The O.C.

Thanks! Well, I haven't done it yet because it prolly won't be for another month or so, but I'm already thinking about the car because I don't want to have to drive the C6 too many miles.....and I know whatever I get, I'll have to most likely special-order it. There is a 333hp 3.2L version of the I6 in the M3 but that's based upon the old block I believe. The CTS is also on my short list.....in 3.6L/6-speed manual/18-inch sport package combo.....but I'm not that crazy about the interior (common gripe I know) but it's still a contender. Also, no maintenance program. The 3-series I considered too.....but if I'm going BMW, I'd rather have the 5'er in this case because the bigger car will be nice for taking clients out and luggage space and stuff. No A6, E-Class, STS or any other GM sedan because of no manual/V6 combo. I thought about Audi A4 in either 2.0T or V6 guise.....but if I am going to go A4-ish, I'll just get the 330i. We shall see.....

Okay....personal experience.....relative to paying for gas...... I'm most likely changing jobs within a few months and will have to purchase a car for a daily-driver.....and will obviously have to pay for gas. I'm in the market for a luxurious and sporty 4-door sedan. Top of my list is the BMW 5-series. Why? 1) BMW maintenance program. No maintenance costs during my lease. 2) I can get a "dealership employee deal" through Aaron. 3) One of the few luxury sedans I can get with a 6-speed MANUAL. 4) The FABULOUS 3.0L magnesium inline-6 (255hp, 530i version) gets EPA ratings of 20city/30 (!) highway with the manual. That last one is most important to me. After my experience with my C6, there's no way I would get the 550i.....I don't want to have to pay for V8 gas mileage. For the little I do drive the Corvette (for fun and stuff) I can afford to fill the tank so I don't bitch about it. However, when looking at a daily-driver for back-and-forth to work and the airport and stuff, I have to consider the fuel economy issue alot stronger. The 530i is really no different loaded up (other than the engine) and should get far better real world mileage. About the C6.....sure.....on a straight freeway cruise I can average 25, 26, 27mpg.....but that literally is with straight, non-interrupted, cruise-controlled highway driving. Any driving in and around L.A./O.C. drops the MPG like a ROCK. I just filled up my tank and got 13.7mpg with a mix of city stop-and-go, and a bit of southern California freeway driving added in. Around town, I average between 11mpg (all city, never getting on the freeway) to 16mpg (some local freeway driving included.) In another day, I would have only gotten the V8 550i because I'm a power-junkie and love the sound and feel. Real world conditions today (and now having to pay for my gas, unlike my company car) have made me have to really consider what I buy. I think it's a real-world issue and Evok has hit it on the head.

....but in the real world, all that would matter is how the DEALER orders the inventory. Radio-delete doesn't do anything if the dealer orders his stock all WITH radios....

You may be right.....but I don't know if it would fit or not. Like you, I also believe the 4.0L is a larger version of the SOHC 3.5L "car" engine and not an enlarged version of the SOHC 3.7L "truck" engine. Probably then we'd see 3.5L and 4.0L engines.

I think YOU guys are missing the point. As far as I've heard, the new Civic is a roaring success and Honda appears to be selling all of them they can get, and for not much discount (at least around here when I wandered thru the Honda store in Irvine.) So....underequipped base model or NOT.....the car is hot and GM only WISHES people flocked to a Cobalt (or G5) in the same manner.... BTW....also as far as I know, I haven't seen a SINGLE new Civic in a rental lot....????????

Honda is KNOWN for having no options on any of their cars. Everything is "hard-packaged." Honda is also known for their extensive selection of dealer-installed accessories. Not that long ago, even a DX Accord used to have AC as an optional "dealer-installed" accessory. I don't get all the bitching about this issue....

That gives the dealership an opportunity to make some profit on a dealership-installed radio (and AC for that matter) on a base car. This "base" Civic argument isn't a big deal at all......if you need the extra equipment, you'll move up from a DX to an LX. Simple solution.

That's OBVIOUSLY a photoshop. You REALLY think you would see totally undisguised, production versions of the new X5 driving around when the vehicle hasn't even been introduced at an auto show or released to the motoring press by BMW? I wouldn't put any stake in these photos.

Fly, you're DAMN straight I'm justifying that car... The W-body architecture has been a packaging DISASTER from day one. The Avalon is not. It's embarassing for a sedan like Impala to have a trunk as large as it has....with a back seat that's as tight for such a large car. And, READ MY EFFING POST CORRECTLY why don't you....and stop putting words in my mouth I didn't say the trunk on the Avalon was more "useable" I said having an Avalon's sized trunk with a much more accessible and comfortable back seat was a WAY more realistic accommodation of a car buyer's needs than the Impala's huge trunk, but confining rear seat room.

No..... In MY example, people still find realized "quality" in the fit-and-finish, interior materials, features, and styling of VW and M-Benz products...specifically the interiors relative to GM cars. Reliability? That's another question.....one that I think, actually, VW has turned the corner much quicker than M-Benz.

Yes! Execute a three or four tier lineup of luxury/sport sedans with ALL four of them having the level of execution we've seen with the CTS. We don't have that with STS and DTS.

In this instance, you ARE an odd 27 year old. I think we can all agree that IN GENERAL, the DTS does not typically appeal to consumers below, say, the age of 50....and certainly, IN GENERAL, it does not appeal to anyone below the age of 30.

LOL....different strokes for different folks. The mirrors are one of my favorite styling cues on the new IS....I LOVE mirrors that are on the doors....(versus attached to the A-pillar.) I think they look f@#kin' sexy on this car....

