2007 GNX proposal?

[dobieroo]

Cavalier? Sunfire? What the !@*#!$%*? This is blasphemy!

GNX. No other name in automotive history says "80's Supercar" like those

three letters. Now the legend is back.

Buicks 2007 GNX is a modern-day incarnation of classic street performance.

When you turn the key and hear the throaty dual exhausts announcing the

Twin Turbo 3.6L V-6, you'll know you have your hands full. Compared to its

'80s namesake, the new GNX sports a suspension that is tighter, an engine

that's more powerful and a manual transmission that now boasts two

additional gears. The car will hit 60 mph (97 km/h) in about

four-and-a-half seconds, and run the quarter mile in under 13 seconds.

There's nothing like it in its class.

Total performance

The completely new GNX isn't just about horsepower, of course. Its unique

personality includes impressive cornering abilities, a smooth ride and

surprising comfort. But the heart of the GNX is indeed a truly awesome Twin

Turbo and Intercooled 3.6l V-6 engine, also known as the base powerplant

for the Buick Velite Concept. The GNX produces an estimated 450 horsepower

and with 465 lb.-ft. of torque, it has no problem leaving a stop with

purpose.

Eighteen-inch alloy wheels and performance tires are matched to a fully

independent, performance-tuned suspension featuring direct-acting

stabilizing bars and power rack-and-pinion steering. Traction control and a

limited slip differentials also come standard. And, today's GNX revs

through six forward speeds with the close-ratio manual transmission, or you

can choose a six-speed Hydra-Matic. Both come with a 3.46:1 final drive

ratio.

Performance-oriented interior

The GNX is, first and foremost, a driver's car. Every detail, from the

satin-finish steering wheel to the race-inspired metallic pedals, gives the

driver a sense of performance from the moment the car is entered. The

standard feature list starts off with leather 2+2 bucket seats, in black

-color-coordinated with the vehicle's exterior color. The high-tech seats

provide lateral support, wrapping around the driver and front passenger and

complementing the great handling characteristics of the chassis. Also

standard is a six-disc CD-changer with premium 10-speaker sound system,

cruise control, a multi-function driver information center, keyless entry

system and a host of other features to enhance the driving experience.

Sensuous design

Rather than create an imitation of the original legend, the 2007 GNX

provides a contemporary interpretation of the classic buick sports coupe.

The distinctive, tautly stretched exterior, aggressive lowered stance and

sleek, simple form all help express the clean, athletic styling direction

of Buick. Add this to the obvious performance of the vehicle and you have a

rear-wheel-drive TT+I V-6-powered premium sports coupe wrapped in a

seamless, modern design.

Safety and quality

Bringing the GNX to a safe stop is accomplished through standard four-wheel

disc brakes (ventilated front, solid rear), part of a four-channel

anti-lock braking system. Other standard safety features include dual front

air bags, three-point safety belts for all occupants and an Emergency Mode

that automatically shuts down the engine, turns off the fuel pump, unlocks

the doors and turns on the dome light any time the air-bag system is

deployed.

Production of the 2007 Buick GNX will begin in September 2006 at Holden's

award-winning Elizabeth plant in Australia using the latest techniques to

ensure both measurable and "perceived" quality. Projected annual production

will be 18,000 vehicles.

General Information

Price: $38,500

Miles Per Gallon: 17/25 mpg

Curb Weight: 3698 lbs

Layout: Front-Engine/AWD

Transmission: 6-Speed Manual

Engine

Type: DOHC V6

Displacement: 3600 cc

Horsepower: 450 bhp @ 5200 rpm

Torque: 465 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm

Redline: 6500 rpm

Performance

0-60 mph: 4.2 sec

0-100 mph: 10.2 sec

Quarter Mile: 12.8 sec @ 112.5 mph

Skidpad: .96g

Top Speed: 179 mph

Braking, 60-0 mph: 115 ft

Slalom Speed: 66.4 mph

[Bill Stoneberg]

If you want to get younger people into the Buick brand this is one way to do it. I will seriously think about it.

You cant help the styling nowdays... Cars are all the same and they all basically suck.

But performance, yes....... rear wheel drive, yes...... twin turbos, yes.....

I cant wait.

Thanks for posting.

[dobieroo]

One note I wanted to make is that I wonder if this is someone's hoax. I work in the auto industry on various future GM and Ford programs. I have never seen/heard about this car. I am wondering if someone has taken a picture of a current GTO and "modified" it a bit.

