2008 GMC Envoy

This review will be quickly done, we don't have too many Envoys and I forgot its practically the same as the Trailblazer so I'll admit this one will have quite a bit of copy and pasting.


Introduction: The GMC Envoy is GM's mid sized SUV marketed as an upscale version of the GMC Jimmy. Like the Jimmy the Envoy is a truck based SUV and thus is more rugged for off roading than a crossover. The XL trim version of the Envoy had a 3rd row of seats, it was also longer than the standard Envoy. The Envoy would remain in production until 2008 and continued to sell model year 2009s while the Jimmy would retire in 2005.

Much like I found with the Trailblazer, I didn't really find much interest in the Envoys due to how they're practically the same aside from interior and exterior design.


Performance: The Envoy has a 4.2L straight-6 engine which outputs 275 hp and 275 lb.ft of torque. It seems like a lot, but I can't help but think GM could have gotten more out of such a large I6. Anyways this engine moves the Envoy rather well, its a smooth unit as expected and accelerates the SUV from 0-100 km/h in 7.7 seconds. I don't really have much issues with this engine.

My Score: 9/10 - Its a good engine, not the most memorable one but it does do its job well.

Handling: The Envoy's handling is mediocre at best, for an SUV. With the very large wheel and its heavy weight it doesn't handle all that well. Steering doesn't feel all that attached possibly just by how large the steering wheel is. I may be rugged, but its not agile on the streets.

My Score: 5/10 - I know its an SUV, but there are SUVs that do a better job.


Interior: This is the biggest difference between the Trailblazer and the Envoy. The interior of the Envoy is a bit better than the Trailblazer's. Small details being the major thing between the two. The Envoy isn't colour limited like the Trailblazer meaning you don't have to have a depressing interior. The vents are a step up from the Trailblazer's bottom of the barrel ones, there's more chrome in the interior over the dark plastic of the Trailblazer. All in all these small changes manage to change the atmosphere inside from being disappointingly cheap to become disappointingly average. The build quality however is still atrocious.

My Score: 3/10 - Using better material can make more of a difference in interiors...too bad this car is still built badly and still shows some of its truck interior blandness.

Styling: The Envoy has more of a truck image than the Trailblazer does with its much larger grille. It doesn't have the same plastic bits slapped over the SUV like the Trailblazer does making it already less cheap looking. In Denali form it actually can look somewhat nice with an even better grille, however there isn't much worth noting on the style since the rest is pretty inoffensive and kind of uninteresting.

My Score: 7/10 - Pretty good SUV styling without attempting to leave behind its truck roots.

Value for the money: The Envoy is not a cheap SUV, like the Endeavor its also in the $30,000 range. Unlike that SUV, this does not act like a car and has some serious flaws. Considering how much money is spent, the build quality is unacceptable and other off road SUVs are better equipped for off roading making the Envoy not necessarily good at the road or off road. It should be much cheaper than GMC is asking for due to some of these flaws.

My Score: 3/10 - Not the worst SUV, but the awful interior quality and the lack of some off road equipment should have slashed the price.

Overall: 27/50 - Still a ho hum SUV but certainly a tad bit better than the Trailblazer.

2008, 2009 Buick Lucerne CX

I have a bit more time today so, some more reviews...I noticed I haven't put out that many GMs so here they are.


Introduction: The Buick Lucerne was introduced in 2006 as a replacement for Buick's previous large cars like the LeSabre and the Park Avenue. Buick made the Lucerne less expensive than the relatively inexpensive LeSabre but particularly with the V8 option it also ranged more expensive than the Park Avenue. The Lucerne is the last remaining vehicle on the H-body platform which was first introduced in 1986 from the LeSabre from that time.

I'm not particularly a fan of Buicks...to me they're always associated with the elderly. Other than some of the stranger Buicks like the Reatta and the classic Buicks...they've never appealed to me. As a result I really didn't care whether I drove one or not, in this job I drove quite a few so I'll review them.


