TOWN & COUNTRY

     The Chrysler Town & Country series has been around since the dawn of time. Actually the year was 1942 to be exact. The model name Town & Country stood for the type of car that was as good for a night out on the Town as it was for carrying the whole family or perhaps a large load of plywood out to your summer cottage in the Country. Although primarily built on station wagon bodies, there were a few model years here & there that Chrysler stuck that Oak or Ash veneer siding on to a coupe and/or convertible too! The usage of real wood paneling on the body sides & tailgate doors was phased out sometime during the 1960's replaced by faux wood vinyl appliques which often faded over time & looked like crap. 
     Here is a timeline of photos which sadly show over time just how bad Chrysler ruined what was once considered an elegant & refined automobile.

A FEW NEW CARS FOR 2016

     Below are just a few of what's out now or coming out soon for model year 2016. This post only covers the American brands, but others will be posted very soon. 
     First up....the folks from FIAT Chrysler Automobiles.

CHRYSLER 
300

$32,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• A facelifted front end that says "Bentley" until you step inside
• New Light Blue/Tan Leather Interior color combo

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
No

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
Can you say "Long In The Tooth"? 
Wake me when you've actually made this car significant again Chrysler!

RAM 
1500 Rebel

$44,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• 33" tires, a blacked out front grille, & overcompensating badging all around
• Standard 305 horsepower V6...because nothing says "Rebel" like a plain 'ol V6
• Optional 395 horsepower HEMI V8
• Priced $10,000 less than a Ford F-150 Raptor

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
No

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
YAWN! 
So far I've not yet seen a huge improvement in Chrysler's quality of product since the buyout by FIAT Automobiles.

DODGE 
Viper ACR

$122,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• A new even quicker trim level has been added to the Viper den
• Standard 645 horsepower V-10
• SRT brand bit the dust so Viper production moves back over to the Dodge boys

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
No

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
I haven't seen a brand new off the showroom floor Viper cruising down even the wealthiest of city streets in years!

Now The Folks from Ford Motor Company...

FORD 
Focus RS

$37,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• The Focus RS has been hugely popular in Europe for quite some time & is now being made available to boy racer types here in the U.S.
• Standard 315 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder with a 6-speed manual
• A torque vectoring "Drift Mode" will please the boy racer in all of us

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Yes

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
A bad ass little boy toy that's worth a look if you're shopping the Golf R or WRX 

Explorer

$32,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• Redesign looks good but seems very similar to a Range Rover Sport
• Top-tier $53,500 Platinum has a luxurious interior & 365 horsepower twin turbo V6
• Standard 280 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder
• Rear Tailgate & Folding 3rd Row Seat are now powered via the key fob
• New automated washer system for the rear view camera lens

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Yes

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
The Explorer is today's equivalent to the formerly best selling LTD Country Squire for Ford. In terms of overall vehicle sales & product reliability there are as many Explorers on the road today as there used to be 9-passenger Country Squires on the roads back then. 
I still don't get how these make good law enforcement pursuit vehicles though.

F-150 Raptor

$50,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• 500 pounds lighter overall than the previous Raptor thanks to lots of aluminum
• New Standard 450 horsepower Turbo V6 with a 10-speed Automatic...yes I said 10!
• New Terrain Management System for serious off roading (Land Rover style)

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
On The Fence

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
When I see these big ass butch trucks I see tatted up hunks suffering from SDS
(small dick syndrome)

GT

$400,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• A sexy street legal LeMans race car
• 600 horsepower twin turbo V6 mounted behind the soon to be deaf driver
• I'm sorry...HOW MUCH $ DID THAT SAY??

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
No

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
How do you comment on a car that only a handful of people will ever be able to afford! 
One of them NOT being me of course

LINCOLN 
MKX

$39,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• A restyled & fancier Ford Edge
• Standard 300 horsepower V6
• Optional 330 horsepower twin turbo V6
• Front or All-Wheel Drive

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
On The Fence

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
I suppose if the nearest Lincoln dealer were right off the freeway I'd stop in & have a looksee but if I passed any other car dealers on the way my A.D.D would probably kick in & then...oh looky there I bought something else

Continental

$55,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• An old familiar name placed on a brand new large luxury sedan
• Standard 350 horsepower twin turbo V6
• Front or All-Wheel Drive

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Yes

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
C'mon Lincoln Motor Company you can do it! 
Just try a little harder & you can resurrect yourself like Cadillac did!

