regfootball

http://media.fcanorthamerica.com/newsrelease.do?id=17218&mid= I have to admit, i had forgotten that the pentastar was still not direct injection. I know they added EGR for the 2017+ Pacifica. It accelerates smoothly without fuss and racket. The Pacifica 9 speed is good, not great, but it does take advantage of the torque band of the engine fairly well. I feel like the newer GM's with the 3.6 the powertrain is tuned in a way that just doesn't make the 3.6 feel smooth. I felt that way with the Regal GS.

I think the pentastar in the Pacifica is a revised version of what might be still in the 300C, but i will check into that. I will agree, pre-2018, the regal 2.0 was not really as good as the last gen LaCrosse. I recall driving a LaCrosse in that 2013 time frame where the motor seemed quite zippy. Blazer i drove recently, despite being quick in numbers had a klunky drivetrain, wasn't smooth, seemed a bit unrefined. Just not a good time. then i drove a Ct6 3.6 and it was smooth as glass. I don't get GM.

a glimpse of how corporate stores could be. would you rather have the overlords up high pulling your strings, or would you rather the dealer magnate guy do it

the newest Regals, 2018+, the 3.6 may still feel faster, but there's not really lag on the 2.0 and to be honest the 2.0 is a better drive. that's just me not often being impressed by GM's 3.6. It seems to be good in some of the Cadillacs and sucky (to me) otherwise. At least with my perspective of having the superior Chrysler pentastar 3.6 v6 in a vehicle in my garage.

for me its not the basic silhouette per se' , its some of the character lines on the upper part of the sides and how they flow into the hood, which the grille is awkward as well. The greenhouse is ok and the flare from the drivers door into the front fender at the bottom, that's decent.

DRIVEN: 2019 Honda Accord LX 1.5t CVT, MSRP under 25k HIGHS: -Roomy, spacious, front and back, and in the trunk. Front seats reasonably comfortable. -Interior design and quality of plastics entirely nice enough for this price class. Clean, simple dash shape and console. Fake wood is decent, plastics are nicely grained. No complaints. -Its nice to not be in too much of a bunker. The side windows and glass area are generous enough that it is easier to see daylight out than some other competitors. Good front, rear and side visibility, comparatively speaking. -For a CVT, one of the better performing CVT's. And with good get up and go with a heavier throttle foot push than you would expect out of 1500 cc's. -Likewise, for a 1.5, the roll on acceleration is 'alright' as well. -The handling, steering etc. was pretty good. Maybe not worth the fellatio on Honda the buff books give the Accord, but nonetheless for this class of car it is at or near the top in this regard. The ride, as well, not too bad. (no, it's not 'sporting') -Dual zone climate comes standard with the LX. -I liked that the LX had the traditional shift lever and not the buttons or dial. -Simply put, a lot of the basics you need in this 'mid size' sedan class are satisfied well with the Accord. LOWS: -a CVT is still a CVT. Still 'rubberbandy' and still seems disconnected. Still laggy, and noise and drone. Just so much less of it than the CVT's 10-15 years ago. You just have to wonder how much more pleasing the car with be without the CVT and with a traditional stepped automatic.- -all manufacturer's play the trim level and packaging games. Even though this base trim had say, dual zone climate, you also don't have passive fob key access on the LX. If you want true keyless entry, you need to step up to the EX. Quite bush league / GM style. I will have to go back and see what safety equipment is on the LX trim. Power seat is missing here, which is truly acceptable for the LX I think, but you will want that as well. Moving up the EX gains you CarPlay / Android Auto, and blind spot / cross path detection as well. How do you expect to sell LX's without CarPlay or Android, I would ask Honda. -I wanted to hope this car escaped the Honda problem of the last handful of years, that being loud inside, not taking suspension noise and dampening it very well, perception of NVH issues....'tin canny'. It's like there is no sound deadener at all. This has been my impression on multiple Hondas the last 3-5 years. Stepping on the gas hard and getting the CVT drone only amplifies the problem even more. I just deeply imagine how much nicer this car would be to give up 1 mpg to a stepped traditional automatic and to push some sound deadening in the floor and manage the suspension so it takes road imperfections much more quietly. The perceived NVH is the biggest demerit of the car. -while I am coming around to accepting the styling more and more, it still is challenge to be happy with the strange styling. It really is going to take a lot to get this car out of the 'ugly' doghouse in my brain. At least the shape is functional and contributes to the good mpg and large spacious interior and trunk. It truly is up to the buyer to determine if they like the looks or not. -center console is a bit wide, knocks your leg a bit more than you'd like. Not fond of the screen sticking up out of the top of the dash either, although functionally it is not a problem. SUMMARY: A very decent car overall. But not manna from heaven the buff books would suggest, due to NVH issues and CVT. If you can tolerate the styling, CVT, and NVH issues, then this is one of the better options left in a now declining market. I wanted to test a Sport 2.0t and i imagine that will be a much more satisfying configuration. All this said, this a car i could live with totally if i needed to.

