caddycruiser

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Exactly, which is why 0% for an extended time, only usually is attractive to the few and far between that know for sure they'll have the car for that full 5 or 6 years, no question, and won't either need to or get the itch to switch out to something else while in the middle of their payments. Case in point, we could have done the 0% for 5 or 6 years, I think, when we were buying our '04 Suburban, but the instant $5k rebate knocked off the bottom line (making for a total $10k discount with the dealer's discount factored in), matched with a decent 5.5% loan, made for a more attractive deal for us. Mainly, the amount of the loan is lower to begin with and, if for any reason it gets demolished in a wreck or the desire to trade early comes up, there'll be a lower overall amount that needs to be payed off, than had the higher amount been financed interest free.

Yeah...I can see the 268hp (still getting raved over in the Avalon), a new 6 speed auto, and then an SE model with that plus the typically stiffer suspension, and you're going to have, well, one VERY nice car :AH-HA_wink: Make that one very nice car, that should get some very positive and even rave reviews when it comes out. I know a new Altima is coming soon, but when's a full re-do of the Accord due? The practically brand new Fusion should still give this car a run for it's money, especially when Ford gets their new 3.5, AWD, and then the Hybrid options available. Then there's also the Malibu, G6, and whatever else GM has at any given moment. Wonder what, if any, significant changes are in the upcoming pipeline for these cars?

Still...doesn't it look SMALLER? Or is it just some kind of optical illusion? Even from the earlier spy pics, the outside at least, looked more Corolla than Camry...

That's pretty much the thought I had when I first saw it. Looks just like they took a Mazda 6 and said "Now, what can we do to make it look a little bulbous and boring, without changing a lot?" Almost like an overfed "fat kid" version of the Mazda... :lol: Not a bad looking car, but for whatever reason, I think the current gen. looks nicer, more balanced, and even more elegant. Boring, but still a little nicer. The interior should be very nice though, and the Hybrid model will definately get some extra attention and sales.

Straight from Auto Consumerguide: Looks better, I guess (though strangely smaller...), and the powertrains are much improved. http://auto.consumerguide.com/Articles/ind.../act/sneakpeeks

Wowie! That would be AWESOME :AH-HA_wink: Start off with a full black screen or something and those sounds, then....and it would be AMAZING. Now, if someone could just convince GM brass or their typically dull advertising agencies to make such a thing....

I agree--the TB's interior has always had the UGLIEST and cheapest overall look and feel, bar none, of the GMT-360's. In truth, the materials are actually a bit softer then what's in our '04 Suburban, but they still seem flimsier overall than our "biggie". Regardless, hope the SS does well. Then again, I've YET to find one, 2wd or AWD, in any dealer's inventory within at least 300 miles when I do some GMBuyPower searches. There have been a couple on Ebay, but that's about it.

Still a great choice nonetheless! Manuals have their place, as do automatics. Getting what you want is the most important, since it's your $$$ I'd probably make the same choice, just because I'd probably do a lot of "cruising" in the car and wouldn't want to shift--just enjoy the look and feel overall :AH-HA_wink:

Exactly. At the same time, the current commercials for the Lucerne aren't bad, but they need to change soon, because the heated washer fluid line is getting a little old already. Cool feature to have, but not exactly the "trump card" I'd focus on advertising. Better to get some shots that included import (or even domestics like the 300) and find ways to literally humiliate them...SERIOUSLY. Do it in a classy, upscale way of course, but just humiliate them. Or, at least, make it obvious how the Buick is better/superior--whatever it is, the direct comparison would ring very positively in the heads of people watching.

Sounds great, and based on a lot of the comments I've heard and read, the Sky might just end up being even more popular than the Solstice. The automatic is a biggie too, considering the stick-only (so far, at least) is probably keeping even more "wanna be" buyers at bay.

Well, truth be told, they HAVE been doing that for many, many, many years... :blink: But yeah, that would have been one hell of a pathetic sport TB. Then again, I STILL can't understand whose idea it was inside GM to give the whole "stock" TB/Envoy line such soggy ride and handling, along with syrupy steering. Unless you're intentionally going for a classic luxo car feel, that's just nuts. Regardless, as a current sophomore Mech. Egr. major in college, I can't WAIT till the day I get to sit in and participate in the kind of meetings where such decisions get made.... :blink:

Really enjoyed the HUGE full-page ad for the Lucerne today on the back page of the USA Today "Destinations & Diversions" section. FINALLY, a GM photo that shows off some of the cars best lines (well, as much as humanly possible with such a homely front end, but I digress). Then, below, in big letters: "HELLO IMPORTS, THIS IS YOUR MORNING WAKE-UP CALL." Then below that: "Introducing the all new 2006 Buick Lucerne with QuietTuning. Quieter on the road than the Lexus ES 330, Acura TL and Infiniti G35. Starting at $26,990." Not a real killer, but a MASSIVE improvement for once when it comes to typical GM marketing. Now they just need to quickly get away from the heated washer fluid commercial (seriously, is it just me or does that one play every minute?!), and REALLY attack on the import cars in their ads, showing how they really pal in comparison. They want to get more buzz? Show a Lucerne in all its glory attracting all the attention as it goes down the street, the driver with a full-face smile), and then a piddly a little ES300, for example, getting ignored and the bored driver nearly falling asleep right behing....or something like that... :)

Great review, but this line jumped right out and smacked me: Good god...I think that pretty much gives some insight into the way a LOT of "brainiacs" inside the General used to run the show. Too bad it seems, even today, that it's still happening a bit... Yeah, let's just take a stock TB with it's 60's Cadillac soggy, floppy ride and steering, give it the basic V8 and some new stickers and call it a day :blink: At least SOME of the right people got involved, it seems, and did everything just about as right as physically possible. :AH-HA_wink:

So, are you talking about the '07+ Navi interior? The current one is gorgeous, no doubt, but I'm really wondering about the inside/outside refresh for next year.

