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Next Impala pushed back to 2013 from 2011

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Old 02-22-2009, 11:56 PM
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Originally Posted by formula79
Aside from the Volt I think they are putting all their resources into paying the electric bill and developing powerpoints for politicians.
I agree with the paying the electric bill part. Paying the taxpayers back is also quite important.

Building and selling Camaros is also among many other things GM is doing.
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Old 02-23-2009, 12:05 AM
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Originally Posted by Darth Xed
Does this all sounds so incredibly familiar?

I seem to remember a time when GM pushed virtually all their resources to trucks and SUV's at the expense of other markets.

They are belittled today for that move.

So, now they do it again, except by moving (what's left of) all their resoursed to econoboxes.

Ya, this will work.

I have a feeling I am either going to be holding on to this SRX for a really long time, or I will basically be forced to look outside GM for the first time ever, for fear of a lack of anything being offered in the market segment I'd be shopping. I hope I am wrong.
God forbid you consider an "econobox" like the Camaro, Cadillac CTS-V, Corvette, upcomming Equinox, G8, LaCrosse, Solstice Coupe, Traverse, etc, etc....

It's unfortunate nothing GM has or will be offering does it for you. Let's hope we can earn your interest again at some point.

Your business up to this point is definately appreciated.
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Old 02-23-2009, 01:02 AM
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Originally Posted by 94LightningGal
There are some on GMI, that advocate that Ford is stupid................. because they are continuously updating their products. They say that Ford should stick their head in the sand, save their money, and wait until the economy improves. GM, on the other hand is smart.............. by delaying project after project, and shelving many.

When the economy improves, who is going to benefit. Ford, with a fresh lineup of desirable cars.................. or GM, now scrambling and behind............... with many products that were dated before the economy went in the crapper???
I can't comment on GMI, as I don't read it.

Ford is not stupid. Ford is mortgaged to the hilt. I wish them well. Truly.

The "when" of the US economy improving is a pregnant question. Ford has new products coming out and so does GM.

We will see how all of this plays out. The Ford profits in some nondomestic markets have taken a hit.
Ford continues to burn cash.

As I said, I wish Ford well, but they are not a profit making concern at this point.

If you can share when the economy will turn, I think we could better say who will have the right product lineup at that point.

If GM goes down, it won't matter what products Ford has... They will be banging on the taxpayer's doors.
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Old 02-23-2009, 02:18 AM
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Not really...if your I say 50 or older, Impala is not something to be asamhed of owning. Back in the day it was what the Camry is now....respectable tranportation. The big difference here is..most of the retail customers GM sells the Implala too...buy it because it is GM made. Meaning they are not gonna cross shop it with an import.

I am willing to bet a lot of respectable people drive the Impala..especially in the mid west rust belt..where brand loyalties can overide a lot being wrong with a product.

Originally Posted by SSbaby
But the Impala is for people who aren't embarrassed about owning one!

If you were of the kind who takes pride in your hygiene, your appearance, your attire, you wouldn't be caught dead in one... unless you happened to be catching a taxi. Cheap, non-stylish motoring just doesn't cut it when you have far more inspiring designs around for not much more money. Ya know, cars that actually make you 'feel good' about owning a brand new car.

That's the difference. As somebody else alluded to... Impala was outdated the day it was released. I still remember my reaction that day - I was so disappointed when I first saw it... and I'm understating my emotions, too.
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Old 02-23-2009, 02:20 AM
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At this point Camaro is done, and an afterthought. Matter of fact, I am willing to bet of it was 9 months later down the pipeline it would have been axed.

See GM has this twisted idea that selling and developing less product will make it more money.

Originally Posted by 1fastdog
I agree with the paying the electric bill part. Paying the taxpayers back is also quite important.

Building and selling Camaros is also among many other things GM is doing.
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Old 02-23-2009, 03:35 AM
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Originally Posted by formula79
Not really...if your I say 50 or older, Impala is not something to be asamhed of owning. Back in the day it was what the Camry is now....respectable tranportation. The big difference here is..most of the retail customers GM sells the Implala too...buy it because it is GM made. Meaning they are not gonna cross shop it with an import.

I am willing to bet a lot of respectable people drive the Impala..especially in the mid west rust belt..where brand loyalties can overide a lot being wrong with a product.
No, I have a long way to go before I reach 50.

However, that doesn't mean I don't know my Impala history.

If your 50 or older, then you'd know the original Impalas were nice RWD cruisers... nothing as uninspiring as today's GM made appliances on wheels.

If I can vent my anger at GM who promised us the Zeta Impala... I'd send GM's upper management to Guantanamo Bay as punishment for failing us GM enthusiasts yet again.

