hyperv6

While this is a April fools joke the threat is one NASCAR is waiting and watching. That is part of the reason Toyota is there today as they ecpected to loose Ford or Chrysler a few years ago. Like it or hate it it generates a lot of money in different communities. Have you seen the hotel prices near Bristol?

Sheep calling Sheep...... That is Baaaaaad As painful as Chapter 11 is I think the sooner the better at this point. With the market staying down and not likley to return soon GM needs to take action and remove the govement in their affairs as soon as possible. I am more interested in the G20 goings on right now. Might be interesting.

The majority of us wish neither Dem or GOP were involved. By the way it is Disneyland now with the Dems and it was Bush Gardens before with the GOP.

Ok? I feel so much better now that the same people handling the AIG turn around are now giving GM direction.

Never said they react rationally I just said they will react. Don't twist words or meanings. You have your opinion and I have mine. It's about buying and selling to make a buck nothing rational applies here. Either way the market is not going to recover long term for a while all we will see are short gains and loses based on the latest press release from each and ever problem. I just see Wall Street being negitive on the president removing a CEO and controling GM. I would have a hard time investing in a company like GM being directed by the US Goverment no matter who is in charge. The loans are a good option depending on what the goverment is going to require but that keeps changing like CAFE and Emission rules. What they will require depends who is in office. Right now under the present conditions Chapter 11 looks like a better option Painful but better option than goverment directing a company.

Stocks are at -270.25 at the end of the speach so lets see where it goes.

According to the people who know on several networks it is Wall Street reaction due to what is happening in the auto indusrty nothing else. People are bailing out. Now will the market recover from this reaction only time will tell. As it is now GM has to do what the goverment says as they have recieved public funds. The goverment has not teated all buisness equally nor will they as they neve have at anytime in our history. Now in hind site Rick did mess up taking these moneys from the goverment. Chapter 11 would have been painful but now it is looking more appealing all the time. The question I have is if GM would file Chapter 11 on say Tuesday would they be release from Goverment intervention? I don't know if they would be able to write off the goverment debt or not? If so Chapter 11 is looking more appealing all the time. I just wish the goverment would have some creditable people involved here calling the shots with true automotive industry and rebuilding experience. If your pipe break in your house you call a plumber not a brick layer. I just have not seen the kind of people involved that would give Wall Street the confidence they need to see GM as a good investment. The people there were smart enough to know taking Rick out was a PR move and nothing more. It may fool the American people by removing Rick but it will not fool Wall Street. They see this as if it can happen to GM it can happen to any company. The goverment may not want to run GM but they would have no problems wanting to controling GM. Placing all the blaime on Rick ro even the UAW is just simple. The problems that needs address are so much more than that. The system in the way GM operated is being changes to what it needs to be but it is far from complete. The goverment needs to come in and work to complete the change of GM to a global auto MFG as they need to be like the compitition already is.

Your assumption is weak since sales of the HHR has been stong here in the north and in Canada. Even on the HHR site you can't believe all the HHR owners. The question that needs answred if yes they would havwe sold some more if AWD was offered but how many more? They could have sold more if they had a Diesel too but how many more? Would they have sold enough to justifiy the added cost of development at a time HM had little money to add these extras? I just see them getting ther return on the extra money spent. The whole Idea here was to compete with the PT and do it as inexpensivly as they could. That is what they did and they made a profit by doing so. A so to speak silk purse out of a Cobalt pigs ear. I live in the snow belt and to be honest we have some AWD cars here but most people don't even use winter tires here let alone worry about AWD. Cars today will go through most snows with ease and not need AWD or Snow Tires. It is the people in the non snow areas that panic with that one or twice a year snow or ice storm that we laugh at. My SS was a tank in the snow and never put a tire out of place. If you could not drive my SS in the snow you sould not even be on the road. The only problem I had was when the snow gets over 7 inches I push it on the street like a plow on the SS front end.

I am not saying the HHR would remain the same on the Delta. It would use the new platform and have a new retro look. A Nomad like roof like the one the HHR show truck with a 55 truck front in a modern retro like way of the new Camaro. The closer they can make it like a Mini but still useful the better.

The Idea would be is to move a redesigned HHR to the new platform in a new retro design. The present HHR will be here till 2012. Then you would update the new HHR with new styling of something say like a 55-57 Suburban or even Nomad. In a New Camaro kind of Retro way. But to come out with w Mazda 5 clone that would compete with aproduct you alreay have is counter productive.

