enzl

I'm not a CRV fan, either, but its not a piece of garbage....Keep in mind that the Accord appears in the fall and then each of its derivatives follow in a strong product cadence... TL, TSX, Pilot, Odyssey all benefit directly from the Accord's engineering. Honda is basically capacity restrained as it is, I wouldn't put too much credence in monthly sales charts when they tend to tweak promotions regionally to recover from weakening model performance.

While what you're saying is 100% true, but its about 100-150 jobs gone in my region...and, to be honest, we've seen years of record new vehicle sales---probably as a result of these guys uncompetitive situation.While good for GM as well, I feel for those personally affected.

Unfortunately, only 20% of GM's total decline is due to fleeting, if you believe the PR regarding the total fleet sales this month...that being said, it stands to reason that more factories (running at full speed) means more fleeting is necessary to maintain correct inventory levels...It's time to stop whining about Toyota's dominance and figure out how to restore GM's mojo. Otherwise, it'll be over in short order. Or we'll be buying GM cars made everywhere but the US.

The Lucerne is a good car. It should be outselling arguably the worst new Toyota product in a decade.The Impala, I believe, is doing well at the expense of the 'bu. The 9-3 has some amazing incentives right now (between 4-8k, with dealer spiffs) The Aura is clearly a marketing issue. It's not getting the support it needs. The comparo ads lasted all of 2 weeks in our region. The Enclave is a great product, in a segment that should be a natural for the Buick dealers. The Acadia --ditto the Enclave H3 is substituting for the H2 IMO Uplander---couldn't tell ya...probably fleeting.

Sorry. We're (sadly) about to lose at least 2 GM stores in our region (a third is already gone as of June 30th). All 3 are in the heart of middle class suburbia. They've been overwhelmed by the foreign invaders. Perhaps the contraction is necessary, but as with some of the Ford outfits, I believe at least one of these is a 2/3rd gen. family store.

And that would be the highlight of the comparison between the two, from GM's perspective. Make sure to rearrange the deckchairs before hopping on the lifeboats! My zone was at 70% last month---there were stores doing 20%(!) of targeted figures.

The Wrangler & Patriot appear to be winners. We sell a ton of Chargers, Rams & minivans as well. The only issue I see with Chrysler is their ability to replace or update the entire lineup in the future. I suspect the Pacifica, Aspen & Commander (along with the Compass) might be the victims of contraction of the lineup in the near future.

C&D also had some really nice things to say about the Sebring's build quality and overall materials appearance in their 'vert comparo...of course, it placed dead last to the Stang and G6, but it was interesting comentary, nonetheless.

Two wrongs don't make a right. The 4 speed auto should be banished from cardom. Subaru is in the midst of taking alot of criticism for not updating the drivetrain (engines carryover as well) for the new Impreza. The styling hasn't exactly bowled anyone over either... Subaru will eventually become nothing more than a division of Toyota, much like Saab & GM. Very sad. They're one of the few Asian makes that march to the beat of their own drummer.

"Jap' is offensive. period. I've complained about it's use before and I'm now officially requesting you don't use it. It's like the n word or any other slur that makes you sound like an idiot. whether I'm being PC or not, you wouldn't use the n word to make a point here...so don't use that word either. If you need help dragging your knuckles along the keyboard those few extra letters, than don't bother posting. And, as usual, your simian mind gets all bent out of shape because of a legitimate criticism. And your response is angry and bitter---probably your personality, but that's your problem. And if you don't mind ruining the experience here for others, than I'd add selfish to your list of descriptives as well.

It looks like a RAV4 pumped up on steroids (along with some 'bacne'). That being said, they'll still sell every one they produce... Automotive News has this vehicle on the front cover of this week's edition with some fairly revealing admissions by Toyota that their quality assurance system needed extensive revamping and this vehicle's intro was delayed to get it right.

You tell 'em! Why not let other people with differing POV's speak their minds? Are we living in a Police State? And calling anything 'Japs' (or the gun diatribe by toesuf94 above) makes both of you sound like sociopaths, thus eliminating any opportunity to turn the 'humpers' opinion around. I'm fine with you being a huge fan of GM. I'm even OK with your hatred of imported products...its the personal, seething deep down hatred and stupidity that really ruins the C&G experience for alot of us, whether we agree with your automotive opinions or not. It's just a silly website, man. Lighten up, Francis.

In a related topic, anyone see AutolineDetroit with Gettlefinger on this week? He pontificated on National Healthcare for the first half, avoided any substantive discussion about any issue and denied knowing anything about Goodyear's historic agreement with its Union regarding a lump sum payment and trust for retiree benefits... I'm sorry, but if he's the best leader that bunch can produce, they're in bigger trouble than we all might think.

Gotta be MDX. SRX has a polarizing design...(although I personally like it- 2yr old CPO in 2009 sounds about right.)

I'd take your example and take it one step further:The Chevy guy is less likely to service his vehicle regularly. Simple socioeconomics, IMO. That being said, the Toyota buyer clearly has to rationalize the extra costs...consider it a 'peace of mind' tax. Most consumers will happily pay for that state of mind, real or imagined. The truth is that, at worst, statistics tell you the most vs. least reliable means 1 extra shop visit every 2 years or so.