Performance: The Buick Lucerne was given 3 engines, 2 of them are V6s and the other is a Northstar V8. I've driven both V6 engines since the earlier Lucernes had the 3.8L 3800 Series III engine(197 hp and 233 lb.ft of torque) while the 2009 and newer Lucernes uses the 3.9L High Value V6(227 hp and 237 lb.ft of torque). Now I know I mentioned how savage the Grand Prix's 3800(the exact same engine) was, its far more reserved in the Buicks. Pushing the Buick and the Grand Prix the exact same way...despite the exact same engine you get a different result...the Pontiac gives a rough jolt of power as you press the pedal...the Buick is quiet and the power is very spread out. It might be the ECU or transmission programming that affects this. The 3.9L V6 is really not all that different...it some ways it doesn't even attempt to distinguish itself. That said the Lucerne is no slouch, its acceleration goes from 0-100 km/h in 7.2 seconds with the 3800 engine, due to how little torque was increased in the 3.9L I assume its practically the same with no official numbers out for this engine.

My Score: 9/10 - Fantastic for the Buick's traditional customers, very quiet, very smooth and very refined...not as lovable as the Grand Prix reacts using the same engine though.

Handling: One thing Buicks are not known for is taking corners with agility. The primary focus of the Buicks seem to be road comfort and making the wheel easy to turn. The Lucerne does not walk away from that meaning this big car is very poor at taking corners at speed. You also don't get very good steering feedback from the very light wheel. In essence for the driving enthusiast they'll be very bored driving these cars, the elderly who need the soft ride to not destroy their bones and extremely light wheel to deal with arthritis will absolutely love this.

My Score: 3/10 - Totally set up for comfort, totally discourages turning at speed unless done slowly.


Interior: The interior of the Lucerne is extremely large inside. There is a lot of room for passengers in both front and back, the trunk space has not been sacrificed at all making it very good for carrying luggage and people at the same time. On a CX trim level, the Buick however is very unsophisticated other than power options and a stereo...there really isn't much to it despite being a car this large and having a higher price than Chevrolets. The seats are comfortable and the atmosphere is catered to Buick's base. The build quality isn't really a problem in this car, its built in Hamtramck Michigan, in the United States.

My Score: 6/10 - A very roomy and comfortable interior, but lacks anything that might interest someone younger.

Styling: The Lucerne does not attempt to change Buick's image in any way. This design looks like a natural progression of the old LeSabre being really inoffensive and extremely conservative. There are no sharp angles in the design anywhere and it even has something retro in the styling featuring the long gone ventiports from much older Buicks having a vent on the fender corresponding to the number of cylinders in the car. 3 on each side for the V6 and 4 for the V8. Its a design catering to Buick's loyal customers, sadly not very inviting to anybody else who may feel they'll be seen as an old person in a design like this.

My Score: 5/10 - An extremely conservative design, appealing to the loyalty crown unappealing to others who dislike the conservative design.

Value for money: As I mentioned in the introduction the Lucerne is less expensive than what Buick used to charge for the LeSabre or the Park Avenue. The cars that the Lucerne competes against are however much better suited for a larger target audience. Even within GM the Pontiac G8 and the Cadillac CTS are much more attractive to a bigger audience. The Impala may cannibalize the Lucerne's sales due to that car having similar mannerisms but at a much lower cost. The competition from outside means its up against the Toyota Avalon, Ford Taurus, Nissan Maxima and Chrysler 300. The Avalon and Taurus are better executed and offer higher quality for the audience Buick wanted to attract for this car while the Maxima and 300 go after the bigger market of younger drivers.

My Score: 2/10 - Aside from loyal customers, even within GM there isn't a truly compelling reason to buy a Lucerne over a G8, CTS or Impala. Older customers I doubt will find the Impala to be much different and for very conservative drivers who distrust front wheel drive, the Crown Victoria is far more appealing.

Overall: 25/50 - Its a perfect car for your grandparents, but a terrible choice for just about anybody else.

2007 Cadillac CTS

This Saturday hasn't been too bad in terms of work so I'm not nearly as tired as I was last weekend.


