hyperv6

I only have two chapters left and would recommend this book to anyone who what's to see and here how some of the great industry icons acted and performed. . Lutz tells the stories good and bad on each. He tells of what he learned from them, what drove him crazy and how each added to how he worked in the industry. Even the most crazy leaders taught him valuable things he used through his career. He also covers how some of them got the best of him and his own mistakes. This is a Lutz POV book but he even spills his own mistakes along with a healthy dose of what he did right too with no surprise. Bob also note factors of personal habits and dress of everyone. Some of it I believe is his sense of style coming through but also to point out how your presentation can help or hurt depending on who you are. The Red Polling Chapter is a great one for explaining how much of a pain in the ass a bean counter is. But he also teaches how he learned the value of holding the line. His example was a investment In a new Ford that the staff said needed $1.1 billion in investment. Bob held the line as he was told and step by step it went from we can not do it for less to getting it down to $407 million. The staff became more creative and made the car as well as it would have been for the larger investment. While Bob tells how he held the line here he also points out that he would gladly spend $50 more a car to make it better vs. doing incentives of $2000 to unload a poor car. It is a game of give and take and he shows how both sides need each other and each one alone would crash and burn. I would recommend this read and it will make thing more clear that you see on why thing go the way they do.

Might read in Bob Lutz new book Icons and Idiots and see how and they came up with the numbers they have now at BMW. They had numbers before but had issues on how to use a body and engine system and add additional models. Nearly all new luxury cars are letters and numbers and I am of the observation that doing new original names for the models that are completely different than the past should be used and cars that are more traditional like the XTS could use the Seville name or Fleetwood. This would be another way to set the Cadillac line apart from the rest of the market. The trouble is the Eldorado and Deville need a hiatus and let Cadillac recover it's image and reputation and then you may use them on the proper car in the future. The trouble is for the first nearly 55 years Cadillac used nothing but Series numbers. Like the wreaths the names have only been used about half of the life of Cadillac. There is little past to draw from and I think exotic names that are new would do for Cadillac today as Eldorado did for Cadillac in the 50's and 67.

I am not a fan of the letters so much. As for the numbers like on BMW and Ferrari at least they mean something and have been around long enough to be accepted with them. I like the new name here. It Is good to represent that this is not just another rehashed name on another sub par car. It represents a rebirth and a much improved future to a car that is finally after years being out of sync with the market to being neat or even a class leader in their segments. I would have no problem with the old names again at some point but for now I would rather send a strong signal with the new products that these are not the cars of the past. While many enthusiast like to live in the past on dreams of some of the old classics most buyers today are not so mesmerized by the past. To me Cadillac is making a statement with the new product. Just as they did years ago when they first used the Eldorado name or even Biarritz. They could have rehashed a old name but in that era chose to use a new designation to represent a new car that became a classic. It is time to trust this product and give it an identity of it's own and not try to relive a old car that really has nothing to do with this other than the Cadillac name. By the way Cadillac is doing a hell of a lot better than even 5 years ago. They now have two world class cars and a third on the way. the XTS is not that far out either as it is very competitive with Acura and others the press has compared it to. For so long Cadillac really only had one good model in the CTS and it still needed just a little more refinement. Today we have it,

I too would rather let the Eldo name rest for a while longer. This car does not represent the Cadillac of the past but of the future it deserved it own place in Cadillac history. This car is not chrome laden, it is not a floating ride, it will not have a couch like bench seat and it is not even FWD like the Eldorado was for so many year. The Eldorado has had it's place and this car needs to have its own . While some gear heads may wax poetically on the Eldorado I think this car deserves its own place and identity. While Cadillac needs to respect the good of its past it also needs to live in the present and for the future. While some reliving is good too much living in the past serves as a wall to the future. To convince you have moved on you have to show people you really have moved on. By all means names are fine but I would like to see new classics created. Besides how many people today bought a new Eldorado new is still even driving less the 90's model?

Sounds good to me based on what we know.

