(Dr. Tom Amberry, 6' 5" tall tries on a Smart car for size.)
I have a friend whose girlfriend really, really wants a smart car. She has a Nissan Sentra with 140,000 miles on it (running fine) but really, really wants to buy a Smart car.
[...]What will it cost you to trade in that SUV and buy a gas sipper?
Edmunds launched a "Gas Guzzler Trade-in Calculator" that shows you how long it will take before you actually start saving gas. Please, take a moment and run your dream car through [...]
A friend said he wanted to get a plug-in electric Toyota Pruis and recharge it from photovoltaic cells. Great idea, I told him, but have you looked into the conversion cost for the Prius? No, he hadn't really thought of that yet.
When I last checked it [...]
The incentives just keep coming!
With record low sales, GM has added a new enticement -- a 72 hour zero percent interest sale through Monday, June 30. This comes even as other cash rebates and dealer cash incentives continue.
By the way, GM has also announced it will [...]
Which would save you more gas? Trading in your car that gets 25 mpg for one that gets 50 mpg? Or switching from a car that gets 10 mpg to one that gets 20 mpg?
The answer is not what you'd expect. Actually, switching from 10 to 20 mpg is a [...]
All I hear these days is Prius, Prius, Prius... I'm sick of it! There are some very capable hybrids out there that never seem to get mentioned, such as the three pictured above, the Toyota Camry Hybrid, the Nissan Altima Hybrid and the Saturn [...]
It's a buyer's market out there, folks.
Ford is pushing it's "Employee Pricing" program saying you can buy a truck for the same amount as one of their workers. This sounds great. But how much is that?
Furthermore, the fine print tells us that not all dealerships [...]
Americans are in panic mode. They want a quick fix to high gas prices. That usually means downsizing their ride. And when they decide to make a change they seem to want to go from one extreme to the other -- Hummer to Smart car for example.
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In our recent consumer comparison test, three top economy sedans were tested by six real-world consumers. It was certainly a serendipitous choice of vehicles given sky-rocketing gasoline prices that are changing Americans' buying habits. True enough, last month, the Honda Civic usurped the Ford F-150 of its top-sales [...]
In our recent consumer comparison test, three top economy sedans were tested by six real-world consumers. It was certainly a serendipitous choice of vehicles given sky-rocketing gasoline prices that are changing Americans' buying habits. True enough, last month, the Honda Civic usurped the Ford F-150 of its top-sales [...]
According to a report by GM, women buy 45% of all vehicles and 85% influence the vehicle purchasing decisions in relationships. So it should come as no surprise that when shopping for a new vehicle, especially one that will be used primarily as a weekend family vehicle, that my [...]
According to a report by GM, women buy 45% of all vehicles and 85% influence the vehicle purchasing decisions in relationships. So it should come as no surprise that when shopping for a new vehicle, especially one that will be used primarily as a weekend family vehicle, that my [...]
We were changing sides on the tennis court Saturday morning when my opponent blurted out: "So what am I supposed to do about my SUV?"
Without elaborating I knew what the question was. Gas prices had made him want to dump his SUV and get something fuel efficient. [...]
Last week Inside Line published a great story about hypermiling (getting the highest MPG possible) called "Breaking the 100-Mile MPG Barrier."Â In the story it mentions that hypermilers use the ScanGauge to check their fuel economy as they try different mileage-stretching techniques. Â
We used the ScanGauge [...]
Gas prices too high to take a road trip this summer?
When gas prices first shot up back in 2005 I looked at what it cost to take a vacation in that current year versus the previous few years. Surprisingly, the difference was about the cost of a [...]
For the first time since 1991, the Ford F-Series is not the nation’s best selling vehicle. Last month, that honor went to the Honda Civic. With gas prices at an all time high, it is not a surprise.
The entire truck and SUV segments have seen a sales crash, not [...]
For the first time since 1991, the Ford F-Series is not the nation’s best selling vehicle. Last month, that honor went to the Honda Civic. With gas prices at an all time high, it is not a surprise.
The entire truck and SUV segments have seen a sales crash, not [...]
In our ongoing effort to empower automotive consumers, we've come up with a new way to conduct a comparison test. Our second Consumer Comparison Test once again takes six regular Americans from different places and different stages of life and [...]
In our ongoing effort to empower automotive consumers, we've come up with a new way to conduct a comparison test. Our second Consumer Comparison Test once again takes six regular Americans from different places and different stages of life and [...]
Strategic Vision has released their 2008 Total Quality Awards. Ford and Toyota (including their respective subsidiaries) we in a dead heat, each having won or tied in five categories. What makes this study interesting is that it is not a measure of absolute reliability, rather it measures overall [...]
