I want to buy a car this fall or next spring. I’d really like to buy an American car. I think you folks have improved a ton on design, reliability, features to compete with the guys in Europe. I’m especially impressed with the styling concepts that GM has implemented with Buick and Cadillac, the 2010 Lacrosse and the 2009 CTS Sedan are stunning. The Malibu looks pretty decent too. Pontiac is going the way of the dinosaur but I concede that the G6 and G8 were pretty sharp looking exteriors (the interior was, well, still a Pontiac). Ford is doing nice things with the Fusion and Taurus too, though the Mercury and Lincoln designs are going in decidedly the wrong direction. Maybe Fiat can help Chrysler but probably not in time for me.
Anyways, for the first time in years I see American cars on the street and on TV and find them attractive, and not in the bland inoffensive way that Japan has embraced, but in the exciting masculine way that BMW, M-B and Audi have always inspired. This coupled with the fact that the US auto market is so depressed makes them a really attractive bargain.
BUT…
Why in the fuck won’t you people make a mid-sized sports or near-luxury coupe? I don’t want some baby boomer wannabe Camaro/Mustang/Challenger and I don’t want a tiny econobox. I’m a 6’3" single 30-something who wants to enjoy a car a little. I don’t need to fit a stroller, baby seat or little league team in an SUV. I don’t need to overcompensate with a retro muscle car that’s too big by 30% to be an actual sports car. I just want something that is a little sporty, not too big and not too obnoxious. The BMW 3-series, Audi A5 and M-B CLK seem to me making hay, how’s about you guys knock a foot or so off the length of the Sigma II platform or get that supposed Alpha Platform going.
In a similar complaint, is it too much to ask for a RWD car that isn’t an SUV, truck or muscle car? It seems dubious to make a 2-door sports coupe in a FWD layout, though the Olds Alero wasn’t a complete disaster, but if they really want to compete with the Euros they will have to have a RWD version. Again, GM seems to be kicking around the idea with the Alpha Platform but there’s little word on how widespread it’s use will be and if it will find it’s way outside of the roadster/muscle car market…assuming it ever gets made that is.
It baffles me that there isn’t a single American made 2-door RWD coupe on the market.
I hear you. I shopped for about a year and really wanted to buy American again. I’ve bought Fords my entire life, but was at a point in my life were I wanted that sporty sedan you described. I finally gave up the search a couple of weeks ago and bought a BMW 335i.
There’s definitely a huge gap in what the American manufacturers offer. Hopefully, they will wake up and take advantage of the opportunity.
Throughout my 20s the BMW 3-series coupe was my dream car. These days it’s still a little out of my price range but I would reach for it in order to get what I wanted since there seems to be such a lack in alternatives. However I’ve been REALLY disappointed with the styling direction BMW has taken on the 3 series over the last 3 or 4 years. They’ve gone from sporty to bland in my eyes and the interior design is really unattractive compared to the other Germans.
The Hyundai Genesis Coupe seems to be about the only affordable car that fits that mold right now, though the Nissan Altima Coupe and Infinity G37 are both pretty strong options. The fact that the Asians are taking that market segment is crazy.
Can someone please explain the appeal of a 2 door car if the owner doesn’t have kids, or doesn’t transport kids regularly? I’ve always found that 2 doors are harder to get in and out of when they’re parked next to other cars, because the door won’t have enough room to widely swing open.
Have you sat in a 2-door that wasn’t a '78 Ford LTD? The doors on a 2-door car are only marginally bigger than it’s 4-door counterpart, something on the order of 4 inches or so and when a door is opened at the typical 45-50 degrees you only lose about 2 inches of space. It’s pretty rare that spots are so narrow to make that 2 inches critical unless you really have trouble bisecting that parking space. In actuality it’s easier to get into the front seats in a 2 door since the door opening is bigger.
2-door coupes are shorter from bumper to bumper making parallel parking easier and they are lighter, getting better gas mileage than their 4-door sisters.