The better move would have been goverment support to make many of the sweeping changes needed to fix GM's problems and they block they face fixing the way they have to do buisness. Many of the things with labor and dealers are not able to be address due to goverment rules and regulations.

Change for change sake. Why bother?

1 you underestimate the Goverments abilities with a company in need of money. Wait for Obamas other demads and see if you still thing they do not have a upper hand. 2 There is plenty of incompetence in GM but much of it was there before Rick and at this point there is still much that needs to change but it is better now than under past leaders. 3 You underestimate Rick. He may have made mistakes but he has done more right than many of the past 6 leaders combined. 4 Even if GM brought in Alan Mullaly things would not be much better. Fords problems were much smaller than GM. Ford is a much smaller company with less problems, brands and products to rehash. Besides the biggest problem Ford has always had was some one names Ford running the company. After Henry came out with the Model T only Edsel Ford I did anything to benifit Ford Motor company and then he dies before he really could do much to help them. GM is a large corperate comapny where Ford is mostly a large Family buisness. A lot less internal poltics involved.

I know damn well Frank and Dodd will not run it. My point is it is not the goverments call to who leads a large corperation. First off no political appointee should be put in place Dem or Repub. This is a choice for the Corperate Board of Directors to make for the share holders not some creap in DC. If the goverment wants to add their opinion that is fine but GM get the choice. I know Rick was smart enough to know he needed to hang on till they had things ready for him to step down and someone to take up for him. the question is were they ready before Obama asked for him to leave so they could get more funding. What is next is Obama going to dictate what products they have to sell? What if Obama said GM has to stop selling SUV? What if they were told to stop making V8 engines? What if they were told to stop all performance vehicles? What if they were told they could not sell anything under 25 MPG? I am not saying that any of this will come to pass but when you realize many of the backers of the Democratic party and Obama are heavy hitting eviromentalist things like this could happen. Mightn not now but in the future. Theses are the same people who are loaning money to companies in trouble but also are looking to passing emission laws that will cost some of these companies 14 Billion dollars to meet. Hmm Not very smart planning to me. There are those in his cabinet already wanting to go to a smart gride that could control your heat and AC. Obama already commented during the election on home tempertures. I an not an alarmist but I have been seeing thing happen of late that cause me to be concerned. I Find it dangerous for the goverment to call for leader changes in a company. If they want to request it fine but do not hold them at ransom fo funding. It they get away with this where do they stop? If GM can find a new leader to come in that could make changes and a differance other than a PR move I say fine let do it. But if all they are doing is a PR move at the request of the president and just put Fritz in then why bother? It will be interesting to see what GM has in the change in leadership If it is nothing but a PR move that will be sad. I also am waiting on the other shoe as Obama keep saying he wants changes at GM. Some will be painful. Rick leaving is not painful. What does he have in mind? If he calls for some radical unresonable changes I hope GM tells him to stuff it and files Chapter 11 to remove the goverment from their company. The last capitalistic goverment to run a auto industry was the British. Look at how they faired. The state of things are this the auto industry in America has been poorly run for years and I can only think of one other thing more poorly run. Yes the goverment who is not wanting to tell the auto industry how to do their work. If Obama has not pissed of Wall Street he might have gotten some more help. There are people there that could be doing wonders at the treasury. Honest people do work on Wall Street but are smart enough not to get into the middle of this. Note none are willing to work as a under secretary in the treasury that should tell you womething stinks. I say we will give them Rick if they give us Tim Guitner. But then again who would you replace him with? At least Rick pays his taxes!

Some how I am not suprised that the Obama admin asked for this. Time will show it is the system and not one man that is the problem. So who do we put in charge Barney Frank or Chris Dodd? I would liked to have seen the Obama admin have a plan to correct the probems with in the auto building system and credit problems vs making a scape goat of Wag. I wonder who they will blaime when this does not work out or will they just create a new distration like they did with the AIG bonuses? Just wait as see what happens if the tillion dollars they put into the Fed Res does not work. Now that they have even pisses off the honest Wall Street people who is going to help advise out of this mess. Gephardt or Biden? They both have so much Detroit experience. Obama have better have a rabbit in the hat on Monday like putting Roger Penskie or Lee I in charge of righting GM. GM needs someone with a respected background to come in and knows the industry. If your going to make a change you had better have a good plan!

