HarleyEarl

Blu here is your prize, a bear and his big piece of wood. Congratulations on answering the trivia question correctly.

I thought of the Mitsubishi too when I first saw it.

This truck is made by Pyenonghwa Motors which in turn is owned by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon.

Great looking little SUV....and nothing even remotely Uplander about it.

I love these cars. Great musclecar proportions. As I am just now working on my first billion dollars, I will buy both the coupe and convertible when I can.

It looks very busy when it's near other badges. They should have put it on the rears of vehicles where it would really be seen by those from behind while at stoplights.

I posted this article by Autoweek and their take on the introduction, earlier. It was deemed unnessary to the discussion and shutdown and locked.

The price thing can be a double edged sword. I wonder if consumers sometimes, when they see a price, undercutting the competiion, may think it's not as good.

GO FLAMES GO!!! Calgary all the way!!!

You dirty, dirty boys...lol.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/21/business...9&partner=TOPIX By DANNY HAKIM Published: September 21, 2005 DETROIT, Sept. 20 - General Motors plans to market its next generation of large sport utility vehicles by promoting their gas mileage. Talking about fuel economy in commercials for vehicles like the Chevrolet Suburban might seem counterintuitive, particularly since large S.U.V.'s get mileage in the teens at a time when Americans have become more sensitive to what it costs to fill up. But G.M. executives said they would stress improvements that have been made in fuel economy for the large S.U.V.'s that will begin arriving in showrooms early next year. G.M. is even considering ways to start marketing the fact that many of the vehicles can run on an ethanol blend instead of gasoline, a feature that many environmental advocates have criticized because it allows automakers to take advantage of a regulatory loophole. G.M.'s marketing director, Mark R. LaNeve, said that talking about fuel economy was "going to be an integral piece of everything we do" in the S.U.V. campaign. Mr. LaNeve spoke at a news conference on Tuesday where the company unveiled its remodeled large S.U.V.'s - including 2007 models of the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon, Chevrolet Avalanche and a Cadillac Escalade bristling with chrome. On the inside, the vehicles have a more German feel, because domestic automakers see Audi in particular as a benchmark for interior refinement. On the outside, they have more chrome and less gray plastic armor. They are also more aerodynamic, with less boxy windshields and tighter surface gaps. And they have appendages added to the front of their stiff steel frames to mitigate damage when they collide with smaller vehicles, like cars. Holding ground in the large S.U.V. market is critical for G.M., and the overhaul of the vehicles, the first in seven years for many of them, has been a priority. The company commands about half of the large S.U.V. market, but in the last couple of years the total market has shrunk to 700,000 vehicles a year from about 900,000. Profit margins have also declined as steeper discounts have been required. "That's the big issue: whither goes the full-size S.U.V.," said Joseph Phillippi, a consultant and analyst. He attended the news conference and was impressed with the new products, but cautioned, "You wouldn't call it a growth market." Mr. LaNeve said G.M. would promote its large S.U.V.'s as the most fuel-efficient, powerful and stylish of the class. Some models of the Tahoe will be the first large S.U.V.'s to be rated at just over 20 miles per gallon in combined city and highway driving under the government's testing procedures. While the government's fuel economy test significantly overstates the mileage people can get on the road, the Tahoe would be rated slightly higher than the current model, and exceed competitors like the Toyota Sequoia and Nissan Armada. Mr. LaNeve said he met with other G.M. marketing executives on Monday to discuss ways to begin promoting ethanol. G.M. already has 1.3 million so-called flex-fuel vehicles on the road that can use E85, an ethanol blend, but there are fewer than 500 gas stations nationwide that carry it. Automakers build flex-fuel vehicles because they get regulatory credits that allow them to make more vehicles with low fuel economy. Many customers are not aware their vehicles have the capability. "If you're really into saving fuel, and oil dependency, you can get an ethanol-based vehicle," Mr. LaNeve said. "If you drive 15,000 miles in an ethanol-based vehicle here, you're burning under 200 gallons of oil-based gas a year. That's less than a hybrid." If G.M. now sees flex-fuel vehicles as a marketing opportunity, ethanol is a contentious topic. While E85 has been 40 to 50 cents a gallon cheaper than regular gasoline in recent weeks, one does not go as far on a gallon of E85 as on a gallon of gasoline, lessening the cost advantage. And E85 is also supported by subsidies for corn growers, while gasoline is taxed. But Mr. LaNeve said ethanol was one feature the company would start talking about. Advertisements, he said, would stress technologies like cylinder deactivation, which shuts down engine cylinders when they are not needed. Hybrid electric technology will appear as an option in 2007. Commercials for Chevrolet, he said, will make comparisons with the fuel economy of competing products. At the same time, executives at G.M., which has lost $1.4 billion in the first half of the year, were stressing that they were no longer putting all their eggs in one basket. The company has been feverishly playing catch-up with Asian rivals by developing more lightweight S.U.V.'s, and is also trying to develop more credible passenger cars. "We have a lot of options in terms of fuel efficiency," Mr. LaNeve said. "We believe most of our full-size owners will come in and take a look and will continue to buy the segment. I like to say, hey look, if you got three kids you can't give one back. Depending on your lifestyle, you're going to keep buying this kind of vehicle."

