GMTruckGuy74

Those are some B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L trucks guys. Needless to say I am very jealous that I can't afford the payment AND gas costs on one for myself at this time Best of luck to you both with your great looking GMC Sierra "All Terrains"!!!

Well, even with high gas prices I guess if this is GM's plan, I'll have to find a way out of my AURA lease and get a new GMC while I can. Fire sale pricing FTW!!! Well, I think I'm SOMEBODY and I will miss it

I really like my 2005 GMC Envoy SLT 4WD. It rides really nice and has great power with the Atlas 4200 I6. If GM would have fully upgraded the interior when they did the little changes to the exterior back in 2006, it may have helped. Fuel economy when it's a daily driver isn't great - I get anywhere from 14-16 MPG in city driving, and anywhere from 18-22 MPG on the highway. I find it to be comfortable, roomy, and spacious enough for my needs. Of course it will be leaving the fleet soon, as the lease is up in August and we can get out now with GMAC's pull ahead. It's the wife's turn to get the new vehicle, and she wants a smaller, fuel efficient car as her daily driver. So I'll be without a truck again, at least until November of 2009 (or possibly earlier), when the AURA lease is up. Hopefull the 2010 GM trucks will have some changes to get better fuel economy and GM works it's magic so I can get back behind the wheel of a truck.

BOY ain't that the truth! It's always poor GMC that gets named as the brand to cut. Why not Chevy trucks? GMCs could pickup those sales and it would give Buick-Pontiac-GMC dealerships a boost in sales. Of course we can't think of good ol' Chevy losing it's trucks, now can we? Funny thing, just a couple of months ago GMC was the one brand that was bringing in the dough for GM. How quickly those who don't favor trucks here forget that little tidbit of knowledge. :AH-HA_wink: GM trucks as a whole are going to be cut back while gas prices continue to surge. That doesn't mean that the person who absolutely needs a truck for towing or work purposes is going to go out and buy a compact car to tow his heavy duty trailer with, now does it? No, that buyer will still need a real truck and his needs will still need to be met. Those that have purchased a pickup or SUV for primarily family hauling are going to no longer consider a truck, and that fad for the last decade & a half is finally coming to a close. Of course trucks/SUVs being the cash cow for GM, now we get to watch how GM continues to survive without those sales dollars. In reality, GM will be looking at the dealer body that will be the easist to close. We all know that this is the biggest hurdle to face when closing a brand (remember Oldsmobile anyone?). Saab has the fewest dealers in the US, probably followed closely by Saturn. Saturn's sales & service records will aid in keeping them on the other side of the chopping block, maybe. Pontiac sales are not hot, nor are Buick - but as mentioned a zillion times already, Buick sales in China will keep that brand alive. So maybe it would be easy just to kill one brand without closing a whole dealership. Could we be seeing the Buick-GMC sales channel on the horizon?

Thank you! I'll check it out over the next week when I'm off and have some free time at home.

I wish my wife liked the HHR. She can't get over the "retro" look. I try to tell her it's based off the '47-'53 Chevy Suburban, but that's like speaking greek to her and saying that a brand new car looks similar to one that is over 50 years old. I think it would work out perfectly, and I would be happier with it over the Vibe. However, she does not like it at all, so it's not even on a list to be off of it. Same for the Impala - she's never been a fan of it and feels it's too big of a car anyway. She still is talking about the '09 Vibe GT she drove over a week & a half ago!!! We looked at the Ford Focus sedan and Nissan Sentra sedan on Sunday. She likes the Ford, is not impressed by the Nissan. I will say though that the Nissan has a better looking interior over the domestic small cars, and the materials look more upscale (looking through the Nissan's window, that is). I'm still not 100% happy having to go with a small car, but it is for her and the increase in fuel mileage will be a help to our finances. I just don't like knowing that we'll be paying for 5 years on a small car that will see a lot of highway mileage and not be a good re-sell down the road because of that fact. I'm still pushing for a 2LT 4cyl '08 Malibu. I like the upgraded features & options that come in the 2LT package, but unfortunately it means spending more than $21k for a new vehicle (the ones I've located around me sticker around $25k). I think having the 4cyl engine will do wonders for the MPG gains my wife is looking for, and at the same time I'm paying for a car I can be happier with in the long run. If I find a nicely equippd 1LT Malibu, I may consider that model too. I'm waiting until the week of June 30th to see what 4th of July incentives GM & Ford have before we committ to anything. The wife wants to get out of the gas-sucking Envoy ASAP, but I'm not gonna be happy unless I know I can take advantage of some good incentives. Either way, I think the '09 Vibe GT or '08 Focus SES sedan are the likely candidates to end up in our driveway, but I'm still rooting for the '08 2LT 4cyl Malibu in the meantime. Derek, good luck with your search. It sounds like you're having a good time researching & testing the cars you like, and talking about your options with friends & co-workers.

