The O.C.

Any Chrysler product I've seen has been really bad.....cheapest in the business (minus the current LX cars which are still decent.) I think the actual fit-and-finish are fine.....and the switchgear (HVAC, radio controls, etc.) are top-notch. It's the embarrasingly bad plastics and materials that really let down the latest Chrysler products. For example......Dodge Avenger versus Saturn AURA. AURA easily wins the quality-of-materials battle.....even the hard plastics are nicer. Avenger, however, seems much more solidly put-together (no wobbly center console like AURA and no door armrests that pull away from the door panel when you flex it.)

I like fun articles like this. However, to me....it just looks like they wrote an article using times posted in previous tests in the magazine. What's amazing is how close the pushrod G6 and the DOHC AURA are.....exactly the same times. I'll give the 3.6L HF V6 MAJOR props however in equaling the 6-speed manual-equipped G6 with a slushbox in the AURA.

To me, the only negative I see is the cheap interior materials. I like the styling.....and have no problem with the powertrain options.

Uh.....Highlander AND Santa Fe are built off uni-body (re....car-based) architectures..... How are they NOT crossovers?

I used to be a big 3800 SC fan......but now after having my CTS, I much prefer the HF 3.6L's power delivery and smoothness. It's got about the same horsepower (252hp versus 240 - 260) but with less torque. However, the 3.6L is SO much more pleasant from a NVH standpoint, and the way it likes to rev (compared to the SC 3800) makes it much more enjoyable to me. I might not win an outright dragrace compared to a new Grand Prix GT with the 3800SC, but I won't be far behind (0-60 in 6.6 for GP, versus 6.9 for CTS according to buff mags) but I'll be enjoying a WAY more refined, up-to-date, and engaging powertrain. The 3.6L HF is a great vision for GM's future V6 powertrain applications.

I'd actually rather have a Camry SE V6 than an Impala LTZ or SS....... (But it can be reasoned that for roughly $30K, I'd rather have a BMW 328i sedan, base model with leatherette, than either....)

Well, I'm seriously late to this thread..... ....but I LOVE this car.....! It embodies everything I think Pontiac should be.....NOT a BMW "clone".....a true, American performance division. Pontiac had that image all to themselves, but GM hung a noose around their neck and DCX RAN away with that very image with the LX Hemi's....and the SRT-8s. This is GM's way of getting it back. BUT they need a CONSISTENT VISION across the entire division. I only hope G8 points a very serious direction for the future of Pontiac. Nice job GM....!

MUCH improved! If the interior materials mimic the GMT-900s, then it will be a winner. Material quality aside, I'm just glad it LOOKS so much better. I HATED the old H2 with the exaggerated circular vents and the cheap execution.

My CTS has full power passenger seat......at $41K maybe, but it has it.... My mom's Regal GS has full power passenger seat......and that's a 2000 model.

GREAT powertrain, attractive coupe exterior, but other than that, the car is adequate at best. There's still the same interior concerns, the car is too heavy, and it's most certainly not a handler (even in GTP trim) and I can attest to that from a week in a GTP sedan rental.

Well I haven't read the article, but I believe that C&D's rules state that the truck has to be on sale as of press time...... I'm not sure if Tundra JUST missed being considered or not?

I agree..... That's why I'm excited about Malibu.....the interior looks like it will be better from a fit-and-finish standpoint......and I think as attractive as the AURA is, the Malibu is even nicer.

I agree......while I don't mind the actual LOOK of the Grand Prix's interesting dash and interior, it's the fit-and-finish and execution that have always let these cars down. The Regal GS used to be one of my favorite GM cars, and my mom had 2 or 3 of them in a row. Unfortunately, that car's interior was a disaster from a fit-and-finish and quality standpoint. The current (Impala, LaCrosse) W-bodies are MUCH improved in this matter......but the nice interiors can't make up for the other W-platform inadequacies.

The W-Bodies were screwed from the very beginning when GM brought out a trio of COUPES instead of competitive midsize SEDANS.

Yeah.....Bill Handel on L.A. talk radio did a story on this a while back......it's incredibly easy to get nominated. This was back when the state of CA was putting Tookie Williams to death (black gang member that fatally shot a bunch of people back in the late 70's or 80's or something....) and a bunch of black activist groups nomiated him for the Nobel Peace Prize saying that he was "reformed" and trying to help young black kids in gangs. BTW.....I did some research....."Landmark Legal Foundation" is a conservative advocacy group. And I'm sure they have LOTS to gain by recognition of their nomination of someone like Rush who's overly conservative to a fault. I wouldn't be surprised if Rush Limbaugh has some connection to these guys anyways.......monetarily or not...

Oooooo, Ooooooo, Oooooo......can I contribute? Everyone KNOWS how I love to on this issue.....

So Acura's the oddball....... I don't excuse them any more than I excuse Buick......

People are beginning to see that cylinder-deactivation doesn't save very much fuel (if at ALL) in the real world.

C'mon......look where you live.....a suburb of Flint, MI.

Nah.....they truly suck. Just like EVERY other Chrysler except the current LX cars.....

Tortoise shell feels just like genuine wood trim......so how is it "unfriendly" to the touch? Lucerne ergonomics? Like the wonderful tilt wheel (with no telescope?)

Exactly......and HOW many times have you heard people (that are not informed car people) say that the new Mercedes-Benz models "....have too much Chrysler in them....." when in fact, it's the Chryslers (LX cars) that have Mercedes-Benz in them....

I luv hur.....

Trust me.....the AURA is bad in most ways that the Camry isn't. That being said, the VERY same corporation just introducted the new Outlook that.....in my opinion.....has one of the nicest, best fit-and-finish interiors in the market. AND the materials are nice to boot. So......next to Outlook in the same showroom, AURA looks way undercompetitive.

I absolutely, totally, disagree.......(at least as far as the AURA is concerned.) The AURA has one of the most disappointingly shabby interiors in a GM car that I've seen in quite awhile. It's not so much material quality as it is the extremely poor fit-and-finish. I can't EVEN believe AutoWeek liked the AURA's interior better..... At NAIAS, there were three AURAs on the floor. ALL three of them had center consoles so loosely attached, you could wobble them back-and-forth at least a good solid 1/2 of an inch....! In fact they had so much give, the whole console was sliding back-and-forth underneath the shift plate that stayed in place. Next up, was the door panel armrests. If you push down on the armrests with your fingers, it deflects so much it actually pulls AWAY from the door panel. Finally, there were the excessive number of cutlines where all the pieces to the door panels, dash, console, and center stack all meet up. A sure-fire combination for squeaks and rattles down the road. The AURA was SO bad (and Evok attested to this awhile back in another thread) that I even asked the Saturn people if these cars were pre-production or prototypes. She said they were absolutely production line units and were in fact going to auction after the auto show circuit. In HER defense, she was very good about writing down VIN numbers and making copious notes about my complaints. GM (and Jill what-the-hell-is-her-last-name) should be ashamed of the interior on this car. That being said......BRING ON the Malibu.