo vs. the Fiesta

-Bickering about a rwd Buick vs. a rwd Cadillac

-Bickering about a rwd Cadillac in general

-Finding some small comment to bicker about regarding all three subjects or some other subject

We might as well dust off a thread about Pontiac or Zeta and start bickering about that while we're at it, just to come around full circle.

No, this isn't about who is/isn't guilty. That's not the point here.

Yeah, I know that Fall means the immanent approach of Winter, but I think we can do better than this.

WELL PUT! I'm glad someone else caught on to that and not just me. Complaining about GM and praising Ford, even if the GM product is better, seems to be in at the moment.