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Maybe the March Madness promo will yield a good deal for you... http://detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artic.../602270345/1148

This surprises me. I would think the Maxx would ride smoother than the Vibe because of the longer wheelbase. Are you talking about the SS ride compared to the Vibe?

I'm considering either the Maxx or the Vibe for my next car. I have kids and stuff to carry but also want good fuel economy. At first glance it seems the Maxx would be more comfortable. What do you owners think???

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/content/1...27324/index.php I enjoy reading this series because there's occasionally some insight to the bigger picture. Farago is rooting for GM despite the constant gloom. He's just as frustrated by the nasty combination of historic short-sighted and ill-visioned GM execs, legacy union issues, and increased competition as many of us are. The prospect of Tower and Delphi not coming to a good-for-all-parties agreement with the UAW is troubling. Seems the UAW will run GM into the ground and there's nothing that either GM or the UAW leadership can do to stop it. People are just too fat at this point.

The GTO was what it was. GM has done pretty well with it given that it was a rush job. The main reason it's being discontinued is because the Monaro is going out of production: http://www.autoblog.com/2006/02/01/gm-hold...monaro-on-ebay/

That was my point. I think even with the 9-3 and 9-5 Saab has one too many car lines. Saab is niche and always will be niche. Get Saab focused like MINI is focused. Take the quirky but sporty heritage look of the old 900 and go with it. Priced right and with BMW behind the project they'll sell like mad. The other thing is BMW should get Saab heavily back into rallying. If the economics work they should be able to make dough on sales of 150,000 units worldwide. But what Saab shouldn't do (and sounds like they're not planning to do according LaNeve's statements this past week) is to try and be a full-line make. In any event, 9-3s and 9-5s based on Epsilons won't sell enough units at a high enough price in the lux business. Might as well just buy the Aura with a better dealer experience.

Could BMW revive Saab in much the same way it has MINI? Perhaps the way to do it is hone down Saab to one line with a rich and unique personality and heritage. Saab's best days were with the 900 line. BMW could use a unique, practical line (4 doors) below its 1 series. A new 900 Turbo 4-cyl in four door hatchback, sportwagon and convertible could be made with MINI and BMW parts in the Trollhattan factory. Starting prices at $20,000 (just above the MINI). At this price there's a genuine market for people who can't afford a Bimmer but want one (even if it's front-drive which is OK - drive a MINI and you'll know what I mean). GM sells it to BMW for $1. Done. Of course, the chance of BMW buying Saab is less than thin given BMW's failed fling with Rover.

I think this has been covered, but I think Buick really screwed up on the Lucerne grill. First, the shape is homely, not bold. Second, they black out the grill on the upmarket CXS and CXL trying to appeal to "Euro" buyers. Bring out the chrome baby. Despite all that I wouldn't mind owning a Ming Blue CX with a cloth bench and that homely but shiny grill. But I'd wait for the $$$ to come down or buy a one year old low mileage rental.

Good move on GM's part. Like I've said before, Pontiac is as good as dead (has been for some time). The only thing keeping it alive are GM's need to keep the factories cranking, dealers' need for product, Enterprise's need for "transportation units" and the occasional enthusiast who idealizes either a time he or his father remembers from his youth. GM would do well to cut all advertising to Buick and Pontiac and simply make straight clones of Chevy model-for-model (that's what they are underneath anyway and everyone in the free world knows it). "Back to 1982" will allow GM to squeeze out the last remaining profits of these two great names that began a decline 30 years ago. Straight clones of Chevies with maybe new front clips. GM doesn't have the creativity, intelligence or, now, money to do anything better. Better get religion on Chevrolet and Cadillac before it's too late!!!

For GM to dismiss Toyota would be at its own peril. Toyota will sell every single Tundra they pump out - at a profit and with few incentives. GM will not be able to say the same thing even with the new and, presumably, excellent Silverado/Sierra design.

The attention at Cadillac and Chevy is right. Now, do straight rebadges of Chevys at Pontiac and Buick much the same way Chrysler did for years with Dodge and Plymouth: 1. Give Chevy a version of the Lucerne and call it the Caprice until '10 when Zeta arrives. Caprice becomes a high-level Impala and the Lucerne becomes straight Impala clone when Zeta arrives. 2. Give Chevy a version of the Solstice. 3. Give Pontiac the Pursuit coupe and sedan in US. 4. Make the next G6 sedan/coupe a straight rebadge of the '08 Malibu/Monte Carlo (Epsilon II). Ax the Lacrosse. 5. Ax the Enclave and give it to Chevrolet. PBG dealers get the Acadia. 6. Torrent stays but gets less styling uniquness on the next refresh. Chevys and Pontiacs and Buicks should look exactly the same except the badges. Money and advertising effort should go to Chevrolet instead.

If there was a market for a "sporty large car" Toyota would have one. It would be called the Toyota Avalon SE. Unfortunately, the experience of the Bonneville GXP and Mercury Maurauder tell us there is likely no such market. This brand religion (Pontiac for the sporty import-intender under 25 with a tatoo, etc) is a fantasy now, but it might have worked had GM gotten serious 25 years ago. Now, the future of Cadillac and Chevrolet are at hand. I want GM to be around a long while. This means ditching the side shows and taking care of the crown jewels. Speaking of crown jewels look at the possible sale of GMAC. Good God folks forget about your fantasy RWD Grand Prix fighting the Camry. Toyota has and is showing the way - one mass brand and one luxury brand with fewer, more efficient number of dealers does the job.

No, you're correct regarding GMC - in the short-term. But the only reason GMC exists is to historically give Pontiac and Buick dealers a truck to sell. The raison d'etre for GMC will vanish once Buick and Pontiac are gone. Within 10 years GMC will also be under pressure itself as Toyota WILL do well in the full-sized truck market. You can bank on it. So, yes keep GMC around as long as there is a market for it and the dollars flow in. After that, finis. In the meantime, start badge-engineering Pontiacs and Buicks until the public gets sick of them.

LaNeve goes on to say that GM plans to have a new 9-5, 9-3, and 2 crossovers based on each one. Sounds good. But how many extra sales are you gonna get? 30,000 maybe? For the money spent, they should sell of the damn thing (and other things like uniqueness for Pontiac and Buick) and start getting Chevrolet and Cadillac on a 3 or 4 year model cycle.

LaNeve's statement is understandable but it's also disingenuous. He knows that it's unlikely they have any product or plan in the pipe that's going to stem the loss of market share. The market share loss over the last 20 years averages something like a point a year. So what GM has been doing and is doing isn't working. At the rate this is going Pontiac, Buick and GMC are toast within 10 years, and all the marketing and engineering dollars that are going to PBG in that 10 year period would be better served at Chevrolet and Cadillac. Saab and Saturn should go too because they aren't making money, but they're peanuts compared the the PBG albatross. Maybe what GM should do is begin duplicating what's unique at Buick and Pontiac (Lucerne and Solstace) and give it to Chevy as the Caprice and "Chevy Whatever." That keeps Hamtramck going in the short-term. Then, stop making future Pontiacs and Buicks unique and start making them straight rebadges of Chevys much the same way GMC trucks are rebadges of Chevy trucks. Eliminate Buick and Pontiac advertising entirely. Let the dealers do with this what they can - straight personal selling and local advertising on the part of the dealer. The upside? GM would save a ton of money and plant the seeds for the future by focusing on new, leading edge Chevy and Cadillac products. Yes, market share would suffer, but it's going to anyway. At least this way GM can get ahead of the curve without damaging Chevy and Cadillac in the process. Unfortunately, this would mean the ultimate end of Buick, GMC, and Pontiac but without the costly franchise lawsuits.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/060210/autos_gm.html?.v=1

Well, that's what I used to think. But the math doesn't add up. GMC has about 1,200 dealers and Chevy has about 4,100. So, GM has 40% more dealers than Ford but sells about the same number of full-sized trucks. Shouldn't GM be selling far more Silverados and Sierras than F-150's? Besides that, GMC and Chevy dealers don't typically share showroom space. So, why would having a separate channel selling essentially the same product have anything to do with Chevy not being able to outsell its strongest competitor with a 300 dealership advantage?

How does the F-150 outsell the Silverado when Chevy has 4,100 dealers to Ford's 3,800? Are the Ford trucks really that much better?

Maybe it's my age, but it seems to me that that the last really good looking Buick grill was on the 1987 Regal. As the looks have gotten more dowdy the sales have fallen. Part of the problem may lie in that all the platforms developed since don't allow for the classic long hood/short deck??? The '84s were similar to the '87s. Here's a pristine example: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1984-Buick-...1QQcmdZViewItem

Don't worry. We'll see incentives on the Lucerne soon enough. This summer will be great time to buy one as production on th '07s ramps up. By then, the design will start looking a little old (like what's happened with the LaCrosse). Don't get me wrong, I'm sure it's a great car. I would drive one. Better deals coming.

Why does the photo of the 1981 Datsun 810 Maxima Wagon crack you up? In addition to being plush it handled pretty well and had a killer diesel option (that didn't self-destruct like a certain diesel engine we all know) that was perfect for the times.

I keep looking at the relentless decline in Buick's sales numbers and wonder how much time the name has left. I was pretty excited about the LaCrosse when it first arrived (maybe because it looked so much better than the cars it replaced), but now it's starting to look fairly dated already. The same with the Lucerne (though to be fair I've not seen one in person here in LA). What will the sales numbers look like a year or two from now when the Enclave is introduced? And then another few years after that when the Epsilon II replacement arrives and later (maybe) Zeta? I wonder, too, how well Enclave will do compared to Arcadia both being sold at the same dealers? We might see Buick selling under 200,000 units annually in a few years if things continue as is. That's around the same level as Olds when it was killed. GM always seems behind the eight ball (3 steps forward, 2 back).

The difference is that Opel is essentially GM Europe. For GM to sell Opel would mean giving up the European car market entirely. Saab is too small and requires too much in resources just to capture a few VW intenders (who don't consider Saab anyway). By the way, even Saab-loyalists don't really think of today's Saabs as real Saabs. The last real Saab (one without Opel genes) was the 9000 and even that one was codeveloped with FIAT. Yes, that's it. GM should sell or give away the Trollhattan plant and the brand to FIAT. The car-equivalent to Montezuma's revenge!

Sell Saab to FIAT! Seriously, does GM fashion itself as the "welfare" car company? Why does it feel the need to take in all the hard cases around the world? GM doesn't have the $$$ to do this anymore. Get rid of it now. It'll never pay off. Sink the money into Chevy or Cadillac instead.

I kind of scoffed at the HHR at first as well. But, it really makes a lot of sense in terms of utility and gas mileage. I have a couple of kids surfboards that measure about 70 inches each. Do you have any idea how long the cargo area is with the rear seats folded?