Best news I heard all week. G8 to survive as Chevy Caprice!

[Exitspeed]

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/11/lutz-pontiac-g8-to-continue-as-chevy-caprice-in-u-s-z28-likel/


This makes me so happy. I bet the interior will get a major boost when it's redone.

[88Nightmare]

I love the styling of the G8 over that Caprice pictured.... hopefully they change the front of that caprice slightly

[Irish]

bitchin

[Prince Valiant]

Hopefully they don't really call it a caprice.

[88Nightmare]

why not just call it an Impala..... weren't they originally thinkin about bringing out a new RWD version of the impala when they introduced the G8 a year or two ago?

[Exitspeed]

I love the styling of the G8 over that Caprice pictured.... hopefully they change the front of that caprice slightly

It won't look like that. It'll have Chevy's corp grill.
Like this chop I did a while back.
http://img104.imageshack.us/img104/8945/impalag8copy.jpg


Hopefully they don't really call it a caprice.

I honestly don't car what they call it. I'm just happy they are keeping the car alive.


why not just call it an Impala..... weren't they originally thinkin about bringing out a new RWD version of the impala when they introduced the G8 a year or two ago?

With Pontiac, Saab, and Saturn gone there's room in Chevy's lineup for a FWD Malibu, Impala and a RWD Caprice.

[88Nightmare]

dude, kill the FWD impala and put the name on the G8. plus I'm pretty sure there's never been a Caprice SS.... Impala SS, now thats a name people know

[URLOZIN]

hell yeah!!!!!!!!!

[Rocket Power]

Reminds me of a malibu, and not a cool old one:goof

[GTSLOW]

Caprice just sounds gay.

[WhiteZCamaro]

Awsome im glad they are keeping the G8 platform.

[Teufelhunden]

The Holden Commodore is an awesome car, I'm glad GM will continue to rebadge them for sales in the US. I love my 2009 G8 GT, and although I disliked the Pontiac looks at first, they're growing on me some. Even if the looks make my squint some, it's the fact that the Commodore/G8 is a solid all round car that makes me love it. Also I like the interior as well.

I like the looks of the SS minus the wing.

[Karps TA]

I don't get it. From all the rants I've read Obama Motors wasn't going to make cool cars anymore. That it would all be govt manadated alternative fuel vehicles. Now Lutz is staying on, and they are fast tracking interesting cars to market? That doesn't make any sense at all.

[95 TA - The Beast]

Sure it makes sense... All the banter about "Gubment Motors" was stupidity put out there by people speculating out thier assholes more than anything else...

Best way they could do this is:

Base G8 - Caprice
G8 GT - Impala
G8 GXP - Impala SS

Perfect for for demographics and maximizes the platform as well as well-known marketed name-brands...

Who knows, this could be a huge boon for GM and hopefully allows them to get away from some of the more bland offerings...

[T-Bag]

So they think simply rebadging a car (btw I love the G8, so I'm not hating on the car) that didn't sell for shit is a good idea? This sounds like old GM again....FAIL. The only way this thing will sell is if the price starts in the low 20's.

[GTSLOW]

Don't get me wrong I love that they're keeping the G8. Just gay that they are calling it a caprice.

[lordairgtar]

I love the styling of the G8 over that Caprice pictured.... hopefully they change the front of that caprice slightly
The car pictured is based on the Holden Caprice/Statesman. It will not be like that. That is the Middle East version in the pic. The Saudis and other countries over there have that. The G8 is based on the Commodore, so our new Caprice will be as well.

[Deggy]

Love it!

[PB86MCSS]

Great news...I could care less if they call it a Canyonaro as long as the platform lives, thats the important thing (to me). It is too good to waste, kudos to Government Motors.

This isn't re-badging like having the G5/Cobalt, the infamous Malibu/Cutlass of the late 90's and a ton of others...Pontiac is gone so there is no option to keep the G8, having it as a Chevrolet model is all they can really do. Caprice/Impala, whatever, a new model name would be ok too I think. Hopefully they don't change their mind again though and ax it anyway.

[LEWETHETIGER73]

It still doesn't really matter to me. Since they axed the Pontiac line up all of gm is just a hunk of worthless $hit. It may seem cool but only cause they have been trying to get rid of the competition for years. F em.

[Exitspeed]

It still doesn't really matter to me. Since they axed the Pontiac line up all of gm is just a hunk of worthless $hit.

Lol. This is the most uneducated and ignorant statement I think I've ever read on this site. :rolf

[Rocket Power]

Lol. This is the most uneducated and ignorant statement I think I've ever read on this site. :rolf
puleeze

Believe it or not there are people who liked a division other than chevy. There are people who don't believe it's all the same it's "All GM". When their favorite division is killed so is their loyalty to the company. Usually it's the final slap in the face from when each division used to have their own identity and engine, before being mixed in to the big corporate bowl and only have small styling differences.

[Prince Valiant]

Watch it rocket...you're talking to a highly educated HS grad.


I don't get it. From all the rants I've read Obama Motors wasn't going to make cool cars anymore. That it would all be govt manadated alternative fuel vehicles. Now Lutz is staying on, and they are fast tracking interesting cars to market? That doesn't make any sense at all.