Chinese SUV Gets Worst-Ever Safety Grades Date Posted 09-20-2005 LONDON — The JiangLing Landwind sport-utility vehicle, one of the first Chinese vehicles to hit a major western market, received the worst-ever score in European safety crash tests. The two-ton 4x4 scored zero stars in crash tests last week by the ADAC, the German automobile club, which carries out tests for the European market, the Times of London reported. "It had a catastrophic result," said a spokesman for the ADAC. "In our 20-year history, no car has performed as badly." The Landwind, which competes against products such as the Kia Sportage and the Hyundai Tucson, was displayed at the Frankfurt motor show last week and is expected to arrive in British showrooms in a few months. It is already on sale in Germany, Belgium and Holland. A decision has not been made whether to sell the vehicle in the United States. Safety researchers said a driver would be unlikely to survive a head-on collision at 40 mph in the Landwind. What this means to you: Delete the JiangLing Landwind from your shopping list. Researchers warn it "belongs in the 1990s in terms of engineering."

http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jm/06b9tribeca.htm

http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0.../A01-322175.htm Can new lineup of big SUVs revive GM? Ailing automaker hopes 12 full-size models will invigorate a segment that has been shrinking. By Bill Vlasic / The Detroit News WARREN -- General Motors Corp. on Tuesday unveiled the most important new vehicles in its effort to turn around its troubled North American operations. But by betting big on a redesigned fleet of 12 full-size SUVs, including the Chevrolet Tahoe and Cadillac Escalade, GM is trying to buck a consumer shift toward smaller, more fuel-efficient cars and crossover vehicles. Rising gas prices have hit the large SUV segment hard this year, with U.S. sales down 11 percent through August. Yet GM, the biggest player in the full-size SUV market, expressed confidence that its new lineup will invigorate a segment that has been steadily shrinking. "It may contract, but it's not going away," said Mark LaNeve, GM's head of sales and marketing. "This is a very large, very important and very profitable market." GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said the new SUVs will average an industry-best 20 miles per gallon for combined city and highway driving -- an incremental improvement over competitors such as the Ford Expedition and Toyota Sequoia. "It can't hurt, but that segment is in a state of long-term decline," said David Healy, an analyst with Burnham Securities. "To me, GM is kind of whistling past the graveyard." With GM losing $2.5 billion in North America in the first half of this year, the automaker can ill afford a lukewarm reaction to its new large SUV lineup, which debuts early next year. Earlier this year, GM said it decided to launch the new sport utilities ahead of schedule in the order to speed its turnaround efforts. "It's very important that GM reach the customer base that is turning in their big SUVs coming off lease," said Joseph Phillippi of Auto Trends Consulting in Short Hills, N.J. "It cannot afford to lose those people to other products." The stakes are huge. Lutz said GM expects to sell about 375,000 full-size SUVs annually, and to account for more than 60 percent of an annual market he estimated at 750,000 vehicles industrywide. But with gas prices fluctuating wildly in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the industry will be hard-pressed to sell that many big SUVs this year. "GM obviously didn't see $3-a-gallon gasoline when they made the decision to speed up the development of these vehicles," Healy said. In 2004, large SUV demand slumped 6 percent. Tahoe has been the top-selling large SUV since 2001, but sales are off its 2002 peak of nearly 210,000 units. Tahoe sales fell 9.2 percent through August. The Chevrolet Suburban is down 16 percent, and the GMC Yukon 5.9 percent. But Lutz said short-term spikes in the price of gas hardly diminish the appeal of brawny SUVs that can carry nine passengers and haul trailers and boats. "We're realistic, and we don't expect the segment to grow," Lutz said. "But there are people who want and need the capabilities of a full-size SUV." To that end, GM is embarking on one of its most ambitious vehicle launch programs in recent memory. In the first half of 2006, GM will roll out 12 models off of its so-called T-900 truck platform, beginning with the Tahoe, Escalade and the GMC Yukon in the first quarter. The automaker also is planning to offer hybrid gasoline-electric versions of the SUVs by 2007, but GM execs gave few details about sales volumes or fuel efficiency targets for the hybrid models. The sheer breadth of GM's lineup dwarfs the competition in the large SUV segment From the mass-market Tahoe to the upscale Escalade, GM went to great lengths to differentiate the new vehicles with unique grilles, headlamps and interior packages. The company also will offer quasi-pickup versions like the Chevy Avalanche and Cadillac Escalade EXT. And while the dimensions of the big SUVs have changed ever so slightly, the company's designers gave the new vehicles a sleeker look with narrower front ends and sharply angled windshields. "They're not smaller," Lutz said. "But they look smaller." Gary White, GM's vice president of North American truck operations, said the product development team had two guiding principles for the new SUVs -- "living larger" and "driving smaller." Additional head- and kneeroom was added in the passenger compartment, and second-row seats can be folded flat or "tumbled" forward for extra cargo space. In addition to dual-stage air bags for the front passenger seats, GM put roof-mounted side air bags for all three rows of seats. New suspension and steering systems and an available 6-speed automatic transmission will improve the overall driving experience, White said. New, available safety equipment includes rear-mounted cameras. GM dealers hope the improvements will retain existing customers and draw new ones. "We're really anticipating the release of the new vehicles," said Rick Resinger, new-truck sales manager at Champion Chevrolet in Howell. "We've done well with the current models and are looking forward to the '07s. As soon as we can start ordering, we've got customers ready." Russ Shelton, owner of Shelton Pontiac-Buick-GMC, said he doesn't think he'll have a problem selling the new GMC Yukons when they arrive on his lot. "For the majority, gas price is not a big issue," Shelton said. "We are still selling SUVs. It's new. It's beautiful. It's exciting. I wish we had it today." GM executives declined to discuss pricing for the new models, except to say that they expect better profit margins than in the current incentive-driven environment. The current Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade are priced from $35,000 to more than $51,000, but GM has had to offer generous discounts to lure buyers. "We've obviously had to accept some reduction in (profit) margins," Lutz said. "We naturally plan to re-establish those margins." While the automaker showed off the entire new lineup to members of the media Tuesday, the vehicles will be introduced to the public sequentially, beginning with the Tahoe's appearance next week at the Texas State Fair. The challenge will be to build interest in each version of the SUV and to establish separate brand identities in the marketplace, something GM has struggled to accomplish with its passenger cars. Lutz was quick to point out that the big-SUV introduction is only part of GM's "full-frontal product assault on the marketplace," and noted that the company expects to increase its lineup of smaller crossover vehicles from six to 14 within four years. But there was no denying the importance of the large SUVs to GM's future prospects. "This launch," said LaNeve, "is critical to us."

