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The new Malibu is my favorite entry in the FWD mid size market, even though I am more interested in the upcoming Zeta Impala. I like the Malibu more than the Fusion, Camry, Accord, or Sonata.

What do you think of this column by Jerry Flint where he seems to argue that Ford and GM should avoid competing with Honda and Toyota head on and work on trying to find their own niches?http://www.thecarconnection.com/Auto_News/...11378.html?pg=1

Nothing will change in the next two years. A Democratic congress and Republican president will create gridlock. You may see Detroit friendly policies if a pro-labor Democrat like John Edwards wins. However, the environmentalists are a very strong constituency for the Democrats. I know Barack Obama supports higher CAFE standards and Hillary Clinton probably does also. At best, things will be neutral for Detroit; at worst, depending upon the environmentalists, things may get worse.

A good decent man. Cheney, Rumsfeld, and possibly the two Bush administrations (41 was Ford's CIA director) are legacies of the Ford administration. With no Ford administration, none of these may have achieved the level of power they did.

I agree. The Escalade is the Fleetwood Brougham d'Elegance for today.

Wildcat is the person I would most like to hang out with, although he hasn't posted here for awhile. He's nice, around my age, and loves Buick.

Which would make sense if the rumors that the current Magnum will be discontinued are true.

Unless gasoline goes to $5.00/gallon or the Democrats raise CAFE to 40 mpg, I see no need for 4 cylinder Buicks. Buick is GM's division for people who like traditional American cars. GM offers plenty of other options for economy buyers.

Evangelical Christians who believe that the miracles and speaking in unknown tonges from the Book of Acts still happen today. Most Christians believe these stopped when the apostles died. Assembly of God is the largest Pentecostal denomination, but there are Baptists, Catholics, and mainline Protestants who also believe this and are called charismatics. Jimmy Swaggart, Jim Bakker, Oral Roberts are some of the more famous Pentecostals. Pat Robertson is the most famous charismatic. I believe that Ted Haggard is a charismatic.

I may be wrong, but I thought that the Odyssey was loosely based on the Accord and that the Sienna is based on the Camry, which are roughtly the same size as Epsilon.

Wouldn't it be cheaper, for U.S. certification purposes, just to put either the 2.2 or 2.4 Ecotecs in the Astra?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3HvkrYIIwo&NR

Toyota will have no problem selling 300,000 of these per year in the U.S., even if the Mazda3 and several others are superior.

GM should develop a new minivan only if it comes up with unique features that no other minivan has. That way GM could charge a premium price for a superior product. Otherwise, I think it would just be a waste of the $750 million to $1 billion of development costs (I read that was the potential cost of the Lambda minivan program), especially if the vehicles have to be sold at discounts.

What type of clamshell do you drive? GM last built that type of station wagon in 1976.

The only good news I see is the MKZ and the Navigator. What I find distressing is how several Chrysler division cars are outselling comparable Ford division cars, although incentives and fleet sales may cause some of that.

If the Enclave succeeds, then maybe we'll see some sedans comparable to Lexus. If the Enclave fails, I can see Buick either becoming nothing more than plush Chevrolet or imports from China.

Everyone thought Chrysler would have a horrible month. But notice how sales of the Sebring were only about 1300 less than the Fusion, the PT Cruiser outsold the Focus (not a direct competitor I know, but it is the Chrysler division's small car), the Pacifica outsold the Freestyle more than 2 to 1, and the 300 outsold the 500 almost 3 to 1. Also notice how the Commander is doing pretty well, although I think its sales increase is at the expense of the Grand Cherokee.

You make some excellent points again. I would argue that Buick's purpose should be a super plush Chevrolet, but some have gotten angry with me for saying that in the past.

Chevrolet buyers may accept the OHV V8 in its upcoming Lambda, but to compete with other luxury crossovers, the Enclave should probably have the NS.

I think you make some excellent points here. I also think the new Malibu may rob sales from the Impala, until the Zeta Impala debuts.

Considering how heavy the Lambda SUV's are, in my simple headed mind, I have felt that the Lambda minivans would be quite heavy too and possibly help drag down GM's truck CAFE. I wonder if a lighter, but still roomy, minivan could be spun off Epsilon II?

I hope that you will soon be able to share the specifications on the proposed minivans and the reasons why they were cancelled.

I am certainly happy to read an excellent post from Hogans Heroes after an absence of almost 7 months.

Won't the Epsilon II Lacrosse be in the C/D segment?