stasisLAX From United States of America, joined Jul 2007, 3267 posts, RR: 6 Posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 1535 times:
The 2013 model year will be the last year that Chevrolet produces the flexible Avalanche full-sized pick-up utility truck. The Avalanche is produced a GM truck plan in Mexico that will be undergoing retooling as Chevy/GMC get ready for the next-generation Silverado/Sierra pick-ups, and next generation Tahoe, Yukon, and Suburban models. Cadillac's version of the Avalanche, the Escalade EXT, will also apparently be killed off when the Avalance bites the dust. There is an ongoing press rumor that the huge glitzy Cadillac Escalade SUV will transfer to the Lamba platform (Traverse, Acadia, and Enclave) for 2014 model year, yet Cadillac has released no information on that platform switch for the Escalade. Personally, I think the Escalade will ride on the next-generation GM truck platform like the Yukon and Tahoe. Chevy stated that sales of the Avalanche have tanked since 2008, and no amount of buyer incentives has helped to revive sales of this expensive (nearly $47000 USD) SUV. Chevy sold 93.000 units of the Avalanche in 2003, but less than 20,000 last year.
Consumer Reports (not usually the car enthusiast's choice in auto magazines) rated the Chevy Corvette Z06 as the highest rated American car, based on their road test scores. The Lexus LS460 luxury barge was the overall winner in road test scores (again, not the enthusiast's choice - the LS is like driving a sensory-deprivation chamber, only in its realm on long, boring interstate highway roadtrips!)
GuitrThree From United States of America, joined Oct 2004, 1988 posts, RR: 9 Reply 1, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 1527 times:
Quoting stasisLAX (Thread starter): The 2013 model year will be the last year that Chevrolet produces the flexible Avalanche full-sized pick-up utility truck.
Not very flexible when it's tow rating sucked. High price + low tow ratings equals no buyers. The last few years the truck actually looked good. But looks don't tow trailers and boats.
Did you know Taylor Swift has a STAR to BNA named after her? No, I'm not kidding.
Newark727 From United States of America, joined Dec 2009, 1175 posts, RR: 0 Reply 2, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 11 hours ago) and read 1503 times:
Reading this headline made me think of the Jeremy Clarkson quote: "Fat man from Kentucky! You have made a masterpiece!" Or something like that. Good to see the Corvette getting some good press at least.
BMI727 From United States of America, joined Feb 2009, 14353 posts, RR: 26 Reply 3, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 10 hours ago) and read 1483 times:
Quoting Newark727 (Reply 2): Reading this headline made me think of the Jeremy Clarkson quote: "Fat man from Kentucky! You have made a masterpiece!" Or something like that.
That episode is on right now.
Quote: Ferraris are made by craftsmen in Maranello. This is made by two fat blokes in Kentucky."
Of course, it isn't the Corvettes that have been lighting themselves on fire lately.
Why do Aerospace Engineering students have to turn things in on time?
BMI727 From United States of America, joined Feb 2009, 14353 posts, RR: 26 Reply 5, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 10 hours ago) and read 1471 times:
Quoting Aesma (Reply 4):
I guess the Lexus LS460 is perfect to go to work/meetings when you're in the back being driven around.
Not really. It lacks the class and prestige of the S-Class. Or the "I'm important and can probably make you disappear without a trace" type message of a G-Wagen.
But if you're a sixty-something dentist and your Mercedes SL is too hardcore for everyday use, then the Lexus is a fine choice. It falls somewhere between a cheaper S-Class alternative and a much nicer Town Car alternative.
Why do Aerospace Engineering students have to turn things in on time?
geezer From United States of America, joined Aug 2010, 1423 posts, RR: 1 Reply 6, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 8 hours ago) and read 1439 times:
I wonder if there are any "hard-core" Corvette afficianados on here ?
BTW..........does anyone know if they are still building Corvettes in Bowling Green, Ky. ? I assume they are, judging from the above remarks about "two fat guys in Ky", but I'm not sure.
Charley
Stupidity: Doing the same thing over and over and over again and expecting a different result; Albert Einstein
Superfly From Thailand, joined May 2000, 38512 posts, RR: 80 Reply 7, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 3 days 5 hours ago) and read 1396 times:
Good riddance!