The biggest thing is that they just look better. And they tend to come outfitted with the driver in mind making the driving experience more enjoyable. My mom drives a 4-door. I’ll pass, thanks.
Chevy Corvette. $46k a little steep for a new one? Two years old with low mileage cars are reasonable. Supercar performance, solid structure, upper twenties for gas mileage (and yes, they run just fine on regular gas [not Z06]), two sets of golf clubs along with luggage, no sardine feeling - how’s that for your needs.
Yes, I have sat in several two doors, and tried to get in and out of them. I’ve always found them to be more difficult to enter and exit, and that was before I had mobility problems. Around here, we have a lot of trucks and SUVs and generally large cars, so a couple of inches might be the difference between being able to get into or out of a car or not.
I haven’t measured my current car’s door opening angle, but I believe it’s much greater than 45 degrees.
I never parallel park if I can help it. The better gas mileage IS very appealing, and it’s something that I hadn’t known about before.
However, I don’t think that they look any better than four door cars, though I admit that I rarely even notice a car’s looks, other than a very few models. To me, a car is only a method of transportation, I don’t particularly rely on my car to make a statement.
I really hope GM gets their bearings and gets clicking on production of this puppy. The delay to 2010 will give me time to save up the extra ducats I’ll need to afford one. Wonder why Chevy wouldn’t try a similar treatment to the Malibu that’s been so successful. I wonder if protecting the Carmaro’s market segment plays a role.
I still haven’t actually measured the opening angle, but it looks like it’s somewhere between 70 and 80 degrees. I took a good hard look at it this afternoon.
I so want to score myself a slightly used Corvette Convertible. I pay off my 2005 Toyota Camry in September and drive <1000 miles a year. I figure I could pay off a used Corvette probably in 3-4 years then still have a couple years with no car payment before having to replace the Camry. Then I’d probably have the Corvette for the rest of my life I drive so little. Have a crapload of other stuff to do before then though.
The thing is, Oldsmobile was the perfect brand to compete in the sporty near-lux segment but GM let it wither on the vine and finally killed the brand. For every early-90s Cutlass there were a dozen dismal rental-fleet boxes.
When it’s time to upgrade my [American-made, 80% domestic part content] Civic, I’ll probably go for a gently used 1- or 3-series. Although if the Taurus SHO were an eensy bit cheaper (say, RWD instead of AWD, 250-300 HP engine, and a real stick shift) I’d be very, very tempted.
What about a Chrysler Crossfire? It was discontinued in 2008, but dealer forecourts are still teeming with brand new ones you can have for a song (ie., well under the $35k list price).
They don’t handle, stop or go very well, but they look… different, and they’re quite comfortable.
I drive an Infiniti G35 Coupe, because my only American RWD high output options were cars like Mustangs, and now Chargers and Camaros.
The G35 and German brands just have the market on the Americans in this segment.
What sucks is that I can go through some makers’ line-up of cars in order, but not the American brands. e.g…
Toyota cars:
Yaris
Corrola
Camry/Solara
Avalon
Toyota trucks:
Rav 4
Highlander
4Runner
Sequoia
FJ
Landcruiser
Toyota Hybrid:
Prius
I can’t identify which American model fits in their lineup according to size/price/market.
I’m a Ford guy. I like 4-door mid-size cars with a manual transmission and decently powerful 6-cylinder or 4-cylinder turbo engine, but Ford hasn’t offered that since the Contour. I had a 98 Contour that I drove about 9 years, it was a good car.
So for my first new car I wound up with a 2008 Mazdaspeed3. At least it has Ford parts in it.
I like the Fusions, but I can’t find any evidence that the 3.5 V6 is offered with a manual transmission. Only the 4-cylinder is. That’s what GM does too, only offers manual transmissions with 4-cylinders. The AWD is cool though, but it gets pricey.
