bobo

I approve. I always planned to get a Corvette ever since I took a bus at the age of 15 to Martin Chevrolet in Torrance, California, in March of 1983 to see the debut of the C4. I passed on the C5 because I never warmed to the big butt, and I eagerly awaited the debut of the C6. I went to the local Chevy dealer with the intention of putting a deposit on one before it came out, but they said they were not taking them because they did not know how they were going to price them, i.e. added dealer markup. However, when I drove the C6, it just didn't seem like me, and I decided to pass, other than later briefly considering getting a used 2007 that my next-door neighbor was selling. The C7 is taking the car to another level, but I don't think it's the right time for me to get a car like this when I have a two-year old, and my priorities have changed. However, it is still one of my goals to have a red Corvette someday. I love the refinement of the design inside and out. The small rear quarter windows do recall Ferraris, though my only potential issue is how it helps or hinders rear visibility. I would assume that it helps with the rigidity of the structure or reduces weight compared to bigger glass hatch. I'm not sure how I feel about the Stingray name, but it seems that the car has the goods to back it up. I agree that red is not the best color for the car. Dark gray, charcoal, or black would look best.

Not bad. I don't care for the styling of most of the new Benzes, but this one comes off ok.

$34k for the top-of-the-line SEL model makes this an excellent value. I know there are legions of loyal TDI owners out there, but VW's reputation of reliability always worries me. I mentioned this a couple of times before. In 1978 my dad bought a Cadillac Seville Diesel, and we all know how GM's early diesels fared. A couple of years later, some family friends bought a MB 300SD, and that car just ran and ran and ran. MB's lineup started with the 240D, and the diesel models actually cost less than their gasoline counterparts, if my memory serves correctly. With the fuel crisis in the late 70s, MB was fortuitous in their number of diesel offerings..

I think it's based on the Lexus GS platform. One good thing about this car is the increased rear-seat room, which could give it a slight edge over its competitors.

Steel wheels and no cruise control are ridiculous for the base model.

One of my favorite cars. Nice that you weren't overly harsh. I find the Prius to be pretty spacious. Materials are budget-oriented. I like the SofTex synthetic leather seats. I don't find the Volt to drive any better than the Prius. The Volt drives like an economy car to me.

It's amusing how surprised Honda is when they introduce ugly, uncompetitive vehicles and then they don't sell. I haven't driven an ILX, but I was not impressed when I sat in one.

It has some weird details, but overall a pretty inoffensive design. I think the ES350 is the best-looking Lexus now, despite its FWD proportions. I would have liked to see the hybrid available here. That would give me more interest in this car, but I think I'll pass now.

Saw a Scion iQ. I can't believe somebody actually bought one.

novel

Very cool. Happy motoring!

