Flybrian

No. It needs lift and the motion of air passing over/under the airfoil, either generated artifically (wind tunnel) or by the plane moving itself through the air. This is speed relative to the air its travelling though, i.e. airspeed. Groundspeed is derived from your indicated airspeed and timing how long it takes you to fly over a certain distance and using one of these fun little guys... ...and indicated your motion relative to the earth's surface. If you have a tailwind, your groundspeed will be higher than your indicated airspeed. If you have a headwind, the opposite. Groundspeed is useful in calculating about how long it'll take you to arrive at your destination (navigation). Oh, and for the record, these are the different 'speeds'... Indicated airspeed Calibrated airspeed True airspeed Equivalent airspeed Groundspeed And, yes, we have to learn all those...except equivalent...because I'm not flying that high or that fast...yet.

Assuming that you're in realtively calm conditons (i.e., no gale-force winds), then no. And it never would, even if you ran it up to 1000kts. All you'd do is burn up the bearings at some point.

Yes, the Aurora shared very little superficially both inside and out with any of its G-body sisters. As a note, Oldsmobile the last of each model (d'uh) and the City of Oldsmar - which was founded by Ransom Olds back in the early 20th century as a future resort community - managed to buy one of the Final 500 Aleros. There was a time when certain members of the city council decided it wasn't financially worth it, but I suppose they were reminded what city they were in...Olds[/]mar. The town is a few miles away from me is why I mention it and they have a nice Olds rally every year.

The engine itself doesn't push the plane forward by any means of traction like an automobile engine would. Aircraft propulsion systems are intended to create lift by pushing the plane forward through air, moving air past the airfoil, etc. If by backwards you mean a wind coming from behind the plane, then no. The airfoil wouldn't be generating any positive lift, though the stabilizer may simply have enough air pushing under it to kick the plane onto its nose. Here's another one - can a plane gain lift if it remains perfectly stationary in realtion to the ground? Absolutely. Not only in wind tunnels, but I've seen this happen during storms. Your typical single-engine 4-seat plane weighs about 2200-2700lbs and has a rotation speed of about 45-60kts. If the plane isn't tied down too tautly on the ramp, it will actually partially or completely lift off the ground and settle back down because the wind passing under/over the airfoil generates the lift. Its groundspeed would be 0kts though the airspeed indicator would display whatever the windspeed is.

I don't know how close it was, but from the sound of things, it was no closer than the Signia, Regal Cielo, and a crapload of other concepts. So far, all post-concept spy shots indicated the vast, vast majority of the design both inside and out has held up to production. Naturally, certain show car elements will be disposed of, but I believe we'll all be pleased. I find this a little funny because many of the cars you mention were nothing but copycats of other divisions' models or within Buick itself. Also, I don't see why you consider the Rendezvous a 'copycat.' Certainly it shared little actual resemblance to the Aztek and within the marketplace, it was one of the first lower/midpriced crossovers, undercutting the RX, M-Class, and RDX by thousands. And cheap lease or not, Rendezvous single-handedly lowered the average age of Buick owners. No one is arguing the Rainier is a capacity plug and the Terraza is rather pointless with three other vans made by the same company. Your first statement here (like a few others you've made before) are spot-on and true. Buick has been starved for standout product as of late, no doubt. The LaCrosse and Lucerne are great vehicles, both competitive and high-quality, but they lack that flair and spirit that Buick should be impressing on the automotive community.However, the blame for this goes beyond a mere one man. Wouldn't it be lovely if Wagoner was really the devil incarnate and the removal of him would instantly solve GM's woes? But it won't. Pure and simple.

Final 500 Collector's Edition Page I say 'wealth' because, let's face it, there's not much about these cars, especially the Bravada and Silhouette. For example, there were only 360 'Final 500' Silhouettes made as the capacity was needed for the other vans. I hope to own one of these cars someday, even if it is a Silhouette. They mean something. Well, at least to me.

And the winners are... 1st place - Decka - 58pts 2nd place - Northstar - 42pts 3rd place – NOS2006 - 16pts 4th place – Ravenfreak13 - 13pts 5th place - Fijian - 9pts 6th place(t) - Wilde1988 - 5pts 6th place(t) - NOS2006 - 5pts 7th place - MRDETROITMETAL - 3pts Congratulations to Decka for his first place win and welcome to Wilde1988 as this was his first competition. Congrats on the good showing! Also thanks to everyone, of course, for entering and thank you for your submissions! We look forward to seeing you all next go around! Our Fourth of July Special is our current competition. Hurry and get your entry in before Friday the 30th!