Nice, if you want the leather and heated seats just have the dealer chech around and do a trade. I have seen many blue LT's around and I am sure some are loaded. As for the wife how often do women like what men do or vise a versea. My wife could care less for a Solstice or a Vette too. The one thing my wife and I do agree on with cars is the Aztec no matter how cheap the price was still to ugly to buy. LOL I bought my HHR because I liked how it performedl. As for the looks I was ok with them and did like the 18 inch wheels and the SS trim. Now that I have one I have been amazed with the many positive coments I have gotten. I put on a set of 16 inch tires for winter from Wheel Vintique that are the old style dog dish caps. I have had many people say how they love the wheel combo on it and I hate to tell them I only have them on for winter tires. LOL The HHR is a polarizing styled vehicle. If you have a awareness for vintage cars you get the idea but if you have no awareness of vintage cars or even really car much about cars the concept is lost on this kind of customer. Women that would not know what a Ford coupe was let alone a 49 Suburban would not understand why this vehicle looks as it does. Either way there was enough of a market that understood and it did its job. The Nissan Cube and Honda Element are no different.

At 3200 pounds as it is it would have only added weight to something that was only ment to be a wagon not a Escape competitor. The SS sold on the first drive. It was one of the first GM FWD that was really sorted out. It makes my GTP feel like crap in handling on back roads. GMPD did their work converting a conventional car to being a well tuned machine. Now that the same folks from GMPD are working on the new cars I can see where they will build these things correct from the start and not have to convert them from a unsorted mess. As for the SS nose I is a little large till you crawl up into it and realise most of it is used to contain the intercooler. Also this thing in stock form will top out at 155 MPH and with the stage kit approach 170 MPH. To make it stable an not have to add a speed limitor they had to control the air around and under the box of a body. I would recomend to all even if your not going to buy one to drive a SS Cobalt or SS HHR at a dealer. You will be amazed at how good these cars really are. It gives me hope on the new products that they will be as well sorted from the start.

You might want to look under the hood before you may any statement like this. Here is an example of a SS which has the largest over hang. Please note the footwell goes right to the back on the engine, the engine is up to the front headers and the radiator and condenser are on the outside of the front header panel unlike most other cars. In this case there is a little bigger bumper but that is there because these is a large intercooler in it. Also they need to keep the air out from under the front bumper. The only realistic way to shorten the over hang is to move the front wheels forward but with the present transaxle that is not possble. Note the hood latch is right behind the grill and if it is hit they go right through the radiator. The bottom line is there is not any room up there to do as you claim. The area for gains would have been minimal. Heck the radiator condenser and intercooler are infront of the turn signals and even part of the headlights. As for width they tried to keep the vehicle to the point it was the same as the Cobalt so they could share parts this may have hurt in some ways room but it also kept the cost and risk down and made this vehicle more profitable. As it is size has not been a major factor to the many who have bought it. As for AWD it would have only added weight, expense and used more power to run. While it would have been nice so few would have sold it would have not been worth the cost to develop. Can you say Pontiac 6000 STE AWD? Remember this is the vehicle GM took a risk on as the press kept saying it was too little too late. Lutz moved it on and it paid off. He kept the risk down and used as much from the cobalt as possible. The ned result was a low cost low risk vehicle that sold in greater numbers than many other GM vehicles. This made them money and that is what is is all about. They took a boring Cobalt wagone and made something interesting out of it. Hell they could have dropped a V8 and RWD in it too and made another SSR. Now that was a high profit machine for the masses! GM is so much better off for thaty one. As too often here the ideas while good are often short sighted due to the lack of facts. I am not calling out anyone here as we all have done it.

Well the cut prices and rebates on the 09 model are not much of a bargin vs what I paid for my 08. they rasied the price on my model to nearly $2K over what my sticker was on my 08. With present rebates etc I still came out as cheap or cheaper than most buying the same thing in a 09 today. They are only getting Bluetooth, usb port, new dome light and a perefromance passenger seat less a 6 disc changer no longer available for the $2K more. I already added the performance passenger seat for $150 and will add the dome light next for a lot less. A 10 year 100,000 mile would be nice but GM should have no excuse for less than 5 year 50,000 bumper to bumper to add to the present drivetrain warranty.

