GMTruckGuy74

Thanks for finally posting this story for those of us with "inquiring minds"!! I've been meaning to e-mail you for this story. I am on my 3rd Epsilon vehicle - 2004 Chevy Malibu LT (purchased 11/03), 2007 Saturn AURA XE (leased 11/06), and the wife's 2008 Pontiac G6 V6 Sedan (purchased 6/08) - ALL with the 3500 V6 engine. So far nothing but minor warranty issues with the three Epsilons. Got rid of the Malibu because of some "bad luck" incidents (minor accidents) and more importantly, styling that I grew tired of 3 months after taking delivery. It was a good & comfortable car, but I did not 'enjoy' driving it (again, the dowdy styling wasn't inspiring). The AURA has been a great daily driver and the wife drove it mostly while I had the Envoy due to the gas price increases. Once she took delivery of her G6 though last June, the AURA has become my daily driver. I love the styling of the AURA and it has not let me down yet. The main issue I have with the AURA is the crappy Hankook tires that it came with and how they started turning bald at 33k (they have never given good/decent wet weather traction even when new). The wife's G6 has the same Hankook tires and they act nothing like mine (AURA being leased means they will remain on the car to the lease end; once they give problems on the G6 though <financed> they will be replaced ASAP). I like the size of these Epsilons and my only big gripe is that I find the seats not to be confortable as they should be in a car of this size (the Malibu & AURA are the biggest offenders of this issue; so far the G6 has been better <maybe due to the G6 being leather-covered, unlike the Malibu's suede/leatherette and the AURA's cloth coverings?>). The wife has put over 13k on the G6 in 9 months and no problems like what has been described here have turned up (and trust me, if she was not happy witht eh car I'd be the first to know about it). Of course if money wasn't an issue when my lease ends in November (or hopefully sooner!), I'd be taking delivery of my own 2009 or 2010 Pontiac G8 GT. As it stands now, with being laid-off starting July 1 and no prospects for a new job after that date, a G8 has to be off the list (hopefully any new car will not join the G8). While Epsilons have graced my driveway for the past 5 1/2 years, I *think* the wife's G6 will be the last one. I've found them to be good & reliabel cars and see tons of them around in NJ & PA where I travel. Hopefully GM's financial situation improves quickly so that these cars do not become stale and problematic.

I love you too PCS!!

Haha.. you guys are real funny! It's not just high bridges that I have a fear of, any low, long bridge close to the water or narrow bridges high or low freak me out too. I hate driving to Seaside Heights (for those of you familiar) because of the narrow, tight three-lane, low-to-the-water beridge that you haev to cross Of course I drive over all of these bridges, but as PCS already pointed out, I'm the one with both handles glued at "10 & 2" on the steering wheel, head faced straight, sweating, and with an ashen-colored face. And seeing people zooming by switching lanes only further adds to the anxiety. Of course the worse bridge for me is the Delaware Memorial, and I have to set teh cruise control otherwise I'll inadvertantly slow down. Another reason for my great fear of the Delaware Memorial - around '89 or '90 my uncle who owns a machine shop (tool & die) was contracted to repair some of the pins holding the bridge together. He showed us a video he took (I was 14 or 15 y-o at the time) of him walking on the catwalk under the bridge. To this day I have vivid images still, and I saw that video only the one time. Growing up my aunt & grandmother lived in Morrisville, PA when I wqas real young and we lived in Ewing Twp, NJ. We'd have to take a very narrow and old bridge known as the Calhoun Street Bridge to visit them, and my mom & I visited several times per week. I had nightmares about being on this bridge as it collapsed into the Delaware River - of course the dreams always exaggerated the amount of water below - and still do on occasion today (just now there are worse bridges that appear in my dreams). I've been told to seek counseling that can aid in the removal of this fear, but I feel silly as I don't tackle too many bridges in my daily travels. Other bridges that scare me include the I-95 bridge heading toward the Philadelphia Airport outside of Philly, the Burlington-Bristol Bridge (although since I've been crossing that one quite a lot in the past 5 years since I moved and use it to go into PA a lot I'm getting better), and the Walt Whitman into Philly (Ben Franklin isn't as bad as it has higher sides that prevent me from seeing over the railing, though riding the PATCO train into Philly rides on the outside of the bridge and offers a clear view of the Delaware ). The funny thing is architectually I love bridge design. I love the Golden Gate Bridge and would love to drive over it, but my fear would prevent me from doing so (I'd rather be a passenger anyway to soak in the design as I look up!). While I have never been over it - and would probably re-route my course to avoid it if I had to go farther south - the Chesepeak Bay Bridge & Tunnel causes me great anxiety when people mention it. I know, I need help!!

