Another sign of GM's desperation

Quantity over Quality........

If the Detroit 3 (can't call them the Big 3 anymore) could sell enough
vehicles they may someday make a profit

LOL

 

Sometimes.

I've seen plenty of modified Hondas that, if you pressed the gas too hard,
the suspension would shatter cause they heated the springs and shortened
them rather than replaced them. This also sets the suspension screwy and
throws handling and safety out the window. It's all for looks.

To build a suspension properly takes hundreds if nout a thousand dollars
or more. Most of what you're seeing are poseurs. That pic of the Jimmy you
posted a link to actually looked like it was done correctly (and why I
said I liked it) rather than cobbed up junk.

A suspension and an exhaust don't make a Hot Rod. First steps, maybe.

 

My point is that young people have been disfiguring cars for as long as cars
have existed. You can watch movies from the 50s and see some really
stupid-looking modifications.

Kids will always try to individualize cars, in order to stand out.

Natalie

 

Wickeddoll wrote:

Adults will often try to individualize cars, houses, bicycles,their
bodies, whatever they have, in order to stand out, too.

However, not all kids try to individualize cars, though. Many don't have
cars. And many who do, have other things to do.

Jeff

Jeff

 

"Jeff" <...

Not to the ridiculous extent kids do, though. Not usually, anyway.

Of course I'm talking only about kids who can afford to customize their car.
My son can't afford to do anything with his '96 Mitsubishi Gallant, but he
would if he could.



Natalie

 

Don't read the news much, do you Mike?


Toyota Surpassed GM in First Quarter Sales

According to quarterly sales results announced today, Toyota became
the world’s number one car company for sales for the first three
months of this year. Toyota surpassed General Motors, the world leader
for 76 years, for the first time.

According to Edmunds.com Senior Analyst Jesse Toprak, "This was not an
unexpected turn of events, but it happened a bit earlier than
forecasted because of GM’s decision to cut fleet sales. GM wasn’t
making much money on those cars anyway, so the financial picture isn’t
dramatically different than before. All GM sacrificed in this decision
was ego, since the executives knew Toyota would become number one
sooner when much of GM’s fleet sales were removed from the count."


http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2007/04/24/045313.html

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070424/japan_toyota_gm.html?.v=22

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9803216

http://transport.seekingalpha.com/article/33283

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=adpHhazF09vs&refer=home

 

Not so huge as it may look. We have a '97 Camry and a 2003 Avalon, which,
when my wife first drove it, thought that it was too big. But I prevailed
and we bought it anyway. Then I measured it and found that the Avalon is 6
inches longer, and 3 inches wider at the bottom of the windows. It seems
much larger when you sit in the two cars, but it's not that much bigger.
And yes, it's pricey, but we bought a year old one from Hertz auto sales,
for less than a new Camry would have cost, and got a sunrroof, alloy wheels,
all leather interior, a six CD changer, driving lights, a compass (display)
and oodles more. We're very happy with it, and you can drive it 500 miles
in a day and not feel as if you're crippled at the end of the day.

 

Does that mean you believe the football team with the highest score in the
first quarter 'won' the game, as well? LOL

mike

 

were you a hippy?

 

Do you think that the team with the lower score in the first quarter
is winning? Do you think that the company that sold fewer cars in the
first quarter "still sells more cars" than the one that sold more?
LOL, yourself.

At best, GM is about tied with Toyota. Everyone knows that Toyota is
going to pass GM. It looks like it will be this year, but if not then
it will be next year. It is entirely possible that there will never
be another quarter where GM outsells Toyota.

 

This is one of the few smart GM marketing moves of recent times.
Encourage people to compare the product to the benchmark right then and
there, without sending them to the competition to check 'em out.

John

 

I sure hope not. Personally I test drive a wide range of vehicles
before setting my sites on what I want to buy. Don't you try on a
number of options in new clothes or shoes before picking the ones to
buy? I sure do.

 

You haven't done your research if you think that the difference in
resale values is $500. I challenge you to find any 100k mile five or
more year old Chevrolet or Saturn sedan with a market value of $7500 or
with a market value within $500 of the competing Toyota or Honda product.

 

For clothing, I choose 1 - 3 options in each - whether it's color or sizes
that will possibly "work" - to try on. Same with cars: I narrow it down to
2 - 3 choices via plenty of research first (usually 2 - 3 months' worth of
reading & sifting through). *Then* I go to the dealerships to test drive,
to make sure I personally like what I've read about. So, by the time I get
to a dealership to actually start the shopping process, I'm sure I'm already
quite interested in a couple/three certain makes & models, right down to
which options I do or don't want.

Cathy

 

I don't really trust test-runs. I do my shopping for big-ticket items by
seeking out those who own the products first. By the time I walk into the
store/dealership, I already have a pretty good idea of what I want.

From there, I test drive to get the feel of the car, but the parameters are
already in mind.

I should mention that despite my gender, I absolutely *hate* hands-on
shopping. I'm a researching type.

Natalie

 

They've already outsold GM:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18286221/from/ET/

*snip rest*

You're conversing with a resident troll, BTW.

Natalie

 

Yeah Gordon, GM is poised for the big comeback in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th
quarter, once they sell off a few more parts of their business and turn over
more rental sales to non-slug makes.

 

Will they sell the Camry, just in case someone likes it better? Not that
that would happen.

 

I think Mike preferes the term " cheerleader "
No matter how badly the team is doing, he is standing on the sidelines
trying to ralley the troups.

 

The internet makes that fairly easy also. I've done the same right down to
the last option and color. By the time I hit the showroom, I've got a
pretty good idea of what the cost should be and the test drive is more of an
"approval" of what I expect to find.

My criteria is:
Has to look good
Price range of what I want to spend
Have a reputation for quality (in spite of what we read here, probably 80%
of all car fit that today)
Be the size and comfort level I want

Looks are subjective but I have my prejudices. I won't buy anything from
Chrysler, Saab, some Jags, some Benzes, the Ford 500, while I don't like the
Fusion, I do like the Milan, the new Camry, etc. I don't car what they
offer in price, quality, or value, I don't want them in my driveway.