C'mon....I know ur smart enough to point out ALSO that the Camry Hybrid loses some luggage capacity because of the batteries..... I'd rather have the much roomier (in the back seat) Avalon with a smaller trunk that's still usable....than the much tighter (in the back seat) Impala or LaCrosse with a trunk that's almost too big.....(you can't reach stuff at the back of the trunk unless you crawl inside...!) In other words, Avalon's utilization of space is probably WAY more realistic for the majority of the car-buying public. (Alas....when does that W-body/GM-10 architecture REALLY get replaced?)

Luggage capacity on Solara convertible with seats up is listed as 11.7cu ft on Toyota's website with top up OR down (the soft top doesn't impede on trunk space.) That compares to 13.8cu ft for the Solara coupe. G6 trunk capacity is listed as 12.6cu ft top UP.....and 2.2cu ft top DOWN. What this basically means is that if you wanna take your G6 convertible on a nice, sunny, weekend trip and drive it (as it was intended) with the top DOWN, be prepared to put all your bags and stuff loosely in the back seat....as you won't be carrying any of it (or very little of it) in the 2.2cu ft trunk. Which ALSO means you better not stop along the way.....leaving the top down.....for fear someone might snatch your UNSECURED luggage sitting in the back seat. Of course, you can always raise the top before you leave the car....but that's a pain-in-the-ass when with a secure and large TRUNK, you could just leave the top down for your entire trip. I'm no big Solara fan......but Toyota doesn't make you accept this sort of compromise....and neither will Chrysler when they bring out their new Sebring Convertible.

"Quality" is a loose term these days. In many cases, when people refer to "quality" they are referring to things like fit-and-finish, material and trim quality, effort and feel of switchgear, comfort and support of seating, and so forth. Basically in this case, "quality" means the level of overall execution of the product. This is the area of "quality" that many consumers feel that GM still lacks in most cases (and they would be right.) GM cars and trucks are most likely every bit as RELIABLE in the long run compared to its competitiors....but that's not what most people are referring to when they say "quality." That's why people tend to say that companies like Toyota and Honda have higher "quality" cars than GM. They are most likely referring to the overall execution of the product. Say, new Camry or current Accord versus Malibu or G6. Camry and Accord, in THIS meaning of the word, have much higher apparent "quality" than Malibu or G6.....because of the much-higher quality execution of the products.

People aspire to a BMW 3-Series for much the same reasons they do a 7-Series......they want a BMW. The main differences mostly are how much can you afford to pay for a car and what size car do you want? For the person that desires the Art & Science look of the CTS and appreciates that car's fine-driving, RWD performance AND can afford the $30-$42K price range, they will enjoy owning the CTS. However, what about the person that can afford much more? Someone that wants the appeal of the CTS but in a larger, more expensive, and more luxurious package? They really have nowhere to go. Certainly a fully-loaded DTS can't fill that bill.....and the STS is really questionable at best as to whether it can fill that bill as well (thanks to Lutz' dumbing-down of the styling for one thing.....)

I would actually LOVE that job. I too love detailing my own car. I'm so obsessed, I even detail my COMPANY CAR that I don't pay for... LOL That would be the job I'd probably do IF I suddenly became independently wealthy....and just needed a job to keep me active and busy. Maybe I'd buy my own detailing operation and actually do SOME of the work myself....!

No MAJOR plans for Memorial Day weekend, although a few friends of mine and I might run down Sunday night to Harrah's in north San Diego County for a short evening of gambling.....we'd come back Monday morning. My big trip is Hawaii in June for a week. I'm spending three nights on Oahu in Waikiki (Honolulu) at this charming little gay hotel....and then I'm spending three more nights on the Big Island of Hawaii at a beautiful resort. The Waikiki portion of my trip will be the "nightlife, big city" version of Hawaii (I've been before...it's really fun) and my Big Island portion will be the total relaxation portion (never been to the Big Island before so that will be new to me.) I'm using frequent flyer points to fly first class (yippee) from LAX to Honolulu on an American Airlines 767 (nice, big plane) then I fly back from Kona to LAX, also AA first class on a 757. Should be a good time. I've been travelling so damn much for work this year, I'm looking forward to some Hawaii-like relaxation. I thought about going to the Carribbean, but I've been to Hawaii before....and I know that it's nice and I like it......

While "Hollywood" is kinda trashy and touristy, WEST Hollywood would be a GREAT area to hang out. Santa Monica Boulevard is cool if ur gay.....or go up a few blocks to (world-famous) Sunset Boulevard and the Sunset Strip. That IS really cool. Also spend some time driving up and over the hollywood hills.....just north of Beverly Hills and West Hollywood. Mulhollond Drive is up there....and u can take Coldwater Canyon from BH or Laurel Canyon from WH. The hills, canyons, vistas, and unique home architecture up there is charming.

Well I wish we had better weather, but this marine layer has been tenacious! Anyways you HAVE to make Laguna Beach a MUST-SEE.....it's probably the most characterful beach town in southern California. Newport Beach is actually worth the time. Don't go to Fashion Island....instead, spend some time on Balboa Island, down the Lido Peninsula, or in Corona del Mar. If you HAVE time, take a drive over Ortega Highway from San Juan Capistrano to Lake Elsinore.

I was able to configure and price one for about $41K and change....withOUT navigation. The Diamond White paint that I like does add almost a grand though.... That was loaded with the 18-inch wheel/sport package, luxury package, moonroof, paint, but was with the standard no-cost 6-speed manual.

Sorry...it WAS the C&D comparo I was thinking about. I think the 18-inch Sport Package would look TITS in Diamond White....with Ebony interior! In fact, that's a combo (with the 6-speed) that I'd even consider buying.