Welcome to Choppin' Competition #22! To celebrate America's 230th birthday, we're inviting you 'choppers to create a ride dressed for the occasion. That's why this competition's goal is to design a patriotic GM vehicle to celebrate the 4th of July! Use you imagination with this one and change anything you'd like on any GM vehicle. You're encouraged to use creative scenery/backdrop to add to your 'chop. Size guidelines remain at 800x600, so please size your entry accordingly. Aside from which, it must also be a currently-manufactured GM vehicle. Other than that, go nuts. The winner will recieve a GM-related prize! Also, the top three 'chops will be displayed front and center on atop our C&G July 4th message. This will be an express competition with a shorter voting bloc of July 1st-3rd. Deadline is Friday, June 30th @ 11:59PM your local time. Good luck!

And the winners are... 1st - Bearrunner44 (30pts) 2nd - American_Revolution_2005 (18pts) 3rd - 04MonteIntimidator (16pts) 4th - Yellowjacket8942 (14pts) 5th - Yellowjacket8942 (6pts) 6th(t) - Burns, Burns, Yellowjacket8942 (5pts) 7th - Burns (3pts) 8th - TMP (2pts) 9th(t) - MDM, MDM (0pts) Perhaps someone at the Design Center should bookmark our Competitions page! A special congratulations to Bearrunner44, who won this competition with his first entry on C&G! Hoep to see some more work from you in the future. Congratulations to all and thank you to all who entered. I hope everyone (and more) will check out the Cadillac Coupe competition and sketch up some good entires. The 1st-place winner receives a GM-related prize as well as having their concept featured on the Cheers and Gears homepage and Design Showcase! Congrats and thanks again!

We could all just have nuclear cars like Ford envisioned in the 1950s. That was a well-conceived idea.

Buick needs a Riviera more than either two. Velite is a lousy name and looks a bit odd in front.

Are you current on your license/medical, 76?

I think we can all agree on this statement.

I only go to Starbucks because my girlfriend and I like the strawberry creme whatevers. Everything else to too expensive and most of the clientele are irritating. No one cares if you got your shoulder bag in Milan, its f-in' ugly.

The ability for a fixed-wing aircraft to fly is based on the speed (and pressure) of the air travelling over its airfoil(s). Therein lies your answer.

This story is Hispanic and white overlaps in so many facets and overshadowing that is the impossiblity to tabulate what baby is the 300 millionth. Someone just wants attention.

Ann Coulter and Katherine Harris would be the ultimate lesbo couple.

I don't understand why dropping rates on the '07 900s are a response to Chrysler's strategy. Chrysler doesn't offer a single appealing SUV in that category. Furthermore, the 2006 Chrysler lineup is mostly junk. I'd rather pay interest on a LaCrosse than not pay it on some Sebring. GM needs to use 0% APR wisely. If there's a glut of '06s, drop to 0% on those. Don't just 0-out everything.

How about not doing something so you won't have a massive mea culpa to tell us about come Monday?

That...was...priceless. And agreed - strange conversation > dying.

Nah, those wheels look hot, much hotter than those plain ones on the Volvo. Chrysler multispokes look very heavy, usually chromed-up with thick spokes. These car perfect.

Wrong. Like all G-bodies with notched fuel doors, it locks when the car itself is locked. So it is on our Bonneville.

Z cars were always cool. The rest of that vintage, however, were typical Japanese compact - plain, ugly, and junk.

I hate to, but I agree. When I watch the newer episodes, I feel like I'm doing an old friend a favor - I don't want to watch his stupid fastball tournament, but he did help me move last month. From inception to mid-life, however, Simpsons cannot be topped. Homer running the union, Mr. Sparkle, "Premium, dude, premium!!", "I choo-choo-choose you!", Willie = Iraqi fighter jet, "This isn't Moe's Tavern its...Bo's...Cavern," Sideshow Bob and the rakes, "No, I said steamed hams" "Turn out your pockets, man. *gasp* ATOMS!" and a million and one other classic lines and gags that will never be matched, replicated, or surpassed. I'd rather see my favorite show be put out to pasture while it still has its self-respect.

In terms of MSRP or actual transaction price, because $30-32k for a car like the GTO does not seem very unreasonable.