tama z71

Is the site going to return to the style it had before the server crashed several months back? This one is pretty blandtastic.

This guy gives a supreme display of douche baggery every time his pen hits paper. I hope he gets fired, because I know several people on this site and others that could write more accurately (and entertainingly) than him.

Jesus Jumpin Christ, you guys treat AH-HA and the other insiders like they are making maps to the holy grail. It was a general statement made using everyday rhetoric, quit treating his word like its a damned boardgame.

You like to use your seniority as a throne over those who see differently than you, dont you? Thats pretty respectable. :rolleyes: Your analysis sounds like you dont drive a truck. okay, great. The Ridgeline is aimed at people like you, right? It seems that Honda likes to advertise otherwise, as they make far greater mention of it's "truckish" capabilities than they do it's carlike attributes. So which is it? Does the Ridgeline appeal to car buyers or truck buyers? More than you think, there are still a tremendous group of consumers who want a truck to be a truck and couldnt be less concerned with carlike ride. The Ridgeline, apparently, is being advertised towards these truck buyers. So why the double standard? Half ton is not a scientific term, its rhetoric used to describe a full size truck. The connotation of the term half ton immediately alludes to silverado and F150. Go ask anybody what they perceive to be half ton. Your argument there is moot. The ridgeline is priced in the range of fullsize trucks, and cannot compete with them on any level of powertrain, towing or cargo capacity. The TOTY award is meant to recognize significance in the market. The ridgeline clearly does not have that significance, as Ive never seen a vehicle of the year experience such dismal sales. The award was misplaced, and your opinions, believe it or not, are not the be all and end all of the topic. Or am I too young to understand that?

http://motortrend.com/features/news/2005/1...ck_of_the_year/ Well, its a joke everyone. A big fat joke. Angus MacKenzie has clearly ruined what was once a credible auto publication. Im sending a letter to the editor regarding the subject, and would hope you would all do the same. Unbelievable. Astonishing. Disgraceful. There is no amount of hyperbole that can appropriately describe the joke that is your choice for TOTY. Have you taken a look at the reality of this thing? Eleven months into the year and they are 14,000 units short of their anticipated sales goal. The truck runs on a mini-van derived platform. It has only one bed-cab-engine configuration. It cant go off road (see how that unibody crap holds up against other trucks when the pavement ends.) Its priced as a full-size truck, advertised as a half-ton, and yet does not match even the lowliest full-size offering from other carmakers in any area. I remember when your winner was chosen based upon significance and impact in the vehicle's respective market. Obviously this choice was made regarding the notion that truck buyers are seeking car-like qualities, and as a truck owner, I can loudly proclaim bullsh*t to that idea. I subscribed to Motor Trend two years ago because I thought you guys made the most logical analyses regarding the auto market. Maybe you guys just lost your edge? Maybe its the addition of MacKenzie (and his presence pertains to a lot of newfound WHATTHEHELLS? in your mag). Either way, your publication just garnered toilet paper status in the minds of a lot of truck owners. Congratulations on ruining a good thing. I really expected more from you guys.

The ONLY song Chevrolet should use is 'Frankenstein' by Edgar Winter Group. And the original, none of that cover crap.

The sooner the Toyota claims the #1 World Sales Spot, the sooner GM will have the media behind them, as well as releasing some of the pressure for a corporate overhaul. Nobody supports the big guy: they all shoot for the underdog. I cant wait to see how the journalism once Toyota becomes number one and experiences the problems that come with the title.

Thats one of the best articles Ive read in a long, long time. This should be front page.

its looks like a damned pokemon

that sketch sucks mightily. It looks 90's old, HUGE overhangs, tremendous greenhouse, super-low slung beltline. That cant even be close

can someone post the article?

Well, who's on the block? Cadillac and Chevrolet are in the green, for obvious reasons. GMC is number 2 in sales, and a CASH COW as far as R&D and costs go. Saturn would be stupid to kill, as it looks to become the GMC of the car set (deriving products from rebadges of others within GM. Chevy = GMC, Opel = Saturn.) now... HUMMER, of all the brands, is worth more sold off than kept in house. Sell it, and to anyone but Toyota. Buick's future just isnt looking promising. Pontiac may very well be replaced by Saturn. Saab? I doubt they could sell it for much. Might go as a strictle EU brand. This is huge. Any brand cuts would be devastating. Let's see what the rest of the board will say to Kirk's goons.

Ugh, let this damned thread die already. Its so full of political correctness and near-flame wars that it should have been locked.

The profile shot comes as near as dammit to being identical to the last gen.

