Good New Small Car

[bizorky]

On a related point, Toyota is slowing down its new car development program as the constant introduction of new models has brought a notable reduction in quality.

My own anecdotal evidence: I know a couple of people who have a Yaris and view it as a utility vehicle, and not fun to drive.

 

[wonderboy905]

Check consumer reports and they don’t have the Focus as a best buy because of its mediocre reliability record. We all know you love American cars but face it the Japanese make a better product and that’s why they are growing and the big 3 especially Ford is dying a slow painful death. Why do you think the big 3 offer family plan pricing and 0% interest all the time? It’s the only way they can sucker people in to the showroom to buy their lame cars.

My only response to that would be to check your sources. Consumer Reports often has drastically different data than JD Power, there's reasons for this and there's reasons why Consumer Report's results are discarded by the auto community as rubbish. If you're calling car's by the big 3 lame then you should probably stick to riding the TTC.

 

[billy corgan19982]

If you're calling car's by the big 3 lame then you should probably stick to riding the TTC.

Why? That comment makes no sense.

 

[alklay]

There is a big difference between what JD Power says for initial quality (first 100 days or something) and the three year record and sorry, Ford Focus does not even rate, as compared to a Honda or Toyota.

And the added costs (which are small) are more than made up in the difference of depreciation (the Focus substaintially depreciates and the Honda, for instance, less so).

(P.S. I just went to www.jdpower.com/autos/compare.asp and compared the Honda Civic and Ford Focus and the Ford lost to the Honda in every area).

 

[Brighter Hell]

there's reasons why Consumer Report's results are discarded by the auto community as rubbish.

Because they're overly critical? Because they don't let the automakers influence them with advertising space or favours?

 

[Team Critter]

Warranty

On a related note, GM is now offering a 5 year 160k warranty on 2007 models.

 

[Jarrek]

Re: Warranty

We test drove the Honda Fit the other day and were very impressed.

Peppy accelleration, six airbags, A/C and ample storage. I loved the way the seats folded in the rear.

I'm not crazy about the Yaris' centre mounted console, but we're going to check out the Yaris next week.

 

[bizorky]

Re: Warranty

I just want an all-electric car already.



I guess I'll have to wait.

 

[bizorky]

Re: Warranty

beer-induced duplicate post to correct beer-induced spelling error.

 

[afransen TO]

Re: Warranty

I doubt strictly electric (battery) cars will ever be popular. I think hydrogen fuel cells will prove more practical, convenient (no long recharge time; just pump and go), economical, and thus popular.

 

[bizorky]

Re: Warranty

So far as I see it, the only significant technical problem with an all electric car is the battery. The infrastructure already exists (th electrical grid). Hydrogen fuel cells are not ready for automobile use yet, and there is no infrastructure in place for fueling or extracting hydrogen. This will take a long time (25 years or the likes).

In the meantime, maybe super-efficient hybrids can be pursued.

 

[afransen TO]

Re: Warranty

Batteries are a big problem. They are really heavy (you need extra batteries, just so the car can propel the batteries), really expensive, and will always take hours to charge (a big problem). Developing a hydrogen infrastructure is not as hard as it sounds, because really all you need is electricity or tanker trucks.

This isn't so say there won't be battery cars, but rather that they're likely to be a niche product.

 

[cdl42]

Re: Warranty

I'm a fan of an idea that IIRC I saw on CBC a few months back. A couple students/entrepreneurs took a Prius an installed an additional battery unit under the trunk carpet. The battery cost around 30 cents worth of electricity to charge overnight, and could power the car for 60km. So basically, if you drove fewer than 60km a day, the engine would never switch on, and it would still be flexible; anything beyond 60k would still be in a highly fuel efficient car.

 

[billy corgan19982]

Re: Warranty

Problem with electric cars is that they don’t operate well in cold conditions. Just heating the car in the winter would put a heavy drain on your battery.

 

[andreapalladio]

Re: Warranty

Batteries are a big problem. They are really heavy (you need extra batteries, just so the car can propel the batteries), really expensive, and will always take hours to charge (a big problem). Developing a hydrogen infrastructure is not as hard as it sounds, because really all you need is electricity or tanker trucks.

If you'd seen Who Killed The Electric Car, you'd know those are all lies perpetrated by the American car companies and the petroleum industry.