Flybrian

A Malibu is a nice idea. HHr is now in the running as is a new idea, an Isuzu Iwhatever version of the Colorado if they end up to be cheaper than a Chevy/GMC equivalent. As far as the rough ride, my dad is someone who never really cared about that as "its a truck," and he's also looking at utility as a factor as well, so a Malibu MAXX? He does like the HHr.

It would be a commuter car, but mainly to take the wear & tear off my father's car. I should mention he gets mileage reimbursement from his work, so that's not a huge issue - mainly the price and usefulness. I should also mention that, uh, most things Japanese are a negatory. That's just how it is and if he's putting down most of the money, I have no right to argue. :) CSpec, a Vibe is a great idea and I really like the car. My problem is that a GT can get a little pricey and I cannot stand the base 1.8l's output or driving qualities. A used one might not be bad, though, depending on what's available.

Mileage is pretty high on the Bonneville given its age, plus its been in two accidents, one requiring nearly $12,000 of repair work, so I doubt we'd get much on resale and a dealership would likely junk a car like that due to its accident history. I don't think either of us could stand seeing a car that shines and gleams more than a Mercedes on the showroom floor meet a fate like that. I ran it on KBB and it gives me like $5000 for trade-in, and again, that doesn't take into account the accidents. My Aurora is even worse, about $2700 trade-in and that's not figuring the two moderate accidents it's been in either. We figure putting $2000-3000 makes a whole lot more sense than trading in a car we love. Even if we park one and never drive it again, its ours and we paid for it.

My father's Bonneville is getting up in miles (98k and change) and my car is as well, but mine is almost a decade old while his is a little over five. The reason for the near 20,000mi/yr average for his car is that his job requires that he drive anywhere between 40 and 100 miles a day five days a week, sometimes even a bit more. So far, the Bonneville has proved itself an exemplary car with only a broken oil pressure sensor as the only non-accident related problem since the factory warranty expired. We have a 100,000-miles extended warranty through Geico with a rather high deductable to cover most major issues, but obviously that's coming close to the end. So, we've begun theorizing about having a third vehicle, mainly for commuting. This would keep the mileage down on the Pontiac and also I'd be able to use it for a road trip or something like that to keep my mileage down as well. This wouldn't be a soon purchase, of course, but perhaps by this time next year. Naturally, I'm lobbying for a Lucerne. I admit its really unnecessary to have a third fullsize luxury sedan, but the genuine appeal of the car to me wins me over. Plus, it would complete our G-body B-O-P trifecta with a first-gen Olds, second-gen Pontiac, and third (last?)-gen Buick. My theory also being that by this time next year, there will be an unwanted '06 Lucerne sitting on some lot while the '07s come out. My father, being more reasonable, wants a truck. If new, something like a decently-equipped Canyon as he likes the GMC styling more or a low-mileage used Sierra. I suppose by that that time as the new GM trucks begin to roll out, the leftover Sierras will be heavily-discounted. A new wild card is a compact hatchback. I showed him the Aveo Spring Edition package and 'built' one for the fun of it. With GM Card discounts, rebates, etc, I figured an Aveo at the price of a Spring Edition would mean only a $200/mo payment, which he absolutely loved. He also didn't think the Suzukis were bad either, notably the Aerio and Forenza wagon, both of which would come around that $200/mo figure. He especially like the 10/100 warranties on the Suzukis. So, there you go - the economical, the practical, and the ridiculous. We'll see how it pans out. :)

That...makes sense? Some old Mercury with a Breezway rear window.

More like fucking retards. And they really wonder why they get hurt, too.

Remember, the Ford T-Bird was in Die Another Day...for four seconds.

As options. Straight from the 2006 Lucerne brochure... Navigation is listed on the spec sheet as optional on all Lucernce trims. Wood & Leather wheel is located on the same two pages as a tasteful rear deck spoilers, Walnut Burl wood shifter, 18" chrome wheels, and chrome-plated exhaust tips under 'GENUINE BUICK ACCESSORIES.'

I would say Bricklin's Chery, but that would mean some fool would've had to buy into his plan.

Think he's referring to law enforcement vehicles, not some other federal, state, or municipal organization. Anyway, still not true. Obviously, domestics are preferred for their origin as well as their affordability (domestics give better fleet deals), their ease of maintenance, their durability, and their expertise in building police vehicles for American usage. Keep in mind, most countries outside the US and Canada will use anything for a police vehicle, usually smaller vans and MPVs and intermediate/midsize sedans since they operate their vehicles on a decidedly less-intensive scale than we in the US do, especially in terms of ranged, long-duration highway pursuits and interceptions. Try taking down a fleeing Mercedes S430 in a Fiat Panda.

I'm going to chime in and disagree about the base Bonneville looking real great. I assume you mean because it doesn't have the tusk foglamps and ass-heavy sideskirts of the SLE/SSEi. I'll give you that, but I counter with the lousy single exhaust setup, and lack of spolier on some super base SEs. I would then argue the GXP is the second-best-looking Bonnie of all time and best overall. Best-looking is the '57. Some cars have rockets in the back, some have 'rockets' under the hood (Olds), but the '57 had a Rocket on the side of the car! C'mon, how cool is that?

Fieros catch fire, BV. Haven't we told you that enough?

What...a...fucktard.

