The O.C.

That's FOREVER been their problem.....not only have I seen it first-hand, I was as guilty of it as anyone. I've said before.....when I was in the middle of my 11-year career at Buick, I was the type of guy that would argue how a Buick Regal GS was a better car for a young enthusiast than a BMW. (Now that's just CRAZY.) That's how blind I was to what was happening in the marketplace. Scarily, there are still way too many blind-followers still running around (and running) the General still today.

Hahahahahaha.....that is EXACTLY where GM has gone wrong, product-wise, over the last 30 years! With the exception of trucks and a few niche products (muscle cars, etc.) GM has largely ignored the fact that a vast majority of the buying populace has been attracted to distincly un-American type products! Look at companies such as BMW, Mercedes, and Audi. The products these companies are selling over here are damn near identical to what is being sold in Europe and other markets (minus the exclusion of diesels, etc.) An "Americanized" version of what is happening Over There will never start turning the tide of more-and-more consumers flocking away from the Big 3.

....and I'll say that I am certainly no "rocket scientist" myself.....but even I have been saying that GM should bring the Astra over here for....oh....10 or more years or so? And GM just NOW decides to do it....? These are the kinds of things that make me question how steeped in reality people like The Rick and The Fritz truly are.

All of Enzl's posts have hit the collective nail right on the head. Complacency now....in light of a few product hits (hits that GM DOES deserve solid and enthusiastic credit for) is the same old ailment that has befallen GM and their troops for decades and decades. Even GM's hits aren't sellouts all around the country and GM still is fighting an overwhelming perception liability in most markets in the U.S. I'm one of the MOST enthusiastic new Malibu fans on this site....and even I still have seen to date ONE (1) retail Malibu on the road here in southern California....and only two (2) other rental Malibus. I was watching the grammy's the other night....and GM had tons of Malibu ads on the grammys. I was with a bunch of people at a friend's house and every time the ads would come on, I'd comment on how hot the car is and what a great new product it is. I was getting laughed out of the room. I couldn't believe the snickering and mocking that was taking place in regards to the Malibu and GM. Call it "snobbery" or "ignorance".....but this is a major problem that still exists.....WHATEVER you want to call it. The Rick and others at the top of GM simply don't get this and don't understand this....I'm now thoroughly convinced. In fact, the ONLY new GM vehicles that seem to be making ANY headway (from a retail standpoint) are the Lambdas. Almost every Lambda I see here is a retail unit (with a dealer plate frame.) Even CTS is overwhelmingly rental in this market....with a few retail units thrown in for good measure. It used to be easy for me to beat on GM for lacking market share in this market because the product was, frankly, crap. But even I am getting frustrated that even with first-class products now, most people still won't even give GM a second-thought. Here's an interesting note.....a friend of mine works for Audi USA.....and told me that during the development over here of the launch of the new A4, CTS is not even mentioned as a potential competitor! It's only 3-series, C-Class, IS, and G35. In fact, when he mentioned the new CTS to a bunch of Audi marketing guys, they were like "CTS...? whatever." GM is still not being taken seriously. (That being said, that same Audi has an Enclave for comparison purposes in Auburn Hills and one in Ingostadt....go figure.) So....my rambling point is.....EVERYTHING that Enzl has mentioned in his posts above are mostly non-product issues that are still seriously dragging GM down in the marketplace. That combined with the still-lack of competitive product overall is not making the future look too bright. Let's celebrate the product wins.....but let's try to avoid sticking our collective heads back down in the sand so quickly.....

As far as I'm concerned, neither GM nor Ford has offered a minivan (of any generation) that was class-competitive.....and Venture and Windstar are no exception. One of the cheapest, nastiest, rattly, and most poorly put together vehicles I've EVER driven was a Venture rental with about 15K miles on it. I also had some friends that went from a Chrysler minivan to a Pontiac TransPort/Montana....and the Pontiac was such a nightmare quality-wise and build-wise, they promptly went back to a Chrysler. But alas....my comments prolly aren't fair because I HATE MINIVANS of any sort......<ugh>

