The
auto blogs are agog with the statement from Bob Lutz that the Holden Commodore nee Pontiac G8 won't go the way of the dodo with Pontiac and will
be slotted into the Chevrolet line up as a Caprice. Bob Lutz was quoted as saying:
The last time we looked at [the Pontiac G8], we decided that we would continue to import it as a Chevrolet. It is kind of too good to waste.
David Welch at business week bemoaned the passing of the Pontiac G8 stating that it was an example of all that was wrong with GM and why it was in such a state. The G8 was an excellent car on a new platform that was selling well and it was going to be junked along with Pontiac.
Welch writes:
As General Motors barrels through bankruptcy and ditches the long-troubled Pontiac brand, along with it goes the G8 sports sedan. What a shame. The car started in price at $28,000 and the sticker price got close to $40,000 if you bought the high-powered GXP model. When is the last time a Pontiac sold for that kind of sticker price? You'd have to sell two G6 coupes to get that kind of money.
Not only is it a premium car, but it is selling well to:
Sure that last-minute rush pushed sales up. Still, G8 sales rose 150% last month. Pontiac, which everyone knows is dying, sold nearly 16,000 G8s this year. That's more than Acura sold of its top-selling TL sedan and Infiniti sold of its G37 sedan. In other words, GM had a sporty sedan that was appointed with luxury amenities and sold at top-shelf prices. And out it goes.
I am sure Holden will be happy that the Commodore will continue to be imported to the United States. To be truthful it made more sense as a Chevrolet than a Pontiac anyway.
Update: Not so fast. Official corporate speak:
As part of its reinvention, General Motors is exploring every opportunity of effectively utilizing its global portfolio of vehicles, facilities and talent. While this exploration includes the possibility of extending imports of Holden vehicles (such as the recent Pontiac G8) to North America, no decision has been made at this time.
Basically nothing. Sounds like Bob Lutz and Fritz Henderson are having a power battle.
Update II: And now
it isn't coming to the US at all. Lutz is quoted as:
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.
The existing Pontiacs are it. Looks like Henderson won that internal power struggle.
It looks like Holden have managed to sell the Commodore into another niche market since Pontiac was axed. This time it
is being sold as a fleet vehicle to the Police Forces in the United States as a Chevrolet Caprice fleet car. Rather than the Commodore it is the long wheel base version.
An
article about the Chevrolet (Holden) Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle [PPV] writes;
Test drivers commented that driving the Caprice PPV reminded them of the Corvette or Camaro. The latter may be more accurate as the Caprice shares the same Zeta-based platform as the Camaro.
The Caprice carries the small block Chevy V8 as well, though not the LS3 of the standard Corvettes. The torque bands are fairly similar and probably give a good feel of how the Corvette or Camaro pulls pretty endlessly.
The Caprice is the long wheel base version of Holden's Zeta platform. The Camaro is on the shorter wheel base which it shares with the Holden Commodore. So if anything it is a bigger car than the Corvette or Camaro.
Most Popular on South Sea Republic
The articles that have been viewed the most:
Most Popular Restaurants in Phoenix
Phoenix Eats Out is the restaurant review site for
Phoenix,
Scottsdale and
Old Town Scottsdale which lists the modernist and contemporary restaurants, taverns and bars in the greater Phoenix area.
This is the list of the most popular restaurants pages from phoenixeatsout.com that have been viewed the most;
My personal favourite restaurants in Phoenix are
AZ88,
Postinos,
Bomberos with
Grazie,
Humble Pie,
Orange Table,
The Vig,
Fez and others coming close behind. View the complete list with the photo-journalistic style images on
phoenixeatsout.com
Most Popular Hikes in Arizona
Arizona is an outdoor state and has lots of hiking in the city and around the state. Phoenix is unusual for most cities in having several large mountains in the center of the city with great hiking. Anyone who comes to Phoenix has to do the
Echo Canyon trail on Camelback and the
Summit Hike on Squaw Peak or Piesta Peak. The views of the city, suburbs and surrounding mountains are wonderful from Camelback and Piesta Peak.
For more experienced hikers there is the McDowell Mountains in North Scottsdale that has several difficult and strenuous hikes in
Tom's Thumb and
Bell Pass. Alternatively, you can hike the highest mountain in Arizona. At 12,600 feet
Humphrey's Peak is a long and difficult hike.
Alternate Australian Constitutions
Between 2004 and 2009 this site,
southsearepublic.org, was a constitutional blog based on scoop which focused on Australian and global constitutional issues.
One of the strongest aspects of it was the development of constitutions by those involved in the blog. These constitutions are the outcome:
The constitutions were built using principles from Montesquieu's separation of powers, the enlightnment's universal political rights and the ancient Athenian technology of sortition and choice by lot.
Archives For South Sea Republic
South Sea Republic started in 2004 as an Australian constitutional blog in 2004 based on scoop software. It was an immigrative outgrowth of Kuro5hin. The archives for each year since then;
The articles are ordered by views.
Who Is Cam Riley
I am an Australian living in the United States as a permanent resident.
I am a software developer by trade and mostly work in Java and jump between middleware and front end.
I originally worked in the New York area of the United States in telecommunications before moving to Washington DC and
working in a mix of telecommunications, energy and ITS. I started my own software company before heading out to
Arizona and working with Shutterfly. Since then I have joined a startup in the Phoenix area and am thoroughly enjoying myself.
I do a lot of photography which I post on this website, but also on flickr. I have a photo-journalistic website which lists
the modernist and contemporary restaurants in phoenix. I have a site on the
Australian Flying Corps [AFC] which has been around since the 1990s and which I unfortunately
lost the .org URL to during a life event; however, it is under the
www.australianflyingcorps.com URL now.
The AFC website has gone through several iterations since the 90s and the two most recent are
Australian Flying Corps Archives(2004-2002) and
Australian Flying Corps Archives(2002-1999) which are good places to start.
Websites Worth Reading
Websites of friends, colleagues and of interest;
