pow

Sometimes I wonder why GM even bothered with the G6 Convertible... they could have just given this Opel some Solsticey sheetmetal and ended it there. The proportions are a damn sight better than the G6's.

The TL has no torque steer with the automatic tranny.

I've seen 9-7X print ads that mention DoD... that are marred by "15/20 MPG city/highway" in the footnotes. Most of its competitors, say an X5 4.4i (16/22), do better even without the technology.

Well, it'll be less than the Avalon, which starts at ~$26K with the standard 268-hp V6.

Why'd you drive on the wrong side of the road?

Hardly.... more like the AFA-types, since Toyota is as normal and conservative and patriotic as apple pie. I betcha Bill 'O Reilly drives a Camry... maybe.

The proportions certainly look better than the current version's, which has, like, three-quarter rear doors.

About its styling... http://www.topgear.com/content/features/st...ories/03/1.html

Meh... I'm still not crazy over it. The old Denali is still the most attractive full-size SUV, exterior styling-wise, IMO.

It's actually very decent... the side is crisp, the interior is excellent.. looks solid. GM should screw Suzuki, save development costs, and bring this over as the next Malibu. Maybe make half of them in the US or something.

Well, on most cars I've driven, you have to "turn on" the rain-sensing wipers by putting the stalk in that position. Even so, the main benefit of these wipers is that you never have to alter the wiper speed, regardless if it's pouring rain or drizzling.

The LS400 had it back then, too. Anyway, there's nothing wrong with advertising a feature like rain-sensing wipers, as long as the manufacturer doesn't claim to have invented it.

It's no heavier than a comparable Avalon or LaCrosse. The good ratings are probably attributable to its Volvo underpinnings.

How about... they approve of all good cars, regardless of origin? They seem to always have "American muscle" stories.

No, they play it in sunny Los Angeles.

The Sonata looks much better... I thought Kia was supposed to be the sporty and youthful brand.

THE WINNERS TOP SAFETY PICKS 2006 CARS & MINIVANS Large: Gold -- Ford Five Hundred/Mercury Montego w/ opt airbags Silver -- Audi A6 Midsize: Gold -- Saab 9-3, Subaru Legacy Silver -- Audi A3, Audi A4, Chevrolet Malibu w/ opt airbags, VW Jetta, VW Passat Small: Gold -- Honda Civic Minivans: (none) Gold = "good" in frontal, side, and seat/headrestraint Silver = "good" in frontal and side, "acceptable" seat/headrestraint Surprisingly, they didn't have a separate PR for the '06 Civic crash result, as they normally do with new vehicle designs.

From what I've heard, Art Center in Pasadena, CA is "better" than Academy of Art for trans design.

If you've got nothing better to do tonight, they're doing one of those paid "test drives" on Speed with Tommy Kendall and Danica Patrick.

Those are CA plates... aren't you in FL? Or maybe this is another one of those jokes I don't get.

Now what if I told you our BMW dealer uses one as a post-warranty "courtesy shuttle"?

It looks like an expensive car, albeit an overweight one. The specifications seem class-leading.

With BMW, the salesperson's bonus depends on the 0-5 rating (anything less than a 5 is a fail :rolleyes: ), and it affects the dealer's customer satisfaction index. Dealers also depend on it for allocation, I believe... not positive, though. Either way, the pass/fail nature of the survey makes it difficult for the consumer to be constructive with their experiences.

I'm assuming they got the 6.2 figure with the manual transmission. Did they mention its shift quality?

I think I've said this a bazillion times before, but I've seen xB's with BMW badging.