trinacriabob

I had to be somewhat cheap when I was in grad school. I think that spilled over into my post school life. I would say conservative. Look for coupons and good sales. Not into toys (electronic type stuff) very much. The reason I am hanging on to my car isn't so much the money, but an upcoming transition that I don't want a new car in the midst of. Where I do spend money is on travel. But that's once a year and then the filler short-haul trips in between.

No way. You ran over somebody with a moped. :P

I love GM and their cars or I wouldn't be here. As well as they have treated me and my parents, I doubt I am going elsewhere. Needless to say, all of the bad press has left me in a funk, feeling a little perplexed...and analytical. So, one has to think of what may be going south at GM. I voted for QC but think it is both this and cost control. I read Consumer Reports. I look at how Toyota steals the show with an uninterrupted parade of "red dots" for the various systems in their cars over the years (Buyer's Guide, et al.). I then look at Cadillac and will see either a partial or a full black dot for some components...and in recent years, no less. That is what pisses people off. It's simply not acceptable...especially for the kind of money one shells out for a premium brand. GM isn't doing the math. If you have a car that is fantastic 10 years from when you bought it, you will buy another...and another. So, in 30 years, you will have bought 3 cars from GM. Now, if GM sells a car that, due to planned obsolence and mechanical mishaps, causes the buyer to dispose of it in 5 to 7 years, then, over 30 years, you will have sold them 1 car. It's not hard to figure out. I, myself, have landed on mostly "red dot" vehicles, like some mainline Buicks, so I am exempt from this. Other cars make for a poor showing. The other is cost control. GM is kind of a big elephant. It's not svelte in its maneuvers. It needs to avoid too much duplication and reel in costs (thank God Roger Smith is no longer around...that could be scary). They can work on this. In fact, this is probably an easier thing to turn around then the number 1 item I refer to in the preceding paragraph. It would be interesting to hear what others interpret to be GM's shortcomings that have led to its current situation.

Again, since I started the thread, the only reason I love the 3800 is that it powers the most reliable car I have ever had...now at over 220,000 on the original (complete) powertrain. The Regal's only issues have been some minor electrical items going south, a couple of cooling system issues and one suspension/front end issue. This car has done better than a Cutlass Supreme with an Olds Rocket 350 V8 I had in college and I thought THAT was supposed to be the best engine ever. (It was smoother though and had that characteristic Rocket V8 whoosh...I can hear it now). Now, as for me, I will make my next purchase opting for the 3800 V6. I seriously want GM to have success with newer OHV and HF engines, it's just that, in marketing parlance, I'm a "late adopter."

Coming into the office this AM, I thought about this. Now, today I am moving my office (a swap with a neighbor) to get away from this chick who talks way too much...to others, to me...and needs lots of attention. I need to get my work done. Other than this and a couple of others, everybody is amazingly pretty cool. There are few cliques to speak of. There are about 35 people in the office. I think it comes down from the partners in the firm...they are very casual and even do rotating kitchen duties. Some people here are insanely funny. At the last firm I worked, in 2003, the partners were absolute jerks...they thought they were better than middle management and the staff employees, didn't roll up their sleeves and only looked for the negative (who and what wasn't keeping them in the chips) ... and they got fired in a shake-up. C'est la vie. At any rate, I feel pretty lucky to work with a cool bunch of people. As long as I am left to work fairly independently and I can periodically be my obnoxious self, I am pretty happy. What's your work situation like?

This thread should be dedicated to Intrigued. The dude probably refers to alcohol more than anybody on the site! (That's ok, I make a good counterpoint...I probably have consumed the least amount of alcohol than anybody on this site given that I come from a religious background where you CAN drink ). Intrigued, we want a report on your consumption for our entertainment. As for the pecker problem, that would come more from a cold ocean (no, not YOU Ocn) than from drinking, though the play on words just occurred to me.

That's ALL it takes to get to NYC from where you are? Man, I have to remember that the states are much more compact over on that side. Or, is it just the way you drive? Glad you had fun!