I hope it is true, I would be in line the first day it came out.

[Centurion]

Duane, I believe that we're seeing a "photoshopped" picture of a current Pontiac GTO. Based on what I've read on some of the forums that focus on GM's upcoming product plans, I believe that this is someone's dream concept -- an idea of what might be possible if GM opted to re-introduce the Grand National in the near future. I do not believe that such a car is being planned for production.

[Mr Buick]

If this car IS in the works,.......put my name on one for sure! I would think Buick should get there thumb out from where it doesn't belong and get some "younger" stuff in the works! Secondly,....fire some of the "big wigs" (mainly LUTZ) that are making toooooo much money and put it where they need to put it.

Thanks for your time,

John

[BigFella]

Yup it's "photocropped". Some things that I noticed right away...

- Pontiac Grill with a Buick logo added

- "Portholes" mounted beyond the curvature for the side/hood so they are more on the top than the side

It does look like it would have promise as a really nice looking car, but remember it's not a Truck or SUV so it would just get the axe anyway...

maybe we should crop this up some more adding or fixing the Buick styling and submit it to Buick...wonder how they would feel getting 5000+ emails with the same car picture and the same question "When?"... I would bet this would wake someone up...of course they would just build a nice version for the shows and break our hearts *again*.

[Reatta Man]

Send me the e-mail for the head of Buick's styling department (IF they still have one!) and I will e-mail him myself!

My first hint was that it was called a REGAL. Seems around GM these days you let an old established name wither away to nothing then replace it with something with absolutely no meaning whatsoever. (Can you say Aveo or Cobalt?)

[Buicks Rule]

Yeah guys, this is a GTO with a PR write up and a nose job.

Seriously--how many of you would be willing to write your dealer a check for $5000 TODAY and have him/her hold it until 2007 to reserve your car. NONREFUNDABLE unless GM declines to produce the car.

Didn't think so.

A whole bunch of folks made the same promises about the new GTO, some even placed orders. Then when they saw the car in person, they walked away from the built car. That's just gotta make dealers jump for joy at the prospect of another GM GTO fiasco..

GM has a part of this too. $38500 is priced TOO HIGH! At $18,500 it would sell like bunless hamburgers at an Atkins convention. And, it would sell to YOUNG PEOPLE ( the ones that buy "hot" Hondas ) who would suck up the insurance bill $ to get the performance. At $28,500 it moves into the young family category incomewise. Sorry guys--fighting a child safety seat into/out of the back seat of a two door car submarines that purchase in about 36 seconds.

At $38,500 the only people who can afford the car can afford other marques that have retained much more of a performance cachet than Buick ( or GM ), or are GM Employees/Retirees ( who buy the silly car for $30K and wonder why no one else will pay nearly $40K for the same car.....)

Ford's got a winner with the Mustang--mild at $20K and wilder cost more. I'd still by a Mustang CVT or even coupe before buying this Holden. Chrysler same thing with the 300--mild to wild brackets about $10K in price. T-Bird had the same problem. Take $10K out of the price and a lot more people who would like to own a 2 seater would have bought it. But at $45000 it's market was restricted to older folks who wanted a toy....

What GM needs to hear is build a performance car that provides MAX GO, MAX BUILD QUALITY for MIN $ and they'll have a winner.

[JohnD1956]

[color:\\"red\\"] <span style="font-weight: bold">a Fake!!!</span> Oh man, this is the 2nd piece of bad news this week. Can't you guys let the rest of us dream a while?

JD

[NTX5467]

"Dream UP"???? There's a really good "image" of a LaCrosse coupe at www.cwwcardesign.com!

While the more vintage members of the hobby might desire to hold out for "GranSport", the "GN" and "GNX" nomenclatures are identifiable for a huge demographic of "younger" people.

In reality, the GTO (even with a little "too high" price point) is a fantastic combination of equipment. Yet it's wrapped in a somewhat non-descript sheetmetal package. There's nothing that really says "muscular" or "powerful" in the styling, unfortunately. The hood scoops help, as do the GM Accessories grill inserts, but those rear tires (and related cutouts in the quarter panel) just hide under the quarter panels. For a "muscular" contoured side styling, think Olds Intrigue, which has bulges and contours around each of the four wheels. Similar to the way '55+ Buicks used the full wheel cutouts to have a muscular look back then.

The basic platform and interior are really good, but the rest needs help.

