My GA doesn't have a single rattle and it is almost two years old. I too had an older honda and yes it was a great car. I am not arguing that. What I AM arguing is the fact that you think the GA is junk. As for the performance, well, if you want to sit here and argue based on magazine numbers, fine. But those numbers you have posted are incorrect. The Grand Am does indeed weigh more, and yet with less horsepower is still faster than these 4 cyl cars. The one thing those 4-cyl cars do not have is torque. A 4 cyl with 175 hp, but only 120 lb/ft of torque is going to get much less of that HP to the wheels (where it matters). As for the transmission issue, everybody knows that AT's are going to be slower than MT's. You said a GA with a 4-spd manual would still be slow, but it wouldn't. Not to mention, it would probably be 5-spd since that's the going standard. A 3.4 V6 with 175 HP and 205 lb/ft and a 5 spd WILL smoke a 4 cyl with 180 HP with much less torque. Plain and simple. Weight and gearing aside, that is the bottom line. As for backing it up, when was the last time you went to the track and saw the magazine-rated cars in real world 1/4 mile races? You'll see what I mean. Have you ever even driven a new Grand Am? I have driven plenty of honda's and they are great, nobody doubts that. As for the Celica... you're comparing apples to oranges. Alot of that weight savings is due to the fact that they have basically no back seat. The Grand Am is a bigger car and yes, it will weigh more. As for the RSX-S, the price is $4000 more than the Grand Am and once again, has no substantial backseat. You could supercharge the Grand Am for that price difference and have $1000 left in your hand to waive it at the driver of the RSX-S as you blow by in the 1/4 mile.
