the Ponitac G3 really sucks...2 rentals one brand new 15,000 km one 46,000 km....the seats very uncomfortable...so-so on gas....the stereo was great in both cars....in my perspective (own toyota's which my husband just finished spending 6,000 on body work etc 1990 toyota) Toyota has comfortable seats, motor is good for 500,000 km, may need body work after 8-10 years but the radio sucks.
Bottom line I take the car/truck where the radio sucks (easy to upgrade)
Brock Yates and others argue that the General and the other two really got into trouble after the early sixties when they did precisely what you romanticize about above. Distractions like corvairs, vegas/astras etc. gobbled lots of R&d rather than focussing it on improving and modularizing the existing powertrains etc.
Posted at 2008-12-12 20:32:10 [PermaLink]Wow. You just brought back the memories. I learned to drive in a 1974 Olds Delta 88 with that famed Rocket 350. Lotta horsepower under the right foot of a 16 year old.
Loved that car though. Rode smooth and true. Still remember being in the fast lane on the 400 watching Rabbits and other little cars get the hell out my way when they saw the mile wide front end of my cherry red beast from hell bearing down on them.
My father sold the car to a friend of mine, last heard that it was still on the road in 1992, and still driving fine.
running a business just aint what it used to be. once upon a time you had to make a quality product that you sold for a profit. from the profit you paid wages, taxes and suppliers. now you run the company into the ground and get your profit from others taxes. diffent school than i went to.
Posted at 2008-12-13 04:25:47 [PermaLink]From a Canadian perspective, the Olds engine controversy was a little odd. First off was all the these people who wouldn't know a crankshaft from a camshaft suing over Chevy engines in an Olds. Did these people not know that Olds and Chev were both part of GM? But what was oddest was that base models of all the GM nameplates in Canada got Chevy engines for years. It was only in Buicks that you were likely to find a non-Chevy small block. 283, 327 and 350 Chevy's were all avail. in Pontiacs' and Olds', so much so that non'Chevy powered units were a rarity. Then we had the flip side where all four divisions had a 350 inch engine available, all distinctly different, and all about the same in power and torque. I've even seen 400 inch small block Chev's in Pontiac Grand Prix's (1972) and Parisienne's (1973-975), which were a little more upscale.
Posted at 2008-12-13 12:14:41 [PermaLink]