Fly ...that's a riot...same thing around my Mom's area...there's this big fancy retirement home and at least 1/4 of the cars are B-U-I-C-K s. Seniors are a growing demographic. It is a marketing segment that CANNOT be overlooked. Long live blue-hairs, Buick and the stalwart 3800 V6. Now...now...were not going to go down the 3800 path on this thread, capisce?

This one is a real winner. Just kidding. No. The place I live is built on a slab and is newer. Now, when I had a townhome outside of Seattle, it was built over a crawl space. For some reason, I had to go down there and found some mousetraps that the previous owner had left behind. There were some remnants of a decomposing rodent in one. But I never saw any when I lived in it for over 3 years. How the hell does one come up with a poll question like this? :blink:

Ocn, I am really sorry to hear about your dog. I had been wondering about that. In November, while in So. America, I came across two black (mostly Lab) pups that were abandoned in an empty lot being readied for a new house within a fairly nice enclave of homes. I stopped my car at the curb and went to check on two tiny creatures I saw moving around within this lot. I sat on the ground and they immediately were all over me, yelping, pawing and licking me. They were no more than 2 to 3 months old. I eventually flagged down an Argentine chick in a Mercedes SUV (like Croc's, I guess) and talked her into taking them home with her. She lived around the block and said she had not seen them when she was taking a walk through there in the morning. I gave her my e-mail to let me know how they were and I never heard from her. Today, I talked to my best friend from college who now lives in San Diego...big, big dog fan. I told him how my mind was spinning at the time as to how to bring them back into the states (with check ups, air arrangements, the fact that I had another 6 days of vacation in another city - B.A., quarantines) and opted not to. He said he probably would have brought them back. At any rate, 2005 was NOT great for me: 1) taking classes at night, so feeling a little stretched 2) our office dynamics have changed. we used to be in a low-rise, residentially styled and informal building but are now in a true office building. we added this one chick, previously an intern but now a full fledged employee after graduating from college, to our group who is a high maintenance brat who criticizes everything and everybody and has really spoiled the more laid-back, "water off a duck's back" environment that prevailed before. she is in the office across from me and I am moving my office space tomorrow when I get in. 3) 2003 was the year of turmoil over getting my mom to do an estate plan and 2005 was the year of turmoil in disposing of an asset held in common between me and another family member, but I got through it. I don't want to do any family admin. things this upcoming year. Yeah, I'd say 2005 was generally shitty for most Americans: 1) war 2) Katrina, Rita, Wilma 3) GM and the ripple effects among others. Here's to hoping and praying for a better 2006 for all! Cheers.

That's effin' great. So when he does forget to bold a post will be indicative of senility setting in, right?

Damn right. It's excellent. I've looked at it carefully a few times. The detail is commendable and it really captures the attention.

I want to hear better stories than mine. New Year's Eve - worked the whole day while others split early. Went on a mission to clean up my whole place and put everything in order for the new year and got a damn good start - paperwork, backing up computer, etc. Went out and chatted with neighbors at around that time. New Year's Day - was an idiot... went to Tahoe. Thought I'd have the place to myself... 65,000 people had partied there the night before and were still hanging around. 20 minutes in line at Starbucks, etc. I got over the pass over there without chains. Started raining at about 5 pm and, at 6,000 to 7,000 feet, it was snowing but with negligible accumulation. I followed the swath other cars/trucks had made - fortunately, there wasn't chain control. I'll go up another weekend when it's quieter and there's no iffy weather in the forecast. New Year's day off (Jan 2) almost complete with my clean up mission. Let's hear it.

Wait...where'd you go?

And that's what I've been saying for months. A sportier tapered front fascia/grille, like the last gen Regal LS and GS (and NOT like the last Century for God's sake) ought to be modified a bit, updated and grafted onto the LaCrosse/Allure.

