Caprice: Cancelled

[Georgie]

i like the caprice name. maybe because i had a caprice classic. great ride that car, even greater material on the seats. and a full bench in the front? nice car it was...

[The_Blur]

Originally Posted by comiskeybum

thank god. calling it the caprice was the gayest thing they've ever done.

Are you saying that this decision is attracted to other decisions of the same gender?

Let's stay away from this sort of commentary.

[camaro5]

Originally Posted by Super83Z

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/16/f...spawn-chevrol/


Annnnd its over folks.

grrrr

[Captain Awesome]

I guess the new Car Czar doesn't like V8's as much as the old one?

[ElAntonius]

Honestly, I find it interesting that people are this up in arms about it.

GM had the G8 for years, and no one bought it. Perhaps this was at least partially due to mismanagement by GM, but from talking to various non-car enthusiasts:

1) The G8 was ugly. Personally I liked the styling, but it was very polarizing...probably not a good place for a sedan to be. There's a reason BMW and Mercedes rarely take large chances with the styling on their sedans.

2) The G8 had a cheap interior. Sedans, particularly upmarket ones, really need nice interiors. A reputation for cheapness is not good for a premium sedan.

3) The G8's main strength, performance, really didn't help it as much as enthusiasts like to think. Average car buyers are really willing to give up a bit of performance to gain on styling and interior...witness the success of the CTS against the G8.

Don't get me wrong, I love the G8, and wish we could have more cars like it...but in this kind of market, GM would do well to focus itself in cars with clearly defined marketability. Perhaps in the future we'll see a return to a reasonably priced performance sedan, but I think that will take more of a Taurus SHO shape than a G8. Turbocharged AWD Malibu?

[comiskeybum]

Originally Posted by ElAntonius

Honestly, I find it interesting that people are this up in arms about it.

GM had the G8 for years, and no one bought it. Perhaps this was at least partially due to mismanagement by GM, but from talking to various non-car enthusiasts:

1) The G8 was ugly. Personally I liked the styling, but it was very polarizing...probably not a good place for a sedan to be. There's a reason BMW and Mercedes rarely take large chances with the styling on their sedans.

2) The G8 had a cheap interior. Sedans, particularly upmarket ones, really need nice interiors. A reputation for cheapness is not good for a premium sedan.

3) The G8's main strength, performance, really didn't help it as much as enthusiasts like to think. Average car buyers are really willing to give up a bit of performance to gain on styling and interior...witness the success of the CTS against the G8.

Don't get me wrong, I love the G8, and wish we could have more cars like it...but in this kind of market, GM would do well to focus itself in cars with clearly defined marketability. Perhaps in the future we'll see a return to a reasonably priced performance sedan, but I think that will take more of a Taurus SHO shape than a G8. Turbocharged AWD Malibu?

i agree the G8 was horrible. The new Taurus SHO would kill the G8!!

[Legend]

I liked the G8...I know I see more G8s on the road in San Antonio than I see Camaros!

Didn't care for the Chevy version of it that I saw pics of though...but I'll agree on the interior and other features need updated and a bit and less performce is what is needed.

GM wants to compete with everyone else they need to address the interiors of their cars!

[stovt001]

How on earth could you say the G8 was horrible? How can you say its looks were polarizing? Besides the fake hood scoops and the Pontiac nose, it was a very clean, almost pre-Bangle BMW like design. The interior was one of the best in any GM car. I'm getting really tired of people saying it didn't sell because it wasn't a good car. It didn't sell for one very simple reason: It belonged to a dying niche brand with fewer dealers, a bad brand image, and zero advertising. The low sales had nothing to do with the car itself. Caprice was not a good idea for a name, but that's no reason to want this car killed. And without another model to support the Zeta platform, that's another step closer to the grave for the Camaro. I don't see why we're all happy about this. With Camaro the only car in NA riding on Zeta, the business case for it looks really shaky.

[Super83Z]

Originally Posted by ElAntonius

Honestly, I find it interesting that people are this up in arms about it.

GM had the G8 for years, and no one bought it. Perhaps this was at least partially due to mismanagement by GM, but from talking to various non-car enthusiasts:

1) The G8 was ugly. Personally I liked the styling, but it was very polarizing...probably not a good place for a sedan to be. There's a reason BMW and Mercedes rarely take large chances with the styling on their sedans.

2) The G8 had a cheap interior. Sedans, particularly upmarket ones, really need nice interiors. A reputation for cheapness is not good for a premium sedan.

3) The G8's main strength, performance, really didn't help it as much as enthusiasts like to think. Average car buyers are really willing to give up a bit of performance to gain on styling and interior...witness the success of the CTS against the G8.

Don't get me wrong, I love the G8, and wish we could have more cars like it...but in this kind of market, GM would do well to focus itself in cars with clearly defined marketability. Perhaps in the future we'll see a return to a reasonably priced performance sedan, but I think that will take more of a Taurus SHO shape than a G8. Turbocharged AWD Malibu?

Look at the cars your comparing it to. Of course a less than $30K sedan is going to feel "cheap" next to a $50K BMW/Mercedes. The G8 was far from "upmarket". It was a great value even a steal at its pricing.

[Paperer]

Aye ya ya.

[stovt001]

No one has quite the knack at pulling defeat from the jaws of victory quite like GM.

[cliffy]

The one thing after body styling that turns people on and really enamors the car to people buying it is the interior. By and large the interior of any GM the last 25 years has looked like the inside of a blow molded trash can--- even the Corvettes. Look how functional and clean just about every other brand is out there. A 35k 328I or even base Jag with pleather and plood is light years ahead of it. Its not the cost of the materials, its how its done...plain and simple

[chevydude26]

Originally Posted by DropTheGloves

The hhr is one ugly POS. I don't know why people buy those things, or why they still have it around. I am also not a cobalt fan either. I think GM is making a mistake. This is exactly why they went down before. Lets build some ugly POS cars that very few actually like.

the hhr is not that bad i rented it while my car was getting bodywork done. Its a decent car with good cargo space. great for carrying stuff around and cheap and different looking

[chevydude26]

Originally Posted by stovt001

How on earth could you say the G8 was horrible? How can you say its looks were polarizing? Besides the fake hood scoops and the Pontiac nose, it was a very clean, almost pre-Bangle BMW like design. The interior was one of the best in any GM car. I'm getting really tired of people saying it didn't sell because it wasn't a good car. It didn't sell for one very simple reason: It belonged to a dying niche brand with fewer dealers, a bad brand image, and zero advertising. The low sales had nothing to do with the car itself. Caprice was not a good idea for a name, but that's no reason to want this car killed. And without another model to support the Zeta platform, that's another step closer to the grave for the Camaro. I don't see why we're all happy about this. With Camaro the only car in NA riding on Zeta, the business case for it looks really shaky.

the g8's looks screamed fake knockoff bmw...with less sleekness...it needs its own identity...thats why the g8 was ugly...nobody likes to buy cheap knockoffs ...look at the cts styling it doesn't try to look like anybody else its unique in its own style and still looks sleek and sexy while not trying to mimic anybody else