Sure it makes sense... All the banter about "Gubment Motors" was stupidity put out there by people speculating out thier assholes more than anything else...
Here's how I'd see it....first, it isn't gov't takeover that by itself is going to kill the "cool" cars. Given that much the management is still in place, you won't see too much short-term change over what would have come down the pipeline if none of this had happened.

It's the regulations that are being set-in place that you won't see once independent protest or fight by the big 3 against anymore...and that's what will kill the cool cars.

Evidence? There was quite a bit of broohaha when bushII proposed what many considered to be draconian CAFE standards previously, which in the end, helped to mitigate the proposed levels from very draconian to somewhat less draconian.

But, once the companies were in need for the bailouts, and Obama admin proposed standards that made Bush's first proposal look mild in comparison...AND you saw the push to for Cap and Trade, something that detroit used opposed vociferously (as evidenced by Rep. John Dingell of the Detroit area's strong objections to the bill, especially when he was chairman of energy and commerce committee), did you hear any protest from detroit? Nope, nary a one.

Since these measures will take place over time, there is still time to produce "cool" cars...especially ones that were already "bought and paid for" like the holden's. Most every car greenlighted for the next couple years before the $*** hit the fan will likely see the light of day.

Does this mean this and products like this are the future of GM? That, I wouldn't bet on, not as the standards become tighter and tighter over the years (that is, if the current laws continue unchanged...something I don't see happening). If regulations continue unabated, you'll see the nature of the cars change....smaller, flimsier, necessarily less safe, smaller (but perhaps neater) powerplants, and more expensive all around.

Cool cars we'd like to own (IE, v8, rwd) will undoubtedly still be produced...but in relatively limited numbers so as not to impact the CAFE numbers, nor whatever regulatory values given for the cap and trade laws....and since they'll be arbitrarily limited in numbers, development and manufacturing cost will have to amortized over a smaller number, meaning the price to make a model such as this economically feasible will be far higher than current camaro's, holdens, mustangs, etc....

[Exitspeed]

puleeze

Believe it or not there are people who liked a division other than chevy. There are people who don't believe it's all the same it's "All GM". When their favorite division is killed so is their loyalty to the company. Usually it's the final slap in the face from when each division used to have their own identity and engine, before being mixed in to the big corporate bowl and only have small styling differences.

Hey I loved Pontiac. I owned a 99 Grand Am GT back in 99.

I was probably 18 months away from a purchase of a G8. I even had my grandparents buy a brand new Vibe becuase it was a perfect fit for their needs.

The Sostice is one of my favorite cars on the market.

With that said, now that GM has rid itself of the brand, it doesn't mean they just have junk product.

Without going through every car of every brand (becuase they still have some shit product), they have some stellar standout vehicles. The Malibu and CTS being two of them.

GM's portfolio will be worlds stronger in another 2 years. They'll get rid of the shit that isn't selling AND doesn't do anything for them and have much stronger products.

What they've accomplished in interior design over the last 3 years has been nothing short of spectacular. Unfortunately Pointiac was never really able to benefit from those strides. Not that it would have made a big difference. But the biggest flaws with the G8 and Solstice were definitely the interior. Again, nice interiors wouldn't have saved the brand, but had the cars been that much better all around it would have been a harder bullet to swallow.

I was actually really excited when GM originally said they were going to make Pontiac a niche brand and be more focused. I think that could have really worked. Unfortunately, the Bankruptcy thing came along and it just wasn't an option any more.

It's too bad you have such a loyalty to one brand you'd shun the rest of GM (who made the brand you loved so much in the first place. Pontiac wasn't making their own cars.) and miss out on some great products that are coming from the same company.

[kornholio788]

Does anyone else but me think "old cop car" when ever they hear caprice?

[Karps TA]

What would be cool is if they then went ahead and brought the sport truck G8 back into the fold as an El Camino.

[pOrk]

Watch it rocket...you're talking to a highly educated HS grad.


:rolleyes:

[Rocket Power]

It's too bad you have such a loyalty to one brand you'd shun the rest of GM (who made the brand you loved so much in the first place. Pontiac wasn't making their own cars.) and miss out on some great products that are coming from the same company.Actually I'm an Olds guy, which I thought would've been obvious:goof

Since they decided to quit making the brand I liked, I have moved to my second favorite brand, Ford, for any newer cars/trucks.

I know what I like and want, I haven't seen much from GM I want anymore.

GM likes loyalty when it comes to buying cars, but that same loyalty can bite you when you stop making cars some of the loyal people liked.

[Exitspeed]

Actually I'm an Olds guy, which I thought would've been obvious:goof

Since they decided to quit making the brand I liked, I have moved to my second favorite brand, Ford, for any newer cars/trucks.

I know what I like and want, I haven't seen much from GM I want anymore.

GM likes loyalty when it comes to buying cars, but that same loyalty can bite you when you stop making cars some of the loyal people liked.

I didn't even look at your sig or anything. I can see what you are saying though. If there's nothing you like there's nothing you like. But they really do have some nice product right now.

