Fuel fears puncture US car sales

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: Aimster
I just bought an SUV that does 15/20

and it cost me $75 to fill her up.

Typical

First Hummers, next your kind

 

[Aimster]

Originally posted by: dmcowen674

Originally posted by: Aimster
I just bought an SUV that does 15/20

and it cost me $75 to fill her up.

Typical

First Hummers, next your kind

Well it did take 22 gallons to fill her up.

A normal car usually takes 15-16 gallons to fill her up.

 

[Thump553]

Actually there was an article in Newsweek an issue or two back that said the gas guzzlers are still selling strong and the sippers poorly. For the month of April the Honda Civic was down substantially and the Cadillac Escalade (now there's a land yacht) was way up over last year, they can't even keep them in stock.

I'm at a loss to explain the rationale of those buyers.

 

[Stunt]

My car gets 32/39, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

[Aimster]

Originally posted by: Stunt
My car gets 32/39, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

im jealous

 

[Stunt]

Originally posted by: Aimster

Originally posted by: Stunt
My car gets 32/39, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

im jealous

2dr civic coupe black manual.
Tons of fun to drive, looks good, cheap to fill and maintain, plus i have my ipod hardwired into it, so i have my trance everywhere i go.

I could afford something a lot nicer, but what more do i need? Next car will likely be something similar to an accord hybrid coupe.

 

[OS]

Originally posted by: Thump553
Actually there was an article in Newsweek an issue or two back that said the gas guzzlers are still selling strong and the sippers poorly. For the month of April the Honda Civic was down substantially and the Cadillac Escalade (now there's a land yacht) was way up over last year, they can't even keep them in stock.

I'm at a loss to explain the rationale of those buyers.

actually the civic is selling quite well

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: Thump553
Actually there was an article in Newsweek an issue or two back that said the gas guzzlers are still selling strong and the sippers poorly. For the month of April the Honda Civic was down substantially and the Cadillac Escalade (now there's a land yacht) was way up over last year, they can't even keep them in stock.

I'm at a loss to explain the rationale of those buyers.

It's quite easy to explain . . . the market for HUGE $50k SUVs is relatively small compared to the total SUV pool. But those people pull down enough cheddar that gas prices just aren't a factor. Further, it's quite easy for the Escalade to gain sales when its redesign puts it even further ahead of the Lincoln Navigator (the original American luxoUte).

Another issue is that there are some (very few likely) people that really need a relatively large vehicle. My sister-in-law just had her 3rd kid. She's a stay at home mom . . . and her husband is working HARD. She used to have some POS subcompact but they traded that vehicle in for a 2000 Navigator. For them it kinda makes sense b/c it's damn hard to put three kid seats in the typical wagon PLUS they own several fast food stores and can use the extra space for hauling crap.

My wife is going to dump her Lincoln LS for a Prius, Civic Hybrid, or Jetta Diesel. She drives less than 8 miles roundtrip to work; all under 35mph.

 

[Necrolezbeast]

I have a nice ol' 87' Suzuki Samruai (recently dropped a 1.6l Sidekick engine in it for a little more power) and I am happy with my 32/26 MPG I receive, I used to be at around 25/25 with the stock 1.3l motor. Yes, it actually gets worse mileage on the freeway thanks to it's enhanced and revolutionary aerodynamics. If I could go back I woulda spent the extra time and $$ and put a VW TDI in there, but all is well.

 

[rudder]

Originally posted by: senseamp
Ford makes Focus and GM makes Cobalt that gets similar mileage to Corolla. So it's not like Americans aren't offering a small car. They sell big SUV's in addition to small cars not instead of small cars.

But the big three have grown to rely on the huge profits a high dollar SUV brings in, not eeking out a few dollars on each focus or cobolt.

 

[desy]

Prius, Civic Hybrid, or Jetta Diesel. She drives less than 8 miles roundtrip to work; all under 35mph.

The TDI wouldn't be any good for ther then a diesel shines on the HW, the Prius in short haul city driving.

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: desy
Prius, Civic Hybrid, or Jetta Diesel. She drives less than 8 miles roundtrip to work; all under 35mph.

The TDI wouldn't be any good for ther then a diesel shines on the HW, the Prius in short haul city driving.

True enough but the TDI would still get substantially better mileage than her LS. She also likes the interior. VW is alleging mid30s in the city but that's probably a touch optimistic.

The Prius is currently the frontrunner. She's driven it and likes it a lot. The Civic Hybrid is in the running but the lack of a fold down rear seat (batteries in the way), traction control, a little less oomph, and a couple other amenities are handicaps.

Then again, there's a retail price difference of $4-5k for comparably equipped vehicles . . . advantage Civic. Tthe Civic handles substantially better . . . then again who cares at 35mph? The Civic has better crash safety scores, as well.