Céline dion is from outer space.

What will Peugeot have to give their cars away for the first five to ten years?

Haha, I agree 400 is the magic number I think for Alfa. And that’s what I told sales guy my cap would be for an Alfa. ? they had one with around a 500 lease. I think if they can lease lease them as cheap as the genesis g70 will eventually end up. Genesis will need to lease those for 400-450. I’ll just wait till some Chevy dealer gets super desperate and find another Malibu to lease for an absurdly low pynt...like 250

Ding! Winner. Alfa hasn’t figured out how to lease these out yet. The sales dude who went with me on my Stelvio test drive last week said they conquest some bmws but bmw sets up their lease to hook the first timer and then when you try to return it they knock you with fees so bad for ‘damage’ and other stuff. They ‘lessen the damages ‘ if you re-lease And the douche cycle begins and you can’t get out that’s how bmw does it And yes, a huge warranty would help them sell cars too. Yup. If anyone wants to see my test drive of the Stelvio write up I got that in the forum a couple days ago. Stelvio is nice enough that it should sell. It just needs leasing and incentive programs.

check it what do ya think? https://carbuzz.com/news/2020-cadillac-ct5-looks-stunning-in-all-colors All I still see is

OUCH GM

I wonder. Recently with bad snow some of the stations have been getting water in tanks. But this was weird. It’s like twice now the brake switch for autostop has been confused. But for a check engine light to come on is troubling. The CEL went away when I restarted the car.

Car did some weird sh-t just now at stoplight with the autostop. Engine stuttering and check engine light and stabilitrak warning and behaving like it wanted to stall out. A few months back I had one time where there was a problem with the brake switch and auto stop I had lost my brakes for a bit and the car didn’t want to move ahead appropriately. Hmmmmm.....

Few are longing for the Sonic to be replaced, although I get the gist of your question....... I don't think the Sonic is officially dead yet, either? No possible way to sell something smaller than the current Trax and have it be appealing as a volume model.

https://www.cheersandgears.com/forums/topic/91655-driven-2019-alfa-romeo-stelvio-ti-sport-awd/ ^^^ my Stelvio review So to answer the question. I think I've seen the Blazer now actually getting decent reviews online / buffbooks-websites. Not glowing, but decent. I think when you get a Blazer that is specced at 50k and a Stelvio that is specced at 50k its an interesting comparison. The Chevy would be a Premier or RS and be fairly loaded up. I think 'middle America' would probably be more 'comfortable' in the Blazer... the Stelvio is a better vehicle dynamically and for fun driving experience and has the better interior environment. Since so many vehicles are hitting that 50k point I don't think I can answer absolutely here. Think of all the other competition in this zone also (Jaguar etc.). If I am looking at a 50k Blazer I probably hedge my bets and take the 50k (what price actual) and look at so many of the other GM options here. Traverse, Enclave, XT5, Acadia Denali..... but some GM fans don't want a huger vehicle or a third row. So for those folks the Blazer is their world and a foreign car, despite being better dynamically, will seem out of the mainstream or will be weird. Once the inevitable GM discounts kick in, the Blazer will become a better value...just enough for the middle America folks to pull the trigger. The Stelvio is definitely a better vehicle in many ways (except the rear sear is too tight). I think actually an Edge ST intender may be the best direct comparison to the Stelvio. The Blazer just becomes the default option for those who want to say they've moved up the food chain over an Equinox. With the 2020 Blazer getting the 2.0 LSY as an option, I see it possible that a FWD 2.0 Blazer may be a nice stealth rig for less money.