Other than the styling issues, the things I read in the forums indicated that several other things conspired to hurt the initial frenzy of the last GTO. Part of this was the dealers' fault for trying to deal with customer inquiries in the same manner they would as if the car was built in Lansing or Kansas City. Nobody wanted to talk about "allocations" with the customers before they took their downpayment money either. Nor could they seem to check to see when a particular car would be delivered. One customer might get the "we don't know when it'll be here" dialogue when a dealer 30 miles away had 4 GTOs sitting on their lot--right then.

To me, with the huge halo orientation of the current GTO for Pontiac, they should have set up a Port of Entry Delivery Area so that customers could get their cars (with fully completed paperwork done beforehand, kind of like going to the Corvette Museum to get your Corvette rather than the dealer, picking up your new Viper at the Viper Plant, or doing a European Delivery of a BMW or Porsche) there rather than wait "forever and a day". There also should have been some sort of customer communication from Pontiac to the customer regarding when the car was built, put on the ship, and arrived at the Port of Entry. Sure, this would have taken the dealer out of the loop (after writing the deal and collecting the money), but it would also have most probably resulted in much better public relations and customer satisfaction--back when EVERYBODY was hot to trot to get their new GTO.

The problem was that everybody (except the customer) was seeming to treat the car as "just another car" rather than a "highly special car". Might have been that a designated person should have dealt with GTO orders rather than just anybody that happened to talk to the potential customer? A designated person that could take the time to check just where the order was in the production network or where the completed vehicle was in the delivery chain of events. But all of that's now "history" . . .

It might help if the GTOs price point was closer to $30K, but I don't know if that might have helped things along either. Even as it sits, it's a verrryyyyy nicely trimed-out car, with a somewhat useable back seat too. Yet it should not be at the same price point as the 2005 Mustang. As good as the new Mustang is done, the GTO is a luxury grand touring car by comparison.

Enjoy!

NTX5467

[Buicks Rule]

Sorry W,

The folks I mentioned had no problem with dealer or dealer personnel or treatment. They were ready to write the check--UNTIL they SAW the CAR in the flesh.

I'm sure the dealership experience didn't help the issue as it sounds like confusion. You can't sell a dream like it was a toaster.

The pricing issue is an issue. Regardless of actual quality, GM is perceived of building lower quality cars. To re-gain a young customer base they are going to HAVE to either learn from Sloan and their own history and build a MUCH, MUCH better car for a few extra dollars ( see Chevy vs. Model T ) OR if that's just too much ancient history then check out Toyota/Honda in the seventies. Build it decently, sell it cheaply and convince the customer that it was a great value--then they'll come back, and back, and back, and back.....

I too have looked at the GTO in person. Can't even get interested in it enough for a test drive. It's boring on the outside, boring on the inside and is powered by a generic Chevy 350---YAWN!!

Can't wait to see the new drop top Mustang. Might even buy one. Nothing in the current GM line says buy me. And a 10 year old Holden that looks like a 92 Grand Prix with a nose job isn't going to do it. New Magnum also looks cool and it's got a HEMI.

Anybody wanna make a bet as to which of Ford or GM innovates their way out of junk bond status through quality products? I'm a seeing lots of Mustangs out there on the roads. Don't think I've ever seen a GTO on the hoof--but plenty have been stacked up on dealer lots.

Oh well-wait and see. Maybe Buick will be allowed to build SOMETHING with 2 doors, a drop top, a decent price entry point, decent performance options.

[Mr Buick]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Send me the e-mail for the head of Buick's styling department (IF they still have one!) and I will e-mail him myself!

My first hint was that it was called a REGAL. Seems around GM these days you let an old established name wither away to nothing then replace it with something with absolutely no meaning whatsoever. (Can you say Aveo or Cobalt?) </div></div>

OK, I think it's time we start to get serious with the people at GM, I think we should show them who's boss. If we can find an email address, I think we SHOULD start to email them with a photo of this car, and ask them WHEN????

Why not, what have we got to loose??

Let's get the email address, and when each one of us emails them, we should sign up on a thread started just for this, that way we can keep a running total. Email your friends and have them do it to. I will put this link on the V8Buick.com site as well. Let's get the ball rolling as it's high time we start to stand up for what WE THE PEOPLE believe!

NOW,.....lets tackle the gas problem!

Thanks, John

[Buicks Rule]

Just remember to send deposit checks with those letters. Just like when one of us sells a collector Buick, it's a lookie loo phone call until money changes hands.

