thegriffon

It's ahh, 6 engines: two 4-cylinder diesels, two 4-cylinder gasoline (formerly 3, but the unboosted version has been dropped) and two V6s. Unlike the C-class most are carry-over, with only one of the supercharged gasoline 4-cylinders getting a power boost.

GM has more than one 1.4 L engine it could base the turbo off: The old Family 1 1.4 L: Z14XE 1389 cc 16V 89 hp (GMPT Europe, now only in South African Corsa pickups [a.k.a. Montana/Tornado]) C14SE 1389 cc 8V 84 hp (the real classic 1.4 L) X14YF 1389 cc 8V EconoFlex 88 hp (YFL) or 98 hp (YFH) (GM do Brasil's very-high-compression flexfuel engines) F14D 1399 cc 16V 97 hp (GM Daewoo version [slightly wider bore than the original GME engine], updated with either TwinPort or dual CVVT) Pros—wider bore spacings support higher boost pressures, turbos already developed for 1.6 L version Cons—heavier, less compact The newer Family 0 1.4 L Z14XEP 1364 cc 16V 89 hp pros—smaller, lightweight block, better economy cons—less power than larger Family 1 1.4 L

Except that there is no Crewman for this pickup, and the version to be shown in Chicago is nothing like the 2-door Ute.

If they want more utilization, build it as a Pontiac—BPG sells just as many cars as Opel anyhow.

Maybe it's you who is under surveillance.

Trust me, it's the Impala logo, I've seen it up close when Holden had the Caprice SS at the Sydney auto show. The Malibu logo I remember from a couple generations back was a cresting wave—a Malibu surfing reference.

For those who need reminding this is considerably bigger than the Impala, and almost exactly the same size as a Lucerne.

et voila, one Middle Eastern Chevrolet Caprice, complete with Impala logo (couldn't find anything larger).

Whether you think the late Grand Prix and G8 have comparable interiors is highly subjective. I am one of the few who liked the design of W-body Grand Prixs (all of them), and the VEs are nowhere near that expressive. Holden build quality has in the past not been very good (at least partly why the Buick version of the previous gen was dropped), but has supposedly improved a great deal (GMNA at least has data from the GTO to compare with NA plants). If you are expecting soft-touch artificial skin surfaces you are going to be disappointed. You will get something more on a par with the G6 and Aura, but at least it will be miles ahead of the Charger and 300C and may possibly be the first GM family sedan to win a comparison test by C&D and R&T for who knows how long. It could really use an American tuned version of the LY7 instead of the rather anemic Australian one though (blame the lackluster fuel quality down under). I do think it looks better as a Pontiac than it does as a Chevrolet or Holden though.

The Caprice has the Impala antelope logos.

Because they looked at the FCX Clarity and said "It's a Honda copy of the GM HyWire—didn't we drive that 10 years ago?"

The Lumina is effectively the same as the G8, or its earlier Commodore predecessors (Holden even uses the badging on special value models in Australia).

It is not that E85 is less efficient—simply that ethanol contains less energy. It is rapidly renewable, clean and can be produced from a wide variety of sources, almost anywhere in the world. On the otherhand ethanol has a higher octane, so it produces more power per stroke.

Maybe it is just the angle, but the previous photos showed a sleek 4-door coupe with a very aggressive rear window angle, and everyone now describes the new shots as a boring blob.

Look again. There are a number of significant differences—look at the rear door windows, and rear quarter panels. They are not the same. It's not just the photo angles, the first cars seen all have a very slender rear quarter window, and pronounced shoulders. The new car seemingly has a wider cabin at the rear, a higher roofline a much more conventional rear quarter window. If I'm not mistaken the center console is different as well, possibly even a different angle. I believe this is the Aura, and the previous shots were the Insignia.

So tell them, there are plenty of avenues for this: GMnext.com, the fastlane blog, your local pontiac dealer, the pontiac website even has a feedback form for new product suggestions. Point out the actual monthly sales figures for the Magnum (about 20% of Dodge large car sales in 2007) and remind them that this market will soon be going begging. $120 million on 30,000 cars a year for 4 years is only $1000 a car, and given that homologation of the wagon should not cost anywhere near that much (exactly what extra work needs to be done that hasn't already been done for the sedan) you don't even need to sell anywhere near that many to justify the cost. IF PCS can be believed, GM management is being deliberately and maliciously misled.

Uhuh. How many of you actually compared the new photos with the previous shots—this is not the same model.

SGM-Wuling is the only minority-owned operation— a JV between GM, SAIC Motor and Wuling Motor. Although GM owns slightly more than a third it is effectively run as part of Shanghai GM.

IIRC GM still sells a few heavy trucks in some markets as well, but the balance will be slightly in Toyota's favor.

Toyota's figures include heavy trucks.