 

[desy]

Just get the 4 cylinder Jetta or Civic then.
She doesn't really drive enough to get the advantages of the others anyway.
Unless this is a 'statement' of some kind

 

[Strk]

Originally posted by: desy
Just get the 4 cylinder Jetta or Civic then.
She doesn't really drive enough to get the advantages of the others anyway.
Unless this is a 'statement' of some kind

The diesel will still get better mileage than a gas engine and not come with the stupid premium of hybrids.

 

[desy]

Jetta Civic
Diesel Regular
MPG (city) 35 30
MPG (hwy) 42 40
MPGcombined 38 34

It aint that much better and if you look at what the EPA estimates are for pollution the gas kills the diesel
the Jetta gets a 1 out of 10, and the Civic a 6 out of 10

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: desy

Jetta Civic
Diesel Regular
MPG (city) 35 30
MPG (hwy) 42 40
MPGcombined 38 34

It aint that much better and if you look at what the EPA estimates are for pollution the gas kills the diesel
the Jetta gets a 1 out of 10, and the Civic a 6 out of 10

Emissions is based on old diesel. Low sulfur diesel (lower than Europe in fact) will make the Jetta more competitive with the gas variants of the Jetta and Civic . . . except for partiulates I assume.

Further, I may contract with some nerds at my old high school to produce biodiesel.

 

[Pneumothorax]

Real world Jetta MPG's are actually around high 30's low 40's in the city & mid 40's to high 40's on the HWY. I drive a mix of 50/50 here in Socal and my 06 Jetta TDI gets around 43-44. Nice to get those 600 mile tanks of diesel. My problem was getting this car here to this crap @#$ state. I had to do some finagaling using my parent's address in CO.

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: Pneumothorax
Real world Jetta MPG's are actually around high 30's low 40's in the city & mid 40's to high 40's on the HWY. I drive a mix of 50/50 here in Socal and my 06 Jetta TDI gets around 43-44. Nice to get those 600 mile tanks of diesel. My problem was getting this car here to this crap @#$ state. I had to do some finagaling using my parent's address in CO.

manual or slushbox?

 

[Pneumothorax]

DSG which is really a manual with 2 automatic clutches. The best tranny I've ever owned.

Here check this article out on the manual Jetta. Older body style but same engine as mine.
Autonews Article

 

[MonkeyK]

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
We need a very small front real passanger electric with a 100 mi range for commuting

Golf cart. Lately, I have been leaning towards replacing our second car with one.

However, I once asked an auto industry economist why he thought that so many people want to buy SUVs. He responded "It's an arms race"

 

[catnap1972]

Originally posted by: MonkeyK

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
We need a very small front real passanger electric with a 100 mi range for commuting

Golf cart. Lately, I have been leaning towards replacing our second car with one.

However, I once asked an auto industry economist why he thought that so many people want to buy SUVs. He responded "It's an arms race"

Well it certainly does have to do with an appendage (beit a lack of one or one that's too small)

 

[EatSpam]

Originally posted by: dmcowen674

Originally posted by: GroundedSailor

Originally posted by: Zedtom
Fuel is the major factor, but public relations are important too.

I now own only foreign cars. I grew tired of going to GM dealerships and having service "advisors" tell me that certain expensive parts had to be replaced for safety reasons. I never have had employees at Toyota, Hyundai or Honda dealerships try to talk me into unnecessary repairs.

1. Ever heard of 'silent recalls'? Japanese car makers do that a lot.
2. You will find that Japanese cars have more parts to replace at major scheduled maintenance intervals.

The total cost of ownership of foreign cars over a period of 5 years is higher than domestic cars. Go to edmunds.com and do a comparison for yourself.

Oh stop with the BS

Over a 5 yr period a foriegn car will require nothing but some oil changes and gas while the American piece of crap has nearly every mechanical piece replaced.

Come on Dave. I've only owned American cars, except for one crappy Toyota, and never had any of these problems the foreign fanbois talk about. And I only do oil changes every 6000-8000 miles, whenever the Oil Life indicator comes on, per the manual.

 

[charrison]

Originally posted by: BaliBabyDoc

Originally posted by: desy

Jetta Civic
Diesel Regular
MPG (city) 35 30
MPG (hwy) 42 40
MPGcombined 38 34

It aint that much better and if you look at what the EPA estimates are for pollution the gas kills the diesel
the Jetta gets a 1 out of 10, and the Civic a 6 out of 10

Emissions is based on old diesel. Low sulfur diesel (lower than Europe in fact) will make the Jetta more competitive with the gas variants of the Jetta and Civic . . . except for partiulates I assume.

Further, I may contract with some nerds at my old high school to produce biodiesel.

Better get that Diesel Jetta this year as they are gone for 2007 models because of emissions requirements. They will likely return in 2008.

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

^^Thanks for the heads up . . . I will have to pimp the dealer on that one. Should be worth a couple of grand . . .

 

[TheSlamma]

I would never buy a VW myself, but here is some info on it for ya if you really like poor electronics and expensive parts replacement

fueleconomy.gov