I'm loving this car more and more, especially after seeing it all over the TV last night with Martha and the gang.... :) As a 19 year old male who currently drives a '93 Caddy Fleetwood Brougham, I'm definately a semi-large to very large luxury sedan lover, and the Lucerne fits that bill--just in a fresher, high tech iteration. I'll take a White Gold Flash w/Cashmere leather CXS with EVERY option please :AH-HA_wink: It is too bad that this couldn't be a GM car where EVERYTHING was ready and available at intro though--6 spd, DOD, newer V6, NAV system, etc. In truth, fairly "minor" issues given the overall character of the car as is, but each could have pushed it just that much farther up. Really want to see one in person, especially since I've seen at LEAST 4 brand new '06 Avalon's with temp. tags in the past couple of days, just on the campus alone...

Hmm...someone just a year younger than me shares the exact same sentiment. While I think the rear is actually quite nice, I'm all for taking a Sawz-all to that humdrum bubble front end and replacing it with something that really catches your eye, even from a distance. Basically, it needs the same kind of frontal "character" the 300 has, just in a more appropriate to Buick theme. Other than that, seems good, all except for the fuel mileage...ugh...

Exactly. Even as terrific of a car as it is (especially considering that it's a Buick, to boot!), it STILL suffers from the "GM What If" syndrome. What if...it had the 3.6 OHC engine standard, a 5 or 6 speed auto, significantly better fuel economy and power output, and a more elegantly sculpted nose.... B) THEN, simply put, it probably would be doing gangbusters right now and in the future. As is, still a terrific car, but seemingly stuck just behind the "over the top" line.

Another question--why isn't Janesville going down the tubes? It's beyond ancient and I really don't think the General is going to need 3 different plants for the new SUV's, especially considering their more realistic volume outlook. Silao, Mexico and Arlington, Texas would seem more than enough to me.

Okay, so when the current craptacular CSV's are done, the idea is done for good? I could REALLY see that being a logical choice, ESPECIALLY if the upcoming Lambda crossovers offer just as much space, but don't suffer from the minivan stigma. Other than that question, they all seem pretty in line to me, except for the Oshawa thing....but maybe we'll hear more about that soon. :huh:

DEFINATELY a bad ass car, but this is just the concept, as has been said. I'll wait until the PRODUCTION version is shown to comment on the final design, but right now, I think it looks fairly good. A little out of proportion and TOO much of the old to some extent, but polish up a few of the lines, paint it some different colors, and give it some cool new wheels, and it really might take off. ESPECIALLY, considering that "if" it does come out, I can only imagine how well DCX will price it.... :AH-HA_wink: ...there will REALLY be lines around the block.

Just too bad it couldn't get a real update, where they threw out the god awful interior (by far the WORST part of the car) and gave it the most up to date mechanicals. Out of the whole GM line, it still seems like one of the most widely "leftover" '05s is the Bonneville... B)

I think it's a little mis-stated in this article. The TRUE problem (or at least one of them) was that, because they didn't design a small component in the brakes properly, a part that corrodes and completely fails after a couple years of winter muck and salt, people who live in harsher winter zones especially were having their brakes fail when this part went--NOT good. I can't remember what exactly the component's name is, but when it goes, so do the brakes, which has led to several accidents. There was also one or two other problems with the same trucks and their brakes. This is no B.S. recall, it's a real problem that they tried to minimize the severity of by selecting only certain regions to issue the recall in. And coming from someone who's driven a few different '99-04 full-size GM trucks over the years, the general braking and feel were about as bad as it gets in some regards to begin with. By FAR, the worst pedal feel I've ever experienced was our '02 Avalanche--it was beyond the point of feeling like you were stepping on a worn out dish sponge, from day one. Even stopping from slower in-town speeds was scary, just because there was so much pedal travel--which always seemed odd, because the braking distance itself seemed A-ok. Now, on the '04 Suburban with the Hydroboost system to aid in fixing the sloppy pedal feel, they are MASSIVELY better, but still not that great. Now it's about 1/4 as spongey as it used to be, but at least not frightening like the Av could be at times.

What in the living hell are you talking about? :blink: Two domestic luxo-barges, based on old mechanicals, are NEVER going to win any kind of best award, unless compared against one another only. Nice cars, but not even REMOTELY worthy of this kind of award. Some other notes: -The TSX is still somewhat of an "oddball", but based on everything I've ever seen and read, it just seems like one of the most refined, high quality small sedans available ANYWHERE for under $30k, which is why it always wins. I remember, once, they said it "defined the term precision" in every move and feel. -300C....I think that one pretty much explains itself :AH-HA_wink: -Corvette and Mustang....again :AH-HA_wink: All in all, just as expected, and all are very worthy of the award. Second Thought: Wouldn't it be interesting if GM had a sedan that could even remotely excel at almost everything like the Accord does, year after year? Like, for instance, if the G6 was similar in size to the current car, but had top-shelf interior materials and design, clean, crisp outside lines, and the 2.4L with 5-spd manual or auto and the 3.6L with 6-spd manual or auto ONLY? Hell, ditching the growly OHV engines alone would probably push it up several notches in the rankings. Oh well, just thought that'd be an interesting suggestion.... B)

That seems about right to me, even just judging from pics only. Overall quality and materials seems "right", but certain things like the blocky center stack and too low climate controls are questionable.