[mceb]

More news stories on the potential delay...
http://www.freep.com/news/statewire/sw114945_20050426.htm

Pontiac roadster slow to reach showrooms

April 26, 2005, 7:34 AM

DETROIT (AP) -- Don't look for Pontiac Solstice roadsters tooling along with their tops down this summer.

General Motors Corp. said as recently as two weeks ago that the rakish two-seat convertible would be in showrooms this summer. But Pontiac spokeswoman Mary Henige said Monday that the roadster won't be widely available until after Sept. 1.

"Will some vehicles come out in the summer? Sure," Henige told the Detroit Free Press. "I wish I knew exactly. ... We really haven't pinned ourselves down."

According to Automotive News, GM is delaying the rear-wheel-drive Solstice because of problems with the fit of the front bumper and convertible top. Stefan Weinmann, manufacturing spokesman for the No. 1 automaker, would not comment on the report.

"We're committed to delivering top-quality vehicles to our customers," he said.

The Solstice's recent marketing premiere on NBC's "The Apprentice" not only helped spur 6,000 customers to make a down payment, place a pre-order or get on a waiting list. It also gave financially struggling GM some sorely needed buzz.

Jesse Toprak, director of pricing and market analysis for the automotive Web site Edmunds.com, had predicted demand for the Solstice would be so high this summer that it would sell well above its base price of $19,995.

That would be a notable break with the recent past for GM, which had the highest average customer incentive of any automaker in February at $3,814 per vehicle.

Told of the Solstice's delayed arrival, Toprak said: "I do think that this is going to affect them negatively. Coming out with a roadster in the fall is certainly not the brightest idea."

Information from: Detroit Free Press, http://www.freep.com

 

[brentil]

Damn you delays!!!
It's for the best hopefully. I'd rather wait an extra couple of months and get quality then recals from an early delivery.

 

[hojopa]

might make some of the wait listed - happy

I don't think that as many of the current 1-1000 owners will hang in there if the car isn't out by Sept. This may be good news for a few "wait listed" people...

 

[gregodav]

I don't think that as many of the current 1-1000 owners will hang in there if the car isn't out by Sept. This may be good news for a few "wait listed" people...

That might be true. But unless Pontiac calls the first 1,000 customers a second time, most dealers are going to want one of the first 1,000 to be delivered anyway; for floor models or stock @ List +Plus.

 

[solli4me]

General Motors Corp. said as recently as two weeks ago that the rakish two-seat convertible would be in showrooms this summer. But Pontiac spokeswoman Mary Henige said Monday that the roadster won't be widely available until after Sept. 1.

Here's a clue: When your dealer calls, drop your rake and run. :glol:

 

[mceb]

Rakish...had to look that one up

rak·ish 1 Pronunciation (rksh)
adj.
1. Nautical Having a trim, streamlined appearance: "We were schooner-rigged and rakish, with a long and lissome hull" John Masefield.
2. Dashingly or sportingly stylish; jaunty.
[Probably from rake3 (from the raking masts of pirate ships).]
rak·ish 2 Pronunciation (rksh)
adj.
Of the character of a rake; dissolute.

 

[solli4me]

Ah, the dictionary...one of my favorite books. Anytime I heard the pronounciation it was with a long a.

 

[dengel]

Some further research, just cuz I can't stand not knowing something.

If rakish means "Of the character of a rake" we need to know what a rake is.

So, the dictionary gives us ...
rake - A libertine : roue

Yeah, so?
libertine - 1. one who acts without moral restraint: Rake
2. One who defies established religious precepts.

And, even better,
roue - A lecherous man: Rake

I wonder if this is the image GM was going for. :devil:

 

[solli4me]

Doesn't seem to fit my image. My rakish character would be somewhat irresponsible, charming perhaps, but debauched.

From my 1904 Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary, page 1490:
rake: (to speed forward)
1. to fly after game: said of a hawk
2. to run after game with the nose to the track instead of in the wind: said of in a hunting dog.

Much better, don't you think? At least it refers to sport.

 

[brentil]

Rake is also a nautical term too. Which is where I know it from, sailing.

Main Entry: rake
Function: noun
Etymology: origin unknown
1 : inclination from the perpendicular; especially : the overhang of a ship's bow or stern
2 : inclination from the horizontal : SLOPE
3 : the angle between the top cutting surface of a tool and a plane perpendicular to the surface of the work
4 : the angle between a wing-tip edge that is sensibly straight in planform and the plane of symmetry of an airplane

 

[solli4me]

How's this copy:
"General Motors Corp. said as recently as two weeks ago that the rakish, two-seat convertible, will fly like the wind under a hawk's wing, it's nose slung low to the track, as it's 18" wheels grip the hairpin turns somewhere in the Black Mountain Hills of Dakota where lives a young boy named Rocky Racoon." :glol:

 

[Fformula88]

If there are problems with the car, they should delay it. Those 1000 buyers may have to wait a couple more months, but in the grand scheme of things that is not all that much time. I am sure they would rather have a car 2 months later than to have one now that was a pile of junk.

If a few to drop out, it won’t be the end of the world. There will be some bad blood for a few customers, and some upset dealers, but in the end there is still going to be a lot of buyers for this car.

 

[brentil]

Their use of the term rakish I believe is more along the nautical term, in refrence to the angles and shape.

www.webster.com is a wonderful place. Like I said, nautical term.

Main Entry: rakish
Function: adjective
Etymology: probably from rake; from the raking masts of pirate ships
1 : having a trim or streamlined appearance suggestive of speed <a rakish ship>
2 : dashingly or carelessly unconventional : JAUNTY <rakish clothes>

 

[mceb]

www.webster.com is a wonderful place.

Off topic but Brentil you use Firefox, check out the dictionary plugin for that

 

[solli4me]

1 : having a trim or streamlined appearance suggestive of speed <a rakish ship>

Speed works.