z28luvr01

clicky

Pop the hood, grab a buddy, and have him rev the car while you listen. It may be helpful to take a piece of hose and hold one end to your ear while moving the other end to various possible noise sources.

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/1293425854.html

This

Well it's hard to blame GM for this one. It's the salesman's fault for blowing off the customer. Sad to say that most of them don't care if they work for GM, Ford, Toyota, Hyundai, or Tata, as long as they can bring home the bacon, and unfortunately customers associate that piss poor attitude with the company that makes the cars. The typical customer doesn't buy the car, they buy the experience: the sale process and the service bay are as important as the car itself. If both cause little anguish for the customer, he'll feel like he got a great car (even if it's a POS) and both the dealer and the manufacturer will likely see him again. If not, he'll go elsewhere. GM does need to ride herd on dealers that are not customer oriented. Arrogant salesman and incompetent mechanics need to be weeded out. In reality they will turn off a customer as much as, if not more than, an ugly design, uneven panel gaps, or hard plastics.

I once saw an early 90s Accord or Civic with eight 2" tips *through* the rear bumper.

I got to spend some time around two of them today while getting my car inspected. It comes off a lot different in person than it does in pictures. It's a lot lower than I thought, more like a tall 5dr hatchback than an SUV. I'm not as opposed to its design as I have been, though I still think the Terrain is far more distinctive. Interior is very well done and VERY spacious. I don't know if the other Thetas had this, but I love the fore-aft adjustment on the rear seat. You could configure it to seat 4 clinically obese adults in pampered comfort, or have enough cargo room to take your fashionista girlfriend and her baggage (both physical and psychological) on a week-long road trip.

Well, FWIW, I keep reading that the recession is likely to end this year and that things will be on the up sooner than we thought. Not sure if that's spin or not. I'd seriously love Oldsmoboi's take on that. If not, and we continue the downward trend. I'll have to simplify where I can, sell off the frills and keep the necessities. I had planned on looking for a larger car and/or a house/coop/condo of my own next year. If things get worse and I can't afford to do that, I'll obviously have to stick it out longer. Oh, and I'm in the "Let Camino speak" camp

Best Saab interior ever. RE: the exterior - It looks like they tried to toe the line between "quirky" and "mainstream near lux" in an attempt to keep the Saab purists that are left while trying to pull people away from traditional near-lux Euro brands. It's like the greenhouse and the lower half of the car were designed in two separate studios before being joined together. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I'd personally prefer something lower and sleeker, but I guess that is what the 9-3 will be for. If Acura can sell the fugly TL, this thing should have no problem moving off lots.

Don't sell yourselves short. You do have a weapon. It's called the telephone, which can be used to call the US in the event someone threatens you.

If you're talking about our society in general, we are headed for some pretty rough times if we don't pull our heads out of our asses. We've forsaken the vales this country was founded upon. Greed, selfishness, and laziness now govern our thoughts. We still cling to the belief that we're the greatest nation on this earth, yet we're not willing to do anything to back up that status with action because it involves getting up off the couch and possibly missing American Idol. Meanwhile, our enemies patiently observe from afar, laughing about how stupid we are while preparing the blow that will knock us off the mountain once and for all. And that's if said blow does not come from within.

My guess is they're planting the seeds of a move of much of their production to Mexico, Canada, or anywhere else cheaper. All those American workers that they pretend to care about will be out of work, and all those who claim that Toyota is as American or more American than GM/F/C can drink a nice tall glass of STFU juice. Oh, and I agree with Paulie in that Oldsmoboi rules.

I think the problem with the SLS is that it won't pass US side impact testing. Do a quick search on Youtube and you'll find that crashworthiness is not yet a priority in China. Still this news is more promising than the XTS "flagship" built off of Epsilon II. It's from MT, though, so I don't know if I want to put any stock in it yet. Also, I'm with you in the STS fan club. It was priced too high for what it was, but it's still a great looking car. Gently used ones are going for a steal.

clicky

I'd agree. Guess who was in charge when they were designed? Why GM doesn't just let him run the whole freaking show is beyond me.

:rotflmao:

Wow, it's like Fritz has them by the short hairs.

If cooking a live kitten was a joke, I wonder how funny she would find it if someone were to douse her with acid, gasoline, and Stump-Rot before touching a lit match to her skin. If that's not funny enough, perhaps while all this is being done, someone should submerse her head in water and hold it there while she screams in pain.

Oh I trip, fall, and bump into things all the time. If I stub my toe on a chair, is it the chair's fault for existing, or my fault for not seeing it? She fell because she wasn't paying attention, not because she was texting. NYC streets aren't a place that you can afford to inhibit your ability to be aware of your surroundings. She's fortunate she *only* fell down a sewer. She could have been flattened by a bus.

Question: Had cones/signs been used, would she have seen them?

That's why he used the whole clip. He wanted to be sure it was as strong and straight as it was rom the factory. Put it this way - the car was a 907a (stolen recovery), and before he can get a salvage title for it, it had to go to for an inspection. They couldn't even tell the front clip was replaced.

DF: My father actually did that exact thing to the Eagle Vision he had for a few years. The nose was crushed in the front and pushed to the left. He ended up using the entire piece in that pic you posted. Plasma cutter FTW. NOS: Don't gloat just because it's not a Series III 3800 like yours was YJ: After seeing those pics, I'd like to suggest a different approach to getting your friend to pay for the damages. Namely, one that involves beating the crap out of him until he hands over the money. If that guy with the F-bird in Medford responds to you and you get to the point where you want a visual inspection, let me know. Medford is only about 5mi from me.

This sucks, YJ. Accidents are sobering for people like us, because you are forced to realize that noone cares about your car as much as you do. I don't know how far you're willing to go for a deal, but take a look at this. It's not too far from me.

Done-ski

If you want to upgrade on the cheap, you can see if you can find a set of ceramic-metallic pads for the Aztek, and pick up a set of nice high-quality rotors that won't warp with the added heat. Around town my ceramic pads feel about the same as my regular pads did, but on hard stops they really bite and slow the car down faster. Also, make sure your rear shoes are properly adjusted.