HarleyEarl

I am not happy about this 'new' Cadillac push internationally. The brand will get watered down. Cadillac is so American iconic. It is a sad day when a 'Cadillac' is made on the same assembly line as a Saab. Who would've thought?! Really, it is historically the end of something very special.

The first Cadillac BLS rolled of the assembly line in Trollhattan, Sweden on February 06/06:

So that's the G5 rumor. Very interesting.

I wonder if Pontiac can survive as some boutique performance division. Maybe it can, if all GM brands are sold under one roof with maybe the exception of maybe Cadillac/Hummer. It's hard for Pontiac dealerships in the US to not have an entry level car like this....they have lost the Sunfire customer to other makes. The G6 can't fill that void.

Here's the '66 American Motors AMX concept:

Didn't hurt the brand then and it won't now. The US market will be getting the Pursuit, the dealers are crying for it.

...always thought that Chrysler Java was a classy little hatch.

Hey Razor....not sure of the exact year on that AMX GT.....I understand that is where the idea of the Gremlin originated....the roofline.

This past Lancia concept looks very good, the '92 Magia.

American Motors AMX GT concept:

Agreed.....I see way more Pursuits then Coblats here too. And I like the look of them better...really hope they do the supercharged version.

Not the first time GM had almost identical makes. Not much difference between the Cavalier and Sunbird.

The more I look at this interior, the more I like it. You're right, would be a relief to have some variety in interiors of today.

Interesting fabric option on the '75 Cadillac Calais. Probably in the context of the times it's not unusual considering everyone was wearing plaid pants at the time. Can you imagine a luxury car of today daring to do this?!

Balthazar, I and others would be really interested in seeing your progress as you go. Maybe continue an ongoing thread how it all comes together. I can't wait for the final result. Love this year of Buick.

Great find...I'm definitely off to Zellers to buy me a Solstice!

A Dodge Polo? Only in America VW and Chrysler talk about partnership for small car Jason Stein Harald Hamprecht Automotive News / January 23, 2006 - 6:00 am Chrysler’s US muscle brand Dodge could get a new entry-level car for North America – based on the Volkswagen Polo. Chrysler, the North American division of DaimlerChrysler, wants a small-segment car in the US to better react to the trend toward small, fuel-efficient vehicles there. The two companies finalized a deal at the Detroit auto show earlier this month for Chrysler group to build a US-market minivan for VW in 2008. Chrysler executives confirmed at the show that the two companies are talking about further cooperation, but declined to give more details. Mexico production? “It would not be necessary, but welcome if we could offer a B [small car]-segment model for Dodge,” DaimlerChrysler CEO Dieter Zetsche told Automotive News Europe. “There are a number of potential options for such a model. VW is one of them and it is still open.” Chrysler CEO Tom LaSorda said there are “a number of segments” that Chrysler wants to reoccupy. “VW is a possible partner for further projects,” LaSorda said. Chrysler sources who asked not to be identified said the Polo platform is one option for a Dodge small car. A decision will be made in the first half of this year. Last year, VW group Chairman Bernd Pischetsrieder told the German magazine auto motor und sport that further cooperation with Chrysler beyond the minivan agreement “would certainly make sense.” Frank Klegon, Chrysler’s development chief, said Chrysler also is currently in talks with Hyundai and Mitsubishi as possible partners. The German press has speculated that a Dodge small car could be built at VW’s Puebla, Mexico plant, alongside a Polo sedan that VW is considering building there for the US market. VW already builds the Beetle, Beetle convertible and Jetta sedan at the plant, whose 500,000 units-a-year capacity is underused. VW will add a Golf hatchback and Golf station wagon at the plant later this year. – Jens Meiners contributed

....and the merging of Opel and Saturn begins.

I've seen them used for promotional purposes too. A sportsbar nightspot has it with bold wild graphics and huge tv screen on one side, they park it outside as people que up to go in. You can watch the game while lining up to watch the game.

wow...that's exceptionally fast. Must be like when some companies copy Oscar night gowns...they are out almost the next day.