Hey guys, Personally I like it. We all know good things must come to an end. There are already a ton of HHR's out there. I like that the hhr is unique. If there were too many HHR's out there it would take away from the uniqueness. With the addition of a new baby girl coming to my young family, I am looking for a fuel efficient 7 passanger car. The Orlando sounds right for me. Ill still keep the HHR as a toy though. Looks nice sitting next to my 1970 opel gt. Though I will add that so far from what I have read the Orlando is only planned to be released in europe and it has yet to be determined if it will make it state side. I would like it though 2.0turbodeisel with 150hp and 230 ft lb torque. Sounds like a great fuel effiencient people mover with a potential to tow more than the HHR. When i bought my hhr my dealer said the hhr is the number 1 selling new model they have ever had. Bad idea they are too late it`s just a Dodge Caliber wearing a bow tie I don't think it could ever replace the HHR. Too bland, too big. It may be similar, but in my eyes, there's no way it's a replacement. The HHR has style, the Orlando has size. They are not replacements for one another. Just another SUV it is NOT an HHR not for me thanks Don't do much for me. Looks like one of a handful of cars already on the market Yawn.It looks too much like a Traverse,an Equinox,and an Uplander.I recognize Chevrolet's desire for the family 'face" on their cars but there's no individuality to it.At least our HHRs LOOK unique even if they're Cobalts underneath. wow, a angular mini van....very...ummm.... original? sorry, IMO it looks like crap. And if it looks this boring in "concept" phase, since it will look nothing like this in the end, it'll be 5x more boring then this by the time they get done with it. Fugly. Reminds me sorta like an Aztec, which I also think are fugly. this cannot replace an HHR That thing is friggin UGLY That looks craptacular. I'd go with the xB over that thing. My thoughts exactly. I bought the HHR because it wasn't like anything else on the road. It has style. This new replacement does absolutely nothing for me. Meh. not HHR replacement at all you cant beat the look of our HHR's I have to agree with Lone Ranger here...I am seeing more and more HHR's in the buffalo area now...Theres been 4 people i work with buy them this year after seeing/hearing how much i love mine...If they kill the model im gonna replace my current 08 with a used 10 model i guess Crap I can only say that I wouldn't even glance at that vehicle if it were on the lot... This is only a cross section of HHR owners. Some do like the Oralando but I presented this in about the same ratio of positive to negitive comments. There were 15 pages here and most comments were negitive, some neutrel and only a few positive. Anyway this is what the HHR community is saying and they are in great numbers so their comments should be heard. In time the lack of their buying the Orlando may speak even louder in a already crowded market where being different can be to your advantage!!

Well as a HHR owner and one that has been around many HHR owners here are some of the things they would change. The hood is no issue as if it was shorter the engine would just get moved into the cabin. You going to gain little as there is little wasted space inder the hood. As for fleet sales plai panels and base models have been popular with companies as the styling has set their fleets appart. It is no like the G6 that they are just getting dumped un Enterprise lots just to get them out of GM inventory. The fleet in this case is not unlike many truck sales. Going into 2010 sales and profitrs have been great with few changed. Besides what car 5 years in is not ready for an update? The present car few owners argue for more cargo space. That has never been an issue. If it had a little more no one complain but few complain now. What many ask for are, a different rear door that opens diffently or has a opening rear window. Better door panels, a little more head room, width would be needed if you raise the roof to prevent it from having the telephone booth looke. They wanted window swithches on the doors and they got them this year. The biggest need is interior storage. As it is there are a few bins but no center console. The glove box is small and the dash storage is great but small. As for a group of owners I would say the HHR owners may be as satisfied group of GM owners there are. The biggest black mark or complaints I see are quaility issues with some. Most have trouble fre cars but I too often see people with nagging little problems that tarnish ownership for some. So far with mine I have yet to have more than one TSB done on it. That was for a Vacuum pump t be added to assiste the Turbo brakes. This was an issue on the Solstice and Sky also. It was a LNF engine problem not a HHR problem. As for presnet owners response to the Orlando it has been poor. it is about 1 out of 10 like the Orlando or are showing any like for it. The bottom line the people who buy an HHR are not the same that would buy a NOX or Orlando. ALso the fleet company sales will be lost as I have many in my area like a Coke distributor and a Miller Beer distributor use the HHR for their sales staff. Even the many independents that were not fleet sales like my Local Jeff the Plumber has several panel in his small company to save on gas and make a good rolling advertisment for his small company. The key in this market is while you may gain a few sales being the same as everyone else your going to lose a lot more when you lose a popular concept from those who want to be different. The bottom line is unless the Orlando is priced in the HHR line it will never sell in the number the HHR has. People have too many other choices in the same price range on very similar vehicles. For the Orlando to make it it needs to do so on options and price to set itself appart. The sad part is the Orlando will in my opinion be more expensive just as the Cruze and lose it's advantage fo being a good value.

