bobo

This car should have much larger appeal than the old-fogey outgoing model. MB and BMW have done good jobs on electronics overload, and in the case of MB, destroyed their reputation of vault-like engineering. Cadillac hasn't quite capitalized on their failings to the extent that they should have. Lexus may not have fine lineage, but they do have credibility.

Crystal Pepsi...if memory serves right, that tasted like watery Pepsi.

Very limited: LAX to SFO, SFO to JFK, JFK to BOS, and a small Cessna going in circles above Sacramento.

GM employee pricing is at the www.gmfamilyfirst.com website. However, it requires a log-in from the GM employee to see the employee pricing. If you need pricing for a particular vehicle, email or PM me and I can send it to you.

After this movie has sunk in for 24 hours, I have a few more thoughts. It really is a tragic story. It's the feel-bad movie of the year. But's it's just being realistic. I found Ennis to be a more sympathetic character than Jack. It's hard not to be upset with all the people who got emotionally hurt, but that's the way it was. The most touching scene was Ennis visiting Jack's parents. There was little dialog, and yet so much was said. How things could have turned out so differently had circumstances been different.

Saw a Ford GT on the street. Oddball car I saw today was an Isuzu VehiCross.

Very nice, Northstar. Congrats.

The Ridgeline has a slightly lower tailgate for better rearward visibility. If there's a full-size pickup that needs this feature, it's a Ford F150.

Because Canadians like Pontiacs so much, I can't see GM canceling that brand. As for the Wave--heh.

I'm not feeling this truck yet. When the new Tacoma first came out, I thought it was gonna be a gotta have truck, but it also leaves me lukewarm. I do like the current Tundra because it has excellent steering, handling, and ride. It may not be the toughest thing around, but it would serve the needs of most households. The interior of the current truck is not impressive in either design or materials, but it is very livable. Lastly, the current Tundra Double Cab manages to have a standard size bed and be the same overall length as the Silverado Crew Cab with the truncated bed.

There was a 2nd generation Camaro Z28, circa 1980. There was also an assortment of old Ford and GM pickups. In one excursion up the mountain, Jack drives a ’76 Ford F150. In the next scene, it’s 1975 and Ennis is getting a divorce. Of course, Jack could have gotten his truck in late ’75.I felt pretty detached throughout the whole movie, probably because the characters weren’t that well developed, as they had a lot of years to cover. If the movie could have been longer with more character development, I think I could have felt more connected. Maybe they could have had fewer sheep and more of the later years. I do think that the film will eventually be considered a watershed event in the history of movies. Even though the events begin back in the ‘60’s, I think the story is still very relevant to what occurs today in rural areas and in middle America. I think the best performance was by Michelle Williams as Alma Del Mar.

The term monochromatic first came in vogue when AMG was modding Mercedes in the early '80's. This was before Mercedes bought them out. Contrasting lower cladding and black body-side moldings were common back then. I thought Pontiac successfully adopted the look for the '86 to '88 Grand Am SE and GT.

The ZX never had a targa.

I saw my first Lucerne on the street two days ago. It was sandstone (gold) with a V-8. I don't know if it was a CXS or a CXL. The styling of the car makes it look smaller than it is.

A luxury sedan should have nothing less than a V-8. Furthermore, I prefer the characteristics of a DOHC engine over pushrods. For a smaller, sporty car, I find 6's to be adequate. I'm not into big, rumbly V-8's, and that's part of the reason I couldn't find myself to be entirely comfortable in a Corvette.

That Nissan Z commercial brought back memories: "major motion" and of course the Z's tagline "awesome".

Housing costs in SLO are not all that different than other coastal areas in the Bay Area or down south, i.e. about $700K for just a halfway decent home. As for college towns, I actually like the energy that the schools bring.

Tap water and more tap water. And soy milk.

California has plenty of hick towns. I've lived in L.A., Bay Area, Sacramento, and the Central Valley. Where I'd like to be is San Luis Obispo with the clean air and less traffic. San Diego would be my second choice, though traffic is getting bad down there.

Saw a Buick Regal Grand National. A new black Silverado SS. Also a lowered, purple IS300.

According to the Bob's Big Boy website, the California locations are: Barstow Burbank Calimesa Diamond Bar Glendale Hesperia Los Angeles Santa Paula Torrance The one in Fresno closed last year. As for another chain with a heavy presence in California, but not much elsewhere, In-N-Out Burger.

A trunk opening down to the bumper would help for shoving things into the trunk, with probably just a slight reduction in structural rigidity, but it sure would beat the big old hatchbacks of the last two generations. The only thing that really bothers me on the concept, aside from the interior, are the tiny mirrors.

At one time it was under consideration, but the program supposedly wasn't approved. I would have bought one.

There is a Nissan-y look to the front. The last generation Maxima:

I didn't realize the Montana pickup was renamed to Tornado for the Mexican market, but I guess it makes sense because they sell the Pontiac minivan there. I occasionally see oddball cars in California with Mexican plates.