To Pantho: Yeah, I can tell from the spelling errors To Ocn: It can be bad but it doesn't have to be. Work on enjoying quiet time on your own ... it can be very relaxing ... I sometimes don't want to be around my friends for extended periods of time. Also, my parents used to say "Meglio solo che mal accompagnato" - translation "Better to be on your own than with company that is not appropriate for you" but, not knowing the specifics, I can't comment on your situation and this is probably what you don't want to hear. Happy New Year to both of you. WTF, I may go dunk myself in some hot springs.

I think that this competent car (easy to live with, day in and day out...as Bobo quoted) looks good from the side profile and sports a nice looking rear tail lamp / rear deck lid combination, whether straight on or from a quarter view. I think that the front is a MISS...just look at the Lucerne. LaCrosse's looks part Taurus and part Jag entry-level model. It needs to be something that can't be equated with something else. I gave it an "EH."

A lot of GM's products do seem to trail a little bit in following an example across either "pond." However, looking at Toyota, it too has some stalwarts in its line up that are successful and where changes occur slowly. They also make ground breaking moves. Nothing wrong with keeping some reliable products around and freshening them as long as this is accompanied by breakthroughs that garner some attention...and sales. (Just noticed you are in LA...didn't realize there was this much West Coast representation on the boards) Some good points, to be sure.

Thanks, and to all others with similar kind words. BTW, great shot of Philly (poor Ben is either hiding or I'm not looking hard enough).

Agreed - a couple of minor misses. Telescopic wheel should be standard. So should the heated washer fluid. They mention it in the commercials (which are very tasteful) and then you look at the sticker to see it costs $ 140 or so. Yes...Pwaulie...gotta keep that 3800 around for "blue hairs" like me....thanks for the thought. <_< Styling wise, this is a hit for Buick. I will have to say that it does look a little (a lot) VW Phaeton-like from the rear. Driving down the 101 one fine day, I caught up with this car I had never seen before, thinking it might have been a Lucerne...and it was a Phaeton. Sorry, no pix to post to make the point. But a car that ought to help further drop the average Buick buyers age.

Zoomtm. I'm going to come to Alabama to beat you up! :P Just kidding, buddy. Actually, in reading Cananopie's post above, he makes a lot of good points - about engines and their relation to price point, marketing niches, etc. Smart thinking!

That's gross. Not your plans...the movie.

Before I comment on the above, let's keep this on track and avoid the pot-shots. Yes, the above is true. I have a friend from college who has 2 small Japanese car daily drivers with over 200,000 miles on each ... and an old Porsche in the garage as a toy. Do I like the cars themselves? No. I remember one night last year when I was visiting him, he decided to drive from Whittier CA to Tijuana Mexico (Nick's favorite place - LOL). There is nothing quiet or comfortable about these cars, especially when they age. Now, doing the jaunt in an Olds or a Buick would have been different...and I could have gotten some snooze time at 3 am on the way back up. It's just that the 3800 provides the reliability TOGETHER with the packaging of a decent sized smooth riding GM vehicle some of us are accustomed to. Twenty years ago, the frame of reference would have been the Olds Rocket 350 V8. Part of my aversion to the HF engines is that I don't understand them. If I can't take a quick mental visual picture of what it is doing, then I lose interest. (It's harder to "picture" calculus than trigonometry, so I lost interest, to some extent). Another thing is that the numbers are not well established. We don't know how long a 3.6 VVT V6 typically lasts without a tear-down. We don't know the typical service life of the new 3900 V6. (BTW, I drove a 3900 in a rented Impala LS recently and it was gruff under throttle). If you get a company car or you trade in often, then this is less of an issue. I like to keep a car for as long as it runs well and looks good, so I look for a track record I can rely on. So, folks, do we like the LaCrosse or not?

Normal - 80 % Conservative - 15 % Aggressive - 5 % * * there has to be a lot of slack (wide open roads with nobody on them, etc.) for me to take this approach.

Nick's dancing milk carton was mentioned. But what about Silkey? I miss Silkey. Too bad he HAD TO GO.