Spanish fly

As a presidential election year, 2012 was marked by wall-to-wall news coverage of the primary and general elections. On Election Day, the only people who believed that Mitt Romney, taken from a cast of unelectable Republican candidates, was going to win the presidency over Barack Obama was the Romney campaign and Fox News viewers. Mass shootings, at a Batman screening in Aurora, Colorado, in July and then the unfathomable massacre of children at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in December shook our sensibilities and sense of security. The war in Afghanistan, America’s second longest war next to Vietnam, persisted with a planned pullout scheduled in 2014. Superstorm Sandy pounded the East Coast, once again putting climate change in the news. The end of the world did not come as believed by some who misinterpreted the Mayan calendar. Other newsworthy items were Apple Maps being a disaster, Psy's Gangnam Style hitting a billion Youtube views, Linsanity sweeping the NBA with Jeremy Lin, Obamacare found to be constitutional by a split Supreme Court, the Facebook IPO being a dud, Lance Armstrong stripped of Tour de France titles, and Twinkies going out of production as Hostess Brands was shut down after a labor dispute. Notable passings included Whitney Houston, Larry Hagman, Neil Armstrong, Mike Wallace, and Dick Clark. In the automotive world, it was a year of continued recovery for most automakers, though the American arm of Suzuki declared bankruptcy and decided to call it quits. GM dumped marketing chief Joel Ewanick, supposedly over an unauthorized $559 million marketing agreement with Manchester United. Automotive legend Carroll Shelby passed on in May. Honda did a crash redesign to the Civic sedan after brutal reviews and just one model year. GM previewed the all-important new full-size pickups to mixed reviews. Toyota overtook GM in worldwide sales in the third quarter. And now, time for the Eleventh Annual Edition of Cheers and Jeers. It was a fairly quiet year on the boards. Old arguments about RWD vs. FWD, hardtops, and pushrods vs. DOHC have largely been replaced by lively discussions of alternative propulsion, the appropriateness of classifying four-door coupes as such, and the latest government-mandated nanny device. What hadn’t changed were continued vehicular angst by black-knight and Camino LS6’s adventures in his work and hobby vehicles. Design concepts and photoshops have largely disappeared, hence there will be no acknowledgements, other than to say thanks to MRDETROITMETAL for his occasional “art car” submission. And without further ado, here it goes: Cheers to GM for Best Retort in their forceful rebuke to the Mitt Romney campaign over their dishonest ad about shipping 15,000 jobs to China: "We've clearly entered some parallel universe during these last few days. No amount of campaign politics at its cynical worst will diminish our record of creating jobs in the U.S. and repatriating profits back to this country," GM spokesman Greg Martin said. Chrysler similarly responded to dishonest ads implying Jeep manufacturing jobs would be sent to China. Cheers to Cadillac for Best New Car Introduction in the world-class ATS, the most competitive challenger yet to the BMW 3-Series, though BMW is still in the process of introducing the 3 and 4-Series variants, and a new Lexus IS and Infiniti Q50 to replace the G37 are just around the corner. This bodes well for the new CTS and upcoming flagship and shows that vehicles only like the current SRX and new XTS are not necessarily representative of what’s to come. Jeers to Chevrolet for Worst New Car Introduction in the lackluster Malibu. It’s not that the Malibu is the worst car around, it’s just woefully outmatched in the competitive family sedan segment despite being a fairly good drive. It has an inexcusably tight rear seat, especially compared to its elegantly styled predecessor, which needed only a refreshing and some refinement to remain competitive. Supposedly Chevy will steer buyers to the new Impala, but why even bother with the Malibu when the Cruz provides a great driving experience for those who don’t need a roomy back seat. Cheers to Cubical-aka-Moltar for the Best Mea Culpa in declaring that a front-wheel-drive Cadillac is not the worst thing in the world after driving a DTS. “I drove it for about an hour tonight around town and on the freeway, it drives great..very smooth and quiet. I guess I will have to take back all the mean things I've said about FWD Caddies.” http://www.cheersandgears.com/topic/78907-new-car-in-the-drivewaycadillac-style/page__hl__cadillac Cheers to regfootball for the Best Thread, “New GM CEO: Mitt Romney” for its sheer entertainment value, though reg was sincere in the premise. Opening post: “Here's my proposition. Give Mitt a few weeks off to get some R&R. Ditch Dan the man, and bring in Mitt. He might be what they need.” Best Reply by Dodgefan: “This post deserves the Turd of Shame achievement. Congratulations.” http://www.cheersandgears.com/topic/80427-new-gm-ceo-mitt-romney/page__hl__romney__st__20 Jeers to the Worst Poster/Troll of the Year, Observing and Reporting, in a thread about Spyker suing GM. Excerpt: “It would have been very nice if GM in its entirety had been allowed to die. In reality, this suit seems reasonable. GM is focusing only on the Chinese market at this time as this is where their profits are being made. Their American cars, with the exception of a few buicks that are Opel clones, are junk. The Volt is a joke that is being propped up by government purchases and loss-leading leases.” http://www.cheersandgears.com/topic/79640-saab-news-not-this-again-spyker-sues-gm-over-saab-sale/#entry705952 Jeers to Hyundai for the Worst Dishonesty in having inflated EPA fuel economy ratings to show a fleet full of vehicles achieving 40 mph on the highway. Ford is also in hot water because of the 47 mpg claims for their new hybrids. This issue brought attention to the fact that automakers certify their own mileage claims. http://www.cheersand...pensate-onwers/ Cheers to Mudmonster and Oldsmoboi for Best Forum Feature with their Interactive Reviews. They are truly fair and balanced and well-written. Someone needs to teach Mudmonster how to drive a stick. Honorable mention to NINETY EIGHT REGENCY for posting old commercials, feature segments, and other retrospectives on vehicles from the good old days and bad old days as well. And finally, Cheers to all the loyal Cheers and Gears members who continue to contribute to the forums, from dfelt, in his oversized stature and promotion of alternative fuels, to GMTruckGuy74 for his unmatched loyalty to his favorite brand, to dwightlooi for his expertise in automotive and mechanical engineering, to A Horse With No Name for being firmly grounded in reality, to the insufferable CSpec for his posts on the free market no matter how right or wrong he is, and to all the others who help make C&G the best but not necessarily biggest automotive site. Hope everybody has Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year!

With Ewanick gone, I'm sure the tagline will be gone. It needs to be replaced with something that's more forward-looking than reaching back into the past.

I still haven't really warmed up to the new Silverado, but this would be my selection (though I would prefer the polished wheels rather than the garish chrome if that combination were available) if I needed to replace my 2005 Summit White 1500 Crew Cab:

dumbo

Mother knows best.

The initial decision was to kill the Caravan and keep the Town and Country in the U.S. It's a little puzzling because the Caravan is the slightly better seller. I like both minivans, and I think there's a market for both, the more luxurious T&C and the more basic, sportier Caravan.

I liked the MKR concept. The MKZ is quite nice in person. The new ad is nice. However, the brand has become irrelevant as Fords and all other entry-level brands have gone upmarket.

skunk

The old uplevel dash had a simple, elegant look, but I preferred the functionality of the lower-level dash. The new dash looks like it was inspired by the Camaro in a trucky kind of way, but parts could be better integrated. One thing that bugs me is that the latch of the glove compartment is in the center of the door rather than on the far left, where the driver could reach it.

I've got Motor Trends, Car and Drivers, Automobile Magazines, and Consumer Reports taking up lots of room. I've placed most of the older issues in plastic magazine files, but I also have stacks of magazines sitting around. I subscribed for Road and Track for only a few years, and I've dumped most of those. I still subscribe to MT, C/D, and Automobile, but I haven't even been opening up the most recent issues. These magazines are quickly becoming obsolete in a digital society.

When truck designers run out of ideas, it seems like they tack on a bigger, bolder grille and try to slather as much chrome as possible. There are many elements that are overstyled. That's what gives me a bad first impression of these trucks. That said, after a couple of days of looking at these, I can say that they are not that bad, and the looks wouldn't keep me from buying one should I find a need to replace my Silverado, and I wouldn't go running over to a Ford or Ram store. There is differentiation between the Chevy and GMC beyond the obvious differences in the fronts, but it doesn't appear to be meaningful differentiation, and for all that expense, it's too subtle. The current Silverado has some odd styling details, and there are definite improvements. However, overall, not much new is brought to the table. I will wait to see these in person before giving a full verdict.

This is unfortunate. Ugly and blocky inside and out. Not aspirational. Not gotta have. The current trucks look better.

imagination