Northstar

If the interior isn't upgraded over the Durango (and I'm not counting on much of one) then it won't do much for me.

The new CTS should blow that away.

By Rick Kranz and Jamie LaReau Automotive News / December 05, 2005 DETROIT -- General Motors has canceled an extensive re-engineering of the Chevrolet TrailBlazer and GMC Envoy for mid-2007. The automaker will change the exterior and interior styling and probably push back the restyled vehicles' introduction to January 2008, say sources familiar with the vehicle program. GM's decision reflects the sales nosedive of truck-based SUVs, the automaker's financial plight and the expectation that many SUV owners will shift to crossover vehicles that offer better fuel economy. Combined U.S. sales of the TrailBlazer and Envoy this year through November were 319,591 units, down 16.4 percent from the year-ago period. Other vehicles on the mid-sized SUV architecture are the Buick Rainier, which is scheduled to die after the 2007 model year; the Saab 9-7X; and the Isuzu Ascender. Still to be decided is whether GM will continue to offer both standard and stretched versions of the TrailBlazer and Envoy, sources say. The stretched versions are made primarily in the Oklahoma City plant, which GM plans to close next year. More: http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=55632 So it sounds like they're just delayed and not totally cancelled?

Here's what the press release said about the suspension: According to the press release, the engine was just a version of a Gen III V8, and the LS2 is a Gen IV V8, so I don't think it was really the LS2.

Either upscale... or... dead?

But the reaction was almost all positive, so that would not be the case. They didn't even clinic the ION anyways, so that wouldn't have affected it either. The wow factor wouldn't matter because 95% or more of potential buyers didn't even see the leaked pics. Sure, it might not be so "wow, look at that" to C&G readers, but how many people do you actually think saw it?

My only thoughts on why they would do this: 1) Saturn is getting something else instead (maybe they're getting the next-gen Astra imported?), or 2) The next-gen Cobalt development is getting sped up or the MCE for the Cobalt is going to be bigger.

I think it looks smaller because they streched the wheelbase and thus reduced the overhang. The part of the car between the wheels looks bigger to me.

It does look a bit like the TL and a Mazda combined, and it didn't work out too well. It's not exactly ugly, except for the grill, but there's nothing on it that makes me say "wow, this is a Camry?" If GM can give the next-gen Malibu a kick-ass interior and a good line of engines to compete, I think it has a good chance of taking a few sales away if it really is drop-dead gorgeous as the media has been saying.

I saw the numbers somewhere, and the STS-V lost by 6 points, 3 of which were from the "gotta-have it" factor. It actually won the "vehicle" section and just lost on the performance numbers. 0-60 was 4.6s for the STS-V and the 1/4 mile was 13.2s. I don't understand why they tested the CLS instead of the E. It sounds like if the GMPD went for balls-out performance with the STS-V like it did with the CTS-V and tuned the engine to what it's capable of (515hp) then it may have been able to pick up those 6 or 7 points and tie or win the comparison.

The engine sounds pretty impressive, it will be interesting to see what the UV8 makes in comparison to the 4.6 in the LS.

It depends year to year, but usually we have an artificial tree.

I wonder how many people are holding out on the Solstice to get a Sky? I'm guessing there are a good deal of people doing so, as my dealer got 4 orders when they had a Sky on display. I think Saturn will become GM's fastest-growing brand, and I also think it will pick up a lot of conquest buyers, something GM needs dearly. With the Sky, Aura, Outlook, and new Ion coming along with the new VUE Saturn will have a sweet lineup.

It's too bad the Colorado and Canyon weren't done with the "we're going to do it right, or we weren't going to do it at all," motto that he had with the TB SS. Why is it he can't have that motto on all of the trucks/SUVs he is in charge of?

Wow, what a grand name, the Lexus BullShit. Personally, I think this would hurt Lexus' image. Isn't the IS already small enough?

Is it just me or is that rear overhang rediculously long? I guess it's good for trunk space though.

Sweet Josh, congrats!

You beat me to the punch. We were both replying to CaddyCTS at the same time and you just posted yours first.

No, it's standard on CX (I believe) but not available on CXL or CXS.

The info about Epsilon II be F/R/AWD was just a bad rumor, it wasn't true. As for the concepts, it appears GM changed it's mind and we'll have some :D

I think the reason may be that the traditional Buick buyer will be totally happy with the 3800, and the chrome would represent a traditional buyer. Conquest buyers will more than likely take the V8 models, and hence don't have the chrome grill. I do think it should be available on the V8 models though. That's my thinking behind the chrome grill vs. black grill. Did anyone notice the Nitro? It got an ugly black bumper.

That looks pretty classy actually. I think they should at least offer it on the CXL and CXS.

I saw my first '06 Monte the other day. It looked pretty good for a base model.

I dunno if I agree with Petra's idea. I'd rather put cars that people can actually buy in fleets as long as their good vehicles and can change consumers' minds about GM.

I think the H2 fell because people realized they can get the same style, a better looking interior, and better fuel economy in the H3 for a much cheaper price. Despite being down 11% overall for the month, there were A LOT of bright spots: - Lucerne sales were pretty good for the first month, plus it didn't have any Red Tag pricing - The Deville and Impala also appear to be off to a good start early on (something that has haunted GM in the past) - It would appear the coupe and GTP models are really helping the G6 (may the 4 cyl is helping some too). Too bad it didn't have the full lineup at launch. - The HHR is still doing well even though the deals with the Red Tag aren't great. - The Torrent still isn't up to full speed yet and outsold the Aztek 2 to 1 vs. the Aztek's selling rate last Nov. - The reskinned VUE appears to be doing well. Overall, some good things and some bad things. The main problems that need to be addressed are going to be addressed soon (GMT900s and Lambdas should pick up the sales the GMT360s are losing). -