Introduction: Before the Cadillac CTS, GM has tried twice to get a suitable entry level Cadillac in order to compete against BMW, Lexus, Mercedes and Audi. Their first attempt was the Cimarron which damaged GM's reputation far more than anticipated. The reason was due to the fact the Cimarron was truly a Cavalier with slightly different styling and a different badge. Fundamentally the car was still like the very low budget Chevrolet, many buyers believed this to be a rip off and as such the car ended up as a total failure. Cadillac's next effort was the Catera which hailed from GM's Opel division known as the Opel Omega. This time while a truly foreign car(it was made in Germany) there was very little inside the Catera that made it worthy of being mentioned alongside the brands it was supposed to compete against. Opel designed it as a regular mainstream car, not a luxury entry level car and thus the Catera failed too. The CTS is the result of GM returning to the RWD platform which the previous Cimarron and Catera were not. The new GM Sigma platform would be the launching pad for the CTS and future Cadillacs in an effort to shatter the old people's car image most had of Cadillac at the time. The results meant a 2nd generation CTS, the crossover SRX and the Seville replacement the STS.

When I started, I knew this was the car to take a good look at whether GM could really turn itself around. This car received a lot of praise even from those normally critical of GM, add the fact it was RWD I was actually excited about this GM product.


Performance: I had the run of the mill Cadillac CTS, not the more exciting powerful CTS-V. So the engine I did try out was the 3.6L which produced 255 hp and 252 lb.ft of torque. The 3.6 was available to the CTS since 2005. Well this engine was how you would expect from a car this high priced, its very smooth and power delivery feels just right. I never got the chance to take the CTS for a test run at acceleration but its acceleration from 0-100 km/h is about 6.6 seconds which is by far the quickest car in all of these reviews. Clearly GM updated the powertrain to the degree they wanted a true winner.

My Score: 10/10 - Smooth, quiet and bloody fast.

Handling: This part I could test a lot better than powertrain due to the confines of the area I could drive this car. First thing I noticed was how much easier the CTS was to drive over every other GM I was exposed to at this time. I truly noticed the balance from the rear wheel drive unlike the Dodge Charger/Chrysler 300, the degree of confidence the steering wheel feeds to your hands is what makes cars of this level better than a front wheel drive econobox. You can feel the chassis is very capable taking a turn slightly fast, while it rolled a tad bit it was by far the best GM product I've ever driven when it came to handling.

My Score: 10/10 - GM has done almost the impossible, made Caddillac truly for a car enthusiast with a family.


Interior: This is the only early 21st century GM product that I felt had a proper interior while most of the others had disappointingly bad interiors in comparison. There are features I felt showed a small sign of GM's struggle to get a proper interior down like the alarmingly silly looking vents, the tin-foil plastic in the center console and the low grade stereo the rest of the interior was not half bad. The leather provided is actually of decent quality and the cabin is quite comfortable. There's a lot of space for your passengers both from and back. I drove an older unit and even despite this, I didn't notice the disappointing build quality I was used to seeing from GM products. These cars are made in Lansing, Michigan in the United States.

My Score: 7/10 - Mostly a reasonable interior, just a few silly tacky and unattractive items.

Styling: In hindsight I'm starting to like the styling of this car as it ages. I initially didn't like it too much, I originally thought it tried to keep too much of the old Cadillac while mixing it with radical shapes to scare the old people. Now I actually prefer this version over the 2nd generation CTS, its mild mannered by at the same time you can see its not the same Cadillac your grandparents drove...its in fact tailored for the youth.

My Score: 8/10 - An interesting blend of old and new, takes some time to settle but in the end it ages pretty well.

Value for Money: When GM introduced the CTS, I wasn't sure whether it would pose a serious challenge since back then most assumed GM was going to fail again like the last two times. After driving the car, it really looks like a true bargain. The CTS despite being entry-level is actually the size of a 5-series but has a 3-series price, its not a sluggish pig like old Cadillacs suggested and they're quite well equipped. The most the foreign brands could offer over Cadillac was brand appeal and reputation which Cadillac lacked. Still, when looking at value the Cadillac was a serious deal you just had to overcome the negative image of General Motors which was really difficult to overcome back then.

My Score: 8/10 - An absolutely fantastic deal, the biggest thing that might have hurt its sales was that it came from General Motors and its disturbingly bad image.

Overall: 43/50 - An absolutely excellent product from General Motors, it makes you wonder what took them 30 years to get something like this right.

2008 Mazda CX-7

I originally planned to do a few more reviews but this week has been very tiring. So I'll do a review on a car fresh in my mind.


