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The Current State of the US Auto Market
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Clearly. You might be able to better judge the product if you did.
GM has a lot of negative equity to make up for and they aren't producing products that make people want to come back. There's a reason their market share continues to drop.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
I won't claim absolute certainty (there's enough of that here already!), but I'm pretty sure both the Astro and Aerostar were both introduced as both cargo vehicles and passenger vehicles...one version didn't come later.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Years ago, (admit things were different then), I banked the local Chevrolet dealer, but drove Lincolns at the time. Every time I picked Greg up for lunch, he would whine about why I wouldn't buy a car from him, good naturedly, of course. I would just look at him, and one day he replied, "I know, I wouldn't either".
Fast Forward from 1990 to 2013, and I rent cars a lot. When I'm forced to drive GM, I still find, although better, they're not that good. And Chevy is still the pitts. Oldest technology, little problems, and unremarkable design.
Add to that, my dealer's license, which I use as a hobby, but I drive most everything. I liked the Avalanche - but that's over. Plus, the one I did own overheated when towing, and the A/C was horrible.
The only Chevy I like the drive of, is the Impala - drives pretty nicely, if you like the old "boulevard ride", which I do. Certainly not up to date though.
Not up to date! A good slogan for Chevy, IMO. Yeah, I think I judge the product pretty well, but thanks for the suggestion.
I did a lot of towing with my Av, but not one problem with overheating or A/C.
2024 Ram 1500 Longhorn, 2019 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, 2019 Ford Mustang GT Premium, 2016 Kia Optima SX, 2000 Pontiac Trans Am WS6
So, in other words, a timeless classic, that never goes out of style! :P
Most likely am - but the Malibu HAS NO drive IMO. The Fusion rides sporty, a little harsh, little too hard to steer for me, but feels solid. The Malibu is not sporty, no.....but not smooth...certainly not quiet, for a non-sporty car....handles like warm wall-paper paste....
I can't tell what the Malibu drives like. Nothing, or everything? Which is no driving characteristics at all. At least the Impala feels like an old Impala - which it is.
This third-generation CTS looks to be Cadillac's best offering yet.
:shades:
though this is much sportier, so could have a chance.
I really like it. Can't afford it, but it would be a perfect car for me. Same with the TSX sportwagon.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Ok, can we forget I made one little mistake on the Uplander??
Yes, Aside from my dealer's license that puts me among thousands of cars per week (apparently OLD Uplanders though), my Sister in Law has owned 2 of the new model Malibus. The -08, which stalled frequently on long trips, and the 11 she has now.
I didn't say I liked the Fusion - just that I could define it as "sportier". A little like an Accord, noisy, sporty, rough riding, but solid.
The Camry, by comparison, is super soft, quiet, smooth, and easy to drive. Not at all sporty.
The Sonata is now a little like the Malibu - hard to put your finger on it. Steers sporty, but handles numbly, rides ok but takes the bumps like it's a bedpan. And the engine - sounds like a Maytag. Just my opinion -
I'd either like the Camry for quiet comfort, or the Fusion for sporty - the tweeners are just the worst of both worlds to me.
Just my opinion - not that humble, I admit. :shades:
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
True but it weighs 3,600 lbs. 200 lbs. less than the 5'er! That's a big difference and moving in the right direction.
Caddy is coming back strong, late as they are.
I hate the looks of the current Fusion, and the prior one looked OK but I didn't like the styling even remotely as well as the previous-gen Malibu. I didn't like 'made in Mexico', and for those who follow CR, a 2011 like I have is supposedly more reliable than the same year Fusion.
You must be in the minority considering the sales disparity between the Fusion and Malibu.
I'm mixed on the Fusion. I like it in the higher trim models in certain colors, but it definitely looks a bit awkward from certain angles. To me the Malibu is just blah. If I were to go car shopping, I don't even know if I would bother to drive a Malibu. Same with the Camry FWIW. Strictly based on what I've read and have seen on the road, I'd likely choose between the Accord, Altima, and Fusion.
I never care about 'being in the minority'. If I did, I'd drive a Camry and for a hobby car would have a '57 Chevy or Mustang. Bleccch. (No offense to anyone intended.)
But then, I hated 'big hair' bands in the late '70's and always was a Carly Simon fan when Linda Ronstadt was wowin' em in her Cub Scout uniform.
I'd take BOTH Linda and Carly in '70's vintage. :P
Anyway, looks like the kids are favoring Detroit and Hyunkia. Go figure!
Millennials poised to redefine the auto market
Well, regarding Mustang vs. Camaro, you win this year hands down.
Winner winner, chicken dinner. At a surprisingly performance-oriented show this year, the return of the Z/28 nameplate to the Camaro lineup was arguably the highest-profile story out there. If the new Chevy featured a badge and a meaner face alone, we wouldn't have cared half so much. But with the Z/28 pounding out at least 500 horsepower, while shedding some 300 pounds, our inclination is to believe that this Camaro will be special. With blood-rival Mustang Boss 302 getting loads of praise and special racing editions over the last year, Chevy seems to have counterpunched with a haymaker here. The new golden age for American muscle continues – enjoy it while it's here.