(Big trucks, such as this 2008 Toyota Tundra, are selling slowly as gas prices climb.)
Chrysler has been criticized for its "Refuel America" $2.99 gas card offer but others have followed suit. In fact, Toyota Tacoma buyers get a $500 gas card when they buy the truck. [...]
How would you like to have an expert negotiator in your corner when you go to the dealership to buy a new or used car? It would be like walking into a really tough bar with a professional fighter. When someone starts trying to shove you around, just say, "Talk to [...]
A woman emailed me this weekend to say she had decided to "cut her losses," dump her SUV and get a hybrid. Was this a good idea? She was paying $750 a month in car payments and $400 a month in fuel. Plus, she was $6,000 upside down with two [...]
Gas prices may be sky high, but apparently most Americans (at least those in Buttler, MO) would prefer a free gun over gas. Max Motors is currently offering anyone who purchases a vehicle the choice of either $250 in gas or a gift certificate, worth the same amount, [...]
Chrysler wants you to buy their cars so much that they guarantee you will not pay more than $2.99 a gallon for gas for three years! What an amazing offer!
Or is it?
When I do television or radio interviews about this gas offer (and other gas offers cropping up such [...]
Last week, Phil talked about the car buying process. One of the things he suggested was to make a list of your needs and wants. This is great advice, since it really helps to narrow down the vast selection of vehicles that are out there. Needs are those [...]
(The four contestants in the "Gas Sipper Smackdown!")
What if a Toyota Prius and a Smart Fortwo got into a fight? A fuel economy fight, that is. Who do you think would win?
And what if it was more of a tag team wrestling match and the Volkswagen [...]
While the lease on my Murano doesn't end for another 17 months, I have already begun shopping for a replacement.
So as I begin to look at new vehicles, I want to share with you my journey. My purpose in doing this is not to preach what the best vehicle [...]
Hovering in the air above McLean's Auto Body & Paint, in Santa Barbara, Calif., is this car that is guaranteed to produce double takes. Apparently, it gets them all kinds of business.
"People know us," said a company spokesman. "They say, 'Oh yeah, you're that place with [...]
(Edmunds editors Phil Reed (L) and Brian Moody on a local car lot discuss best ways to buy a new car.)
My friends have a habit of coming to me after they buy a car. They want to know:
a. Did they get a good deal?
b. How [...]
Is your car a lemon? Or do you really want another car and so you try to force the manufacturer buy it back?
For every consumer protection law, such as the so-called Lemon Law, there are people trying to game the system and use it to their advantage. [...]
The screaming headline of Automotive News this week was: "Industry in Turmoil." Cars aren't selling. Pickup truck sales in particular are completely stalled. Dealers are desparate for ways to get buyers into the showroom (as evidenced by Chrysler's "Refuel America" plan).
What does all this mean [...]
The screaming headline of Automotive News this week was: "Industry in Turmoil." Cars aren't selling. Pickup truck sales in particular are completely stalled. Dealers are desparate for ways to get buyers into the showroom (as evidenced by Chrysler's "Refuel America" plan).
What does all this mean [...]
"I'm so sick of the price of gas I'm going to buy a hybrid!"
I can't tell you how often I've heard this. And I want to tell these people that they are on the wrong track. If they merely want to save money, dumping the old gas [...]
(The smart fortwo and Ford Focus compete in the "Gas Sipper's Smackdown.")
For the past two days I've been driving. A lot.
We took four cars and selected three different driving routes to see which would win the "Gas Sipper's Smackdown."
Battling for the title was our flyweight 2008 [...]
This morning's Automotive News was filled with evidence of a global shift in thinking: small is better. There was an interesting story that said most of the current engine research is geared toward making more out of less. The number of cylinders are being reduced while engine displacement is [...]
(The smart fortwo parked on a bluff in Santa Cruz, CA - Photo by Steve Pearl)
A 2008 smart fortwo is being added to the Edmunds.com long term fleet and it will certainly be the source of much controversy. Our Editor in Chief, Karl Brauer, is leading the [...]
Picture the roads across the U.S. jammed with 250 million vehicles hurtling along at speeds of 70 mph and faster. Now picture this: most of those cars are riding on dangerously under-inflated tires which waste gas, wear out the tread prematurely and create deadly driving situations.
How under-inflated are those [...]
Looking for any edge it can find in a competitive marketplace, Ford Motor Company today announced it was increasing its warranty for 2008 vehicles. The new warranty bumps the service part limited warranty to 3 years/100,000 miles. It had previously coered its gas engine and transmission assemblies up [...]