Introduction: The Mazda CX-7 is Mazda's second entry into the crossover market and their first mid-sized vehicle in the utility vehicle segment after their Navago(an explorer re-badge) failed. Unlike many other recent Mazdas the CX-7 does not share a platform with any Fords and is a uniquely designed Mazda. It uses a combination of suspension parts from other Mazda vehicles depending on the drive configuration, if only front wheel drive its composed of MPV and Mazda5 suspension parts front and rear in that order. The all-wheel drive models however use the system developed for the Mazdaspeed6. In some sense this is probably the most sport oriented crossover especially if bought in AWD form.

I've always wanted to drive one of these cars, but we never got these for our fleet. Its one of Mazda's most interesting vehicles when it comes to what sort of parts its composed of, to think a good portion is actually composed of Mazdapseed parts is quite incredible. Well we finally got one last week...only to get a message its been sold...so I used it as a shuttle.


Performance: The CX-7 uses the engine straight from the Mazdaspeed division. A 2.3L turbocharged 4-cylinder engine, the very engine used in the Mazdaspeed3 and Mazdaspeed6. The biggest difference however is the transmission is a 6-speed automatic instead of the 6-speed manuals found on those cars. As a result the power is 244 hp and 258 lb.ft of torque. When driving this vehicle you will notice the turbo kick in pretty early sometimes coming on during turns. Most crossovers have smooth V6s totally set up for comfort cruising, the CX-7 on the other hand with its slightly more coarse 4-cylinder prefers a thrashing thanks to its Mazdaspeed roots. I know the noise is not pleasant especially before the turbo kicks in, yet I just don't care considering the turbo is coming soon giving you more power than you asked for. To tell you how quick these CX-7s are they accelerate from 0-100 in 7.5 seconds. If the future meant small displacement turbo engines replacing bigger displacement ones...I'm all for it. I just loved this engine. Do note its a bit more thirsty even though its a 4-cylinder, its up to you whether to trade fun for fuel economy.

My Score: 10/10 - A fantastic engine, feeling that surge of power is such a great feeling you stop caring about the noisy rev early on and the less impressive fuel economy.

Handling: I've driven the AWD version and I thought the handling was pretty planted and much easier to push than other crossovers and SUVs its size. Its not often I find a vehicle like this that encourages much more aggressive behaviour, perhaps I should try a BMW X-series SUV. Cornering is mostly flat which is very good since most vehicles in this category roll. I didn't even notice much discomfort on the road.

My Score: 9/10 - Great AWD system that encourages spirited driving, just don't get a ticket for reckless driving.


Interior: When I got into the Mazda CX-7, this was probably the least enjoyable part about the vehicle since the more practical stuff comes into question. If you know Mazda's lineup during this time then the interior is extremely similar to that of the Mazda6 and set the standard for Mazda digital displays to be found on the 2010 Mazda3. As a 5-seater the CX-7 is quite comfortable being large enough to not make the passengers cramped. The tailgate space for your things is moderate in size. The problem with the interior here is it does nothing clever with the space given. The build quality however is fantastic, these vehicles being built from Hiroshima, Japan.

My Score: 6/10 - If your sole intention is to carry passengers and modest amounts of cargo the CX-7 does the job but if you wanted more you'll be disappointed, good build quality however.

Styling: The CX-7 is actually somewhat handsomely styled, while it retains much of the round profile of the Edge and CX-9 the rear tail lights for instance are slightly transparent like that of the old Lexus IS. Unlike the IS, it doesn't make a big deal out of those. In the front the grille and head lights naturally fit the shape and profile of the car making it look pretty good.

My Score: 8/10 - A pretty good looking CUV, everything flows pretty naturally to the design.

Value for the money: Its a mixed bag here, if you clearly need the family practical utility vehicle features you will not want the CX-7, its too small and doesn't fit those needs. If you however wanted the most driver oriented vehicle of the segment, this is clearly the best. This is the only CUV that encourages your driver urges, all other CUVs are far less driver oriented with smoother V6s and comfortable rides. Its a slight bit of a compromise but the big body didn't manage to spoil the fun.

My Score: 8/10 - So long as your goal is driver fun and you need something the size of a SUV this is a fantastic vehicle for that goal.

Overall: 42/50 - Until Mazda designs a new CX-7 just as sport oriented, there isn't another crossover that is as much fun as this is.