I do like how they combine reliability with the test scores, but I wonder what constitutes "reliability". I know they dinged Ford for the My Touch (which they should) but it wasn't really a reliability issue, just poor design.
Strictly styling wise the other cars look like jokes next to the new CTS, especially the Japanese brands which border on ugly. I think the Cadillac interior outdoes the exterior, which is gorgeous.
I can't afford one right now but for the money this is what I would buy for
my wife to drive and for me to drive when not in my truck.
Strictly styling wise the other cars look like jokes next to the new CTS, especially the Japanese brands which border on ugly. I think the Cadillac interior outdoes the exterior, which is gorgeous.
The MB and Infinity don't really affect me one way or the other, but I can agree on the Lexus comment. I'm not quite sure where Lexus is heading style-wise...
The GS strikes me like the front end is designed for an easy hook-up to a snow plow.
Each to his own, I guess...
I think Hyundai and Kia will do well with the in-car tech they're offering now. Among the domestics, Chrysler's UConnect may help them as well.
But even if they do link up to your iPhone and do neat doggie tricks, will young folks fork out money to buy new cars? I bet the average 16 year old would rather have a smart phone vs. a car.
I was in Miami on vacation and used Google Maps/Public Transport, and it's amazing how easily you can get around that town, even as a stranger.
I worry that the next generation just won't be as enthusiastic about cars. They may hardly even care.
Actually a lot of people complained about freezing, loooong delays, etc. Those are real problems. Imagine you're late to the airport and your Navi craps out on your, and you miss your flight.
Tech can (and often does) malfunction.
I'm almost ready to toss my Magellan out the window, and go back to Garmin.
Dad's Chrysler doesn't have the ICC, even though he lives right off it!
Garmin only added it recently (I get quarterly updates).
Magellan's maps still don't have the whole thing.
Here in the DC area they are re-doing Tysons, too, so you'll get lost in VA.
Better yet, with a high cost of living and lousy weather, stay where you are! LOL
The GS strikes me like the front end is designed for an easy hook-up to a snow plow.
I drive an LS, and I have to agree with you. My Dealer says the goal is "a reliable BMW". But I'm not really sure of ANY of the current Toyota styling - it's a bit wierd, bordering on ugly sometimes. Depends. They were heading in a consistent, pleasant direction I thought - what happened?
Also Honda. At least their styling used to be classic and conservative. Then it moved to ugly. The CR-Z. The new Civic IMHO uglier than the previous one. The only one I think has improved is the new Accord. Even the new CR-V is uglier than the last one.
And then there's Acura - don't get me going on that one. I drive an '05 TL which was the good looking one. Suffice to say I won't be buying any new Acuras anytime soon. And not because they're not good cars. But I don't get new vehicles often enough to put up with ugly.
Key failure at 500 miles, had to be towed to the dealer and took them 9 days to fix
Car would randomly lock itself with the key fob inside
All warning lights on the dash would come on while driving for no reason, I took multiple pictures but the dealer never could replicate or find anything wrong
Center stack went completely out in the hottest days of summer due to a loose wire
Check engine light on, dealer said not to worry about it unless it was flashing
Rain sensing wipers with a mind of their own
Overall it was mostly electrical gremlins, and the Jeep dealer was nice but I knew them way too well and had no faith this car would run past 30,000 miles. I'm convinced mine was built by one of the Jeep workers that was fired for being drunk/high on the job.
The Accord looks nice but the plug-in model had some odd cues.
It won't be a quick fix, GM's North American CFO saying "The key will be great products and pricing and incentive discipline," as well as limiting how many vehicles get sold into rental fleets. It also wants the hot-off-the-line 2014 Chevrolet Impala to be part of the charge, planning to invert its sales chart so that 70 percent of deliveries go to retail customers instead of 30 percent.
Not only that, but this also. Hopefully this type of thinking goes viral!!
As it turns out, GM nearly took the cheapskate approach to developing the Cadillac ATS. But at the 11th hour, the General decided to change course, and enthusiasts will be all the better for it.
Automotive News outlines how Cadillac’s 3-Series fighter very nearly became Cimarron 2.0, with plans underway to build it on the front-drive Delta platform.
“We were going to do a front-wheel-drive Cadillac compact off of Delta because it was going to be less expensive,” Doug Parks, GM’s vice president of global product programs, told me at the Detroit auto show in January. “There were people in the organization saying, ‘It’ll be OK. We can dial it in.’” So serious were the plans that Parks, who was based in Europe at the time, found himself driving 150 mph on a test track in Spain in a 2.0-liter turbo test mule built on the Delta platform.
“We actually made it pretty darn good,” Parks said. “But in reality, you can’t go beat BMW or Mercedes when you don’t have the right weight balance and everything else.”
GM’s decision to develop Alpha ensured that its performance vehicles have a new lease on life. The ATS will be the start of a range of cars, with the next-generation Camaro to follow. Two vehicles off of Alpha won’t be enough either, but what will follow the Camaro is anyone’s guess.