Point yourself to ImageShack.us and upload them there. How did the Ranch fare after the storm, by the way? :)

UGLY NEEDS MORE CHROME Seriously, I think this mollifies the complaints about power...

Oldsmoboi, I've been told both things, usually by alternate sources; Caddy tells me go to Buick because of the platform and 'its not a Cadillac', Buick tells me to go to Caddy because 'its a Cadillac engine.' I realize more and more that to be a Classic Aurora owner, you have to love the car because it can very much be a pain in the ass to deal with. At least the 2nd-gen shares alot more in common with later-model Sevilles, Bonnies, and LeSabre/Parks, whereas the closest cousion to my car is the Riviera, which shares virtually nothing in regards to the drivetrain. Worse, there were only about 90,000 '95-'99 Auroras sold, so going to a junkyard is almost futile. BV, yeah, I gained a new appreciation for power steering.

Just so you know, Sixty8, don't do anything stupid like suicide, no matter how depressed you are. If you do, FWD wins.

Looks foolish.

Pistons. Teledyne-Continental to be exact. 210hp apiece.

??????

Charger needs a better interior and more distinctive rear-end styling. Those two things make it a solid winner, IMO, Hemi engine and RWD or not. Even without them, its a damn fine car. I've seen a few in black and blue and it makes for a handsome sedan, far better-looking than the bland 300. I still don't know what happened there.

Custody battles are super fun. Try being in one; I was. You wouldn't believe half the things my mother said about my father to the court, factual or otherwise. I was shocked myself. Anyway, good luck.

Well, Thursday the SES light illuminated in my Aurora, which coincided with an increasingly loud growling noise from the engine bay. Over the course of the day, it grew louder and was noticable under acceleration close to the shift points. Since I finished up work late, I had to wait 'till Friday to get it looked at. Took it to a local Gemini/Goodyear shop since I know the gents and they were able to squeeze me in as soon as they opened and they, well, couldn't get at it to figure it out. I call Scott Buick and they were apparently so swamped it wouldn't be 'till 2pm that I could take it down. Damn. Next stop, Dick Norris B-P-GMC where we bought our Bonneville. I know those guys better, so they were able to get me in rather quickly. Well, they found out generally what the problem was - SES light was throwing off a code for the transmission speed sensor and the growling noise was related to it. However, they couldn't get a better look at it or fix it because they don't have the tools needed to work on my engine. No charge for the diagnostics, though, and off I go to Dimmitt Cadillac to have them take a gander. I pull into the service bay and this kid my age comes out and asks what they can do. I explain briefly to him and he looks at me, looks at the car...looks at me again, looks at the car some more, and then gives me the best response ever... "This is an Oldsmobile." "Yeah..." "Its not a Cadillac." "...Yeah...?" "We sell Cadillacs here." "...Yeah...?" "Yeah." *PAUSE* "Okay, well. Can I just speak to a service tech then?" "Yeah, okay. But I dunno if they'll be able to work on this. I mean, its not one of the cars we sell here." So, the tech comes out, confirms they indeed can work on it since they have the requisite tools and such, and I'm scheduled to bring the car in first thing Monday to have it worked on. All under warranty, too, thank God because we're talking possibly a $30 part with a 10-15hr shop time requirement since they have to tear apart the transaxle to replace it. That's not counting whatever else could be wrong with it or anything else they find while they take it apart. Chapter II comes when I'm driving home from that. I see my girlfriend after her work and I'm about a mile and a half from home when I hear a subdued but noticeable "BANG." I think I hit a pothole until the VOLT light comes on, my DIC tells me to CHECK CHARGE SYSTEM and the steering boost goes dead. So, here I am at 5:30pm on a Friday afternoon driving down US19 at 55mph driving a two-ton car with manual steering. Fu-un. I obviously pull over into a Honey Baked Ham parking lot when I notice a little bit of smoke coming from the engine compartment. Ah, shit. Got out, popped the hood, and WOO-HOO! FIRE! Not a big one, though; a flame about an inch high coming from the alternator area. So, what do I do? I lean in and blow it out. I looked like an ass probably. Oh well. I managed to limp the car home after waiting awhile to make sure it wouldn't flare up or explode or anything. Car drove fine otherwise. So, now I get to have Dimmitt do both things. Oh well. I guess this is as good a time as any since I have about 400 miles left on my GMPP warranty. I should get a rental on Monday or at least a loaner car. My policy covers me $35/day for about 5 days, so it should be fixed(?) by then. Enterprise knows me by name now probably. Oh well. Its not so bad I suppose, I mean, it'll be repaired at a total cost of $100 for me. It also gives birth to... Also, thank you, GM, for providing Buick dealers the tooling and manuals to repair Oldsmobiles so problems like this wouldn't inconvenience Olds owners like you said you would do. Oh wait. You didn't. Thanks again. So, how was YOUR weekend? :P

Psycho bitch on wheels.

Jesus Christ, does no one take the time to READ? Reg, as for the XUV, I would say its very innovative. Though the concept is old, XUV has many appealing features - full-power operation of the skygate and midgate and fully washable rear cargo area among them. What killed it, IMO, was poor advertising/delivery timing (ads ran and no cars were on the lots), the price, and the aquired styling. I think a cheaper, manual version would've sold quite well, with the production truck serving as the flagship Envoy XUV and 5-pass/midgate and 7-pass/regular cargo area versions with a choice of manual or power skygates.