For sure knightfan...I love ads from yesteryear as well, even more fun when it's Oldsmobile.

I agree, I am increasingly worried about the integrity of Chinese cars right down to the nuts and bolts. Are they using good quality metals for instance? I know I won't be buying one.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005 Chinese car maker Chery will market under different name in U.S. By Associated Press DETROIT -- Chinese automaker Chery Automobile Co. won't market its vehicles under the Chery name in the United States because of legal threats from General Motors Corp., a spokeswoman said Tuesday. GM has said that the Chery name sounds too much like Chevy, which is short for GM's Chevrolet brand. New York-based Visionary Vehicles, which will market Chery in the United States, said it has decided it's not worth the money to fight GM. "They're bigger than we are and they have more lawyers than we do," Visionary Vehicles spokeswoman Wendi Tush said. "It's all about keeping value to the consumer." Tush added that the company is considering five or six other names and hopes to announce one soon. Five Chery models are expected to arrive in the U.S. market in the summer of 2007, Tush said. Visionary Vehicles has projected it can sell 250,000 in the first year. The company plans to open 250 dealerships around the country.

Here is the Russian ZIS Sport. Not bad really.

I do believe Blu is correct...I wish I had a big prize for you.;)

Regal sounds too soft, more for a royal person's car..a queen per chance? Buick Wildcat would have given some balls for the Lucerne car....Lucerne is just awful. What's next?...The new rwd Buick Zurich!

Buick Geneva?....

Buick has had some awful names of late. They need to really rethink their choices.

The Camaro Z28 & Silverado Z71. What is the meaning of Z28 and Z71? What were the origins?

The fuel mileage is quite impressive for a big vehicle like this and for an eight. Love the sounds of this truck having 400hp...vroommm!