DetroitNut90

Well, the Venture is definitely not GM's crowning achievement. I despise the design of the interior, the rear seat rattles like all get-out (50/50 split bench, the work of the devil, I swear to you), the seats can be uncomfortable during long trips, there's no tachometer (stupid cost-cutting move, thank you GM), and we have had 2 major problems with it (see here for more on our most recent, the other was replacing something in the rear of the van, I don't recall exactly what it was). However, the Venture scores big time in functionality. It has quite a cavernous interior with good room all around. The 3.4L V6, IMO, is nowhere near as bad as it has been made out to be in terms of power--the engine note is very pleasant (floor it, you'll see), it has abundant pull, and it's good on gas. The 4T65E shifts smoothly, it rides nice, handles good for what it is, has excellent ergonomics, and is pleasant-looking. For $3K, I'd say go for it. But be sure to get the hoses, battery terminals, and the intake manifold get checked soon, just so you don't end up stranded.

Yo quiero...

Kicking Tires

to kill

Detroit News

whipped

Detroit News

After a brief teaser of springtime weather (59* and sunny) on Tuesday, the week has steadily worsened until we got 4" of snow, which is now beginning to get iced over. It probably means no school tomorrow, but we're already 3 days into summer break with make-up days, I don't want to cut into it anymore. Amen to being ready for spring.

Kicking Tires

suede

Happy B-day K.C., glad to hear it was enjoyable!

Gorgeous...Audi is fast becoming my favorite German luxury marque.

IMO, Chrysler lost every trait of its styling from the 90s with the exception of its uniqueness. Every vehicle it currently makes is unique-looking compared to other manufacturers' offerings, but with the exception of the LX cars, minivans, Wrangler, and Viper, they're uniquely hideous.

Leftlane's not quite sure what to make of this one: Leftlane News

Alternating between Holden, Vauxhall, and Olds.

I did! My camera didn't feel like taking good pictures that day for some reason, so I apologize for the fuzziness. But the display did draw a fair number of people to it by the time I walked by it to head downstairs to see the other displays.

It's still not very pretty...I like the Aveo and Fit better.

6 4 7

Sweet...it's gonna be one good-looker when done!

I remember when my 11-year old beagle was that energetic (and thin)... Anyways, we got ~3-3.5" of snow, plus a coating of ice that gave the snow the consistency of a rock. School let out 2 hours early on Tuesday, and it's been closed since then. Factoring in President's Day on Monday, I'll have had a 6.5 day weekend when school starts again on Tuesday.

Inside Line's giving some insight as to why Chrysler may not be able to just use the Ram platform: They also throw this out for speculation: Inside Line None of this sounds like GM would really benefit from this...unless they charged Chrysler big $$$ to use the GMT-900 platform.

doberman

Leftlane News

True, the Scooter looked awful...but at least it doesn't have the Compass's hips.

Mom started talking about replacing the Venture recently, and we've narrowed the choices down to an '07 Grand Caravan SXT Special Edition, an '08 Grand Caravan SXT 4.0L (if she can wait 'till fall), or an '07 Outlook XR (the one I hope we end up going for). I, on the other hand, will add one of these to my driveway someday: