thegriffon

That has now been corrected, so post away, let GM know what you think, and esp. if you are in the market for such a car.

Given the results of C&G Polls, this should be interesting: Informal Survey Time By Jack Keebler GM Director--Advanced Concepts Group One of the things that GM would like to better understand is the level of enthusiasm for rear-wheel drive versus front-wheel drive, particularly for young buyers of compact and sub-compact cars. Our belief is that front-wheel drive cars can be very rewarding to drive if properly set up. We also like the interior packaging space advantages, low mass and poor-weather traction of front-drive vehicles. At Saab, there is a long and storied tradition of fast, reliable rally cars. These cars fed significant power through the front wheels and yet remained stable and entertaining to drive, which proved particularly important in long-distance races. At auto shows we're starting to see many small rear-drive concepts. What do you think, should we work toward fun-to-drive front-drive or is rear-drive with all-wheel drive a better solution? http://fastlane.gmblogs.com/archives/2006/...l_survey_1.html

See this brochure from Allison Transmission for details. http://www.allisontransmission.com/servlet...et=SA3592EN.pdf More detailed information on its operation is available in filings with the patent office.

Yah, and he helped kill it.

Similar to the engine on the Isuzu probably, as still made by Holden for the current Isuzu pickup. The engine in the Captiva though is based on the aluminum 2.4 L 16V in the Chevrolet Astra sold in Latin America. The 3.2 L is a new HFV6, with outputs very close to those targeted.

Neither can be imported in volume without exemptions from the EPA and NHTSA. A private import of a single vehicle may simply require clearances from customs and an emissions test such as an older vehicle may require for re-registration. Some states may of course require higher standards than those required to meet even Euro4 emissions, and of course, the cost involved in importing a car from Europe privately may be excessive unless it's an expensive exotic, and you will have no manufacturer support.

You can find very good rendereings of the Antara/Vue from Autobild in another thread. Although the basic design is the same they have done a very good job of making the Saturn/Opel look completely different from the Chevrolet, inside and out.

The Saturn Vue will be the same as the Opel Antara, which although sharing the same underlying structure has a unique body. I don't think any exterior stampings or interior trim above the rocker panels are the same.

The next Corsa (a small compact hatch like the 207) is a collaboration with Fiat (what they are calling Common Systems and Components). Would make a nice Saturn small car, but unlikely.

I can't say they "aren't", but the sedan (probably still much like the sketch shown to analysts) is still the core model in the US. Other variants as offered in Europe (5-door, wagon, coupe-cabriolet, 3-door coupe etc.) would have to come much later if at all. They could even be imported.

To clarify, GM Daewoo is doing Global Small Car (smaller than Astra), GM Europe is doing Global Compact Car (Astra, Zafira, Optra, etc) and Global Midsize (formerly Epsilon II). There seems to be some confusion since people think Ion and Cobalt=small car, when the Ion is larger then the Vectra in overall length, and the Astra sedan (Chevrolet Vectra), wagon and MPV have longer wheelbases than the Malibu. The Delta-based GMX 002 is dead, instead the Ion will be replaced by another program led by GM Europe, with engineering done globally. Since the Saturn will be a sedan and the European models a hatch and wagon there is no reason why the Saturn could not come first. Dumping GMX 002 may even allow work on the Global Compact Car to be advanced, so there may be no delay. If an Astra sedan is developed for another market such as South Africa or China, then there may no work on an identifiable Saturn program until NA homologation begins. Even work in the US would be on the "Opel", not a "Saturn".

Astra isn't on Delta. GM Europe simply used the old Astra platform with updated chassis and a slight increase in wheelbase previously engineered by GM do Brasil. The savings in development and tooling costs (along with skipping the original MCE) were put into bringing the new Astra forward and making it more competitive in other areas. This subsequently made it very easy for GM do Brasil to design the new Chevrolet Vectra based on the new Astra with the lwb version of the platform. With the US small car team now reporting to GM Europe's Global Compact Car program, Delta is apparently dead (hence no GMX 002 on Delta).

So heavy for something so small.

Because it's a quarter the price of the Bitter?

Am I reading the same article? The only list I see is what they were considering under Zeta, not the renamed Global Rwd. It appears the next Lacrosse will target the Avalon etc., so an Invicta is unlikely. From the spy shots both the Commodore/Calais and Statesman/Caprice could very easily fit into the Satutn lineup with only minor changes in badging, but I wouldn't expect that either.

On the inside it's lightyears ahead.

Answered in anticipation earlier: The Estima (the former Previa) has not been mid-engined since the first generation. Instead it uses the standard fwd Toyota powertrain, now updated to the 2.4 L 4 cyl and 3.5 L V6 as used in the US-market RAV4.

It is bigger, but not "much bigger". Much of the apparent size difference is purely because it wasn't originally designed for the US market and requires cosmetic modifications for low-sped crashes etc. It's not really any wider and has a shorter wheelbase. Shoulder room, hip room and rear legroom are not as good as the Aveo, but it does have a bigger cargo capacity (at least with the rear seat upright) - 353 L v 220 L (or about 12.3 cu-ft v 7.1 cu-ft.

If the Camaro was Best in Show, wouldn't theat make the Callenger no better than the 2nd Best Concept?

BTW Fiat has not made a Bravo for years. The compact Fiats are the Stilo in Europe and the older Marea in Latin America.

The Yaris is smaller internally as well, believe me. You can't cut 3-4" from the wheelbase and not lose some interior room, no matter how much smaller you make front and rear overhangs. The impression of size matters as well and these new European cars are 7-9" longer than the Yaris, and that really is a different size class. Along with the Suzuki Swift the Yaris occupies a definite niche in the European market, and the European makes are all keeping their smaller previous-gen models in production alongside their larger successors.

I see from the badging it really is a "mk S", not an emkayess

The 206 it succeeds is an established model, one of Europe's most popular. This new larger 207 should be a real compact, like the Fiat Grande Punto and Renault Clio a much bigger car. Toyota's new Yaris (barely in the B-segment) once again manages to be a generation behind. These new Europeans make buying a more expensive Corolla hatch a really dumb idea. Car Wheelbase Length Width Height Yaris 96.9 150.0 66.7 60.0 Clio 101.4 156.9 67.2 58.8 Rio 98.4 157.1 66.7 57.9 Punto 98.8 158.7 66.4 58.7 207 100.0 158.7 67.7 58.0

It's for eating Beetles

If it was smaller than the Colorado it was almost certainly a Tornado (Montana in Brazil where they're made). Ford, VW and Fiat also make vehicles in this class, as do Malaysian manufacturer Proton and some Chinese companies.