I never understood the appeal of the Avalanche/Escalade EXT.
Quoting GuitrThree (Reply 1): Not very flexible when it's tow rating sucked. High price + low tow ratings equals no buyers. The last few years the truck actually looked good. But looks don't tow trailers and boats.
Exactly.
If they wanted this line to be successful, they should have had it on the 3500 platform with extended bed and standard 4WD. Then it would been flexible.
Quoting BMI727 (Reply 5): Not really. It lacks the class and prestige of the S-Class. Or the "I'm important and can probably make you disappear without a trace" type message of a G-Wagen.
But if you're a sixty-something dentist and your Mercedes SL is too hardcore for everyday use, then the Lexus is a fine choice. It falls somewhere between a cheaper S-Class alternative and a much nicer Town Car alternative.
That is the appeal of the Lexus LS series and their high-end Toyota sedans. These buyers want a very luxurious car that doesn't stand out as being pretentious like the Mercedes and BMW variants.
There is a neat option in when ordering a Corvette a lot of people don't know about. If you choose option code RC8 when ordering the code from your dealer, you will take delivery of the car right across the street at the National Corvette Museum. Pretty neat deal if you have the time and are willing to drive it home. Some people, of course, trailer them home.
fridgmus From United States of America, joined Oct 2006, 1383 posts, RR: 11 Reply 10, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 2 days 23 hours ago) and read 1314 times:
Quoting geezer (Reply 6): I wonder if there are any "hard-core" Corvette afficianados on here ?
Right here Geezer! I've just had back surgery/spinal fusion and don't know if I'll be able to fit in one now!!!
Quoting Superfly (Reply 7): Good riddance!
I never understood the appeal of the Avalanche/Escalade EXT.
Me neither Fly! I always thought they looked just plain ugly!
I'm recuperating in Northern CA and I went through a couple of dealers here and prices for full size pick ups of all makes are down due to gas prices, according to the salesmen.
The Lockheed Super Constellation, the REAL Queen of the Skies!
mham001 From United States of America, joined Feb 2005, 3001 posts, RR: 3 Reply 11, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 2 days 23 hours ago) and read 1314 times:
Quoting stasisLAX (Thread starter): Consumer Reports (not usually the car enthusiast's choice in auto magazines) rated the Chevy Corvette Z06 as the highest rated American car, based on their road test scores. The Lexus LS460 luxury barge was the overall winner in road test scores (again, not the enthusiast's choice - the LS is like driving a sensory-deprivation chamber, only in its realm on long, boring interstate highway roadtrips!)
2-3 years ago, I heard an hour long talk show with the head of Consumer Reports auto testing. He was the atypical smug yuppie that CR appeals to. You could not get him to say one good word about an American car. None, he wouldn't, his mind was made up, it was almost comical. Except for the Corvette which he said he liked. Problem was, it came out like a racist saying he had a black friend.
stasisLAX From United States of America, joined Jul 2007, 3267 posts, RR: 6 Reply 12, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 2 days 16 hours ago) and read 1268 times:
Quoting BMI727 (Reply 5): Or the "I'm important and can probably make you disappear without a trace" type message of a G-Wagen.
Mercedes has also updated the G-Wagon (gangster-wagon?) for 2013. It looks very much the same as the current version, but features safety upgrades and LED lights!
"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety!" B.Franklin
BMI727 From United States of America, joined Feb 2009, 14353 posts, RR: 26 Reply 13, posted (1 year 1 month 1 week 2 days 16 hours ago) and read 1257 times:
Gelandewagen which means cross country vehicles. Germany uses it the same way Americans use the Humvee and Brits use the Land Rovers. The USMC actually bought about 160 of them to use alongside their FAVs and DPVs because Hummers were too big and slow.
Why do Aerospace Engineering students have to turn things in on time?
PHLBOS From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 7253 posts, RR: 25 Reply 14, posted (1 year 1 month 18 hours ago) and read 949 times:
To me, the Avalanche seemed kind of redundant to the 4-door Silverado.