First of all....on the rear seat room, I don't know what you are smokin'. The Impala is wider but with two people in back, the Malibu is far more efficient with it's rear seat room (even if it's technically less on paper).....has more foot room (you can't put your feet underneath the front seats in an Impala) and has a rear bench bottom that is shaped better for under-thigh support. Impala rear seat forces you into a "knees up" sitting position. Malibu is more natural. I'm 5'9, 165 lbs and my friend is about 6 foot and heavier (muscular) and we both agreed, BY FAR, the rear seat in the Malibu was far more comfortable for two people. Styling IS subjective. C&D ranked the new Malibu mid-pack because that car is now deserving of contention in the largest car segment in the industry. Something that's never been said before as long as I've been alive. I can damn near guarantee you the Impala would not have compared NEARLY so favorably in a similar test. Performance? I don't know what a "g-force" is.....but a 3.9L Impala 0-60 in 6.3-6.4 sec? "Not Gonna Happen.com." No way that car is that quick. In fact, let's compare apples-to-apples and use Car & Driver's test numbers as a basis (because I found readily available specs for both cars.) C&D tested an LTZ Impala 3.9L in April of '07 and got 0-60 in 7.4secs and 1/4 mile in 15.6@91mph. In their inaugural road test of the Malibu LTZ with the 3.6L V6, they go 0-60 in 6.5secs and the 1/4 mile in 15.1@94mph. As-tested fuel-economy for the Impala was 18mpg...Malibu, 21mpg. Hmmm....faster, more economical (contrary to your opinons above), and a smoother and quieter powertrain! As far as handling? You are probably right and the Impala probably suits your needs just fine. However, C&D had these comments to make about the Impala: "In a straight line, the Impala soaks up bumps well—occupants hear more of a crash than the slight jiggle they feel—but once the road starts to wind, the Impala dips, leans, and squats as though the road were one big yoga mat. Steering inputs are likewise imprecise, needing about 15 degrees of input before the car starts to react." With the Malibu LTZ, they said: "There's no shilly-shallying as you pick up the arc of a fast bend. Malibu V6s have hydraulic power steering with a trusty feel. This ride is smoother than the Accord's and tire noise is well controlled for such a low profile." Also: "Agile moves on the road." I've been in numerous Impala LTZs as rental cars (ironically they've been LTZs with 3.9L engines, leather, and sunroof......as opposed to the "rental queen" LS version.) All I can say, is to the dedicated GM fan, the Impala is probably a quite nice ride. It's smooth to drive and quiet and has good features-for-the-money. However, as a GM fan AND an import fan, I find the Impala outdated, outmoded, and ancient in it's ride-and-handling (floppy and floaty to me), powertrains, styling, and interior packaging. The new Malibu is clearly the best mainstream sedan GM has built in quite some time and one of the few GM products that appeals to not only the GM fan in me, but the import fan in me as well....! I haven't driven a new Malibu yet....but from everything I'm reading in the supposedly "import-biased" press, I think I'll love driving the car very much. And GM is finally offering the kind of chassis/suspension tuning and powertrain offerings that should finally appeal to import owners as much as dedicated GM/domestic fans! Don't forget C&D's overt praise of the refinement and smoothness of even the 2.4L ecotec in the Malibu! That being said, I agree there is room in Chevy's lineup for a large car....one larger than the Malibu. The current Impala, IMHO, is not sufficient for the task. I'd still vote for a large, stylish RWD sedan. But even if the new one stays FWD, let's hope it's executed as well as the new 'Bu and can appeal to import and domestic fans/consumers alike. Remember...GM can't survive only building products that appeal to their current fan base.

How is the SMART predicted to do up in Canada? Or do you sell it up there already?

Ugh....that's about my age....lol.....ironic that I'm attracted to the CTC.....! I don't think I'm quite 20 years older than you (I'm 37) but close enough....LOL

I've said it before......the G35 has kindof taken over the stance of Nissan's "sports sedan." (Even if it's badged an Infiniti.) If you think about it, the G35 is kindof a spiritual successor to the old Maxima 4DSC.....even if it's not FWD. It would be kinda cool to see a decontented and restyled RWD G35 introduced as a new Nissan Maxima!

I do agree about the lack of an Edge type product. Even as enthusiastic as I am about the Lamdas, right now, I'd never ever buy one.....also because it's too big for my needs being single, etc. If there was a smaller, 5-seat Lambda, I'd go for that..... Equinox and Torrent are simply way to outdated to even be considered a true competitor in the segment IMHO....

He's in Ohio!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

33,000 miles on my original Bridgestone Potenzas....!!!!! (Of course by now I'm getting VERY close to needing new tires.)

One interesting tidbit......Picard's Galaxy Class ship wasn't the first one to be able to separate the saucer section...... I read in some sort of original draft for ST The Motion Picture that there was a scene at the end of the movie after V'Ger went away that the Enterprise is attacked by Klingon warships. The Enterprise was to detach the saucer section and use both the saucer and the stardrive section to engage the Klingon ships. This scene was supposedly a retaliation from the Klingons for the loss of their three ships at the beginning of the movie...and the Klingons were assuming that Earth was behind V'ger and the subsequent loss of their ships.....somewhat logical because V'Ger made it's way to earth and considered the "carbon-based lifeforms" it's creator. Apparently the fight scene (with the saucer-separation) was deleted to keep the movie at a certain length.....a shame because that could have been an exciting ending to what was a mostly action-less movie.....