GMA reports that the 2.0 turbo LSY engine will become an option on the Blazer for 2020.

I think part of ditching the Cruze is, I bet the next trax will sell in way higher volumes and be imported

Now GMA is reporting that the 2020 Blazer will get the LSY 2.0 and 9 speed as a powertrain choice. (Like the Acadia will)

https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/car-technology/a22126727/brake-by-wire/

DRIVEN: 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Ti Sport AWD; (around 50k) HIGHS: -Sexy, sporty, attractive as a crossover these days can be. Love how you can get different colored brake calipers on this thing. -Very comfortable front row seating; lots of room and girth, bolstered seats hug you just right.......disclaimer: I would not get the bolstered seats, I am wider than the bolsters! and I hate climbing over them. The non-bolstered seats are just as comfortable and supportive. I will go so far to say that the seats are VERY GOOD, regardless if you choose bolstered or not. -Love the interior dash layout, and the gauges. The steering wheel is a rockstar, great size and feels nice. Paddled shifters in the right spot for fun, and the media display has a scroll wheel which I would eventually figure out. -I felt there was good visibility out front and back and not too much blind spot on the side compared to other crossovers. Big side mirrors help a lot. -The shapes of the dash plastic and doors give a nice cockpit feel and I was totally good with all the interior plastics, even if they may be slightly below some other luxury marques. -Comfortable thrones in the back. I will note below the leg room is short a bit IMO, but they it is still nice sitting back there. -Perfect height for entry and egress for those aging folks like me. -Well trimmed, large enough trunk, although some may say its a bit narrow. I think that is a perception because of how tall the rear seatbacks are. With seats folded, a very nice cargo area. -Performance, the engine is tractor like.....power builds in a linear fashion and the turbo makes for a nice torquey feel. The throttle is not programmed for an aggressive feel so sometimes you have to let it build to get into the meat of the torque band; it's not lag. When you ask for lots more, it kicks in well and has more than enough power...but the power delivery is not neck snapping. The transmission waits just a bit to kick down. Altogether its well matched and not jumpy like they could have tuned it. -AMAZING steering. Quick rack, great feel, particularly for an SUV. I want to see how this feels in a Guilia now. The steering is definitely the calling card of an Alfa Romeo. I might even suggest most folks (even those who think they are enthusiasts) would like the steering a SLIGHT bit less quick and with SLIGHTLY less weight and heft. But, no complaints. BMW tried making lighter steering and they got criticized for it. If you feel like you are searching for ANY kind of vehicle that has great steering these days, then be sure to check out the Alfas. -The ride was just about spot on. The one I drove had an adaptive suspension, but i am not smart enough to know if it was working or changing. All I know is this sporty car did not drive like a hard riding dump track, which is how older sporty cars were tuned.....firm up the suspension till it wasn't compliant just so you could say it was sporty. Nope, this a nice riding vehicle....I wouldn't even call it firm at all. Just about right to match the steering. -Nice to have a toggle wheel control for entertainment and screens. Just didn't get to figure it out. -You can get one with Red leather! LOWS: -I am going to have to research this, but there is something weird about the brake feel in this vehicle. Almost like a delay between when you press the brake and when it brakes. IS this brake by wire? Possibly.....The braking is fine but ability to feel what is going on, I need to find out more. Once you own this vehicle it may become a nothingburger, but it is a bit strange the first few times you use the brakes. -Maybe not fair to call a "no" since i didn't really use the media controls. Or Carplay. It seems like maybe the controls and menus would take some time to figure out to a high level and are not as glitzy as others' screens. -Although sit up high, and this drives similar to a sedan, this is still not a sedan. This may be the closest to feeling like a sedan a crossover will feel, but there was still that bobbing on the chassis and lightly tippy sensation you get from moving the mass up higher in a vehicle. I recommend if you like the Stelvio, drive the Guilia also (i did not....yet). -Vehicle feels heavy. Not heavy for a crossover (its among the lighter crossovers), but compared to my light sedan its heavy. Since the ride and handling is so good on this thing, it just makes the extra weight compared to a sedan seem that much more heavier on this thing. I feel like if it lost 200 or more pounds it would be that much more amazing. -Rear seat leg room and footspace could be more. This is one of the things they would make me hedge on this vehicle. It's plenty large in front, plenty wide overall. But the back seat would greatly benefit from 3-6 more inches of knee / legroom. For me, for example, as a family ride for the times I am in the backseat I need that room. Alfa buyers typically may not. I do think its close to deal breaker status. -It is your decision if you are confident in the Alfa brand and their reliability or not. I would probably not buy an Alfa (unless with a lifetime warranty). Lease one? 4 year 50k BTB warranty, you would be covered. -I do not know how this compares to the direct competition. Jaguar E or F pace, etc. I just know on it's own it is an attractive option but I surmise compared to BMW, JAguar, Mercedes, etc. you would need to think hard about the status and value equation of Alfa vs. the others. SUMMARY: So this was a fun test drive, and I really like this vehicle. I still prefer sedans and lower cars, I don't like crossovers generally. But this is a nice option to get something that can bridge your transition to a crossover and still have fun driving in comfort that goes with an SUV. I believe most will find the interior just fine and it is very comfortable for the driver and front passenger. It's not so bleeding edge biased toward performance that it isn't an everyday car. It totally is an everyday car. I'll give it an A-, with no egregious vices (except to determine if you like the brakes). And I just caution you that if you go to test one, try a Guilia too and determine if you really want a sedan or a crossover. Also I would say do your homework and test the competition (Jaguar, BMW, Mercedes etc). I'd have no trouble with one of these in my garage....IF I wanted a lux brand or sporting SUV.

