Bought a 2011 jetta

[Z34guy]

im part german and well, i would pick that bug over anything related to w bodies no matter what

i would rather drive a non vtec civic, rust and fartcan installed, before a w body

I'm part German as well. And Italian. Slovakian. French-Canadian, the list goes on. And you're just saying that to spite me. But you can't knock them until you try them. W-bodies are addicting.

[petrified.rabbit]

ok mr "w-body lasted 20 years in production" the vw beetle platform lasted from 1938-2003, thats what 65 years?

Porsche designed the beetle, and it only became fully produced in 1945 (after ww2) with funding / control from the US and England.

[petrified.rabbit]

But you can't knock them until you try them. W-bodies are addicting.

so is crack, and its stupid too. :P

[Z34guy]

The beetle only lasted so long because VW didn't have the money to develop a successor in 1961, due to losing a lawsuit over how the Beetle was a STOLEN DESIGN from czech car maker Tatra. Ferdinand Porsche even admitted to having "looked over Hans Ledwinka's shoulder" when "designing" the beetle. Once the Golf came along to take over for the bug, VW just forgot to take it out of production til 2003 when they realized "HOLY SH*T! We're still making this thing?".
Anyways. the list of VW's I would actually own is rather small.
1962-1978 VW Beetle
VW Camper van
new VW Scirocco
2008 VW R32

[petrified.rabbit]

i wonder whose shoulder gm was looking over when then designed the w body..

you think every car is original design? who ever patented 4 wheels is rich by now.

[Z34guy]

i wonder whose shoulder gm was looking over when then designed the w body..

you think every car is original design? who ever patented 4 wheels is rich by now.

the W-body was meant as a direct competitor to Ford's Taurus and Mercury Sable. The W-body design was originally all GM as the independent rear suspension used leafsprings while the front was updated from the A-body. Costs were kept down by using much of the same running gear as the FWD A-body the W-body replaced. The first update to the W-body chassis came in 1995 with the redesigned Lumina and Monte Carlo, which had the same front suspension as other W-bodies, but a completely unique independent rear suspension devoid of leafsprings. This redesign is referred to as Generation 1.5. Generation 2 was launched in 1997 with the redesigned Pontiac Grand Prix, Buick Regal, and Buick Century. This was a top to bottom redesign of the chassis, eliminating leafsprings once again. The W-body was then planned to be canceled in 2004, to be replaced by an extended Epsilon platform, But GM realized how profitable it still was and updated the chassis again in 2004, again starting with a redesigned Grand Prix. If you can count, that makes generation 3. The platform is still in production, but in the process of being phased out. The last surviving production W-body is the Chevrolet Impala.

[petrified.rabbit]

single leaf spring irs had been around since the 60's. probably before if i wanted to look.

i just dont see any one part that makes the lumina so great..

[Z34guy]

single leaf spring irs had been around since the 60's. probably before if i wanted to look.

i just dont see any one part that makes the lumina so great..

There wasn't any single part that made it bettar than everything else. But the handling of the models with stiffer suspension (1991-1994 Lumina Z34, 1995-1999 Monte Carlo Z34, and 1997-1999 Lumina LTZ) combined with the V6 power, generally awesome exhaust notes, comfy interiors, and responsive steering make the performance models a JOY to drive.

If you wanted something to ogle over for being unusual, look at the LQ1 engine. pushrod engine block, a timing chain, a timing belt, DOHC heads, and 24 valves all on a 60 degree V6 block.

[thehunterooo]

i would rather drive a honda bro, at least it has abs

[Z34guy]

i would rather drive a honda bro, at least it has abs

ABS was made standard later on on most models except absolute base models. My Monte Carlo came standard with ABS. Mine just isn't working (I think there's a broken wheel-speed sensor somewhere). Although if I recall, the Pontiac Grand Prix had ABS from the get go and that was the biggest seller on the W-body.