2002 Mazda Protege

I don't know why I keep forgetting to put this car on. This car was what I used for driver's ed and therefore one of the earliest cars I've ever driven.


Introduction: The Mazda Protégé is a new name given to one of Mazda's oldest line of small cars. In Japan these cars have always been called the Familia and the Protégé being reviewed is the 9th generation of this vehicle. The Familia dates all the way back to 1964 making it technically an older name than the commonly known Toyota Corolla. For North America Mazda introduced the Familia as the 1200(2nd generation), the 3rd gen was called the Mizer and the 4th gen was called the GLC. It was from the 4th gen that the 323 name was given and most Mazda Familia's would use the 323 name others changing to Protégé name like the US did. The early cars were RWD, while the 5th generation cars from 1980 and beyond were FWD. The name Protégé was used mostly in advertising to promote the car's more sporty driving experience to Mazda's more famous MX-5/Miata. Eventually Mazda replaced the Familia line with the new Mazda 3/Axela in 2004 which had significantly better success finally putting the Mazda name as a top seller in some countries.

Now as I mentioned this was my driver's ed car. I really didn't know a whole lot about cars back then and therefore didn't really take much notice of the Protégé. I did know about Mazda's aggressive zoom zoom advertisements though. So in my mind, was this car really worth saying zoom zoom?


Performance: When driving this car I was thinking zoom zoom was about power, I was kind of disappointed with the Protégé in that respect. In hindsight its actually not so bad now that I've driven much slower cars. That said, the engine in question is a 2.0L 4-cylinder engine that produces 130 hp and 135 lb.ft of torque, this is actually good numbers back then. The acceleration numbers from 0-100 km/h is about 9.4 seconds, as a result it doesn't seem nearly that quick and part of why I thought it was slow. If that's a bit of a downer, on the positive side I heard the manual was much quicker than the automatic.

My Score: 6/10 - Not very zoom zoom with an automatic, getting a manual is much preferred.

Handling: This was the surprise of this car, clearly billing the Protégé as the Miata's student was not false advertising after all. This car was always pretty sharp and took corners pretty well, due to not having access to a Protégé anymore...I'm not sure how to compare it with 2 generations of Mazda3 which I have driven recently and have very favourable views of. Despite that, I still remember that there was that charm which made me enjoy both versions of the 3 and that without this car they might not have that feel that makes these seemingly normal cars that bit more special.

My Score: 10/10 - Its clear Mazda recognized their future to winning small car buyers was in handling, this is the Protégé's best point.


Interior: The Protégé had a pretty generic interior not only for its time but even now. The interior definitely took a bit of a back seat compared to the development of how the car would drive meaning its got everything you expect a normal car would have and everything a normal car wouldn't have. There wasn't much styling put into the interior. Build quality did not suffer fortunately and these cars were made in both Hiroshima and Hofu plants in Japan.

My Score: 6/10 - Generic interior, built well though

Styling: Much of Mazda's lineup back in the 90s were really generic looking. Their most interesting looking vehicles were only from the MX line like the MX-3, the MX-5 and the MX-6. The Japanese got the treat of having the 323F body style which had pop-up headlights. The rest of the cars however were pretty dull and typical of Japanese cars back then. The early Protégé started out this way, since I'm reviewing the face-lifted version they struck a chord. With cleaver mild changes the later Protégés actually looked very good while still retaining a pretty generic demeanor. This clearly set Mazda to its styling objectives after the Protégé with the new 3 and the 6 using styling cues from earlier models but modernizing them.

My Score: 8/10 - Very modern touches turns a boring looking car into something nice without putting a lot of attention towards it.

Value for money: The Protégé was never a tremendous sales success but it showed Mazda that it was on the right track. The inclusion of the Protégé5 meant it was the only car in the class back then offering a hatchback model. The Corolla Wagon no longer existed and the Civic hatchbacks were offered only for Europe. The poor name recognition also meant you could get a good deal on these cars for much less than other Japanese cars. The Protégé also existed in a time when Korean cars were terrible meaning it was a great choice. Even today, not too many Protégés experience much issues except some rust problems.

My Score: 10/10 - It was better than what Korea offered, cheaper than what anybody else offered and it was the only choice if you wanted a good hatchback.

Overall: 40/50 - A very good car that paved the way for Mazda's success.