Recent Comments:
Aston Martin becomes coolest brand in UK {Autoblog}
Sep 22nd 2006 6:37PM Yea, I guess it's hard to top perfection!
Aston V8 Vantage gets flappy paddles {Autoblog}
Sep 22nd 2006 11:12AM I've driven cars with sequential shift (on a normal shift level, in the center console), and the car i drive has the manual-mode buttons on the wheel (up in back, down in front). I haven't driven with paddle-type shifter, but the fact that the buttons i have forces me to keep my hands in one position while making a turn annoys me enough that I don't use the feature. I assume it'd be the same with paddle shifters? I'm not a race driver, so i prefer the one-hand-on-the-wheel driving myself - and of course, my hand is no where near teh shift mechanisms. Also - the only time downshifts work well with a sequential-mode shifter - is when it has Downshift Rev Matching software, like the current 350z. The computer revs up the engine with each downshift, so it's exactly like heel-and-toeing. Now, the Vantage is currently my dream car, but considering straight manual transmissions work havoc on my bad knees, and straight automatics arent terribly fun... I hope they get this straightened out somehow. I don't understand why they don't put more of the straight manual into the blend, and offer the 7 or so gates still, but just erase the clutch...
Prius demand dropping along with prices {Autoblog}
Sep 11th 2006 3:52PM I used to sell Toyotas at a dealer in the DC Metro area. I can tell you that Prius sales seemed to have a direct corolation with the tax incentive coming due. People would find out about the incentive, and call us up two weeks before, asking if we had any Priuses on the lot. It was all I could do to not laugh at them. Used to be the incentive was ending June 30th - i took 6 orders for Priuses that month. Then it got extended, and in July I had noticably less interest in it. We actually had 3 Priuses on our lot available for sale for at least a week. Then in August (when the September incentive deadline was known) I swear 8 of 10 phone calls were about the Prius (the rest were either Sienna or Camry)!
It's not the battery pack I'd lament getting a Prius over. As mentioned above, the Hybrid components are covered for 96 months (and that follows the car, for you folks buying it used). I'd lament getting a Prius becuase they're small, ugly, have bad visibility, and are essentially over-priced Corollas. For $27k, I'd put my money on the Camry Hybrid. Bigger, nicer looking, more standard features, and a higher safety rating (Lexus VDIM). Also, think about a Yaris! The sedan and S (sport) Sedan are really cool-looking, get 40 MPG in automatic (the highest gas mileage of any gas-only car out there), and retail for $14,100 for a sedan without power windows, and $17k for an S with power (almost half the price for a Prius, for about a 5mpg difference - as stated above, Prius owners report an average of 45mpg)!
Also, when you put a deposit in, you CAN test drive the car when it gets in, and then decide you don't want it. You don't HAVE to buy it without even sitting in it - that's just rediculous! Realize that unlike some domestic automakers, Toyota builds LESS cars than are demanded - so they can keep their prices up. Please realize that putting a deposit down is the best way to get some of these cars. Really.