Excuse my ignorance, but how does one go about purchasing stock? Is there a "better way" to do it? Also, is there a specified amount you are expected to buy at the time of purchase (100 shares vs. 1 share?)???

Check it out: Saturn Astra (5-door) seen shooting scenes in Philly: http://transformerslive.blogspot.com/2008/...ormers-car.html

caddycruiser, just know now that the Solstice/SKY 2.4L Ecotec requires Premium fuel for performance. I know some SKY owners that ran mid-grade, but noticed the loss of performance with the engine. Just FYI. And as far as comfort levels with a Kappa, they are liveable as daily drivers. When I had the SKY, getting in & out with the top up was the most difficult part (top down was a no brainer). I was able to go to Atlantic City with my small hard-cover suitcase in the passenger seat; the year before, my friend and I travelled down together (NJ Teachers Convention) in the SKY - we both had soft duffle bags with out clothes and still managed to put some convention materials in the trunk too. They ride a little harsh, but not too bad for the size of the car and how low to the ground you are. Interior room was good, my biggest gripe was being able to move around on long drives (sometimes I needed to stop just to stretch). Around town driving is fine. I'm 5'9" and 235 lbs, so depending on how you compare will depend on whether or not you too would be comfortable in a Kappa. One important thing that you should know is that you are a lot lower than most of the cars (forget about pickups & SUVs!) on the roads, so be prepared to look-up at even Corollas! Good luck with the hunt. If I hit the lottery soon, I'll contact you about buying the Fleetwood! :AH-HA_wink:

Boy, this picture looks like it came right out of the Riviera brochure! Nice looking car... I've always liked this design.

If you click on the All-GM show link in my last post, you'll see that if you attend you get the opportunity to purchase this book in person: http://www.gmdesignbook.com/carlisle/

Sorry guys, I dropped the ball on this one. Work took a turn for the worse for me in the month of May, and now I'm just waiting for the school year to finally be over with (the student's last day is Thursday, we end Friday). I get a 5-week break before heading back for my summer hours that I work the end of July through the end of August, before the new school year begins on September 1. Enough about that. The All-GM Nationals car show runs from Friday, June 20th through Sunday, June 22nd. Anyone that plans to go just for one day is best to choose Saturday (21st), as that's when a good majority of the show cars/trucks are there on display. If you;d like more information about the GM show, or Carlisle Fairgrounds in general, then check out these links: Carlisle Fairgrounds homepage: http://www.carsatcarlisle.com/ce/index.asp All-GM Nationals Show: http://www.carsatcarlisle.com/ce/events/gm-nationals/ I will be there on Saturday (21st) with my two year-old son (Justin) and my dad. I'll be pulling around a red Radio Flyer All-Terrain Wagon (ATW) with a canopy (and a chilled-out 2 y-o under it!). Maybe next year more C&G posters can commit early on and we can register as a club. I believe the deadline to do so was in April or early May. I'll post next year's date as soon as it's published so I and anyone else who wants to volunteer can try to arrange something more "concrete". Hope to see some C&Gers there!!! :AH-HA_wink:

While Father's Day was nice for me (was taken to breakfast at Cracker Barrel), the real deal was on Saturday as we travelled to Macungie, PA for the ATCA (Antique Truck Club of America) annual truck show. This year was the biggest I've seen, with a lot of new trucks never seen there before (my favorite was a 1937 1 1/2 ton Chevy Panel decked out like an old Budweiser Beer delivery truck). Club presence has definitely increased, and so has museum presence too. I spent the day looking at old trucks and new trucks (Mack Truck - Macungie Assembly Operations - self guided plant tour) with my two sons and wife. Sunday, besides breakfast, was a day out with the kids again and dinner over my parent's house. I got a matching t-shirt & hat that said "The World's Greatest Dad", some new Homer Simpson boxer shorts (pj's for me), and a one-year's subscription to "Vintage Truck" that netted me one extra free issue (7 issues for the price of 6). All in all it was a good day :AH-HA_wink:

Yesterday I put together a Word document containing a front angle, rear angle, and dash shot of various small cars on the market today and e-mailed it to her. It included the following 4- or 5-door cars: Cobalt Sport, Astra, Focus SES, Vibe GT, Sentra, Civic, Rabbit, Mazda3, Clubman, and Caliber. Out of that list, the wife liked the Vibe, Sentra, and Focus the best. I stopped by the Ford dealership yesterday and picked up a Focus brochure. We will eventually get out and test-drive the Sentra and Focus within the next two weeks (next two Saturday's we'll be out-of-town). She still states that she's happy with the Vibe, so who knows where it will go from here. As for the Subaru Forester and the Ford Escape, she'd much rather have the Saturn VUE if she was spending over $25k for a cute-ute. If anyone has info on the Sentra, Focus, and Vibe to share, I'd be greatly appreciative!!!

