Drew Dowdell

I plan to be there on Saturday.

So GM.... what's the problem with building a civilian version of this to replace the W-body Impala?

Figure out how much it'll cost. Maybe C&G can have a fundraiser to send you.

Benz, BMW, and Lexus all have more models than Cadillac. GM covers the same market with two brands rather than one. Either take away Lexus's ES and HS sales or let Cadillac count Buick's sales as an additional luxury division..... any why not? Scion gets counted with Toyota. Doing it this way, there is a GM model priced for roughly every Lexus model offered. Cadillac + Buick = 20,794 IS - CTS HS - Lacrosse - I know not the same vehicle, but similarly priced and both entry level to the brand ES - Lucerne GS - STS LS - DTS SC - XLR RX - SRX LX - Enclave GX - Escalade

Cadillac sold 3,400 CTSes v. Lexus selling 3,300 ISes, STS is neck to neck with the GS, DTS outsold LS over 3 to 1 at 2,282 v. 501, Escalade sold 4 times the amount of GX and LX combined, even the out of production XLR outsold the in production SC by 3 to 1. Buick sold 4,300 Lucernes and 2,300 Lacrosses v. Lexus's 3,400 ESes, and the LaCrosse isn't even fully stocked yet. The only bright spot for Lexus was the near 100% rise over last year in RX sales to apparently crosseyed customers at 8,228 v. 2,866 for the not quite out of the gate SRX. Why is Cadillac the "failure" and Lexus the winner again? Had the RX sold at not-new-release levels, (and the ES which now competes with Buick) and Lexus would have sold fewer vehicles than Cadillac.

Buick, Cadillac (even the STS and DTS), and the new models at Chevy are all doing well... how is that bad? The government gets it's money back when GM IPOs in 2010 and the government can start to sell off it's stock.

He registered the name with twitter 2 days after it was announced that I bought the site.

Cheers and Gears now has it's own facebook page! You can become a fan by joining here: Cheers and Gears Promote Your Page Too