I do agree, a bit of tone deafness on GM's part here, however, Michigan does need to eventually 'get' the global marketplace and quite honestly they are damn lucky GM is still in business, and still has HQ in Michigan. Michigan is not owed factories nor is Ohio by any birthright. It's cutthroat out there, 'foreign' manufacturers have all sorts of plants in many other places in the US and still manage to increase sales and market share and pay those US workers. Move to where those plants are if you want to work in an auto plant. Keep in mind all these plant closures are the first shot over the bow in union negotiation and studying the possibility of moving more production overseas. I am sure GM has it mapped out for the future to bring many more vehicles from China. Mary's GM needs to get a ducking clue, a lot of people want to buy GM because (in the past) a lot of stuff was made here and they want to buy American assembled. There is no good reason vehicles like the Blazer and Silverado should be made in Mexico. Cruze, sure.

A bit ambitious on price. It does not come in stripped version though. And the Passat is so old and drab, even refreshed, you only want the Passat if you want a cheap car now. The Arteon is way nicer and so that alone is worth asking the extra money for. A bit flabby on the flanks, i am getting used to the look though.

You're right, my bad. I read that originally so fast, the Genesis program is not a subscription service. And I doubt anyone who wants a G70 would want to stoop to either of the other two Genesi.

it says you can switch vehicles but i doubt anyone leasing the G70 would want to switch to the others.......ever.....