The GMI Rumor Mill!

Hello, and welcome back to the triumphant return of the GMI Rumor Mill. It has been a while since I have done one of these..so this may be lengthyJ

Chevrolet-

Often it may appear that the General’s biggest brand is getting the short end of the stick. In the next few years that will be something proven untrue. There are several things going on at the brand the Chevrolet Brothers started many moons ago…..I will now attempt to go into them..

The Chicago Auto Show-Expect this to be the place that GM’s SS utopia kicks into full swing. Debuting at this show will be both the Monte Carlo and Impala SS. Though the model year these cars will bow is uncertain, I am betting on late 2004-early 2005. The cars will be powered by the same 250-260 HP supercharged 3800 Series II V6 in the 04 Grand Prix GTP. It is unknown if the TAP-Shift version of the 4T65-E will make the cut in Chevy’s W-bodies or not since GM tries to generally keep Pontiac a step ahead of Chevrolet tech wise. Also of note is the SS models will usher in a reskin of both the Impala and Monte Carlo along the lines of the 04 Grand Prix. These cars will be short term holdovers until the new affordable RWD platform is completed for the Grand Prix around 06 (more on this later).

Also of note, I keep hearing talk of a huge surprise at the Chicago Auto Show for Chevrolet, though I am out of the loop in terms of this surprise, one can only assume that it will be some kind of C6 Concept. Ford is already showing an 05 Mustang concept, so it wouldn’t be hard to believe that GM would roll out a concept of the C6, which will tentatively bow as an 05 model.

Expect a performance version of the Cavalier within 2 years. GM perceives Honda to have a weakness in terms of factory power and is attacking this full-force by using a supercharger on the Ecotech engine. An example of this engine will be seen with the upcoming Saturn Tuner ION and a GXP version of the Sunfire. Performance numbers are said to run between 180 and 220 HP with little efficiency loss compared to the competition which uses more expensive variable valve timing based engines.

Now to everyone’s favorite subject…the Camaro. Right now no one wants to talk about the Camaro because GM is threatening jobs on the subject. When you hear people such has Mark Reuss say that there is no program for a new Camaro he is not lying…however he means a car named Camaro. History buffs will remember that the first generation Camaro project was not given the name Camaro until the last minute…and to a point was actually overshadowed/covered up by all the hype for the upcoming Chevelle redesign. I smell history repeating itself here. Another issue to be considered is that both Chevy and Pontiac will get a sedan and coupe version of the upcoming affordable RWD platform. Pontiac will have the GTO and Grand Prix, Chevy will have the Impala and ??????. This is where it gets sticky because GM will have to play an internal nameplate game in choosing between Camaro, Chevelle, and Monte Carlo. Don’t expect more than one RWD coupe in Chevy’s lineup besides the Corvette as they plan to sell 100,000+units with just one name plate.

Pontiac-


Seems Pontiac has been getting all the glory as of late. Most of the excitement has centered around the upcoming GTO, which recently debuted on the show circuit. The show car GTO’s are very hurried examples based on a mix of the previous generation (2002) cars and the all new Monaro body(2004), as evidenced by the Australian gauge cluster, single exhaust and by some accounts unmoved gas tank (I have not verified this). The production car will be based on the upcoming 04 Monaro, which has dual exhaust, revised gas tank location, and a power boost. The engine for the GTO is said to be specific to that car, and I am hedging my bets that the production version will be even more powerful. The reason I say this is because a month ago I had discussions with a GM press rep, and he told me that the production GTO had not had final horsepower numbers set, and they were still tweaking many things about the car. As we held those discussions, the show cars had been finished and on US shores for 2 months. In short don’t believe that the 340HP number as the end point for 2004 GTO power, I am expecting the final number to be closer to 360HP expected for the IV Gen V8. Pontiac did something similar with the 04 Grand Prix initially setting HP at 250, then increasing it to 260HP as testing and development progressed.

The next generation GTO will be built in North America alongside the Pontiac Grand Prix. Both cars will ride on a new chassis that will essentially be the mating of the luxury Sigma Platform and the current V-car platform. The biggest change to Sigma will be the addition V-car type suspension components. The RWD Grand Prix has already been under development for a year as a 4-door version of the new platform, with the GTO being planned as the 2 door model. Expect the GTO to remain fairly exclusive, with the Grand Prix having models to fit a wide cost range, much like now with the price difference between the base GT and expensive GTP Comp G. These cars should be ready by 2006.

The Pontiac G6 show car was little more than a thinly disguised 05 Grand Am, essentially the equivalent of the G-Force show car to the 04 Grand Prix. The new Grand Am will be a major step upscale for Pontiac. While it’s Epsilon platform sister the Malibu will see plebian duty as Chevy’s affordable people hauler, Grand Am will take the platforms abilities to the limit. The showstopper will be a retractable hardtop coupe that will feature AWD, a 6-speed manual, and a forced induction V6 making somewhere between 260 and 300HP. This car was expected to be Pontiac’s new halo car pre GTO, so prices will approach the mid $30K’s loaded. Take away some options and you will go down to the sedan which looks much like the G6 that in base for will cover the affordable market the current Grand Am Covers.

The Solstice is green-lighted and will ride on a new small RWD architecture that will be shared with the Saturn Sky and Buick Bengal. I expect this “new” platform to be a mix of Delta and off the shelf GM parts much like the show car. Developing an all-new chassis will cost too much for GM to keep the cars at their projected price point. Also the name Solstice may be dumped in favor of Firebird or Sunfire.

Pontiac’s future in the economy car market at this point is uncertain. I am unsure of any plans to replace the current Sunfire after it dies in 2005.



Well that wraps it up for part one of this update. As with anything I post, I warn you this post may include use of grammer and spelling that may offend some

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