Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

no offense, but :rotf: :barf:

hideous.

Horrible
Horrendous
Raunchy

 

Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

Lessee...
New Beetlemania is over.
PT Cruiser's not Cruising into as many garages
SSR = Slowly Selling Right?
T-bird is pretty much Toast

Now, who decided that putting another retro thing on the market was a good idea?

 

Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

Yeah, saw that awhile ago when the PT Cruiser folks were making fun of it.

It's interesting that it's being compared to the PT in the article, and that pricing is going to be around $25K - about $7K higher than the PT.

I wish they would have taken MORE cues from the SSR, especially the front end.

Ah well. We'll see how it drives and how much space it's got...

In a 'turnabout is fair play' kind of coincidence, here's a PT Cruiser SSR...

Your pal,
Meat.

 

Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

I never liked the SSR. But the look has grown on me. 390HP should add some pep to it, but I've never driven or sat in one, so I wouldn't know.

HHR looks interesting. I dunno if the look or car will catch on, but we'll see.

I don't think retro cars do well, but there are exceptions. Beetle, Mini... but the effect has already plateaued. Mustang is on a ramp up now, but I still believe it will plateau in 3 years or so.

 

Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

The HHR is a nice vehilce and it needs to be bigger .

 

Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

The PT Cruiser is selling over a hundred thousand units a year, despite a four or five year old design.

The SSR and TBird were slow sellers from the very beginning, because of high prices and impracticality.

The New Beetle isn't Volkswagen's only problem, and the image of the Beetle itself is a niche one.

If the HHR sold anything like the PT Cruiser does now, it'll be a success.

 

Re: Forbes.com Chevy Retries Retro

The HHR does not look very special in the pic Forbes provides. If I hadn't been told it's retro-inspired, I would have taken it for a Trailblazer replacement.

But the PT SSR from Meat looks great!

 

Hhr Must Get Rid Of Those Hideous Durango Taillights!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Biggest problem with the SSR is the price, who wants to pay that for one when you could get a Corvette for pretty close to the same price. It needs to be in the 30-35K range!

 

I really dig the HHR, but I hope the base engine is the 2.4 Ecotec, as opposed to the 2.2.

"...the HHR will use one or more four-cylinder engines, the horsepower of which will be somewhere between 140 and 220."

This would be a perfect vehicle for the 3.5 V6, but dunno if it would fit.

 

Wasn't the HHR designed by that Brian Nesbith (however you spell it) who did the PT for Chrysler? Talk about a one trick freakin' pony!!! Can't this guy come up with something else?

 

The HHR looks much longer than the PT, especially behind the rear seat. With fold-flat seating, this thing could haul a lot of cargo!

 

The ****************************s who approved these idiot designs, ought to be shown the door OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

 

I understand the HHR hails from the same designer as the PT Cruiser, but couldnt he come up with another design?! For my taste it looks too much like the PT Cruiser.

 

Gee -- who would have thought that an over-priced + highly marked up truck, which cannot haul stuff, would sell so poor?

If GM wants to make sure the HHR sells well, it needs to be entry level priced but have a higher level quality that normally isn't associated with cars of this class. Do not sell it as a premium vehicle. Just treat it as one and the customers will come.

-Z

 

They both look like Hearses..

 

Maybe retro isn't so bad - it's just the wrong era.

Maybe the Mustang with the late sixties look (and mainstream price) will succeed where 1940s versions (PT, SSR, HHR to some degree Prowler) have failed.

T Bird was worst of both worlds. It didn't look all that 'retro' to me. Historically, the T Bird's whole story was that FoMoCo put in a back seat and sales raced as you could call it a 'family' car - it would at least hold the mother in law in a pinch. Recently Fomoco created an 'exotic' two seater then made it a boring car - remember the ad where the guy in the Italian looking supercar wants to race and then the guy in the T bird drives away with the girl? It's like the T bird is too 'mature' to be exotic - yet the two seat part makes it impractical - so its not a fast or exciting car, but doesn't do regular car duties - AND it was overpriced.

SSR has very similar problems - it's a 'truck' that can't tow or haul much of anything - AND is even more overpriced.

As others have noted - reasonable pricing and utility make all the difference.

 

i think th SSR looks cool,a nd with 390 hp it isnt slow anymore, i wouldnt listen to forbes about cars anyways, he spent a paragraph describing how it was slow and then one line retracting saying it wasnt slow anymore, and the SSR was meant to be low volume and was more of a marketing hting to attract attention to chevy, btw, i thought chevy had more than 2.5 mil, maybe im wrong, but i thought it was more.

 

PT sells well. Since it's not so different from PT(design) and will be placed in the same price range, at least it won't be a disaster... and it's more SUV like than PT wich could appear as an advantage(SUV's are in fashion). Probably it will sell better than an European inspired station wagon based on the Cobalt platform. If the platform is there why not use it?
If it proves to be a succes, at least Toyota or else won't be able to launch a contender(A retro Toyota...Mitsubishi inspired from what ...?).
About the design...they had enough time to gather opinions since these pictures first appeared on the web. They'll choose a convenient shape...

 

I think its mission accomplished for the SSR. Sure the sales volume may be abit below what GM had hoped. But I think its mission was more to get "people thinking about GM again". It was/is intended for just a few vehicles be at stoplights, and to generate a "buzz". It's price point may be a little high at $43-45000. There are people buying them however. I've seen 2 on the road around Cedar Rapids. A price point of $35-40000 may have been better from a volume perspective. A 6-speed manual may help sales.

I would like to see the next Siverado/Tahoe with lines "similar" to the HHR. We may want to wait however and see how the market reacts to the HHR, however.

I would also like to see GM trucks get "tighter", like Ford pickups. I think Ford P/U's have a tightness the GM trucks don't have. Chevy trucks still have a clankyness that Ford dosen't have.

I'm out. I hope you all are having a nice Holiday's.

 

It reminds me more of the Jeep Liberty than the PT Cruiser.

 

So Chevy's got 2 compact SUVs, one with a 4-cylinder and retro styling or one with a V6 and 'muscular' styling. Choices, choices...

 

Cant wait for the HHR SS!
I think whatever things upset peopole buying an SSR were fixed with the indroduction of the LS2 and 6spd manual. SSR is for peopole that dont want a Vette, but something more flashy, but want power to go along with it. People want a retro design with power, and till 05, there hasnt been a model to do both well.

 

HHR and SSR looks = good

SSR price = HIGH, practicality = LOW... of course its going to sell niche car numbers...

HHR shouldnt be priced out of the market and it should do really well, I know alot of people that LOVE the SSR looks and alot of people that hate it... its a love it or hate it car and thats the way its supposed to be...

 

The HHR is still over-priced for what it is. If it had the LS2, the price premium could be justified.