Happy Earth Day in advance.
Earth Day is next Tuesday, April 22, but all Edmunds.com employees got the day off today, Friday, to perform some kind of green activity. It's a very cool move on the part of our company's owner who gives green issues the highest [...]
Shoppers might be pleased to see an item on the window sticker implying that the car they are considering will provide a connection to their iPod. But unless they test drive the iPod connection too, they might be in for a nasty surprise.
Bottomline, not all iPod connections are [...]
Here's a picture of me from my days as a car salesman.
Not really. I was a car salesman for a short time but this photo was taken well before my time. Still, it's probably the classic stereotype of a car salesman with the foot up on the bumper [...]
On Monday I bought the 2008 BMW 135i like the one you see above from Rusnak BMW in Westlake, Calif. It was the culmination of a long search and a lot of teeth gnashing and hand wringing by the editors of Edmunds.com and Inside Line.
Yes, we wanted to [...]
The economy is slow and some people are muttering the R-word. But folks still need to get around.
Despite the gloom and doom pouring from the media there are deals to be had. We've wrapped all this up in an excellent article entitled, appropriately, Car-Buying Tips for [...]
(Consumer critics evaluate a 2008 Chevrolet Malibu in a special Edmunds.com event.)
Oh, so you think you can do a better job?
We get complaints sometimes from readers who don't think we picked the right car in a comparison class. The implication is that we are biased or overlooked [...]
This weekend I took our long term 2007 Jeep Wrangler Sahara to Death Valley and drove to places I could have never reached with another vehicle. It totally ate up the dirt roads and scrambled up washed out ancient mining roads. Naturally, I began to fanticize about [...]
When gas prices shoot up the con artists come out of the woodwork. Advertisements for magnets that attach to the fuel line, pills for the gas tank, oil additives all promise 10 to 30 percent increase in gas mileage.
Question: who falls for this stuff?
What is [...]
Give us a piece of your mind. Go on, take your best shot. You've lived with your car for a long time, you know it better than a psychiatrist knows his or her patient. Now it's time for the download.
Drafting a tractor trailer truck to improve fuel economy
There's this really cool thing you can use to improve your fuel economy up to 35 percent. It's called your right foot.
We took three cars to the Central Valley of California and tested the gas saving [...]
Reza Laleh, left, poses with a happy customer beside his 2008 Pontiac G8 GT
Car salesmen often email us saying we portray them in a negative light. So I wanted to give a brief shoutout to a salesman who's doing things the right way.
I had to buy [...]
I've been shopping for a 2008 Pontiac G8 GT for our long term testing fleet and I came across a new sales wrinkle.
I contacted a local dealership that had a G8 on their lot and asked them for their price. The internet saleswoman said she was [...]
Occasionally, you are getting ready to take delivery of that new or pre-owned vehicle and something is either wrong or missing. It could be a paint blemish or those missing floor mats you had asked for in the deal. Your excitement is dashed because the car is not [...]
As if you need more bad news...
Another sign of a weakening economy is that vehicle repossessions are way up. Last year repos climbed by 10 percent. This year they are rising more sharply and some are predicting that 1.6 million cars will be repossessed this year.
[...]"Confessions of a Car Salesman" has been on our web site for a number of years but we still get a lot of heated email about it.
The emails fall into three categories:
"I am a car salesman and your article stinks [or substitute your favorite four-letter [...]
On the one hand there is what road test editors praise and on the other hand there is what car buyers plunk down cold hard cash to purchase.
Case in point: the 2008 Ford Focus SES. On our Inside Line long term blog for the Focus [...]
We may be car people around here, but there's another type of moving vehicle that has been enjoying rapid growth this decade. Since 2001, the sales of recreational vehicles has increased by 52 percent with more than 300,000 new units [...]
Having trouble making ends meet?
We're not in a recession of course, and yet here at Edmunds.com we've been getting a lot of questions from people who are stuck with high car lease or loan payments. How can you stay afloat until good times return?
A lot of readers have said that a "smarter" buy is the Honda Fit. Here is the 2008 smart fortwo posed next to my 2007 Honda Fit Sport. I often think of the Fit as a smart with a back seat (and a better transmission).
[...](My '96 Galant was photographed for an article on how to sell your car. I took the For Sale signs off right after this picture was taken.)
I talked to a guy last week who was going to lease a 2009 Nissan Murano and his wife wants to lease a [...]
(2008 smart fortwo photos by Steve Pearl)
We bought a 2008 smart fortwo on eBay for the Edmunds.com long term fleet and I have to say it couldn't have gone smoother.
We wanted to be the first with a smart to write about so last summer I got [...]