GM cuts jobs, production at Orion factory Sales for touted Pontiac G6 slip amid intense competition; output will be reduced in April. Brett Clanton / The Detroit News Not everything Oprah touches turns to gold. Lukewarm sales of the new Pontiac G6 sedan, featured by the talk show host in a massive giveaway last year, have prompted General Motors Corp. to cut production of the car beginning in April. GM said the Orion Township plant where the car is built will reduce G6 output by more than 10 percent and lay off an unspecified number of workers. Workers at the factory said they were told last week that 250 to 400 people will be laid off across two production shifts. The layoffs will target workers with the least seniority, said Janene Emswiller, 34, of White Lake Township. She has worked at the Orion Township plant since last spring. Laid off from another GM plant prior to landing in Orion Township, Emswiller said she had high hopes for her new assignment since knew it was a key car for GM. "I thought I was safe," she said. "But clearly, I'm not." The cutbacks are a troubling sign for one of GM's most-touted new cars, which the struggling automaker has held up as a competitor to midsize stalwarts such as the Honda Accord and a vital plank in a makeover of its Pontiac brand. While GM blames the decision on intense competition in the midsize car market, industry analysts say the automaker has made key missteps with the vehicle that also may have stunted sales. Among them was the decision to introduce a four-door sedan before a well-received coupe version was available in showrooms. "When they didn't offer that coupe initially, they lost a lot of momentum with the vehicle," said Rebecca Lindland, analyst with Global Insight in Lexington, Mass. The production cuts in Orion Township come as GM is embarking on a sweeping restructuring of its ailing North American auto business, which lost $5.3 billion in 2005 due to slumping sales of its profitable SUVs, high materials costs and increasing foreign competition. Under the plan, GM will close or downsize six assembly plants and several other components facilities and cut 30,000 U.S. hourly jobs in order to bring its plant capacity in line with demand for its vehicles. The Orion cuts, however, come as a surprise since GM added a second 900-worker shift at the plant last spring to support stronger-than-expected sales of the G6. The automaker is also preparing to build a new convertible G6 with a unique glass-panel roof -- new work that appeared to further solidify the plant's position. GM said the production cuts in Orion should not be viewed as a troubling sign for the vehicle. "G6 sales were up significantly in the fourth quarter of 2005 and are actually growing when the mid-size car market is shrinking," said GM spokesman Dan Flores. The cuts are the result of harsh competition in the midsize car category and are a way for the automaker to bring production to a "sustainable G6 volume in the long term," he said. GM sold nearly 125,000 G6s last year. At the end of the year, about 35,000 G6s were on dealer lots. The Orion plant will be idled during the weeks of April 3 and April 10, in part to make tooling adjustments for the G6 convertible, Flores said. Work will resume April 17. At present, the factory has 2,900 hourly workers and 200 salaried positions. Flores said any union workers laid off will continue to receive pay under existing labor contracts. "Details are still being ironed out, but appropriate plans will be provided to the employees who are impacted," Flores said. Pat Sweeney, president of UAW Local 5960, which represents workers in Orion, declined to comment. The Pontiac G6 was introduced last year amid a blast of publicity, most notably with a promotion by GM to give away 276 of the new cars to guests of the Oprah Winfrey Show. Riding a tide of good press, GM said the G6 posted more than a 50 percent sales increase over the aging Grand AM it replaced and cleared about $5,000 more per vehicle. Within a year, it had become the 11th-best selling car in the U.S. and won several consumer-based industry awards. "There are a group of people out there who really like Pontiac and what they're doing," said Daniel Gorrell, vice president with Strategic Vision, a San Diego-based industry firm. "They're just aren't very many of them." In part, that's due to negative associations with Pontiac, which has been starved for new products and so damaged by heavy rebates in recent years that consumers won't consider one of its models, he said. "If your last name is Oswald," Gorrell said, "people always will associate you with Lee Harvey." The G6 should get a bump from the launch of the new convertible, arriving by March, Global Insight's Lindland said. But the car will continue to face challenges wooing buyers in a category that includes everything from the Volkswagen Jetta to the Nissan Altima. "When you're dealing with the midsize segment," she said, "buyers can easily go somewhere else." (Detroit News)

I posted a current Dodge Sprinter with the new Mercedes. Looks like there are a lot of changes.

(standard Lingenfelter model, no photos of the 8-0-0 yet) 8-0-0: Lingenfelter Empties the Stables to Crank Up the Corvette Z06 Date posted: 01-31-2006 DECATUR, Ind. — Lingenfelter Performance Engineering, known for its fire-breathing modifications to Corvettes and other cars, is offering a new Gen-2 Twin Turbo package for the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 that bumps up the 427-cubic-inch V8 from the standard 505 hp to 800 hp. The $45,995 package takes six to eight weeks to set up on the 2006 Corvette Z06 and includes professional assembly and engine blueprinting, twin Garrett turbochargers, custom stainless-steel exhaust manifolds and turbo outlets, forged aluminum pistons, forged steel connecting rods and a high-capacity fuel system. Lingenfelter quotes an eight-to-12-week lead time to carry out the modification. What this means to you: Money equals power. Horsepower. (InsideLine)