GM September Sales - 156,673 Cash for Clunkers conclusion, weak consumer confidence and extremely low inventory levels adversely affected the industry and GM sales results GM market share was down year-over-year compared with a strong, incentive-driven September 2008; however, the anticipated 21 percent share this month would be the highest so far in 2009 Sales of the red-hot, all-new Chevrolet Equinox up 94 percent compared with September 2008 Led by a sales increase of 105 percent compared with a month ago, sales of the new Cadillac SRX pushed total Cadillac sales up 64 percent Other key launch products, including the GMC Terrain, Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon and Chevrolet Camaro, greatly exceeded sales expectations and current ability to supply DETROIT – General Motors dealers in the United States delivered 156,673vehicles in September. When compared with strong sales a year ago, September's sales were down 45 percent. GM retail sales were down 46 percent while fleet sales declined 43 percent. When comparing GM's September total sales with a strong August, and the conclusion of the Cash for Clunkers program, volume was down 36 percent month-over-month. "September was a tough transitional month for the industry, and a difficult year-over-year comparison for GM. Fortunately, the fourth quarter looks brighter and our year-over-year comparisons should look more favorable," said Mark LaNeve, vice president, U.S. sales. "We have the Cadillac SRX, Buick LaCrosse, Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain hitting dealerships right now, generating significant buyer interest, and we're selling many of our launch vehicles as soon as they hit dealers' lots." "As expected, the market returned to pre-Cash for Clunkers levels in September, but we believe that our four core brands – Chevrolet, GMC, Buick and Cadillac – are well positioned with new products to generate enthusiasm with our 60-Day Satisfaction Guarantee and 'May the Best Car Win' marketing campaigns," he continued. "We're gearing-up fourth quarter production to replenish depleted dealer stocks and improve availability of our vehicles for customers." There were several product highlights in September for GM's core brands: Buick car sales, led by LaCrosse and Lucerne, increased 50 percent compared with August. Total Buick sales increased 10 percent. The luxury segments started to show improvement as Cadillac car truck and total sales all increased compared with the previous month, led by SRX (up 105 percent), CTS (up 35 percent), DTS (up 174 percent) and STS (up 29 percent). Escalade sales increased 28 percent. Chevrolet launch products continue to perform strongly in the market. There were 6,900 Traverse, 6,800 Equinox and 8,000 Camaro sales recorded in September. GMC Terrain sales continue to build launch momentum with a 183 percent increase from the previous month.A total of 1,011 GM hybrid vehicles were delivered in the month. So far, in 2009, GM has delivered 12,555 hybrid vehicles. Non-core brand total sales, when compared with a year ago, showed the impact of the end of the Cash for Clunkers program and overall market demand. Pontiac sales declined 53 percent; Saturn was down 84 percent, HUMMER dropped 82 percent and Saab declined 73 percent. GM inventories dropped compared with a year ago, and remained at very low levels. At the end of September, about 424,000 vehicles were in stock, down about 294,000 vehicles (or 41 percent) compared with last year, and down approximately 9 percent compared with August. There were about 157,000 cars and 267,000 trucks (including crossovers) in inventory at the end of September. GM Certified Sales GM Certified Used Vehicles, Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, Cadillac Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, Saab Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, and HUMMER Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, combined, sold 22,885 vehicles in September. GM Certified Used Vehicles sold 19,877 vehicles, down 34 percent from last month. Cadillac Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 1,819 vehicles, down 44 percent. Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 692 vehicles, down 15 percent. Saab Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 362 vehicles, down 47 percent. HUMMER Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 135 vehicles, down 30 percent. "September was a tough month for all Certified programs. However, consumers continue to see value in the GM Certified brands," LaNeve said. "Our quarterly customer satisfaction surveys are a proof point with GM Certified Used Vehicles scoring high in value for the money, brand name and dealer reputation. Quality is an important factor and we continue to deliver with our industry-leading 100,000 mile/five-year (whichever comes first) limited powertrain warranty, and the 12-month/12,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty." GM North America Reports September 2009 Production; Third Quarter Production at 533,000 Vehicles; Fourth Quarter Forecast Remains at 655,000 Vehicles In September, GM North America produced 233,000 vehicles (88,000 cars and 145,000 trucks). This is down 102,000 vehicles or 30 percent compared with September 2008, when the region produced 335,000 vehicles (162,000 cars and 173,000 trucks). (Production totals include joint venture production of 12,000 vehicles in September 2009 and 18,000 vehicles in September 2008). The GM North America third quarter production was 533,000 vehicles (207,000 cars and 326,000 trucks), which was down 42 percent compared with a year ago. GM North America built 915,000 vehicles (436,000 cars and 479,000 trucks) in the third-quarter of 2008. However, Q3 2009 production volumes have substantially increased versus Q1 and Q2 2009 production volumes of 371,000 (up 44 percent) and 395,000 (up 35 percent), respectively. The region's 2009 fourth quarter production forecast remains at 655,000 vehicles (262,000 cars and 393,000 trucks), which is down about 20 percent compared with a year ago. GM North America built 815,000 vehicles (365,000 cars and 450,000 trucks) in the fourth quarter of 2008. However, Q4 2009 production volumes represent over a 20 percent increase compared with Q3 2009. GM September 2009 Sales Press Release

and I subtract a point for him being a douchebag and registering the twitter name CheersandGears with the only post directing people to TheGMForum

I think that's more of a gearing issue with the 335d than anything else. From the numbers, it should better performance than that. Again, the GM 2.9 litre diesel puts out roughly similar number to the 335d. Imagine if GM made a 3.5 litre diesel based on the same setup.

It's a shame GM couldn't sell Saturn as a package with Saab.

The 2.9 diesel that was supposed to go into the CTS for Europe has 406 ft/lb of torque. 406 ft/lb of torque from a 2.9 liter..... imagine what a 3.6 liter would have..... It'd be like strapping a Saturn V rocket to the roof of the G8.

