Yeah, that’s what I meant. I think I just phrased it badly. That car right behind me looks like it’s on the next block.
I think it looks kind of cool 
.
Sure. I paid a little under sticker for the car ($23K with tax/title/license). I also had them extend the license plate tabs for 18 months (dealers can do that in Minnesota, not sure about other states). I read (somewhere) that it’s very difficult to haggle on the price since the demand is still too high. The car I bought was ordered by a couple whose credit wasn’t good enough when it was pick-up time.
The main haggling was with my trade-in, an 06 PT Cruiser with 30K miles on it. The car was going downhill fast. The aux-in plug for my iPod was close to being completely unusable and the whole radio would have to be replaced to get that fixed at a cost of $650. I also had developed rust on the undercarriage (I even washed it once a week). Then there was the problem with the Cruiser’s rims, according to the mechanic who was patching my new tires after 2 of them had gone flat, again… he said that Chrysler was having problems with the rims and that they rotted out the valve stems causing the tires to leak. Nice. Then, on a recent roadtrip, a loud ticking developed on the highway only from the rear axle. That was a sign to ditch the car. Oh, I also hit a deer with the car in the first 2 months I had the car and had a guy do a hit and run on it too. Some cars just aren’t lucky.
The Civic commercials have been slamming it as “a block of cheese”. Hey, I bought it, I don’t mind the look and I’ve gone from one ugly car to another. Now I’m going to wait until the re-release the AMC Pacer as a fuel cell and hop on that one.
My previous car was a Geo Metro (which, by the way, had excellent visibility all the way around), so you can tell my tastes don’t run toward the visually striking. Everyone I knew, including me, referred to my car as The Egg. The fact that it was white helped the association. Anyway, “block of cheese” might be an upgrade over “egg”.
Regarding the rear visibility on the Prius–do you think it would be a problem for someone who’s only 5’2"? We’re thinking about getting one, and I would be the primary driver, and I’m not quite 5’2". Obviously I would test drive one first to see, but visibility is always one of my main concerns, considering my (lack of) height.
I’m 5’4", and while I can’t say for sure 2 inches is going to make a difference, I really don’t think it would.
I have a 2003 Civic hybrid.
I’m not the world’s most aggressive driver, but neither am I a slow-ass. I prefer to drive 5-10 over when possible. I’ve been known to get from home in Ballard to work on the Eastside in about 30 minutes when the traffic gods smile on me.
I haven’t noticed any problems with excess heat in the Civic but I’m coldblooded so cranking down the windows works for me on warmer days. Mileage does go down somewhat when using AC/heat, but I haven’t checked exact numbers.
The Civic definitely isn’t as responsive as some cars, but it’s got some hellacious brakes. I generally have to floor it for onramps or slotting into traffic, but braking only needs a light touch. My brother (who owns a Corolla) flung us about a bit when he was test driving my Civic and hit the brakes the first few times.
I typically get about 41-42 mpg, and my car’s due for its 30K mile checkup. I’d say I’m a mixture of city/highway.
I was in a new civic (non-hybrid) and the first thing I noticed was the horrible field of vision around the car. It really bothered me and I liked the rest of the car.
I would personally add a diesel in the mix of cars to test. I was in a VW the other day and was surprised to find it was a diesel. It got excellent mileage.
Other than the Mercedes, I can’t find any new diesel cars on Edmunds or listed in my last CR car guide, not for the whole of the USA. You can still find some old ones in CA, but the fuel itself is more expensive that gasoline. You might have problems registering old ones from out of state. No, CA hasn’t banned diesel trucks :rolleyes: , but again, I don’t know of anyone selling new diesel cars in CA (except maybe for the Mercedes).
Go here to Edmunds and try to find me a new diesel passenger car? (except for the Mercedes)
http://www.edmunds.com/diesel/index.html?tid=edmunds.d.zipentry.diesel..1.*
And, CR and just about every source sez VW has sucked donkey dicks for reliability in the last 5+ years.
I’ve just been reading a lot of car articles that I don’t really understand, but it looks like Honda, GM, VW, and Audi are planning to release new diesels for the 2009 model year. If I understand correctly, the standards regulating particulate and NOX emissions became tougher a couple years ago, and the diesel models available then either didn’t meet the new standards, or only met them in 45 states. There is something called a “Tier 2 Bin 8” emissions rating, which gets the car on the market in 45 states, and a tougher “Tier 2 Bin 5” rating for the other 5 states, including California and New York (Cite which is way over my head). As I understand it, the automakers have delayed releasing new diesels until they can hit the T2B5 rating. It looks like Honda and Audi, among others, are about ready to ship to the US.