What?!! This is a GREAT commercial! It goes to help erase the "old person car" stigma with new technology, tasteful music, memorable taglines, and a slight bit of humor that mimics the avalon commercial. It's one of the best pieces of advertisement GM has put out for awhile (excluding HUMMER and Cadillac.) Look at the dynamics of the commerical and not the real message. It will have more subtle effects on consumers so that if it is advertised continually well and on a fairly regular basis, it can change the entire image of Buick. Think outside the box, fellas.

That one gets "quote of the year".

hudson, you made some well calculated and informative arguments, but to think that the automotive media is a bunch of purist drivers who favor cars without any predetermined favoritism is blind faith in their ability to be objective.

Foreign Autos Strangle Domestic Economy During an interview taken in the 1950s, former General Motors CEO Charles Wilson delivered the famous quote, “What’s good for GM is good for America.” Fifty years later, that bold statement holds as true as ever. However, 50 years later, GM is no longer the automotive juggernaut that it once was, and what is now bad for GM is proving to be bad for America, too. Whatever the cause for decline in American automotive dominance, GM has lost nearly half the market share it had thirty years ago, and that number continues to fall today. The losses have reached into the pockets of GM’s longtime rivals as well, as Ford Motor has experienced staggering losses and Chrysler was bought out by German based Daimler-Benz. The sweeping changes in power in the U.S. auto market have affected all members of the Detroit Big 3 (GM, Ford, DCX), but the happenings within the industry are best paraphrased by the current battle for sales supremacy taking place between America’s GM and Toyota, the darling of the automotive media. GM, known by most citizens as the Motown dinosaur seemingly incapable of producing an automobile on the same level of quality as the vaunted Japanese, is facing falling sales and a possible bankruptcy. Across from GM stands Toyota, the shiny, happy carmaker which will save the world with angelic gas-sippers that emit exhaust not in the form of harmful greenhouse gases, but in the form of hugs, kisses and baby farts. Sift through the sarcasm-laden hyperbole, and the point I am making is the general public is purely unaware of what kind of negative impact supporting foreign-sourced automotive companies has on the U.S. economy. For the many who are unaware of how large an impact GM has on the nation, consider this: during a 1998 labor dispute, GM shut down all North American operations for almost two months. During that fiscal quarter, the economic growth rate of the entire United States fell by one full percentage point. There is not another private company in the entire nation that can come near to having that kind of national economic influence. “That doesn’t matter, Toyota builds most of their cars in America now, anyways.” Wrong! Many would assume sparse amounts of foreign manufacturing coming to the States would negate the amount of domestic manufacturing taking place here. The simple fact of the matter is Toyota’s U.S. based output is dismissable compared to the production numbers coming out of GM. Toyota boasts eight North American manufacturing plants; General Motors has more than 50. If the above statement is not enough to satisfy one’s need for patriotic buying habits, consider the following statement. According to a June 2005 GM press release, the average GM vehicle is assembled with parts that are 86 percent domestically produced. Toyota’s domestic parts content falls well below 40 percent. Score one for the General. “Yeah? Well Toyota is creating American jobs. You can’t say they’re bad for the economy,” one might think. According to a recent press release from GMinsidenews.com, it is estimated for every percentage point of U.S. market share Toyota gains, 30,000 American jobs are lost from domestic manufacturers. Thirty-thousand is also the current amount of people Toyota employs in America. Toyota presently owns a 12 percent share of the domestic market. If Toyota were to reimburse the American workers it displaced and create 30,000 jobs for each percent of owned market share, it would need to immediately create 330,000 more American jobs to fill the void of the ones it eliminated. Even with a work force at 360,000 strong, Toyota would only have over one-third of the population of Americans who find employment in GM. For the math impaired, GM is estimated to directly or indirectly employ almost one million Americans. GM alone employs more people in America than Toyota, Honda and Nissan combined. Additionally, and as a final blow to the notion that it is economically acceptable to buy a Japanese car, GM’s contributions to the North American GNP are four times that of Toyota. More jobs, more industry and more influence. The effect of domestic automakers on the livelihood of Americans is far greater than the reach of Asia, Inc. (Toyota, Honda, Nissan). Current trends in car buying favor the foreign makes, and the American automotive media itself is foreign-biased, almost to the point of automotive propaganda. Americans, as much as the companies themselves, are responsible for the downfall of the auto industry. If Americans continue to neglect the last of the great domestic industrial giants, and allow it to follow the path of American steel and electronics markets, the nation may lose its second largest employer. Americans are driving many a Toyohondassan adorned with a red, white and blue ribbon magnet adorning the trunk. It is shameful to think those who would so readily parade their patriotism undermine it by displaying it in the wrong place.

are we gonna see any new skins? return of the old one? it just doesnt feel quite like c&g without it.