I love how when you have no argument you take things so out of context. I just gave an observation on the Cadillac grill in this car, did I say anything about BMW or Benz.....No! I merely responded to this, your words : No one echoes the shape of their grilles to their emblem, so if it was a point, it has zero context in the auto industry. BMW & Daimler were examples of (the lack of) that. So, They did something original. Sorry some of us like some new things and have stopped living totally in the past like you. You off all people should be happy that Cadillac had an original idea and not just tried to clone a German model. Hell BMW and Benz never had large Fins either. Ok it is not out of context it was just a pointless remark on your part.

I love how when you have no argument you take things so out of context. I just gave an observation on the Cadillac grill in this car, did I say anything about BMW or Benz.....No! In looking at the front, I see the point your making as it does seem to have that and the new emblem does flow with the front grill. Very nice over all. This weekend my Cadillac dealer had a customer appreciation party with music, food and test drives along with an old car show/competition. Will post pictures in another thread, but back on topic, I talked with many who had not heard about the ElMiraj and when they looked at it, they loved it. There were many old 60's and 70's Eldorado's there and this new car was a huge hit. Interesting is that many of the owners of the old Eldo's thought it would be a good car to have that name on it, but they also felt the Eldorado was history now and a new name would be better. It was unanimous that people from the NW Cadillac club all felt GM needs to go back to names and drop this letter naming of the cars. Younger people I talked with like this concept but felt it should be a simple designation letter to fit the family. Some even suggested they drop Escalade and just go with ESV or ES depending on the body. Young are so not in tune with the auto industry. The real question is how many past new Eldo owners are still driving. You know the eye sight goes once you hit the 80's. LOL! I noticed this too. In some photos it stands out and others less so. Also the over sized wheels do not help. I think the wheels would look better 2-4 inches smaller.

NYC is getting to be where they announce cars that are 6-9 months out and they surprise us with the intro. The Z/28 was the last one. We knew they were working on it but had no idea how close to release it was and boom there it was. In this case they kept it a secret not only from the public but others in GM. Has anyone heard that they have clamped down in info with in GM now too or was the Z a isolated case?

I expect a 95% producible sedan will be the third version. I am just puzzled as to when and where it will show up, Detroit, NY, Paris, Pebble Beach next year? With GM so dark and the many times programs have been started and stopped have made it difficult to gage where they are at on some projects.

We have one more transformation to go yet in the 3rd show car. It will take this to the near production level. This one while much closer than the Ciel it is still not producible as shown. I just hope they keep the dramatic styling but do not compromise the car because of the styling. GM has done this on several cars where they worked hard to keep the styling but paid the price in sight lines and Ergonomics. This one needs to be right on all levels and not compromise on any one of them. This car needs to be well sorted out and not just as good but better in this segment than the others if they want to make a powerful impact. GM Can do It they just need to sweat the details. The small sins of the ATS are much harder to forgive as the price climbs.

I did skip to the back and likes what he has to say about Rick Wagoner. To me it was the take I had as I think he was a lot better than given credit. He was just made the captain after the stern broke off. Bob said that the Obama people often get the credit for the Cruze, Sonic, Spark and other new GM models but Rick is the one who set them in motion.

Looks like a Round Peg in a Square Hole. With all those hard lines how could you put a round shape in the middle that does not match the styling of the car? Might even note the grill is a similar shape of the emblem and the lower line is the V.

Get a Lacrosse Shaq fits. I am 6 foot and have more than enough room and have had a buddy that is 6.5 in our car and he fits fine. The real issue is the present platform caters to the rear seat room more than cargo. GM took the path that people haul people more than cargo and if anything added almost too much rear passenger room. Out Terrain is limo like. Like it or not the first SRX failed and failed hard. While not a bad vehicle it was not what the public wanted. Sales of the latest model were so much better with the formula that the market wants.

If it is important to anyone the new car has a very pronounced V on the rear. I like the new as less is more with design today. Too much clutter on some cars plays havoc with the work they do to the sheet metal.