Yeah I don't think this "debate" is such a big deal. I wasn't alive during TOS....but from any episodes I've seen, I never saw anything to dispute that the first NCC-1701 was not built on earth. I think the "built on earth" theme is kinda cool.....so why not run with it.....? Finally, in everything I've seen, they never moved foward with the "Enterprise Class" designation....and the refit and NCC-1701-A Enterprises were still referred to as "Constitution-Class Refit." Then you had the "B" as an "Excelsior Class" then the "C" as an "Ambassador Class" and the "D" as "Galaxy Class" and finally "E" as "Sovereign Class." I'm almost more curious to see what the bridge and interior of the new movie Enterprise will look like. That is one area where TOS was almost embarrassingly cheesy.....will be interesting to see how they "update" it......

I want to know what the whole ship is going to look like. I think it will be cool.......look like the "cheesy" original NCC-1701 but with updates to the finish (a la the NX-01 in "Enterprise")

(OK....almost embarrassed to admit this.....) ....I'm going to the Star Trek tour in Long Beach tomorrow!!!!!! I kinda like the darker, more "organic" look of the trailer....kinda reminds me what they did with the new Battlestar Galactica.

Many cars have faded away....."Maxima" is another one that's been a lost cause....!

GREAT point that illustrates my previous post. PLUS don't forget you can add a few Lincolns to that 130K Edge number...... Edge/MK......Traverse/Enclave......Highlander/RX.......CR-V/RDX...... Traverse/OUTLOOK/Acadia/Enclave? Needless and excessive......you'll sell the same number of cars.....and spend way more to market them.....or spend the same to market them all with lower returns on your investment.

From a GM corporate standpoint, the point is...it makes no sense to have four such similar vehicles to cover the marketplace. Hence the argument of marketing and advertising dollars being diluted amongst the four. And in GM's current situation, more than any it would be the Acadia or Enclave that is the most redundant. It makes NO sense to have one dealer network (BPG) offer two of the same products (minus interior and exterior styling) that are even priced very closely. One could argue that either the GMC nameplate or the Buick nameplate is aspirational enough to go after the higher-end part of this segment (Lexus RX350??) and I'd be tempted to argue Buick myself. But in no way do you need both under the same dealership roofs....!!!!! Reg.....if the Acadia never existed from the beginning, being a consumer, if you went into that BPG dealership, you'd either buy the Enclave....or if you didn't quite jell with the styling.....and you knew anything about the marketplace.....you'd most likely go next door and get a Traverse (or I guess an OUTLOOK.) In a real utopia, I think you'd need JUST a Traverse at Chevy dealerships.....and an Enclave at BPG dealerships.

I wasn't an RL fan to begin with......and this MCE does nothing to make me a fan....... This car has always been a true product and marketing disaster for Honda......whatever happened to the "Legend?" They should have built upon the reputation that car had originally. The first gen (and maybe the second gen) Legends were truly nice cars....and had a bit of "verve" to them.....

I hate to put undue shock on everyone here, but I have a client that is a Dodge dealer.....and he's getting ready to receive his first two Challengers.....and he's supposedly getting DOUBLE sticker price on them BOTH......

Where's ur post? Where? Where? Where? I can't find it...... I can't wait for the new movie!

Remember though that's pretty much a loaded car....leather and everything minus Nav. I think the TSXs with NAV and an auto were right at $30K. I'm no particular Acura fan, but even I believe the TSX is one of the best values out there on the market. Same price, fully-loaded as most mainstream midsize sedans but with an upmarket name and dealer network, superb fit-and-finish, and fun-to-drive (as long as you stay with the manual.)

Love looking at your sig? Sure...I luv looking at any part of "you"......LOL j/k You are right I think about the above. Look at the performance numbers C&D got on the new xD.....the old one did 0-60 in something like 9.5 secs and the new one is down below 8-sec....! The new ones may be heavier, but they offer much improved performance and drivability over the old xB and xA. Also, like I posted to BV above...don't forget about the dealer-installed TRD supercharger package for the tC.....!

Not actually.....go peruse some old buff mags and you'll see the 2.4L gave the tC some pretty decent performance numbers.....plus the fact you can load the thing up (for a price) with aggressive tire/wheel packages and the rarely-seen-but-powerful TRD supercharger package for the 2.4L......