While we're on the subject of RWDs... GM's decision to can the RWDs just doesn't sit well with me and I won't forgive GM for it. How ridiculous is it to have a world class, low priced architecture... and blame the impending tough new emission laws for canceling the project? Baloney!

most of the retail customers GM sells the Implala too...buy it because it is GM made. Meaning they are not gonna cross shop it with an import.
That reason is waning pretty quickly. Camrys and Accords are no longer imports and are far more desirable than the Impala even there is a slight size discrepancy between the respective models.

Don't get me wrong, I love GM more than most but I'm getting really tired of the excuses, unacceptable reasons, the poor timing and just sheer incompetence of their upper management.

End rant.
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Old 02-23-2009, 04:47 AM
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Originally Posted by SSbaby
No, I have a long way to go before I reach 50.

However, that doesn't mean I don't know my Impala history.

If your 50 or older, then you'd know the original Impalas were nice RWD cruisers... nothing as uninspiring as today's GM made appliances on wheels.

If I can vent my anger at GM who promised us the Zeta Impala... I'd send GM's upper management to Guantanamo Bay as punishment for failing us GM enthusiasts yet again.

While we're on the subject of RWDs... GM's decision to can the RWDs just doesn't sit well with me and I won't forgive GM for it. How ridiculous is it to have a world class, low priced architecture... and blame the impending tough new emission laws for canceling the project? Baloney!

That reason is waning pretty quickly. Camrys and Accords are no longer imports and are far more desirable than the Impala even there is a slight size discrepancy between the respective models.

Don't get me wrong, I love GM more than most but I'm getting really tired of the excuses, unacceptable reasons, the poor timing and just sheer incompetence of their upper management.

End rant.
Good post! I agree. I became interested in the Impala a couple years after they ended production. If I had known anything about them before, I might have been able to get one brand new. Now there are 2 in my driveway (96 and 04) plus the 96 my Dad bought for himself and my old 91 Caprice.

I was sad when the Lumina became the Impala in 2000, but at least the car had a bit of character with the headlights, the creases in the fenders, and the round tail-lights. The 2006 update gave us a V8 again, but it was a boring car. It was nicer than the previous generations on the inside, but all cars got nicer by then. When I heard rumors about the Impala sharing a platform with the Camaro, I was excited! I really liked the Camaro Concept and every rumor about the Impala's appearance was positive. Then it got pushed off that platform to remain in FWD hell...

After finally sitting in a Camaro on Saturday, I left really excited for the Camaro, but even moreso disappointed about what might have been for the Impala...
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Old 02-23-2009, 05:56 AM
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GM! Grow the Malibu 4-6inches. Then it will be about the size of the original w body,--lumina regal, gp, etc. regular high volume family mover from the 90's.
THen expand the impala a few inches longer than the lucerne and rwd! Or atleast FWD/AWD capable.

It kills me that GM completely fell out of RWD sedans. All my family owned were 60, 70, 80's caprices, impalas, some monte carlos. etc. All the way up until the B-body was killed in 96.
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Old 02-23-2009, 07:16 AM
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Originally Posted by 1fastdog
God forbid you consider an "econobox" like the Camaro, Cadillac CTS-V, Corvette, upcomming Equinox, G8, LaCrosse, Solstice Coupe, Traverse, etc, etc....

It's unfortunate nothing GM has or will be offering does it for you. Let's hope we can earn your interest again at some point.

Your business up to this point is definately appreciated.
Clearly anything in that list that would be considered somewhat bigger sized and/or performance oriented vehicles were so far along, they were not seriously affected by the current line of thinking.

Tell me about what will be coming out after this last wave of vehicles.

Z/28? Probably not.

ZR1 might really go away after havign only 800-1200 units built.

C7 Corvette pushed way back.

Impala... a bread and butter larger vehicle, pushed back.

New SRX, downsized... and even that one I would consider 'before the cut'.

New Escalade, smaller..

I could go on and on and on, but I have yet to hear about anything in the pipeline that doesn't include "smaller" or "MPG minded".

I couldn't care less if I am politically correct or not, but when I drop $30,000.... $40,0000 etc on a new car, I am NOT goign to be swayed to something that doesn't fit my needs by an extra MPG or two.

Last edited by Darth Xed; 02-23-2009 at 08:07 AM.
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Old 02-23-2009, 08:15 AM
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Originally Posted by Darth Xed
ZR1 might really go away after havign only 800-1200 units built.
Really? where is that news from, I assumed the ZR1 and Z06 would keep going until the end of the C6. There was a rumor of the Z06 getting the LSA, but I don't think that is the best idea and due to the added weight.