GM - Saturn - Penske deal is DEAD! Today we learned that Penske Automotive Group (PAG) has decided to terminate discussions with General Motors to acquire Saturn. This is very disappointing news and comes after months of hard work by hundreds of dedicated employees and Saturn retailers who tried to make the new Saturn a reality. PAG's announcement explained that their decision was not based on interactions with GM or Saturn retailers; rather it was because of the inability to source new products beyond what it had asked GM to build on contract. As a result of PAG's decision, we will be winding down the Saturn brand and dealership network, in accordance with the wind-down agreements that Saturn dealers recently signed with GM. Pursuant to the terms of those agreements, the wind down process will be determined and communicated shortly. Discussion: GM - Saturn - Penske deal is DEAD!

GM - Saturn - Penske deal is DEAD! Today we learned that Penske Automotive Group (PAG) has decided to terminate discussions with General Motors to acquire Saturn. This is very disappointing news and comes after months of hard work by hundreds of dedicated employees and Saturn retailers who tried to make the new Saturn a reality. PAG's announcement explained that their decision was not based on interactions with GM or Saturn retailers; rather it was because of the inability to source new products beyond what it had asked GM to build on contract. As a result of PAG's decision, we will be winding down the Saturn brand and dealership network, in accordance with the wind-down agreements that Saturn dealers recently signed with GM. Pursuant to the terms of those agreements, the wind down process will be determined and communicated shortly. Saturn customers and owners will continue to be able to purchase and have their vehicles serviced at Saturn retailers during this process. Once the wind down is complete, Saturn owners will still be able to have their vehicles serviced at other GM dealerships. We will be communicating with our customers very soon to explain the next steps in this process. Today's disappointing news comes at a time when we'd hoped for a successful launch of the Saturn brand into a new chapter. We will be working closely with our dealers to ensure Saturn customers are cared for as we transition them to other GM dealers in the months ahead. I'd also like to thank every GM employee and Saturn retailer who worked so hard to try to make this new beginning happen for Saturn. GM - Penske Deal is Dead

a 3.6 liter Duramax in a G8 would fit the bill quite nicely.

I thought the Camaro being sold in the EU was going to get the 2.9litre.

Only if I am trying to diagnose a problem and I'm listening for a sound.

Verano sounds too much like the Suzuki Verona (seriously, took me two tries to NOT type Verona) Encore sounds... too "cheap appliance" or "Hyundai".... but I repeat myself. Wasn't there a Renault or AMC Encore? Edit: Yep! Renault/AMC Encore

At the same time, we should also be more flexible about "the cars we want". We can be stuck in this "Give me a gasoline powered pushrod V8 or give me death!" mentality. Ford is busily proving that there is no supreme need for V8s. Before any of you V8-Or-Die people protest, I'll remind you that most of you would drop trousers for a Buick GNX. I don't car if my next car is a 4 1/2 cylinder hybrid that is fueled with the by-product of puppy dog smiles as long as it's powerful, cheep to fuel, and doesn't fund terrorist countries.

The Equinox (174@4800rpm) has more torque than both the CRV (161@4400rpm) and RAV-4 (172@4000rpm). Laughingly, the RAV-4 is pushing that torque through a 4-speed automatic. While I don't disagree that that Equinox could be lighter, accelleration is clearly not a priority in this market.

See, that's the wrong attitude to take. What you should be thinking (yes, I'm a Democrat, so I can tell you what to think) is, "We should be free to drive what we want even if that means rebuilding our entire fuel infrastructure around an alternative fuel." I fully support your wish to drive whatever you want with however big of an engine you want. What I don't support is your desire to fuel it with whatever you want.

Because even if GM builds a V8 engine and thumbs their nose at CAFE, you won't be able to afford to fuel it. The biggest story that hasn't been in the news lately is that all of the major oil fields are now in steadily increasing decline. The oil producing countries are trying to pump more oil to make up for recession losses, but the oil fields simply aren't producing. Mexico will stop exporting oil around 2014. Even if they found the world's largest untouched reserve tomorrow, that oil wouldn't come online till after Mexico was forced to stop exports.

CAFE will be the least of your worries.

Most of their concerns won't even be on the radar screens of your average CRV/Rogue/RAV-4 driver. I've been driving around a 166hp 4-speed CRV for a while now.... a 182hp 6-speed equinox which also has more torque, would be positively SS like.