I spent Easter in Portland and had booked a full-size with Avis. A little over $ 50 for 2 days. Not bad.
Avis doesn't have LaCrosses at this location, so I went up to the parking deck to see what they had and noted a couple of Monte Carlo parking spot numbers. I got a white coupe as a result of my snooping around.
A couple of things have changed since the last model run and some things are the same. The first thing one notices are the seats. These are the plumper, boxier buckets found in the Impala. Unlike the GP, these are not the Recaro wanna-bes that are hard on anything above a 29 inch waist and one who has smallish lats. Rather, they are comfortable, nicely upholstered buckets and have some wiggle room.
The other thing one notices is that the ride is quieter, smoother and that there's more pep. Upon arriving at my Mom's house, I noticed two tailpipes. OK. I got a 3900 VVT V6 and not the base 3500 VVT V6 I had come to expect. It accelerated briskly but, to the trained ear of the constant renter, there is a difference between the engine sound of a Chevy 60 degreee OHV V6 and that of a Buick 90 degree OHV V6. I prefer the latter; however, this one is compliant in terms of performance but ornery in the sound department. Fuel economy was only so-so. Past 3400s I have rented returned stellar gas mileage. But then, here we are jumping from 185 hp to 242 hp. It's quite a bit. Still, I am sure the 3500 V6 at 211 hp would have been fine.
I would describe the ride as being somewhere between that of a LaCrosse and a Grand Prix. Not as serene as that of the LaCrosse and not as nimble as that of the Grand Prix. The power band is nicely modulated and the transmission was one of the nicest ones I've commanded. Shift points were clearly defined yet very smooth.
In living in the Monte Carlo, I've noticed that I appreciate the greenhouse of the big coupe door. Nowhere in my peripheral vision does the door frame come into view. It makes for great visibility. As for looking rearward, the right rear view is excellent because of 1) the large opera window and 2) the slight rounded wrap of the backlite. The left rear view isn't as good but I still found a spot where I could look through the opera window behind me. Overall, visibility is better than in the GP or LaX.
Kudos to a simple straightforward dash. It blends the scalloped tops of the last model with some new features. The 3 main bezels are articulated individually and, at night, they are beautiful. The light is blue instead of that washed out white always found in many Chevrolets. Also, the illumination on the console is absent. As I have spilled several carbonated soft drinks on my illuminated gear selector in my Regal, I don't mind looking at the indicator on the dash.
The organization of the Monte's center stack is also straightforward. Below the 2 center vents are a large entertainment center pod with dials that are nice to the touch and the climate controls are below that. Now, I must say that the ergonomics department missed out on something here. The climate control dials are so low, almost where the center stack starts to angle away from the normal person's reach. When the shift lever is in park, it intrudes on being able to use the climate control system. About the only other stupid thing I noticed was that the lumbar adjustment is a lever. One has to crank it, much like priming a pump. This probably won't hold up over the long-term and felt cheap.
In terms of styling, this is a decent car. The Coke bottle turned sideways headlamps are gone and the new ones are cleaner. They lean back with a nice sweep. At first I didn't like them, but they have grown on me. (However, I don't like them on the Impala). The front fascia hits the sweet spot - being neither the demonic pinched set-up of the GP nor the boring smaller oval of the last gen LeSabre grafted onto the LaX. The MC looks good in the front view, in the front quarter view, from the side, from the rear view but NOT from the rear quarter view. This angle makes the rear fender look thick as the fender crease is too low and the flare out of the C-pillar from "thin to thick" looks awkward. Also noticeable from this vantage point is the pear-shape of the taillamps. If they had only catapulted the rear light shape of the 76 Monte Carlo forward 30 years and incorporated that shape in the design! It appears that the spoiler is standard. I don't like it. The one that juts upward is much nicer than the one that seemingly lies flat. Still, I could do without it.
Overall, this is a very nice car. It has improved. How VVT meshes with the Chevy V6s remains to be seen. The nicest thing is the cabin. The front seats are very, very comfortable. (While driving with Mom to Easter brunch, she commented that she liked the seats). This is where one would be living and it's a great environment. However, for those who hear my rants, one foregoes having the ultra-reliable 3800 V6 for another OHV V6 engine with a technological twist that is fairly new. And, amen, they have managed to tune the chassis to tone down the tire thum that reviewers constantly complained about....what took them so long to make a chassis adjustment that really cranks up the motoring experience. I enjoyed my weekend zipping around Portland and its environs under constantly overcast skies and surrounded by the many inbreds (Tonya Harding et al) who should welcome the transplants instead of snarling at them. Thumbs up to 2006 Monte Carlo....KnightFan will be glad to hear that, I'm sure!