Well, you know I would want the Fleetwood... but I'm in the same boat as your brother & dad - I've got only a $1k to my name to spend on a toy (if that's what I decide to do with it). Between getting ready to buy a new car for the wife, no pay after this Friday until July 2 (3 weeks without a check), and summer trips planned, extra cash is not in my vocabulary. I hope that if it sells, it's not DONK'd out and ripped apart - that Fleetwood is too nice of a car to have to suffer that kind of fate. Best of luck car shopping!

Oh, if you only knew!!! Well, much like daves87rs wife, mine seems really bent on getting the Vibe GT (empowah - I know the GT model is not the best for fuel efficiency, but the exterior styling upgrades over the 1.8 model and the power of the 2.4l 4 cyl is what sold her, and to be honest, I think the 1.8 model looks too blobish). Seeing as how we get GM Supplier pricing, any GM incentives (plus we're good GMAC finance customers, ALWAYS paying on time, so getting approved for a loan *should* be easy), plus the additional Supplier Price cash bonus, the wife feels we need to stay within GM (it's a shame that the Vibe is her only option; I'd be happier with her having an Astra or HHR instead). My major disappoint comes from seeing some magazine ads of the all-new Matrix - it appears they get an additional display in the center stack (may just be a clock), additional steering wheel controls/buttons (right side), and I know that the Matrix has some additional buttons on the left lower dash (the Vibe has only the traction control off button; I wonder what the Matrix has?). As of now, my goal is to get some brochures of other small cars on the market. I stopped by the nearby Nissan dealer for a Sentra 2.0 SL brochure, but they were all out (the salesman entered my mailing address online for a brochure to be mailed to me). I want to stop by the Ford dealership for a Focus brochure on my way home today. As for the Volkswagen Golf/Rabbit, Civic Sedan, and Mazda3, she drove those at the Saturn Astra Ride & Drive last December and was not impressed by them. One of her co-workers has a Mini Cooper, and while she likes the car, at the NYIAS she said she has no desire to own one herself. I asked why she didn't like the Cobalt and was told that it's too plain looking and she doesn't like the interior design. I just can't win with her!!! So we'll see what happens over the next couple of weeks. Once school/work finishes on the 20th for me, I'll have some additional time to devote to car shopping (I start work again the last week of July). My plan is to wait until the 4th of July sales start; hopefully incentives will be better than they are now and we can get a great deal. Plus I can hold onto the Envoy for another several weeks in the process :AH-HA_wink:

Saturn - Astra - she can't stand the interior styling (main reason for dislike), lack of aux inout jack on radio faceplate turns her off Pontiac - Vibe - so far the only GM contender Chevy - Colbalt - whatever her reason (never gave me one), she dislikes the Cobalt, though a Sport-package sedan is nice IMO Pontiac - G5 - I'd like her to get the GT model, but being a coupe only and having a soon-to-be 3 year old means a sedan is needed And before you suggest the HHR, she doesn't like the retro-look of the vehicle at all. I had one for 2-3 days last year as a rental and she drove it for a day, but couldn't get over the (her words) ugly exterior styling. Of course my passion for classic GM trucks means I like the look of the HHR, but she will not give it the time of day. I could get by with the Astra's interior, save for the aux input jack, but she's completely turned off by the upright center stack (she likes either slanted or driver-contoured styles). I have yet to give up on the Astra, and will try to schedule the "at-home" test drive of it for her to give it another chance before she makes a decision. Satty, while I like the look of the Civic sedan, there's one parked out front of the BJ's Wholesale Club we shop at every Sunday and she doesn't like it. I forgot about the Mazda offerings; I'll have to see where a local Mazda dealer is to get some brochures.

Okay, so the wife has gone from wanting a '08 CTS or Enclave (determined out of our price range), to a VUE or an Edge (fuel concerns) to now wanting a small, fuel-efficient (plus cheap!) 4- or 5-door car. Why the change? Realizing that it cost us $50 to fill up the AURA and $65 to fill up the Envoy last Friday, she wants to get something more affordable and, more importantly, will aid in saving additional $$$ in our bank account and not spent at the gas station. We just recently test-drove the all-new 2009 Pontiac Vibe GT FWD and she likes that a lot. The Cobalt, HHR, and Astra are off her radar, and while she likes the Malibu, shewants to spend around $20-21K MSRP. She is content with the Vibe, but I'd like to consider other small cars too - even if it means going outside of General Motors. I'm thinking of stopping by the local Nissan dealership to pick up a Sentra brochure, and possibly Subaru to get the all-new Forester brochure. She's not crazy about the new Focus, otherwise I would stop by the Ford dealership for a brochure (I still might). My only stipulation is that we stay away from Toyota (without starting any flame wars, I just don't "like" Toyota; even though she is considering the Vibe - my money would stay with Pontiac to an extent and I'd be visiting the Pontiac dealer for service, not the Toyota dealer). So I'm asking those of you here what small cars I should have her taking a look at. For her needs, basic power features & remote keyless entry are a must, in addition to a CD Player and an aux input jack for her iPod. She'd love heated seats if possible, but could live without a sunroof. It must have a decent ride (nothing to harsh & bumpy) and be at least a 4-door. GM is not a requirement, even though we get Supplier pricing, special supplier pricing cash bonuses, and the rest of the GM incentives (one of the main reasons she likes the Vibe). Please post your thoughts & opinions. Just for $hit and giggles, I attached the picture I took of the Vibe GT she test drove on Saturday.