I last visited Southern California in March of 2006. I'd say visit Laguna Beach, as it is a very beautiful city & beach area (I only had time to go to one beach, but Huntington Beach was also recommended). One nice thing about Laguna Beach is that the Pacific Coast Highway goes right through the town, close to the beach, and you'll see all kinds of interesting cars & trucks drive by. If you and the gf are Disney fans, I'd definitely say take a trip to Disneyland. The Disney Corporation did a recent renovation to the place and I hear it is much nicer and cleaner - almost the way Walt had it - again. Disney California Adventure is next door and is a nice place to visit, but is currently undergoing a massive renovation/re-theming project. If you love a good fried chicken dinner, I'd recommend a visit to Knotts Berry Farm (it's also an amusement park, but I think you can go just for dinner too). A trip to Universal Studios Hollywood and CityWalk is nice, and you never know what movie/tv show will be filming while you're there. A tour of Los Angeles is nice (there are plenty of small bus tours available), see Grauman's Chinese Theater, there's a great Farmers Market to go to for lunch & shopping, see familiar sights from tv & movies, and of course a visit to the Peterson Automotive Museum would be nice :AH-HA_wink:

Thanks for the info on the '70-'72 Olds Cutlass. I have seen only a few of these types of Cutlasses (hardtop) over the past decade at car shows, mostly I see the fastback hardtop. I think I actually have a diecast of this type of Cutlass - I have to check my closet and/or the basement. Best of luck with both the Olds and Pontiac :AH-HA_wink:

You know, posting pictures of that bridge is not good for people that suffer from gephyrophobia!! I have a very difficult time driving over the Delaware Memorial Bridge - when I went to visit the Wilmington (Kappa) Plant two years ago with my SKY I almost freaked out b/c the top was down and I was completely exposed to the bridge I will be driving over it again this week on a family trip to Washington DC... not looking forward to driving over it, and might just make my wife handle this part of the trip. Yes, I am being serious and not joking at all.

YJ, I like how your Cutlass is turning ou t- very sharp! I love the formal roofline on your car compared to the more curved '70 Olds Cutlasses that I normally see. Is that because it's a particular model? If so, what model?

+1 And how about that chop? Someone here should be capable - we have lots of talent!!

Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine

daves87rs, in order to get out of my SmartLease early I'd have to buy a NEW GM vehicle. The fact that GMAC didn't include November leases in April is making me wait another month. I figure GMAC may include November in May, especially come Memorial Day sales. I took the day off on Wednesday and took the little guy on a trip to Allentown, PA to check out the Mack Truck Historical Museum (a very small museum, at that!) and a side trip over to the Mack Truck World Headquarters to vist the Mack Shop (in case you're not aware, Mack Trucks is moving their HQ to North Carolina in July and the gift shop will no longer be located there, so this was one last visit). On the NJ & PA turnpikes, and in parking lots almost everywhere we went, there were a ton of HHRs. I've always liked their look anyway, but it got my mind thinking about them more. I decided to do a new GM.com search of what's available and I found one equiiped 98% of the way I'd want it (it didn't have a sunroof, leather & heated seats, but those are options I don't need to have but the wife likes). It does have the 2LT Preferred Equipment Package (2.4L 4cyl, remote start, sport suspension, bluetooth, chrome pkg, etc), chrome roof rails, and the USB Port Radio (a must have feature on either the HHR or G5). It's Quicksilver Metallic with Ebony Cloth interior. Though silver is the leading color for the HHR, I like the Imperial Blue Metallic too (the one at the nearby Chevy dealer I posted previously - it's missing the USB Port Radio option though). So I just have to wait to GMAC includes my lease in the pull-ahead program and then I will start doing some test drives.

Hoping both of you have a great day today!!

Did he get into someone's pond that the water is dyed blue? Like what you see at min-golf courses.

I'm going to take a guess, new rims???

Boy, that gives me an idea - find one of those wagons and install an Olds Cutlass Supreme coupe front end on it and make it a 442 Wagon. Now there's a phantom idea (hey Camino, wanna try this?).

I'm liking the wagon!! Too bad these aren't going to Saturn, as the wagon would have been a good replacement for the old SW2 models of years past.

