Welcome to a very special edition of the "Achteruitkijkspiegel"
Wait, that's "Rear View Mirror" here
We're here in the US, a first time for you Marco so what do you think
Well I was prepared for a lot of things but three things still surprise me
Firstly, the coffee is rather weak compared to what we're used to
Secondly, the food is rather high on fat
And thirdly, there is so much space here
Good isn't it?
You could seriously host a Grand Prix on the parking lot at our hotel
So we're in the all new 2014 Silverado, Chevrolet's new truck
It's quite big but it doesn't feel out of place here does it?
Well I don't get the feeling I'm in an oversized car, it fits in all the parking spaces
Still, it's like the city of Amsterdam on wheels -Like a mobile shopping mall
Speaking of shopping malls: Cadillac has revealed it's all new Escalade
What do you think of it?
I think it's ghastly, it always has been and the new one isn't any better
A car for people with no taste
Indeed, but a lot of people here think the same
People who have one are not car lovers, car lovers hate it
We were at our American colleagues from Autoweek earlier
And they said: drive an Escalade because everybody will laugh at you
And Cadillac admits it should now be a proper luxury car, I think the interior looks nice
But please, let it stay here
But they also said they would do multiple body styles
Yes, they said the Escalade label would be expanded
So possibly an Escalade coupe like the BMW X6
I do need a drink now, because I'm getting nauseous
Other American news, Fiat's advance seems to have stalled
Surprising
What do you mean?
The smallest vehicles here are Ford Focusses, our C-segment
And Fiats are mostly A- and B-segment cars, which doesn't work
24% down, which really is a lot
It seems people who want a 500 got one, and the 500L can't find buyers
Which I fully understand
I do wish them all the best though, this country can use some design
And I do think the 500 can work in New York San Francisco and California
Places where they are more free-thinking, it could work
But here a car should be designed or built in Detroit
Nope, buy American is still the way to go here in Detroit
Chevrolet can't handle the demand for the Corvette Stingray
I've seen it a couple of times here and it is a sweet car
Absolutely astonishing car
Like all Corvettes it's hugely popular, but that means we can't drive it
We noticed demand was high, no matter what we tried we couldn't drive one
I also heard that its rival, the Viper, isn't doing so well
Strange, same concept but that doesn't work
Maybe the Viper has shown too little innovation
The Corvette is state of the art
Whereas the Viper is more: we've put a V10 truck engine in it and it's fast
So maybe that's the secret of the Corvette
Or maybe it has a V8 and a V8 is...
Slow and incredibly thirsty?
That, and unable to rev over 5.500 RPM
Funny, you can drive fast because there is no police here
They're pre-occupied in the suburbs somewhere
Look, the first Escalade
And look at those wheels, bling bling
Questions from our viewers, then
Ah, the letters have reached Detroit?
Indeed: dear Autoweek, I've been reading a lot on Qoros lately
They've done well in crash-tests so will they pose a problem for established brands soon?
According to my information, Qoros won't be selling extremely cheap cars
They intend to price their cars like Kia and Hyundai do in the Netherlands
Obviously we don't know what the cars are like, although things looks good
But I don't think they will immediately gain a large market-share
They don't bring anything revolutionary and Kia and Hyundai make decent cars
Also, those brands have a fan-base nowadays
Nice V8 you got there, I got one too
What a good-looking car that Pontiac GTO
Look at the license plate: it's bad
The man has a pimped-out license plate, unbelievable
It does have little to do with Gran Turismo Omologata though, GTO
Little? It has nothing to do with it
But, it is a handsome car, too bad Pontiac has vanished
What were we talking about again before the GTO? Oh yeah, Qoros
Well there you have it: Qoros doesn't capture attention very well
But: we'll see
I wish them all the best
Question 2... Oh look at that Lincoln Mark Z
They make incredibly ugly cars
Speaking of design, Lincoln has something to learn there
It's as if all their cars are designed on an LSD-trip
But they used to be elegant, which this isn't
Dear AutoWeek: I've been a fan for over two years now
I would hereby like to make a suggestion
When testing cars, you "sit behind yourself" to test backseat space
So wouldn't it be useful to write how tall the test driver is?
Well, with us that would matter
I think I'm the shortest at 1.80 meters - And I'm tallest at 2.04 meters
Isn't Cornelis even taller? -Nope
So between 1.80 and 2.04 then
Cornelis does have more hair -And a better beard
Seriously: I don't do that often because if I sit in the front, no space remains
But in his case the point is more valid
If a car is extremely spacious or cramped I do mention "I am" or "yours truly"
This Scribe is - Nice one
Is of average length and normal proportions, to give an impression
It's usually the comparison that matters, say an Astra is more spacious than a Focus
But in extreme cases I will mention my length for reference
Which Roland also does I think
Absolutely, I try to be as thorough as possible
Just read the whole text and... nice roads huh
Nice tarmac, oh wait
I think you'll have to read the entire text, but it's a good suggestion
So are you feeling at home in the States?
Well, things are so abundant here
And on one hand I think it's over the top a bit
On the other hand: it's tempting since gas costs 75 cents a litre
But don't you feel really small, at 1.80?
No, I don't feel the need to say drive a big car or anything...
Neither do I, but unsurprisingly I do feel at home
There is one thing missing though