pow

I suppose it's possible, but such a combination is unlikely to show up on dealers' lots. Can you order Buicks from the factory?

Not sure I get it... :blush:

Where's wpbharry when you need him? :lol:

HHR...

Hm, you might also want to consider whatever midsize family sedan is on sale during your shopping period... a Sonata, Galant, or Malibu or something. The monthly payment shouldn't be that much greater than the Aveo's, but it'll be a lot more comfortable and safer. The new Sonata already has a rebate, I think.

Whatabouta Grand Marquis with a vinyl top and stand-up hood ornament? In all seriousness, um, a Montego is comparable to the Lucerne, but probably cheaper, and the Spectra is more desireable than the little Suzukis, IMO. As far as the pickup truck, keep in mind it'll be heavy on fuel, difficult to park, etc. So unless your road trip constitutes towing and carrying plywood or whatever, yeah...

Sharkskin is $995 and Cardinal Red is $500 (I think), but it tacks on $995 to all colors. As far as Stabilitrak for CXL V8, I found out that the option appears when you select the Driver Confidence pack.

Looks very good in bits, close-up... not sure as a whole. Personally I like the graphite wheels.

Maserati?

All the 2006 Toyota horsepower figures are now accurate. The new SAE guidelines require a third-party witness.

I see a good number of government Civic Hybrids and Priiii.

Hmm, how about an LS6 for the CLR-V(?)? We know it fits.

Personally, I've always liked the design of the ION dash, and it was only the materials that let it down. Here's what it could have looked like with a better finish. The center A/C vents are too far apart, maybe they could put some buttons between them, but I like the fresh, French funkiness of it. The new-age Saturns are too generic-Euro-with-a-Japanese-interior, IMO. I only wished they could have kept some of the original Saturn identity and added the sophistication to it.

Yep, they should have one. No Ecotec, though. And they must fit some rollover protection. Wonder if a metal folding top would work...

Let me know when they offer an Avalon taxi edition. Apparently, they've got the geratic and sheriff crowd covered now.

I'm looking forward to driving the Lucerne... so far, it seems pretty good. ANd I think the grille would look better if the upper strip of trim wasn't chrome. It'd make it more Velite-like.

Back to the Ridgeline, I like to compare it to the H3. The little Hummer hasn't outsold the Explorer, and while it does go off-road better (in the same way the Ridgeline drives better on-road), in most categories -- price, comfort, room, economy, power, handling, it is exceeded by the Explorer. But I'd still consider the H3 a success... it drawed more buyers to GM, it increased Hummer's annual sales, and so on.

Perhaps if domestic cars were better (or closer to "our" tastes), "blue states" would buy more of them. The GTO's #1 market is LA, and I see plenty of CTSs, 300s (though mostly rentals), Mustangs, and other desirable domestics here. I expect the Fusion/Milan to catch on, too. It's the wealthy Republican-type people who are buying all the S500s and 750Lis here. So if anything, it's a regional, not political party, thing, and GM should try harder to target such populous regions like LA. I propose midsized crossovers, which are on their way, better smallish cars, and a $70K+ Cadillac sedan.

I don't think that's enough to get an idea of what the interior will look like. Personally, I hope it can be easily identifiable as a Cadillac.

Funny... last time I checked, Michigan is a "BLUE state".

Wow, a 9-5 is now just $2000 more than a 9-3 2.8T. The 9-5 may be mechanically dated, but it sure has a lot more character than the Germanic 9-3. $2800 is a ridiculous price for sat nav, though.

I'm not a fan of the concept... it looks like a caricature of the production version. It's too cartoony and bulbous, IMHO, of course.

Personally, I think Honda over-engineered the Ridgeline. They should have just thrown a bed onto an Odyssey, which would have yielded better fuel economy and enough toughness for prospective buyers. The Ridgeline's fully-boxed ladder frame + unibody cabin is unrelated to the Ody or Pilot.

I haven't read MPH yet, but I recall C/D poking fun at it, because one of their former staffers is now an editor there. Apparently, MPH is just as juvenile as C/D, and they like the word "ass" a lot.

C/D is a bit trashy, but I grew up with it, so it's always familiar and consistent. I never liked Motor Trend, but recently, it has gotten a lot better... the photography is better, the layout is better, and the articles are more interesting.