But if you are a Ford guy, so does Ford. The Fusion would be on my short list if I were looking into a mid-size sedan right now. They really hit the name on the head.

[Rocket Power]

I did like the Fusion we had at work, even had a manual trans.

[Exitspeed]

I did like the Fusion we had at work, even had a manual trans.

The previous gen wasn't bad but the current gen "fixed" a lot of the awkward styling cues for me. The tail lights being the main issue.

The Hybrid deserves more credit then it's getting too. A mid Size sport sedan that gets 43 mpg is pretty amazing.

[Karps TA]

The Fusion is surprisngly a very nice car. I drove a V6 sport package one and was shocked at how nice of a car it was. I did not expect it to be that nice. I almost bought one.

[Exitspeed]

The Fusion is surprisngly a very nice car. I drove a V6 sport package one and was shocked at how nice of a car it was. I did not expect it to be that nice. I almost bought one.

I'd buy one over the giant Accord, or fugly Camry right now that's for sure. It would be between the Fusion, Malibu, and Altima for me.

[Karps TA]

Malibu and Altima are too overpriced IMO, especially for the 6 which is the only way I'd consider them. The Altima with the 4cyl and CVT is awful.

Actually I think all CVT transmissions suck.

None of those cars should be more then 30K loaded. Holz had a loaded Malibu that was only about $1500 less then a loaded Impala SS.

[LEWETHETIGER73]

Well to begin GM started killing the Pontiac lineup back in the late 70's when they decided to stop making the seperate better Poncho motors. At THAT point is when GM starting making their garbage. Sure they made a valid attempt with the last generation TA but then when it was getting succesful they pulled the plug. The only thing they kept right with the Pontiac lineup was the Grand Prix. But then they killed off the name, just like the Grand Am and the Bonniville. They changed their name to some stupid number system. People lose the familiar names that have been with us for decades suddenly gone. Why didn't they get rid of any of the chevy names? Kill the names, Kill the Brand and you Kill the loyalty from all the diehard enthusiasts out there. My 2006 Grand Prix GT will be the last new gm car I will ever own until the Pontiac line up is returned to it's former glory. Maybe until there is a REAL ceo of General Motors shoes up. Hopefully someone who loves what cars are supposed to be. what they were, and maybe what they can be again.

[Exitspeed]

I guess I just don't have that loyalty even though my father worked for GM for 26 years and my grandfather for 30+.

Lets be honest besides all of the emotional attachment to these brands, GM hasn't been building good competitive cars for a long time.

The 80's and 90's and early 2000's GM was really building a lof of crap. As were Ford and Chrysler.

There were some decent cars in there but with all the segments they have vehicles in it's not enough. Basically too much crap and not enough good stuff.

I have more faith in GM then I have in a long time. I know some of you faithfuls are pissed off cause they killed your brand, but it was honestly for the best if GM was to survive as a company at all.

[Rocket Power]

I know some of you faithfuls are pissed off cause they killed your brand, but it was honestly for the best if GM was to survive as a company at all.
Well personally except for the workers who would get screwed, I couldn't care less anymore if GM goes under.
And I like my 80's GM's, full frames, V8's and rear drive, just what a car should be:thumbsup

[Exitspeed]

Well personally except for the workers who would get screwed, I couldn't care less anymore if GM goes under.
And I like my 80's GM's, full frames, V8's and rear drive, just what a car should be:thumbsup

I'm a techy guy. So I feel the exact opposite.

I've had 80's and 90's GM vehicles and all have been piles o crap. Even though I really loved my Blazer.

[Exitspeed]

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/14/gm-beginning-to-backpedal-on-lutz-g8-turning-caprice-comments/

I wouldn't call the statements quit back pedaling, but definitely less certain then the original statement.

[Exitspeed]

DAMN! That sucks.

Oh well guess I won't get a chance to buy a new one then.


"The G8 will not be a Caprice after all. I'd mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste.

"That's all still true. But I have to say that, with my new "marketing" hat on, upon further review and careful study, we simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today's market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be."

[Karps TA]

Yeah Fritz laid the smackdown on Lutz. It's a shame.

Although I wasn't going to be able to buy one in a couple years anyways. Now I can save for my CTS Coupe.

[Exitspeed]

I REALLY hope they keep the new Caddy 3 Series competitor RWD. It's been reported forever that it would be on the Alpha platform, but there's been more recent rumors of it going to the Epsilon II platform and that would be disappointing. It really wouldn't be a true competitor in FWD form. That would be a major mistake IMO.

[PB86MCSS]

I'm a techy guy. So I feel the exact opposite.

I've had 80's and 90's GM vehicles and all have been piles o crap. Even though I really loved my Blazer.

I'm kind of a techy guy but like my 80's full frame GM products....every GM car I've had has been reliable, lotsa miles and a good purchase for myself. From my Montes to my old beater Cav, other beater g-bodies I had and my current daily LeSabre.

There wasn't a realistic way that GM could keep each division and having their own motors though, unless this was the 60's and they had a huge market share again ;) . My experience with GM is that its pretty much the same in quality and design, besides a few engines but my experience doesn't go past around 1980.