riviera74

That sounds intriguing. Looks like they borrowed GM's playbook from around 1962: the birth of the the Buick 231 directly derived from a Buick V8 of its day. (1962-2010). Does anyone know if the newer GM V6 engines are derived from those 4-cyl engines from Opel?

I suspect that those Holdens will be built in China rather than Australia. If they are built in Australia, that is even better.

I miss velour seating.... sometimes. (Some days I do miss my '84 Cutlass Supreme.) The cloth that GM replaced it with now may be more durable, but I am not a fan of it. One look at that '81 5-series interior reminded me of GM interiors of that time.... and the GM ones were cheaper and a little worse. All automakers have come a very long way from cheap spartan interiors dating from 30+ years ago, mostly because customers wanted better interiors.

I agree with you on the styling vs. other needs (particularly MPG) issue/divide. The "Green beating" would be less acceptable if the kids were less distracted by modern conveniences (especially MP3 players and smartphones). Prior to 1975 or so, the car was the ONLY thing to take pride in. After 1990 or so, that pride went into other things and cars are still fairly expensive. There are still some people who take pride in their cars --- for different reasons. Exterior styling is nice, but a great interior is far more important. At least with older cars, upgrades can be made with relatively little fuss (especially car audio systems). As long as the United States is not as small as Britain or France, cars will never be a necessary evil. Why? Freedom of movement will always be a good thing.

That Caddy is fab. Before I got my 99 Park Avenue, I was also looking at Caddies of that vintage. Prices were rather high, and so were the miles on them back in 2009.

Caddy looks fab; the diesel engine ruined it. A REAL diesel engine (rather than the pseudo-diesels that went into Olds and Caddies at the time) would make them a classic. When I lived in NJ, I heard stories of people swapping out the Olds/Caddy diesels for a Caddy V8 engine and it worked out great for them.

Oh really. I did not know that. As for Baby Boomers and cars, health care will be extremely high and stay high for a long time because it seems to me that they would like to avoid death. What impact financially: more catering to elderly needs at the expense of almost everyone else. If you don't believe me, drop by SW or South Florida sometime.

Funny how Audi is aping BMW only in reverse. Prior to 1925, BMW was motocycles only.

Other than SH-AWD, there is almost no real difference between Honda and Acura (except maybe a slightly nicer interior). And people wonder why Acuras do not sell anywhere nearly as well as Lexuses. . . . .

What do you recommend: repealing CAFE standard entirely? CAFE is not a reason new car prices are higher. A factor that does count is all the safety features and technology that goes into them now. A cheap stripper car that could be bought in 1990 or 1980 can no longer be bought in 2012.

Wow. 3 Quadrillion dollars! (That is 3 thousand trillion.) Hyperinflation, he we come (if this were done). 300,000,000 * 10,000,000 = 3,000,000,000,000,000

The fact that the average selling price of a new car is up 7% from last year is rather depressing. The reason behind it is not so bad: more features do lead to a higher MSRP. Ditching power everything for manual everything sounds nice until you cannot sell those cars unless there is a large discount attached to that "stripper car". I remember when small cars were essentially penalty boxes. I would never wish anyone a Chevette or an early-80s Escort since they had power nothing and all was manual and cheap. Thirty years ago the Big Three basically hated small cars while the Japanese built decent ones, hence why they are still around. A GOOD small car now can lead to the next purchase to be a more profitable larger car... or crossover for the family. As for the current average age of new car buyers, that is a shame. The only reason that is true is because there are relatively few people under 40 that can afford to BUY a new car. (Leasing is another story.)