mshu, i wrote an entire article proposing a new el camino. as a canyon owner, i would be the first to trade in for one. theres really no need for a delta micro-truck. thats traditionally been the el camino market niche, and a 4-banger front drive mini-truck bearing the el camino badge will sell like snow in russia. as for the making the 355 twins better? absolutely start them at 13 grand. bring the interiors to level with the h3. rumor has it that the h3 is going to get a small diesel and v8 come 2008, so those three things would essentially give the trucks everything they need to run the market.

why does everyone feel like they need to tell me holden makes an el cam? its in the damned article

well, its never really intended to be a high volume seller. like the el caminos of old, build it as a counterpart to the camaro and/or chevelle, but add the features listed to make it a viable against the zq8.

the underground is part of what led me to write this up. i love the elky we have now, and i would trade my canyon in for a new one in a second. thanks for the kind words, too.

Bring it back, Bobby. Making the case for a great awakening. October 16, 2005 A Tama Editorial I DRIVE A TRUCK. I drive a truck because I need a truck. I need the last vestige of rear wheel drive in the Detroit stable. I need to carry stuff. I need to tow stuff. I need to drive where the pavement ends. And I need a vehicle with some balls. By dammit, I need my truck. I WANT A CAR. I want a car because I need a car. I have a girlfriend. I have a phone bill. I have insurance payments. I have to get to school and to work. And now I cannot afford gas. By dammit, I need a car. Catering to one need, my occupation in general contracting essentially mandates that I have a vehicle with a six-foot long open-top trunk that is lined with steel and can handle dirt and heavy loads. On the other hand, getting to work itself is ten minutes of that go-o-o, STOP! waaaiiit… HURRY THE HELL UP! style of driving that, combined with numerous other errands and go-fer type trips, grants the better part of my meager paycheck every half-month to the local Marathon gasoline pumping facility. Recently, there has been a flurry of readings on GM’s new Lambda crossover vehicles, and sitting here skimming across them led me to experience an epiphany of sorts… “Crossovers? Why hell, I have one of those sitting in my garage at this very moment...” I’m not talking about the car-based SUVs that GM will be dispersing in the coming years. And I’m sure as hell not talking about some high-roof station wagon. I’m talking about something that drives like a car, but works like a truck. I’m talking about something with a heritage like no other vehicle. You’re d*mn straight, I’m talking about the Chevrolet El Camino. A New Kind of Retro Courtesy of Torred Crossovers may be in the future pipeline for GM and other Detroit manufacturers, but the concept of the crossover vehicle is nothing new. Step into my garage and one will find a well-used yet still tough as nails 1969 Chevrolet El Camino – the General’s original crossover vehicle. Freed for the day of homework and other obligations, I decided to take a few hours and tinker on old reliable. Able to work and ponder without interruption, I repeatedly came across one thought; “Why doesn’t the General just build these again?” Indeed, GM would do well to reignite the flame that is the world’s first crossover vehicle*. *With the above statement, I am indeed implying that the Chevrolet El Camino, introduced in 1959, is the world’s first crossover vehicle, in that it first offered the characteristics of a car and a truck in one unique package. However, some people would argue that the original crossover is the 1949 Chevrolet Suburban. Or that you cannot legitimately contend that the El Camino was the original when the similar Ford Ranchero debuted two years earlier in 1957. Those people are communists. The El Camino was the first crossover. I wholeheartedly believe that a reincarnation of the legendary El Camino nameplate stands to benefit General Motors and its consumers on more than one level. GM would be reinstating a nameplate that was retired without leaving a sour taste in the collective mouth of the consumer, and that is immediately recognizable to those not fully vested in muscle car history, or the industry in general. Secondly, Chevrolet continues to play the heritage card, something Toyohondassan can never offer. Lastly, a vehicle that can work as hard as it can play is a very enticing concept to buyers (like myself) who wish to delve into the worlds of work and performance at the same time (maybe that’s why they built it in the first place? ah-ha!). You Can’t Build a Strong House on a Shaky Foundation* *Actually, you can These days, General Motors is cash strapped and looking for every possible avenue it can follow to save a buck. However, take a look at the Pontiac Solstice – not only is it the most impressive example of reasonable and identity-preserving parts-sharing in history, it is quickly shaping up to be one of the best cars GM has ever built – and it’s all coming in at under twenty large. With that said, the Bob Lutz Touch might be all the General needs to make the business case for a new El Cam as enticing as the case for the vehicle itself. Now, one of the defining factors of the El Camino’s legacy is the car-based chassis upon which it is built. GM enjoys the luxury of possessing the largest global parts bin of any automaker upon