Hoping that you have one hell of a 39th birthday to celebrate the end of your 30's!

Could you provide an update on the MPG you're achieving with your VUE XR FWD? The wife was gung-ho on looking to get into a VUE either this month or next month (July), but with the cost of gas going up, her 64+ mile round-trip commute, and her leadfoot driving style, I'm having second thoughts on getting her into a VUE and instead a small-to-midsize car with a 4cyl engine. Any info you can share will also be greatly appreicated! :AH-HA_wink:

Then why hasn't the Pontiac G5 Sedan made a presence yet? The wife is *now* considering a smaller, 4 cyl-equipped 4-door car when the Envoy lease is up in August. I prefer the G5 styling over the Cobalt, and would like to continue doing business with a B-P-G dealership over a Chevy store. But all they offer is the 2-door coupe, which is not very practical for my family hauling needs. Seeing as how the sedan is already being made, why hasn't it been included in the lineup yet?

Could you update us on what kind of MPG she's been getting with her Malibu? The wife is now considering something more fuel efficient for a daily drive (4cyl, such as a 2LT Malibu or Vibe GT).

+1 I was looking forward to the return of the true 2-door SUV.

My grandfatehr's 1955 second-series GMC 100 longbed pickup got me hooked on GMCs from a very early age. My grandfather bought it one year old in '56; my uncle owned it briefly in the early '70s and customized it at the time (327 V8, four speed floor shifter, push-button starter; aztec gold exterior paint and metallic green paint for the interior ). Mid-'70s my grandfather got it back, kept the colors but put a 350 V8 in it and converted the trans back to a more truck-like HD four speed trans. I was born in December '74 and I remember around the late '70s my dad always borrowing it and riding in it, or just sitting in it in my grandfather's driveway "pretending" to drive. Around 1980, the engine went; my grandfather bought a junker Impala for its 350 V8 and installed it, but soon after parked the truck behind his small shed and left it there for another 10 years. At that point ('80-'88), it was bascially a "playground toy" for us grandkids and I spent many days playing on it. Also, my neighbor started working for NJ's State DOT in the mid-'80s and always had GMC HD trucks to use to do his job. He got to bring them home everyday and in addition to seeing the many other GMCs in the neighborhood (mostly S15 Jimmy's and Sierra pickups), and my love of all things truck, I developed a love for GMC. To this day I have not forgotten the GMCs from my childhood. As gas prices continue to rise and get out of hand, I can't justify owning what I really want - a full-size GMC Sierra Crew Cab, Z71 4WD pickup

Well, they closed with no fanfare. I drove by a little after 6:00 PM Thursday, but the gates were already closed They are usually open until 9:00 PM Mon-Thurs, so I was a little surprised. Most of the used cars have been sold; maybe 2 or 3 are left on the lot. Some lease returns are still waiting to be picked up, and they have sold off most of their inventory (though a good amount of GMCs are left, with Pontiac in second and just a few Buicks remaining). I will say other than 2 or 3 one-day ads mentioning their closing, the dealership closed without much notice. I called today just to see if they were open, but the phone just rang and rang. I drove by around 2:00 PM on the way to Taco Bell and the lot was locked. I'm assuming either GM will send carriers to pickup the remaining new inventory and/or dealers will be by starting Monday to buy the inventory (the dealer I worked for in '99-'00 did that with the Pontiac dealer that closed in Fort Washington, PA - so I guess it still is practice). If I could call out of work and watch the lot for the day, I would just to see where the inventory is going to. There is a regular cab, lonbed, Z71 4wd, SLE1 GMC Sierra 1500 that I've looked at since December/January (it's black, not one of my favorite colors). If I could manage with a 3-seater pickup (not practical), I would have seriously considered buying it before their closing. They have two G8 GT's left, and I'm sure dealers will be clamoring for them. After serving the Mount Holly/Burlington County area for 25 years, they have quietly closed.