Yesterday I saw a Chevy Sonic on the road. I am unimpressed because it looks too much like a squished Cruze to me. It is a common lament that MFGs. do not make many (or sometimes any) enthusiast cars these days. The reality is is that even in the 1960s and 70s, common cars were the bread and butter that allowed for enthusiast cars. That is still true: there is no way that the new Camaro could be built if there were no Malibus and Impalas sold right now. I have wanted a RWD sedan equivalent to the Camaro since the G8 died along with Pontiac itself. I am still disappointed that the XTS is the last FWD DTS and NOT the next-generation Lucerne since Cadillac NEEDS a real flagship. Ultimately, we all have to be somewhat more patient than usual because GM will actually release these products to us. Now, if they announce that the Camaro sedan (with new name) comes out in 18 months, that will be a cause to celebrate. I would say that GM still needs to put one out just because Chrysler still has GM over a barrel with the Charger/300 twins. Also remember that FORD will NOT put out a RWD sedan again anytime soon in the USA, even if it means Lincoln may die as a result.

Unlike Saab, which is wholly unloved, Volvo has some buyers at least. Now, whether it will make it to 2020 or 2022, that is an open question.

The CTS is already special. Otherwise, Cadillac would be more like Lincoln: moribund and ready for the glue factory. Yes, the CTS needs to be even more competitive with the 5 series and the E Class. Now if only there was a proper 7 series/S Class/XJ fighter from Cadillac......

Saw on Easter morning a 1981 white Cadillac Eldorado with a blue vinyl top. It was the V8-6-4 that gave away its age. It looks like it was in top condition. Two hours later, it was gone .

Toyota build exciting cars? Something they have not done in about 12 years? Color me skeptical. Having said that, I will believe it if they can at least have a credible competitor to a Nissan Z. Then again, this is Toyota, not Nissan.

Suzuki leaving the US market? How unsurprising: few sales made and sales falling for years. Time to go home, if not disappear entirely.

If there is to be a Chevy RWD Sport Sedan, let THAT be the SS car and allow the Impala to top out at LTZ. The need for a real Impala SS died in 1996. (Yes, I know that the last-gen Impala had an SS variant, but 303 HP on a FWD platform is NOT a good idea.)

There is another reason sedans are the choice for most everyone: coupes have higher insurance rates. That has been true since at least 1970. I am not sure that a $37K Chevy performance sedan with a Camaro ZL1 V8 is feasible by itself. There will have to be a V6 version too. As for the Camaro, a quick lookup at cars.com show that the Camaro starts at $25K and tops out at $45K. That is a far more reasonable range for the Chevy performance sedan than $37-44K. While there are young drivers who can afford a new Camaro at current prices, GM would be unwise to leave new sales on the table by NOT providing Camaro-like performance in a sedan. Those young drivers are the exception, not the rule.

The only reason the average buyer of new cars is at least 50 is because a lot of people under 40 CANNOT afford a new car. Median car prices are at $30,000 ---- that is too high for a lot of working people. Their best options are to either lease a new car or buy an off-lease for about 20% off or buy a used car. Of course Large RWD cars have a future: they would have an even better future if they are well-equipped at $25K rather than $35K. (N.B. The 300/Charger twins do start around $25K, but they are much better equipped at $35K.) I do hope that the new RWD Chevy sedan starts well equipped at $25K, which would allow Buick to have a $40K RWD flagship (to go against the Genesis and higher-end 300S).

Hyper, I could not agree more. It is an open secret that GM skimped on interiors for several years and it took BK for them to reset and put actual money in the interiors. I have a 1999 Park Avenue Ultra and that interior is just as cheap as a same MY Bonneville. I have seen in person what the new interiors are in all the new Buicks and I have said, "It's about time they finally upgraded these!" As for a RWD flagship for Buick, I am in even greater agreement, with one slight caveat: the new XTS should be a replacement for the Buick Lucerne (even as a transition to a new RWD car), not a Cadillac. I guess that this 2006 Lucerne sounds a lot like a poorly aging LeSabre/Park Avenue in some respects since it is the FINAL FWD G-body car (1985-2011).

I do remember reading somewhere that Kia is partly owned by Hyundai. Supposedly Kia is the sportier of the two. Their relationship seems similar to Pontiac and Chevrolet back in the 1980s and 90s (excluding trucks).

A new name, huh? What would they name it anyways? I like the name Chevelle, especially since it has not been used since the late 70s.

QFT. Bring on the new Caprice! Need one to accompany the existing Camaro.