Here is What GM is Doing for 2016

CHEVY 
Spark

$14,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• Facelifted front end & a slight increase in length
• Standard 98 horsepower 4-cylinder
• Standard touch screen audio system & backup camera

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Not a chance

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
I'll say this much for it...at least the headlights no longer give it the praying mantis look

Cruze

$18,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• Facelifted front end & a slight increase in rear seat legroom
• Standard 150 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder
• Diesel 4-cylinder will roll out later in the model year

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
On the Fence

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
Ehhhh, I could take it or leave it

Malibu

$24,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• Redesign looks a lot more like a junior Impala...which isn't a bad thing
• Substantial increase in overall interior room
• Standard 160 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder
• Optional 250 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder 
• Malibu Hybrid introduced later in the model year w/ same battery pack as Volt

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Yes

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
Didn't GM just redesign this car 3 years ago? Never the less it looks pretty good

Camaro

$26,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• A facelifted front with a tummy tuck in the back
• Major improvement in overall interior quality
• Standard 275 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder
• Optional 335 horsepower V6
• Optional 455 horsepower Supercharged V8
• Now built on same platform as the Cadillac ATS & CTS

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
No 

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
Sorry Chevy, but still not a Camaro fan am I

Volt

$34,000 (before tax incentives)

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• Redesign looks a lot better than a Nissan LEAF that's for sure
• Better energy density from a new 2-mode battery pack
• Will travel 50 miles on full electric power before gas motor kicks in
• 18 kwh battery pack + 4-cylinder gas engine = 41 mpg overall

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
On the Fence

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
(as he shouts from the roof) THIS CAR SHOULD NOT BE CLASSIFIED AS A FULL EV...IT HAS A FREAKIN GAS MOTOR THAT TAKES OVER AFTER 50 MILES OF ELECTRIC DRIVING! Does that NOT classify it as a plug-in Hybrid?

BUICK 
Cascada

$34,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• All-new ragtop that looks pretty damn nice! 
• Did I just say that about a Buick?
• Currently on sale in Europe under the Opel brand
• Built on the Verano platform
• Standard 200 horsepower 4-cylinder
• Marketed as a cheaper alternative to a BMW 2-Series or Audi A3

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Yes

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
If the Cascada has half of a chance at being competition for the Bimmer/Audi droptops then for god's sake GM keep it off the Enterprise lot! 
We don't need another Chrysler LeBaron/Sebring/200 convertible!

CADILLAC 
ELR

$66,000 (before tax incentives)

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• Base price is now $9,000 lower...Let's see if anyone notices
• 0-60 in 6.4 seconds
• Runs on full electric power until just under 40 miles then the gas motor kicks in
• Allante was an italian body 2-seat roadster that yielded $0 profit...FAIL!
• Catera was a rebadged small sedan courtesy of GM Australia...FAIL!
• XLR was a rebodied Corvette for nearly twice the cost...FAIL!

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Not by a long shot

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
This is basically a shrunken fancied up 2-door Chevy Volt that Cadillac has the balls to compare with the insanely better Tesla Model S
Final point here being niche cars are not your strong suit Cadillac...give up already!

ATS-V

$61,500 (ATS-V) & $63,500 (ATS-V Coupe)

CTS-V

$85,000

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• All-new V-Series added to the ATS lineup
• A major revamp for the badass 4-door Corvette from Caddy
• Standard 465 horsepower twin turbo V6 on the ATS-V
• Standard 640 horsepower supercharged V8 on the CTS-V
• At the risk of sounding like I have money, I gotta say $85,000 is actually a damn bargain compared to others like the M5, E63 AMG, and S6

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Absolutely!

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
It boils down to this...Would you like your Cadillac in ASS or BADASS?

CT6

Starts at $54,500

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

• New Rear or All-Wheel Drive luxury sedan slightly longer than a BMW 740i
• Standard 265 horsepower Turbo 4-cylinder
• Optional 335 horsepower V6
• Optional 400+ horsepower twin turbo V6
• Optional rear camera that projects on to the interior rearview mirror
• Optional rear massage seats & 4-zone climate control
• Optional 34-speaker BOSE Audio...yes that says 34 speakers!
• Coming in 2017 for the CT6 will be a semi-autonomous driving package very similar to what is currently offered on the Mercedes S-Class

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
HELL TO THE YES!

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
Cadillac is once again..."The Standard of the World" in my book. Now it needs to dump Johan & his crazy obsession with company relocations & model renaming!