Well, I figured I could easily get approved for a new car loan while I was still employed, so getting a new car before the end of June is/was the plan (assuming GMAC includes November leases in a pull-ahead program during that timeframe). But if I'm lucky and have a new job for September, then I can hold out until the lease is due (November 17th)... this may allow me to get a leftover '09 G8 GT. I haven't given up on the G8 just yet... at least not until I know I can't afford one when teh dealer tells me the bad news!

Yeah, I thought about that too after making the post. It would be a lot less effort going that route! The problem is I've done a GM.com search of a ton of Chevy dealers in a 25 mile radius of me and none have the Cobalt 2LT with the Sports Appearance Package (making it look like the G5 GT Sedan pictured above or a Cobalt SS Sedan). Of course I know that any good Chevy dealer can find one outside of the range I looked and dealer trade for it. I'd rather have the Pontiac G5, but if the wife insists on a sedan then the Cobalt will go on the table for consideration.

"Oh cruel fate, why do you mock me?" - Homer Simpson That one you have pictured is just about perfect - it's the color I want (Performance Red Metallic), and just needs the Ebony <black> leather interior. What does that sticker for versus the coupe? It would be perfect if US Pontiac dealers offered the G5 GT Sedan (at least for me). It would solve my concerns of having a coupe for the next 5-7 years, and the practicallity of a sedan works better if I wanted to drive with other adults in the car (again, I will have the G6 Sedan for those duties). But the G5 GT Sedan would be a cool option to have. Is it hard to travel to Canada to buy one, then bring it to the States??

Well, as much as I'd like to say the Cobalt SS, the BMW will hold it's value more over the years. Plus the extra benefits of luxury options/features that the Chevy doesn't have, and the image you'll gain from owning a BMW over a Chevy. If that's what you want. However, the Cobalt SS is a sharp looking coupe and is no doubt a reliable little car that will give you many years of good service. Downside is resale value, but today all new cars that aren't a Mercedes, BMW, Audi, ect. don't hold value well. Can't wait to hear the backstory on this comparison!

Don't be mean to me!! And won't your new BMW colleagues make fun of you for owning an '80s GM car as a 'classic' collectible? They might force you to scrap it to make more BMW emblems!

And I thought the bug-eyed headlight design on new cars was getting out of hand!!

Well my commute through the end of June is 16-20 miles per day, so that's not an issue. It's what happens after June ends and where I find a new teaching job for September (assuming I can find one). Plus any long-distance trips/car shows over the summer, though I'm sure those will have to be cut out due to the lack of income. Of course I could always find a mid-to-late '90s beater for the winter months to keep the GP safe. Again, these are just thoughts, not making any decisions at this time.

Oh the Pontiac G8 GT is the ultimate Pontiac that I desire. If I had $32k to spend on a new car, I'd go with the G8 GT Sedan in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, I'm about $9-$10k too short for the G8 GT, and why even consider the G8 V6 for a measly $1-$2k in savings??? Now I really should start playing the lottery each week, even if I won enough just to buy a G8 GT in cash!!

gm4life, I have to agree with the rest here that you should be looking at G5s/Cobalts and not G3s/Aveos. While my wife really liked the G3 at the Philly Auto Show this past February, I can't stand them! I don't trust any Daewoo model, and I think in the long run you'll be happier with a Delta-based car. Think back 20 years ago - would you have choosen the Pontiac LeMans over a Sunbird? My cousin had a new '88 Lemans and it was crap; on the flipside, I knew many people that owned Sunbirds, and while they weren't the greatest, they were 10xs better than my cousin's Pontiwoo!! Too bad the G5 GT isn't offered in a sedan version, as I'd be more inclined to go ahead with that purchase (I continously wonder how it will be owning a coupe over the next 5-7 years if I do decide on the G5 GT?).

Thank you for the well wishes. I'm hoping something changes and I can stay - I heard today that central administration is reviewing all of the teachers certifications - in my department (business education), I hold all of the appropriate state certifications to teach what we offer; there is a bus ed teacher that is one step above me that has been mysterious as to what his certifications are. If he does not have the approrpiate certifications, then he may have to leave and that means I get to stay. Seeing as how my other five colleagues like me more than this mystery-certification teacher, they're all routing for me. But I realize that my name was the one approved by the BOE and it still remains on their xut list. So I will take every prayer I can get right about now!! I've been thinking lately about seeing if the local CarSense dealer will take me out of my lease. I know I'd lose out on potential incentives if I did want to buy new, but if I get out of the lease and get a loan instead, I could buy that '87 GP and since the nicer weather is approaching, make that my daily driver until my financial situation changes. I just don't know if this 22 year old car is up to daily driver duty.