I would not be suprised if this one appears. It would be cheap to do based on the Spark and Chevy needs to gear toward more smaller cars with the present admin pressing for higher CAFE standards and lower emissions.

Well Do you really thing Mazda will sell 100,000 plus 5's this year? It is a competitive segment and if you offert the same crap as everyone else you not going to see the volume you would like. The HHR also has been around for 4 years and when I went to the Auto show the parking lot was full of them form the people attending. Just with in 10 cars of mine was 4 others. The HHR is not past it's prime it is doing the same sales tren all cars carry. It will be due for an update in 2011-12. The key is to do an update that is not like Chryslers where it lookes mostly the same. The retro thing will carry but the present style needs to change. Details like an opening rear hatch glass and may be alittle length would be nice. As for utillity most people would trade a little for something that has no personality. Driving a box has a limited appeal just as a Mini Van. The key is a redesigned HHR needs to retain a truck look. This is the key part. Many present HHR owners were Truck and SUV owners hating to pay for the gas. As for utillity I have hauled some good loads form a Soap Box Dervy car to a unassembled 50" basket ball hoop. The limit on wide screen TV's is 54 inches. As for safe the HHR has a proven record. I have a photo of several that have been in bad crashed and people came away with no or little injury. FOG You have some good ideas but please make sure to include the cost of what your doing. How many name plates can Chevy suport and still make money. I just see too much over lap with the Nox and Orlando. Cost wise give me one or the other. I also agree on anyone over 6 foot the HHR is not a good leg room option. This is one area a new one needs to improve. The fact is we are going to be left with only smaller cars in the fututre and interior space will be important. I am under 6 foot and would not much taller in my HHR. As for getting in and out I do not have to lean down but I doo have to step over a large rocker on the SS. Anyone with short legs may hate that. 60+ MPH head on crash. Broken arm, wrist from bracing and fractured foot from standing on the brake. rear passenger did not have a scratch. Side hit at 80 MPH and flipped, driver waled away with no injury. He did slide a good ways on the roof then hitting a curb and other things. Even the proper use of color can transform the most basic of interiors. Better seats and color goe a long way. Just needs a better gauge pod.

Wagons and hatches are hard sells in the states. There is a select group that like them but not a large group. That is why everyting wagon like it in the form of a Mini Van or SUV. If it looks like a SUV or Mini Van it sells. Case in point Forrester, Excape etc.

I am trying to get them. The 06 and 07 out sold the 08. The 09 will not be a comparison as with the market down it has been tough on all Chevys but trucks. When gas was up last fall there were fewer than 2 or 3 HHRs on dealer lots. They were selling almost as fast as the Cobalt per the salesman I bought mine from. Just to get mine I had to change color choice as the dealer went as far as Ohio to Georgia to try to pick one up for me loaded in red. I ended up getting one in black and even had a hard time doing that. SS's were hard to find loaded in July August and September. Like I said the Orlando will have its market but it will not be the same market the HHR sold to. Just spend some time on the HHR web site and many there plan to buy another before the end of production. The 3rd row seating is mostly a Euro thing and I would be shocked if the diesel sold well. Diesels on enthusiast web sites are like 6 speeds everyons says they will buy one and when they hit the market the general public passes on them. The bottom line is the HHR is and was a cheap car for GM to produce that created a market with little compititon. It sold well and made a a good profit for GM. The lack of marketing may have hurt it some but if it was selling well and money is tight you don't fix what is not broken. I bet the small Mazda 5 and other like it and I bet few sell in the same numbers as the HHR. As for the Caliber they are priced so low as they are that bad. I was in a SRT version the other day. Nice front seats and good engine but little else. The plastic in the Caliber make the HHR look good. The HHR resale has been better than most GM cars as even high mileage base ones are reselling seldom less than $9K for a vehicle the base model can be had new for little more. In my area used HHR's are a hard thing to find Women do not hate the HHR. THere are many female owners of this vehilcle. The design is just a love or hate thing and it is that way with all men and women. Just there is enought that like it to support it. Bring on the Orlando but just don't expect it to replace the HHR sales. A new HHR on the new Orlando platform would make a cheap alturnitive. You could keep it retro but it would have to have a new retro look. 1955-57 with some Cameo trait tossed in would do well. Keep a performance version. It would not have to be a SS but something that would make it fun to drive like the present SS. If I had to replace mine today and no other HHR SS was available I would look to the Mini for the daily driver. .