bobo

Buick is on its way to becoming a niche brand. They need to do an upward march, but its core of LeSabre and Century buyers is being abandoned. The Lucerne nameplate is trying to appease luxury car buyers and entry level full-size sedan buyers. Kind of like how the final Aurora had to satisfy 88, Aurora, and 98 buyers, and the result will not be big sales.

I'm not surprised that the Ridgeline is tops in this survey because this is really about content and features and not really attractiveness. Styling is subjective. After all, the Aztek was tops in 2001.

For a Chevrolet, the Tahoe interior will exceed expectations. Neither Ford, Dodge, or Toyota currently have impressive interiors in either design or materials. Granted, Fords are probably currently the most attractive, but material quality leaves a lot to be desired. The real test for GM interiors will come with the Escalade, and there's no reason for it not to match the Range Rover's.

GM owner and enthusiast. But I'm a realist and know that not everything that GM puts out is great. Actually, I would say that most of their products lag the rest of the market, but they have a few bright spots and have potential in other areas. Even though GM is my favorite car company, I will not hesitate in buying a competing product if it is better.

JiangLing apparently does have some business agreements with Isuzu. So it does appear this vehicle is in fact a 15 year old Rodeo, and it's not surprising that its crash test results would be more appropriate for a vehicle of that era.

There was also a Z26 for the Beretta to replace the GTZ model. The Cavalier Z24 model was introduced for model year 1986 and it came with a 2.8 liter V-6. The Lumina Z34 started out with the Twin Dual Cam engine but later got the 3800. The Z24, Z26, and Z34 designations just tried to capture some of the glory of the Z28.

LA Autoshow is in January and then November of next year. The California Autoshow, where the Yukon will be unveiled, is in Anaheim, and I think it's smart that GM lets California have the first peek.

Overall, a very impressive effort. Here are a few of my thoughts: Styling is modern and crisp except for the windows in the rear doors, which look too much like the last generation Blazer's and do not match the rest of the styling. The taillights are perhaps too big, but overall a very clean look. HID headlights would have been nice on the LTZ. The interior is a huge improvement. The style leapfrogs the competition. The center stack has an attractive symmetry, but the radio is too far from the driver and too low. Steering wheel controls need to be standard now. The climate control system is especially low, though that will not be a big concern for units equipped with climate control. The protruding center stack appears to preclude a center passenger. Perhaps models without a center console will have the center stack flush with the dashboard? The downside would be an even longer reach to the controls. The additional length and weight are not good. The Tahoe can handle the additional length, but it would be bad if the same thing happens to the Silverado or Suburban because they would not fit in a lot of garages. Additional weight is expected for the additional features, especially the safety features, but 400 pounds is a lot. With rack and pinion steering now instead of recirculating ball, steering feel is probably much improved. The 4-speed transmission is disappointing, but not having a new 6-speed transmission is one less thing to go wrong on a new vehicle. The existing 4-speed unit is not particularly smooth though. I'm surprised the 4800 engine is still around. Why is it still here? Does it make sense for GM to continue to develop it?

Here's an unattractive specimen for sale for $19,000: I'm sorry, but that Mark V-esque opera window is gaudy. However, This one looks pretty good, for only $11,750: The paint job looks good except for how the two-tone paint sweeps down with that kink. This "Eldomino" is a curiosity, for $6500:

Ooooohhhh... :) Gorgeous. The gray over burgandy is absolutely fetching.

I saw a red convertible '78 or '79 Cadillac Seville today, possibly a Milan conversion. Yesterday I saw my first 2006 Malibu on the road. I like the old nose better.

I'm not really a Cayman fan, but that Mitsubishi concept gives them some hope after years of the failed geomechanical styling or the current swollen styling themes of the Eclipse and Galant.

I suffered with AOL dial-up for years, and then got DSL. It was much faster and reliable. Then I went to Comcast cable, which hasn't been as reliable, but is faster. With what SBC/Yahoo is charging for DSL, there's no reason for anybody to be on dial-up anymore.

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2 and 3 go together and should be a single entry.

Escalade, because it's one of GM's most important image vehicles. But the GMT900 that I want to see the most is the Avalanche.

Here's your old sig: http://www.kriskurek.onestop.net/cg/GMTruckGuy74b.jpg

The black mirrors on the G6 look oh-so-cheap. The decklid of the G6 Coupe is kind of like Pontiac's take on the Bangle trunk. I find the G6 to be an agreeable vehicle. Not terribly sporting, but a nice enough ride. The G6 interior, with the high beltline, has that cocoon (some would say closed in) feel that designers seem to be striving for these days.

The original P-body was the Fiero. As for the Chinese Regal, I think the interior does look better than the LaCrosse, but both vehicles suffer from too much black plastic.

Finally saw a Subaru B9 Tribeca on the street.

I'm a little disappointed with Honda not having a V-8, but I have a feeling that they will be doing some impressive things with a V-6 hybrid.

Yup, the whole hatch needs to get replaced and probably a whole lot more needs to get fixed.

The Bangle bustle has been univerally derided. I don't know why Mercedes, Toyota (Avalon), Acura (RL), and Hyundal (Azera) have adopted the styling theme.

I once saw an older RAV4 that got rear-ended. Because the vehicle didn't have a real rear bumper, the external spare took the brunt of it, and the result was not pretty. The silver RAV4 with the external spare looks a little bit longer than the dark gray one. Notice the longer side window in the cargo area.

The big 2005 pickups and SUV's got a new air dam. Combined with a few other minor aerodynamic tweaks such as sealed tow hooks, these changes added 0.25 mpg over previous years. The Equinox probably has its air dam for a similar reason.