which to draw its new-model resources. This leaves the door wide open to any of a number of suitable underpinnings. But which to use? Like a football team with too many all-pro running backs to choose as their starter, folks would agree that this is a good problem to have. Now what options have we got here? A lambda derivative offers the characteristic car chassis and can be outfitted with a V-8, but a front-wheel-drive El Camino is just painful to even think about. An imported and re-skinned Holden Ute makes sense considering the modest success of the Monaro-GTO importation. However, old-ish looks and UAW penalties negate any benefits reaped from shipping up the Cammer from down under. GMT-355? Hah, just kidding! Despite the turbulence of its so far on-and-off-and-on-again lifecycle, the Zeta platform, already set to underpin some low-cost rear-drive NA models, would be, ahem, gravy now. Sittin’ on Santa’s Lap* *Santa, in this case, refers to Bob Lutz. My most favoritist part of making up my own hypothetical muscle car is adding a plethora of awe-inspiring features to an automotive wishlist that surely would not make it to production. Now let’s remember; this vehicle, in all likelihood, will not make production. BUT, on the what-a-crazy-shot-in-hell offchance that Robert Lutz is at this very moment reading my article and is so enamored by my literary and automotive prowess that he calls an emergency board meeting to green-light the production of the next El Camino, I say we make it a reasonable and producible proposal.* *What’s that? You don’t wish to be reasonable? Well, tough titties – I’m writing this article. Considering the as-of-yet successful launches of GM’s latest round of products, and the increasing quality and bang for your buck that is coming with each of the General’s new vehicles, we can reasonably expect a re-born El Camino to possess the traits essential to the well-receipt of any GM vehicle by the slightly-more-than-biased auto media. So, how about let’s just go over them for chits-n-giggles, shall we? If the refreshed W-bodies and 900’s are any indication, we can expect a clean, purposeful, and well-built interior. Power, you say? The HF 3.6L V6 makes for a smooth and powerful base engine, while another application of the 5.3L small block sounds good in a vehicle that must retain its muscle car roots. Oh, and there will be an SS, and it will have the 400 hp, 6.0L small block V8. Are you a hippie? Have a hybrid. The new two-stage hybrid and DOD, available on both V8 engines, will ring in the enviro-conscious as well as the performance-minded. A 6-speed manual/6-speed automatic, standard/available on all trim levels, boosts credibility while lending the media vultures one less thing to crow about. An Eye for Utility* *and an ear for… hearing. I would assume. The General already offers a low-riding pickup truck in the Colorado/Canyon ZQ8. GM also piloted what is easily the most utility-minded and featureful (it’s a word now) truck in the Avalanche. In order to readily differentiate the Camino from its corporate stablemates, it needs to employ such Avalanche work features that you won’t find on the Colorado – and believe me, there aren’t many not to find. First, let’s have us a reinforced composite bed box, fully equipped with plentiful tie-down hooks and a cargo rail system. Bed rail storage compartments accessible from the top of the bedrails act doubly as cargo management/beer holder. Hide the wheel wells in the said bedrails to provide a flat-load floor, wide enough to accommodate a 4x8 sheet of plywood. Side access bed doors, such as the ones found on the Cheyenne and H3T concepts, lend efficiency, even though they may be rendered entirely useless by the El Caminos hereditarily-low ride height. Ah hell, slap ‘em on there anyway. As a direct kick-in-metaphorical-face to the ever self-righteous Honda, add an in-bed trunk. Like the Honda, make it accessible from a door built into the floor of the bed. But do them one better – secondary access comes in the form of a slide-out tray that is pulled out from below the tailgate, should your bed already be packed with gear. Make sure to advertise it heavily, mentioning Honda by name and reminding them of their truck-building inadequacy. Also, flip-out bed extender and flush-mount folding tonneau cover round off the El Camino as the most useful car* in the history of mankind. *Or most useful truck? Hell, we still don’t know. Just take your pick. There you have - my proposal for the next generation of El Camino. A vehicle suitable for all types. A vehicle to cater to those who want utility. A vehicle for the performance-minded. A vehicle for the hybrid hippies. A vehicle for those baby-boomers who long for their beloved pavement-rippers of the past. A vehicle to forever erase the stigma of the rusted-out bucket with three $9000 gold spoke rims, shag carpeting inside, a front-end that bounces like there’s a couple of horny young teens under the hood, and a horn that goes “ba-da-da-BAAP-BAAP!”…sorry. A vehicle that offers surprisingly good fuel economy and exceptional performance, while plating up heaps of usefulness and utility? It offers everything that a car buyer wants, with everything that a truck buyer needs. It’s the best of both worlds, and its just what General Motors needs right now. It’s true to its heritage, in every aspect of the phrase. Now, about that Chevelle counterpart… Courtesy of Torred

that is the most front wheel drive car i have ever seen