I got this book last week and have read some jumping around in it but still have some chapters to go. As with his two first books he is pretty straight forward and honest with his feelings and calls here. Like stated it is not a hatchet job as he tells the good and bad on each just as he as done on himself in past books. I would recommend this book as it gives some in site not seen with some of the auto company players and the games played behind closed doors. It is a good reminder that things are not so cut and dry or as simple as we like to think here on the web. Personalities play a big roll in management and some of these folks hide it well or you just never see what all roles they play. I would love to go a dinner with Bob and just sit back and hear some of the stories of his dealings with all the companies he has worked for. http://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2013/07/icons-idiots-and-bob-lutz/

Stop arguing as the SRX is doing fine just as it is and is not the chosen one for the X5. And if the talk is true you will get a X5 at some point as they are working on the idea. The old SRX was not a X5 competitor anyways.

The fact Is there are FWD markets and RWD markets for each vehicle. Most CUV are AWD and FWD and no one complains they are not RWD. Most of those who would also want RWD would buy the AWD anyways. Now there has been talk that there may be a small SUV that would be RWD and AWD with more of a sporting nature. This would not be a SRX replacement but just additional model to compete with the low volume BMW SUV. Spend some time on the SRX, Nox, Terrain forum and you will see that no one there is asking for RWD. I find many who buy the CUV is a person who either owned a Mini Van or they just have no need for a truck or large SUV and are ok with the smaller engine and the FWD/AWD option. The old SRX issue was it was car like and not all that truck like and did not appeal to the CUV crowd so much and did not appeal as much to the truck SUV crowd since it was not truck enough. You just can't lump all the SUV and CUV people into the same market segment as they mostly have different wants, needs and expectations. This is why we have so many different segments within this segment. The buyers in these segments are a very diverse group and as you can see there are many variations in this segment reaching out to many of them. GM Is even creating more with the Encore.

Well if you get one just get an old emblem with a wreath and stick on. The new emblem fits the more modern car better and what looks naked to you looks cleaner to most others. You may be surprised as too much clutter can hurt a great styling job. Many times less is more.

Wow a big swing and a miss. I even knew better than that. Anyone missing the wreath then just has no sense of design or style. How can you be looking for emblems with body lines and flow like this. The only taste you have must be in your mouths. Yes one word Elmirage. Time to stop living in the past that many could care less about and break out into a new future. Time to build new cars with new identities that will create the memories as the old ones did. Great name no letters and if they do add any let it be a V. Hyper, did you not notice the V on the back of this car? It is the V edition. Yes I just saw it today,

I think we have a good look into the future here. While this is far from a production car it is far more production the Ciel ever was. The Platform is confirmed as the Omega and many parts of the body of this car could be produced very easily as they are so close to production shape and size. The seats and other interior bits are not quire production as are the wheels. The emblems are the new Cadillac look and they look wonderful clean and cluttered. They look like a Cadillac emblem with no memory of the dreaded cars of the 80's. This is a very different car for Cadillac and is not like any coupe they have ever produced. It will be a Luxury coupe but the car will tune and stop as well as many sport coupes and in some cases better. It also will appeal to a international crowd better as it is very stylish and not over done. It has that air about it that a BMW or S class has but does not mimic them. As for the name it is time to let the Eldorado be the Eldorado and let this car have it's own identity. Keep in mind and even here in the states and internationally that the target groups of this car are not people in love with the Eldorado or what it represented. It was never a handler or even at times tasteful. I love the 67 but the 78 got pretty whore house gaudy. If we want Cadillac to advance and pick up new conquest customers we will have to let go of some of the past. I did not say all but some. I expect the sedan will come soon and it will show even more production trim just as the XTS did. As for the engine I see this as a sign GM may be doing this right and not just dump in an engine you can find in any Camaro or Super Sport. I believe they are taking the steps to set the LT apart from the other engines. It may still be a push rod but they are going to do as I have stated they need to do and give Cadillac their own tune or version of this engine and really make it their own. An engine is seen as the cars soul and if you want up class people to think you are worthy you have to give them something their lawn care guy does not have under the hood of his truck. To me just sticking a Camaro engine in this car is like putting a Vega Steering wheel in a Corvette. It send a wrong signal. It is the details in this car that will make it worthy of the price. Cadillac has learned from the XLR and others that to be taken seriously you have to cover the details. Word has been around there was a LT TT version floating around. Not sure what it was for as some said Vette but they could have been working on it for here.