Quoting GuitrThree (Reply 1): Not very flexible when it's tow rating sucked. High price + low tow ratings equals no buyers.
While I knew about the Avalanche's high price; I did not know about its lower tow rating. All the more reason to stick with the Silverado 4-door at least among Chevy trucks.
Quoting stasisLAX (Thread starter): Cadillac's version of the Avalanche, the Escalade EXT, will also apparently be killed off when the Avalance bites the dust.
I think we now can safely and effectively say that Luxury/upscale brands on pick-up trucks don't mix. The Escalade EXT now joins the Lincoln Blackwood and Mark LT in that regard.
"TransEastern! You'll feel like you've never left the ground because we treat you like dirt!" SNL Parady ad circa 1981
Molykote From United States of America, joined Aug 2005, 1336 posts, RR: 30 Reply 15, posted (1 year 1 month 17 hours ago) and read 928 times:
Quoting mham001 (Reply 11): 2-3 years ago, I heard an hour long talk show with the head of Consumer Reports auto testing. He was the atypical smug yuppie that CR appeals to. You could not get him to say one good word about an American car. None, he wouldn't, his mind was made up, it was almost comical. Except for the Corvette which he said he liked. Problem was, it came out like a racist saying he had a black friend.
I use CR for one thing: reliability data.
Other than this, I find CR to be a joke, particularly with regard to car reviews. I honestly don't think I've ever seen a CR vehicle review that added value beyond what I could have inferred from 5 minutes spent reviewing the brochure and specs of a car.
CR's assessments are simply of little to no value if one the slightest bit of an "enthusiast" about the product in question. For a case in point, the Canon T3i and 60D both score above the Canon 7D in the currently published DSLR camera ratings. The LCD on the 60D and T3i was rated higher than the 7D (presumably because the former 2 articulate). The 7D is also rated as having an inferior viewfinder to the 60D/T3i. Nobody who knows anything about cameras would rank these products as CR has. They also test each of these cameras with their kit lenses! - The 7D is listed as having a 7.5X optical zoom
To stay somewhat on topic, I love the C6 Corvette (enough to overlook the interior).
texdravid From United States of America, joined May 2004, 1266 posts, RR: 0 Reply 16, posted (1 year 4 weeks 13 hours ago) and read 813 times:
I think Cadillac/GMC/Chevrolet are making a huge mistake if they downsize the next Suburban/Yukon/Escalade to some Lambda platform.
These trucks fill a niche, a niche that is understandably not as popular circa 2005 because of fuel prices. However, they make serious and easy money for GM. If anything, make the engines more efficient with cylinder deactivation, lighten it with more aluminum cylinder heads and the like, and give it 4 wheel independent suspension.
Besides, there are small and midsize SUV's already out there, but really only one large SUV out there, the Escalade and their company cousins. It is a market that GM owns, as no Japanese or European makes have a vehicle this big.
GM should realize that large, heavy duty trucks are their speciality and they do a good job of it, and should not mess with one of the few lines that make them money.
PHLBOS From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 7253 posts, RR: 25 Reply 17, posted (1 year 3 weeks 6 days 20 hours ago) and read 756 times:
Quoting texdravid (Reply 16): I think Cadillac/GMC/Chevrolet are making a huge mistake if they downsize the next Suburban/Yukon/Escalade to some Lambda platform.
I agree, but I believe that the so-called press-rumor regarding any downsizing would only apply to the Cadillac Escalade models and not the Chevy Tahoe/Suburban & GMC Yukon/XL.
"TransEastern! You'll feel like you've never left the ground because we treat you like dirt!" SNL Parady ad circa 1981
RayChuang From United States of America, joined Jun 2000, 7696 posts, RR: 5 Reply 18, posted (1 year 3 weeks 5 days 3 hours ago) and read 643 times:
I think Chevrolet's biggest mistake with the Avalanche was they didn't make the GM/Isuzu Duramax turbodiesel engine available for that model. it certainly would have improved fuel economy quite a bit, and would have made the Avalanche desirable as a trailer tow vehicle.
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While I knew about the Avalanche's high price; I did not know about its lower tow rating. All the more reason to stick with the Silverado 4-door at least among Chevy trucks.
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