Actually, I think the big problems with these puppies centered around their suspensions. Although the recalls were embarassing, I believe the episode made Ford chnage its intro practices that have resulted in glitch free recent intros and a fairly good upward swing of shrt/long term quality.Foci (w/documented warranty/recall work) are very fun drivers for a cheap & generally cheerless class of cars....I've spent a few weeks in one ('02 rental grade sedan) and it was a decent ride. (I personally think the 5 dr and wagon are underrated because of Ford's initial issue.) (I think it was the Trucks that were catching on fire due to cruise control switch issues, IIRC)

I wasn't implying that ONLY less educated/less wealthy customers shop Chevy, just that. in my experience, the Toyota customer is a little more credit worthy, on average, at our stores. That being said, you're spot on about salesmen...they are terminal job hoppers, for the most part.We have policies for hiring that encourage green peas. We spend about 6 months training them, then most use our name to hop to another store after the training period. (BTW, more than 50% of the hoppers are back within a year asking for their old job back, but that's another story.) It sucks, but like the restaurant biz, sales seems like a transient bunch. It is a big problem for all of the manufacturers that they can't do better at retention.

Agreed. Actually, I really like the mid-90's Camry's that carry the LS400's roofline...those were really made before Toyota made an all-out commitment to volume...and it shows in every facet of those particular models....they were really much better than their competition in terms of quality.

I can't debate the Toronto marketplace...I'm assuming you're 100% accurate.That still doesn't change things here in the States, where leasing is not as dominant, and the play you have in a leasing deal (rate, residual, incentives, et al.) aren't as important. As for Honda and Toyota salesmen, the NEW carsalesmen may very well be stuck with flats, probably due to the bargaining skills of the customers...the USED lot is where a ton of money can be generated, as the customer has no idea what I paid for their vehicle. As for Chevy grosses, that only reconfirms my local experience of poor credit/less educated people ---those in Toronto are also heading to the local Chevy store, apparently. As for an interesting survey, the best I've ever read is Top Gears annual in the UK....while it has little application to this argument, they use a ton of different factors to rate vehicles on an annual basis. It's a great read (I can't remember which month they do it)...but it seems to use solid methodology and has very interesting results...

Gotcha.Previous gen Civic was a step back for Honda....dumbed down for 'American' tastes, supposedly. The Focus, certainly in '01, was a great vehicle. European style with lots of choices and a great drivers car. Too bad Ford didn't bite the bullet and figure out a way to get the C1 here years ago, although the 3 and S40/V50 give a glimpse into what we're missing. Ford just completely missed the boat on cars....Euro Fords of A,B &C sizes would attract consumers here. The new Mondeo/S-Max and Galaxy look like winners as well. Sad, really. Opportunity missed completely.

C'mon...if the Civic is a heap, what does that say about the rest of the class? Corolla's completely overrated, but the Civic? I don't think so. The Mazda 3 happens to be my pick in this class of vehicles, but GM isn't putting out a thing that even comes close....the Astra might have a shot, and that ain't here yet.

New Camry is clearly not as well built as it's predecessors. Of course, they're still gonna sell about 500k of 'em anyway, sadly. Default choices are tough to beat in the marketplace.

Hang on....I can accept that GMAC will give you a better financing deal than TMC, but that's because the $ you're 'given' in the GMAC financing is swallowed up the minute that new GM rolls off the lot.You're 100% correct that the Toyota Corolla isn't a demonstrably better product than the Cobalt, but simple, exact 100% real time Adam Smith economics will dictate pricing....obviously, the demand for a Corolla (or Civic) is greater than a Cobalts. Additionally, you're being somewhat disingenuous selling a deal on price, as you and I both know that much more than a monthly payment is factored into a cost of ownership equation. As for other makes--I'm not saying anything about MB's resale---we're talking Toyota v. Chevy here...and Chevy pales in comparison when you're talking cars, especially small ones. As for your used Toyota lot...of course they're doing well---which only means that the dealership is doing well, as they are getting paid on profit, no? SO, this generally means more $ for renovations, tech, advertising....it is a positive feedback loop---one which Chevy shows little sign of slowing. As my office shares a building with our Chevy dealership, I know all too well exactly how our deals are being cut. On average, our non-commercial Chevy customers are less educated, less wealthy, less credit-worthy and much more likely to be upside down than our Toyota customers (& the Toyota store is in a nasty area of town). Just because GMAC is willing to lend on these scenarios doesn't make it a wise bet for the consumer. What's the real world difference if I bury an extra $2000 in negative equity or cost you the same $2,000 by charging you a higher financing rate? I realize that you have personal and Biz reasons for your opinions, and I respect them, even if I don't agree. We're really just arguing about perception, as I believe the glass is half-empty and GM is in crisis, you clearly believe otherwise. For both our sakes, I hope you're right.

That's not the scenario that gets people, this one is:Newlywed buys Cobalt. Wife gets pregnant with twins. "N" returns to Chevy dealership to trade in Cobalt after 1-2 yrs. and finds out his Cobalt is worth 50% as a trade. (Import & Domestic dealers use the same 'book', so your example is somewhat flawed in that regard as well). Now stung by the realization that he's screwed, "N" bebops down to the local Toyota, Nissan or Honda dealer and promises not to make the same mistake twice, end of story. The fact that the local import shop is probably newer, cleaner and better staffed only helps seal a deal made possible only by the pitiful state of the manufacturer of said Cobalt. "N" is your core guy, gone in an instant. Mr. 200k with his hoopdie won't be back for another 8 years! You sound like a great salesman, but that's the reality today. Fact.

I'm not sure what the issue here is. I think almost all Vets and most trainers will tell you that spaying/neutering your animal is a humane act, for everyone involved. Cali is only setting up a system where people who choose not to do so can be held accountable when something goes wrong. With all due respect, unless you live somewhere that your dog can run free for miles without bothering anyone, I can't see a valid reason, other than anthropomorphy (sp?) to look at it as a bad thing for your animal or you.