[Guest bkazmer]

The GTO has been a screaming dud from a sales standpoint. Why would GM want to make a Buick version too?

[NTX5467]

Let me make one things "perfectly clearrrrr", I'm NOT that "W".

Yep, the GTO reminds me more of "Lumina" and other GM vehicles of that era, unfortunately. I CAN say (after sitting in one, finally) that the seats are much more comfortable than the current Grand Prix (which seem to be configured more for the "leaner" 28-somethings than otherwise. Not to mention that there are FOUR buckets in the GTO, which means the rear seat passengers have something other than seat belts to keep them situated.

"Sleeper" vehicles do have some merit, especially if they are not red, but at least most of them look more exciting than the new GTO.

To me, the added power of the current car is something of a moot point, but it does matter to others. What seems to be important is that the 2nd year car should have been the first year car, engine wise, but it wasn't in the mix. Kind of like when the word of the '78 Corvette Silver Anniversary models "leaked" out, everybody wanted one and paid premiums to get one. Six months later, when the Pace Car version came out, THEY were hot and the SAs were dead. Same thing tended to happen with the first Silverado SS454 pickups, yet the 2nd year trucks were much better as they had the OD automatic trans, and the 3rd year trucks had the better graphics on them. I guess you don't show your full hand right up front?

I suspect that a much better marketed Buick version of the Monaro CV8, but emphasising refinement and power rather than "boy racer nature" (even if it's "incognito") might work. The HF3.5L DOHC V-6 has replaced the Buick 3800 as the "other" Holden powerplant, so if it could make about 280 horsepower (from a better exhaust system configuration and a little electronic "tuning" and get close to 28mpg on the highway, yet with all of the handling capabilities and luxury interior appointments it would need (other than just the seats), it might be pretty decent. It could also showcase the proposed turbo version of that engine (which can also have a 3.8L displacement). Then it could be the "HF" GN? Of course, if the 5L40E transmission is strong enough, it'd help too!

Unfortunately, if WE could influence GM's product planning, it would be another 3 years before those things might appear on the street. I suspect the input would result in the "standard 'Thank You' email" reply, which can also mention how important customer input can be regarding future products.

I saw the Mustang convertible last month. It looks good, just like the coupe does, BUT that back seat makes my '77 Camaro look spacious (rear seat leg room wise), even at similar wheelbases. To their credit, trunk space is preserved--just don't order up the Mach __ sound system with subwoofer.

Kerkorian's buying common stock, portfolio managers are having to sell their GM bonds (due to stipulations of their employers about what kind of bonds they can or cannot put in the portfolio, as in "high yield" versus "investment grade"). Just another couple of bumps in the onward and upward highway to prosperity, which seem to happen about every 10-12 years.

What CAN be good is to send communications to high level GM operatives and Board Members as to your support of future Buick products (generally, with some specific mentions of desired models), about how if they don't build new Buicks you'll have to look elsewhere (not to other GM products!) or to used Buicks for your personal vehicles. There is an extremely strong case for NOT killing any more GM vehicle lines (especially now that it's documented that former Olds customers typically did NOT migrate to other GM vehicle lines!), yet the beloved "analysts" keep talking about downsizing GM's vehicle product lines. And of course, any future Buicks NEED to look like BUICKS!

Keep the faith!

NTX5467

[HurstGN]

I'll offer my personal opinion in case ANYONE at Buick is reading......

Price - Was put in writing earlier, and I agree, it's too damn much. You need to keep the price hovering just under $20K if you want to seel any number of these.

Styling - What styling?!?! There is NONE! Hey Buick, look at the new Mustang. It is OK to have an occasional sharp line on a vehicle now-a-days. Not wverything must be rounded off like a pair of kindergarden scissors to keep us from hurting ourselves! Maybe you need to perform an exercise like hire Chip Foose and hand him an 87 Grand National. Tell Chip to do his magic and see what results. I'l bet you end up with a 2 door coupe that is sleek, stylish and very sellable.

Performance - OK, it looks like this is the only item that is right about this deal. Remember, time when the engine isn't under load (during a manual shift) the turbos are left to spool down. Whatever you do, don't offer the car without an automatic transmission optimized to kick butt like the BRF's of old. But now you can do this electronically.

Unless the price and style change dramatically, I'll pass.

[Reatta Man]

Since the car is just a dream at this point, can I send one of those big money orders from the brother of the treasury secretary of Nigeria as my deposit?