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Saturn Outlook, GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave
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Comments
The 09s will likely be more expensive at the outset simply because they are newer. I would expect this to mediate itself in time and for the price to settle back.
I am anxious for the EPA numbers to come out on the new engine. I would expect a small increase in highway mpg, probably not much for city though any increase would be welcome.
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/01/06/detroit-2008-saturn-vue-2-mode-hybrid/
If they can put it in this SUV, why not the Lambdas? They're talking about a 50% increase in fuel economy. That would be awesome.
Who says Lamdas will not get it? Seems like the Vue version would drop right in with some mods.
Prices will come down but it is hard to sell a hybrid unless you are a prius that is bought for the buyer to feel good about himself. The other hybrids do not sell.
Lots of postings indicating that the 2 mode hybrid won't work in the Lambdas. Of couse the Vue getting it directly contradicts this.
Here's one of the postings I was referring to:
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/01/28/gm-lambda-cuvs-not-going-hybrid-anytime-soon-- - sierra-will/
Prices will come down but it is hard to sell a hybrid unless you are a prius that is bought for the buyer to feel good about himself. The other hybrids do not sell.
Gas only hit $4/gallon in the last couple weeks. I would definitely be interested. I know many say it's not worth the extra cost but there are many other reasons. Given the choice of giving more money to Buick and less money to the oil companies and Saudi Arabia, I'm going to choose Buick.
At $4 the only hybrid that is selling well is the Prius and it is selling to people with lots of money ($100,000 HH income). The others, inclucing Honda's, are not selling well.
I agree there are other reasons to buy hybrids but even now they are still not selling. Not to worry though because the new CAFE regs will force a lot more hybrids.
Well, I'm not going to start an argument here other than to say that I'm not "most people". I just think that $4/gallon gas is going to get people thinking about ways to save gas. Maybe the technology still needs to mature but personally, I don't see the value of a Prius or Hybrid Civic. The Civic already gets great mileage. I'd love to get 22-24 MPG in my Sequoia.
As for this notion that hybrids don't sell well, I don't know where that is coming from:
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080611/BUSINESS01/806110403
Sales are down only because they can't make enough of them and yes, because of the battery recall. Demand is way up. I think $4/gallon is significant. Talk to anybody who regularly takes the bus about the number of people taking the bus since gas hit $4. I'd anticipate a gigantic drop in large SUV sales for June.
Recording the noise level in your rig and another one or two off the lot may help convince GM that you do have a problem beyond the norm.
Also there are a lot of Hybrid city buses out there.
I do not know about most people but around here with the soccer moms/dads most never get 10 miles from their house. I am dragging the kids from school to tennis to swimming to soccer. In fact the only time I was on the expressway was when I went to the museum downtown.
I think they dropped the Accord Hybrid because it didn't really get much better mileage over the regular accord and therefore didn't sell. They still make the Civic Hybrid.
All highway with 3 stops for gas/food. 75-80 mph pretty much with a couple short slow downs due to jams. Got 23.9 mpg which I am happy with.
One thing I noticed is that if I kept the rpm below 2000 ( during take offs) the mpg stayed up. If I went over 2000 there was trans kickdown and the mpg dropped quickly. Around town I am trying to keep the revs below 2000 and it seems to really make a difference.
Per the above post I think the vehicle really is set to cruise at a low rpm for great mpg but if you need the power it kicks down quickly. Remember this is a 6 speed.
Mine is about 5 months old and I thought it had the updated software but I will check. But I do not have any complaints so I am probably up to date.
Bill
Wlbrown9-I hear you on the double downshifts-my Oldsmobile minivan used to do that and I had a loud roar that accompanied it. The Enclave only drops to 5th and is super quiet, so I'm the only one that notices it, now, by seeing the tach needle swing.
Over the years that Trailblazer has been out, it has failed to impress my enough to actually get one. I have liked them, but not enough to actually want to own one. So I started eyeing 'Burbs because I would want to cargo room in addition to the seating capacity... yes I actually plan to have a use for all 8 seats.
Now I see the Outlook and eventually we'll have the Acacia and the Enclave. I have really liked what I see and it now looks as though this is the vehicle that I would like to get. It gets decent mileage, has seating for 8 and can do so without too much scrunching and has enough cargo room that I wouldn't need the Suburban. I have never really liked mini-vans, except for the Astro Van (call me wierd, but I thought that was a great vehicle), and so if I were to end up with one, I would be settling for something that is functional, but not something I would own because I wanted to.
So I like what I see... I would probably get the GMC Acacia, but since it's all basically the same architecture, it wouldn't really matter unless there were major differences in the 3 models.
I'll see for myself now. I bought a 2008 Saturn XR Tuesday. 145 miles so far. I really do like it. Gas mileage looks decent, better than my '00 Trooper. I have noticed a little bit of the shifting. A lot of my daily drive will be at 45 - 70 but I think I will get used to the shifting between 4th - 5th & 6th. Can't wait to try it out on the road for a trip. Left the dealership and had a 15 mile run on the interstate...reset the MPG on the DIC and got 25+ for that first run. Of course, as soon as I got on city streets it dropped fast and was down to 22 by the time I got home.
BTW, I'm on my third day and saw that we have a recall...heated wiper fluid. It will be a couple of months before I need anything heated in Memphis.
Bill
:lemon:
Then there's DexCool, the standard coolant on many new GM vehicles. The owner's manual states that this stuff lasts up to 100,000 miles. In fact, in all too many cases, the coolant turns to gunk long before then, causing serious problems that include overheating and subsequent engine failure. GM knows about the problem but so far has refused to take responsibility.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news03/gm_buyback.html
:P
Also the first Sequoias had a braking system that was not adequate for the weight of the truck. Our brakes have been replaced at least three if not four times in 75k miles, and it's not the driver's fault. We put up 65k on our last vehicle before we had to replace the brakes.
Lastly, I have been overcharged, cheated and lied to my face by my local Toyota service manager.
We just bought a Buick Enclave CXL(Goodbye Toyota). So far we like it. I know that now there is a recall coming up- so what? I've had GM prducts that have been recalled before- they just fix the problem and give the car back.
I would be extremely careful before looking at the GMC Acadia, Chevy Traverse, Saturn Outlook, or Buick Enclave they are all the same vehicle.