4gm

Correction: You've yet to see what the sales will be for the Nitro, so you don't know for sure how the Nitro will or won't add to DCX's bottom line. I stated my position as a prediction, not an absolute. Also, I was talking about the current Equinox and VUE. I haven't seen the upcoming crossovers, so I have no opinion on them. Time will tell. Glad to hear you and CSpec think so highly of the upcoming crossovers. GM really needs some vehicles that can light up the market.

I think it looks great. I think the Equinox and VUE are going to lose a ton of sales to the Nitro and Ford's Edge.

suprised no one has posted this Source: General Motors [Jan 31, 2006] SYNOPSIS: The campaign is designed to make consumers, energy producers and policy makers aware of the E85 capability already found on more than 1.5 million GM vehicles in the market. WASHINGTON D.C. - General Motors today launched an unprecedented national advertising and marketing campaign to build awareness and market acceptance for ethanol/gasoline blended fuel (E85) vehicles as a major plank in its corporate marketing campaign at the Washington Auto Show. The campaign, "Live Green Go Yellow," will break during the Olympics in February and continue throughout the year with print, web and broadcast media components. The campaign is designed to make consumers, energy producers and policy makers aware of the E85 capability already found on more than 1.5 million GM vehicles in the market, and to pave the way for more E85 vehicles that will launch this year. The ads will also encourage consumers to actively promote E85 in their communities. more at link What if GM were to make all of their "low tech" engines capable of running on E85 fuel? It might create market pressure, due to GM's sales volume, to increase the availability of E85 at gas stations. It would be excellent PR for GM and might lessen some of the stigma associated with what some perceive as GM's low-tech engines. Just a thought.

I thought the hybrid SUVs were supposed to be here for the 2007 MY?!

That's good to hear. Honestly, I didn't see the point in GM spending what little money they have on 2 new large car platforms. It just seemed redundant.

How about a fleet trim instead?

I honestly didn't think the percentage was that high. That's pretty shocking.

Josh, what kind of changes do you think Kirk should demand?

That grill is ridiculous. Everything else looks great though. Most subcompacts look like absolute crap when they don't need to. Could be a real winner in the States if it was sold here.

I think the new ION will be out for MY2008.

Dear Buickman, You're crazy. Sincerely, Everyone

I see a lot of the Ion and even a little bit of the new Aveo in there.

I think it's very nice. Lexus won't have any problems selling them.

LOVE the interior! How cool is that? Hope they keep it for production. The outside looks great. This is going to do very well.

Now THAT'S what I call a Buick. It looks curvy, beefy and upscale all at the same time. It looks pretty huge. Overall, I think it's great. Nice job. I hope the interior looks just as good as the outside.

I don't think the headlights and grill are big enough.

The Edge will be an out-of-the-box homerun. Like the Fusion, Ford won't be able to build them fast enough.

"What about Buick? The real challenge with Buick is that people automatically exclude it from consideration. That it's an old person's car is a notion that's constantly reinforced by the media. Breaking though that is very tough. It's easier to grow a brand like Saturn." Way to rise to the occassion! How about making some Buicks and Pontiacs again that people actually want to buy? Do you think maybe you can grow a brand that way? Maybe just a little?

It looks minivan-ish to me. My point is that a minivan doesn't have to look as boring as they all are. There's a market for something upscale and different.

Giving Chevy and Buick a minivan makes a lot more sense to me than giving one to both Chevy and Saturn. Chevy could cover the lower end of the market and Buick could cover the higher end. Chevy and Saturn minivans would have too much market overlap. Buick would need to make their minivan look upscale both inside and out. A badge job wouldn't suffice. The new minivan from Mercedes shows how the minivan can be reinvented for the upscale crowd.

Do any "insiders" here think GM will actually declare bankruptcy? I just don't see it happening. They have too much money in the bank. They'd get too much money from a partial sale of GMAC. I see 2005 as GM's bottoming out year. By the end of 2006 they should start showing a profit, if not a little sooner, because of the new trucks and Saturns. I'm glad to see the G6 finally taking off. I've been seeing a lot of them here in Los Angeles recently, and not just rentals either. It's a great looking car. It just needs a better interior, powertrain and pricing. I fully expect to see sales continue to grow for the G6.

I'm more excited thinking about the possibilites a 2.2 Ecotec with VVT and direct injection.

GM's marketshare would take an immediate nosedive with little chance of recovery if they filed for bankruptcy and their image would be tarnished for decades. It's not going to happen.

What a great work ethic. Those suppliers deserve to lose GM business.

What good would it do to have more people building cars that people aren't buying? Soldiers of Solidarity...Return to Greatness...at least there are some catchy names for all this...err...stuff.