A big swing & a miss; it's "Elmiraj". It's right up front, center, in that 3/4-frontal shot. How can you miss it? Point is, Cadillac is/should be about the details. Obviously, they're testing the waters on tweaking the emblem, so they see a point in examining it even if you do not. Look around the internet- the topic has been heavily discussed on numerous forums, it has significance. And it is thinking like this that keeps Cadillac from being what it could be. the wreath was off about as much as it was on and if you look at the public comments on the car you are in the minority by wide margin. Time to get out in the real world as see what people think that are stuck in the present not the past.

Wow a big swing and a miss. I even knew better than that. Anyone missing the wreath then just has no sense of design or style. How can you be looking for emblems with body lines and flow like this. The only taste you have must be in your mouths. Yes one word Elmirage. Time to stop living in the past that many could care less about and break out into a new future. Time to build new cars with new identities that will create the memories as the old ones did. Great name no letters and if they do add any let it be a V.

Now we are talking! This is just what they need to set the level of expectations of Cadillac and the LTS as a real world class car. It has taken the Ciel and cleaned it up and hints of the Sixteen and brought them together in a updated package. Well this is the second of three show cars so I expect the sedan will be next and I hope it is soon.

Over at GM Authority they are stating the new show car will be shown tonight.

The Fiero suffered from the lack of development money and it showed. The 88 was really closer to where they wanted to start but by then it was too later. The Fiero is not flexy as in frame as the space frame was solid and only a little flexy if you had a T top. where the early cars issues were was in the rear suspension. it used pretty much a front Suspension package from a Pontiac 6000 moved to the rear. The 84 tied the tie rods off to the body and the toe would change when the body leaned on the bushings for the sub frame. The early models also had great bump steer from the bushing in the control arms and sub frame. This made the front end and rear end work nearly independently. Also the other major omission is the lack of a rear sway bar. The early cars drove well on smooth roads but they would make you work hard on a uneven back road. Now the early cars can be fixed easily with replacement of the control arm bushing and an upgrade to a new front sway bar and the addition of a rear bar. Pontiac had been working on a rear bar but it never made production. I got to play with the prototype pilot car they were doing the testing in. and saw the several bars they were working with. Mine is very neutral and the bump steer is gone due to the addition of the Herb Adams VSE suspension kit. Herb the father of the Trans Am suspension did this kit for show room stock. he upgraded the front to a 1 inch bar and the rear to a 1 1/2 inch rear bar. Also he used ball bearing control arm bushings that did not add harshness but did remove the control arm flex removing the bump steer in the rear. The 88 went to a 3 link system that made it simple and Porsche Engineering was used to help tune the GM designed system. They did most of the work on the front to make the steering lighter and have more feel. The MR2 was better refined as it got the proper funding. But the car was a pig unless it was the supercharged model and had to be rev'd hard to be rewarded. Most have rusted away and are long gone while Fiero's are not all that hard to find and low mileage models are coming out of storage all the time. As for the brakes on the Fiero. When cold they were weak, up to temp they were good once the heat was in them but they would fade due to the solid rotors when hot. The range on them were very slim. I have driven many modified models with everything from a N star to 3800 SC and with a little tuning and the addition of brakes from a Vette to a Grand Am they can really be transformed into a solid performer for little money. The real story of the Fiero is a good example of what flaws GM had and the many mistakes they made on many models. Having been around and studied the car a lot could have been learned by GM from this program but they were too far gone to see their mistakes till the money was gone. Having owned a Fiero going on 30 years I can say it is far from a perfect car but I have enjoyed mine. I have driven it all over from the Indy Speedway to laps at Mid Ohio. I have shown it at major Pontiac shows and taken many awards with it. It has always drawn attention and many nice comments. It is nice just to have something different. At this point I only have to pay for an oil change and insurance now and then so I will keep this car. It was my first new car and I have had a blast with it. Crashed it rebuilt it showed and just had fun. Nothing better than a nice sunny day with the T tops out that relax you. The one major issue I have with I is the lack of power. Some day I may install a LS engine or a Turbo Eco in the car. Having driven 300 HP Fiero's they make for a lot of fun.