Well, I have one sitting in the driveway for the night, and I have to tell you...I LIKE THIS CAR. And not for the reasons I thought I would. Here's why...

1) Say what you want about the exterior style, and the lack of a 2 door...but this car is CLEAN. Good lines, better visibility than the old car, low liftover for the trunk, brighter headlights and foglights than the old model, near 90 degree swingout rear doors...a larger leap than I gave this "heavy revisement" credit for.

2) The interior, while having more plastic in it than the old model, has taken a quantum leap forward in the quality of the plastics, as well as the fit and finish. Ergonomics are excellent. The standard stereo is miles ahead of the old standard stereo, and even better than the old Bose was. At first I wasn't impressed with the styling inside, but after having driven it...what a difference. Feels kinda BMWish to me inside...Lutz have anything to do with it at the end of development?

3) Value. This car is VERY well priced. This one is $25,800 with the optional $800 leather and $800 sunroof. My mom's '01 GP GT stickered for $24,000 and didn't have leather...the deal seems to be pretty good.

For an exisiting platform, the ride and handling difference is amazing. You'd be surprised driving both back to back how much better the '04 felt. I was expecting to walk away feeling like I had just driven a restyled '03...quite the contrary

I hope future GM sedans are as well done!

 

I agree on all counts. Its a better car in every way. I took home the GTP with the Comp G package. I really only had two complaints-- the high beltline was slightly annoying, and the interior b-pillar trim is now about the size of a cinder block, which forces an avalanche of wind into the side of your head when driving over 20 mph with the windows down. If I needed a sedan, this would be the one.

 

I got to correspond with one of the guys on the Grand Prix project about a month or 2 before it was introduced, and evidently, Lutz's influence was minimal (he came along too late in the game), but decisive. He had the nose and trim changed, which supposedly gave it a cleaner, far better look.

That's why the nose on the production Grand Prix looks marginally out of place. According to what I was told, the old front looked garish.

Lutz had a bigger influence on the Corvette, the next Buick Regal, and the upcomming Cadillac STS, all of which he ordered back for greenhouse changes or in the case of the Corvette a slight reskin.

I like the Grand Prix. At 1st I was neutral because it didn't blow me away like the last version did when it 1st came out, but now I like it's understated design. The interior is better made though.