Originally Posted by Darth Xed
I couldn't care less if I am politically correct or not, but when I drop $30,000.... $40,0000 etc on a new car, I am NOT goign to be swayed to something that doesn't fit my needs by an extra MPG or two.
I don't know of any company investing in new large vehicles. 2011 Ford Explorer is the only one that comes to mind.

With engines we have really peaked at what is enough power per segment. Next step is to fine tune for economy. Buyers are downsizing for economy too. The last Malibu sold 75/25 V6 to I4. The 2008 car now is sold 70% of the time with a 4 cyl. last I heard.

And of course everyone is still afraid gas will go back to $4

Last edited by Z28x; 02-23-2009 at 08:17 AM.
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Old 02-23-2009, 08:24 AM
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Originally Posted by Z28x
Really? where is that news from, I assumed the ZR1 and Z06 would keep going until the end of the C6. There was a rumor of the Z06 getting the LSA, but I don't think that is the best idea and due to the added weight.
I'm not one of the well connected people on the board like Guy and Charlie, but I do know a few reliable people, mostly associated one way or another with Corvettemore than any other marque... there's nothing official or anything, obviously, but there are rumblings that ZR1 could be a one-year-wonder for a number of reasons from parts availability, to percentage of Corvette build to the dreaded non-PC image of a 600+ supercar being built by a company looking for govt loans to survive.

That said, there is also talk of the XLR line being converted to build ZR1 exclusively, so I get conflicting reports from two previously reliable sources. One conclusion is that perhaps ZR1's future depends on it being able to be assembled on the small XLR line? I can't say.




I don't know of any company investing in new large vehicles. 2011 Ford Explorer is the only one that comes to mind.

With engines we have really peaked at what is enough power per segment. Next step is to fine tune for economy. Buyers are downsizing for economy too. The last Malibu sold 75/25 V6 to I4. The 2008 car now is sold 70% of the time with a 4 cyl. last I heard.

And of course everyone is still afraid gas will go back to $4
The point I am trying to make is that it seems as though GM is basically killing or delaying anything in the pipeline that isn't a smaller version of something, or a higher MPG mini-vehicle. And that's fine, but, again, focusing on what is hot-at-the-moment is what put GM in the firing line of so many people when they did the exact same thing with trucks and SUV's through the 90's.

Build a well-rounded portfolio. Then you should be able to weather any market climate. That said, I undertsand they aren't exactly in the best position right now, but repeating past mistakes is rarely a solution going forward.
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Old 02-23-2009, 09:02 AM
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Impala HATERS!

If you wanted a V8 powered GM sedan in 2005, the SS wasn't a bad way to go. Certainly if we were buying today, it wouldn't stand a chance next to a G8 GT, but it isn't as bad a car as it's made out to be here.


If you were of the kind who takes pride in your hygiene, your appearance, your attire, you wouldn't be caught dead in one...
I guess I'll have to drive the vette more so people will like me better
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Old 02-23-2009, 09:14 AM
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Originally Posted by CLEAN


I guess I'll have to drive the vette more so people will like me better
And for God's sake CLEAN, comb your hair and brush your teeth!
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Old 02-23-2009, 09:29 AM
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Originally Posted by Darth Xed
The point I am trying to make is that it seems as though GM is basically killing or delaying anything in the pipeline that isn't a smaller version of something, or a higher MPG mini-vehicle. And that's fine, but, again, focusing on what is hot-at-the-moment is what put GM in the firing line of so many people when they did the exact same thing with trucks and SUV's through the 90's.

Build a well-rounded portfolio. Then you should be able to weather any market climate. That said, I undertsand they aren't exactly in the best position right now, but repeating past mistakes is rarely a solution going forward.
I agree with you that a well rounded portfolio of cars is very important. The priority should be for the cars that sell in the greatest numbers, Impala and Cobalt replacements should be fast tracked to market. If Pontiac wasn't dieing I'd say G6 should be next. Insignia might have made a better G6 than Aura or Regal.

I think focusing on higher MPG is the right thing and will pay off in the long run. A 30MPG Equinox is better for GM than a 300HP Equinox. GM needs to break the gas guzzler image, I think all the new 2010 (Equinox, Terrain, SRX, Lacrosse) vehicles do a good job of that while still offering AWD and bigger more powerful engines for those that want them. Ford is doing the same, 2010 Fusion has the best of all worlds.

I hope with the Camaro they make sure to point out that the V6 Camaro gets similar mileage to Altima and Accord coupes. As we all know here, most of GMs product problems are preception problems.
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Old 02-23-2009, 10:59 AM
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Originally Posted by Z284ever
And for God's sake CLEAN, comb your hair and brush your teeth!
You don't like my look?
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