Article

2008-05-06 Home Front Economy

Americans discover vehicles that can pass anything but a gas station are not good

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Posted by GolfBravoUSMC 2008-05-06 12:54|| || Front Page|| [11130 views ] Top

#1 Ah, I'll bet they're dancing on the ceiling down at Morrisey Boulevard. The Evil SUV appears to be dead...

Posted by tu3031 2008-05-06 13:40|| 2008-05-06 13:40|| Front Page Top

#2 tu - look in the Globe parking lot sometime; my man there confirms at least 1/4 of the vehicles are SUV's; more where the bigshots park (the upper parking lot you can see from the Expressway or the Red Line after the UMass stop).

Posted by Raj 2008-05-06 14:14|| 2008-05-06 14:14|| Front Page Top

#3 "I'll probably get a really cheap Camry or Corolla"
Good luck with that: as the gas prices climb out here, it is amazing to see what is being drug out of the woodwork and put back on the road: just last Friday a saw a 1958(?) Renault Dauphine, and anything with a Japanese nameplate and a For Sale sign is not sitting in front yards long.

Posted by USN, Ret. 2008-05-06 14:44|| 2008-05-06 14:44|| Front Page Top

#4 Driving on the incline out of Hoover Dam last month, one of my indicator lights went on. Checking the manual it said something was afoul of my emission system and that it might just be a loose fuel cap. Had 600 more miles to get home, light or not. I did notice that my mileage suddenly shot up from 25 to 30 miles per gallon. Then somewhere east of Gallup, I refueled at a truck stop just on the other side of the fence of the brand's refinery. Now I'm getting 35 miles to the gallon. Take the car in the next day to the dealer for a check up just to make sure I didn't fry anything. The tech came back and said it was just a loose gas cap and a replacement has kept the light off. Now my mileage is back to 25 mpg. When you load all that emission control and all the safety 'up armorering' to the vehicles, you tend to sacrifice on the mileage issue. Everyone gets stuck with the emission consequence whether you're in the dense cityscape or open plains.

Posted by Procopius2k 2008-05-06 15:06|| 2008-05-06 15:06|| Front Page Top

#5 cellphones serve some purposes that at this point nothing else can, and their prices are stable or declining. No particular reason for plan costs to soar. Until everyone falls in love with a new tech, I cant see them going away.

Flat screen TVs are a luxury that doesnt make sense for everyone, but as their price declines, its hard to see what would make them go away.

SUVs make perfect sense for people who need to drive off road, in uncleared snow and ice on a regular basis,etc. For lots of folks theyre an affectation - a minivan has as much or more space for the money and is about as easy to get into. CUVs are really only useful for non-offroaders if you really need the height. None of which would have made the SUV bubble burst if not for the oil price increases. How long that will last is another question.

Posted by liberalhawk 2008-05-06 15:51|| 2008-05-06 15:51|| Front Page Top

#6 I filled my '96 Dodge 2500 Friday. 96 bucks. I'm glad I only use it for farm stuff as it gets 9 mpg (V-10 engine). Now I'm paying 40 bucks to fill up the Cavalier. It gets 30mpg.

Posted by Deacon Blues">Deacon Blues 2008-05-06 16:01|| 2008-05-06 16:01|| Front Page Top

#7 Where I live in California there is a high concentration of SUVs. The only off-road time they experience is in the Safeway parking lot and the family driveway.

Posted by GolfBravoUSMC 2008-05-06 16:41|| 2008-05-06 16:41|| Front Page Top

#8 If this article is true why does the dealership call asking to buy back my 4WD Trailblazer with the 4.2 liter and tow bar?

They last called a month ago complaining about not enough trucks like that on their lot.

Posted by 3dc 2008-05-06 16:46|| 2008-05-06 16:46|| Front Page Top

#9 3dc Why are you wasting time posting when you could unload your "guzzler"? Unless $4.00 plus per gallon for gas it not an problem for your family.

Our local gas has already exceeded $4 and is still climbing. Our in-laws in England are spending more than twice that much per gallon converted from liters. (Over $2 US per liter)

Drivers warned on further petrol price rises

Posted by GolfBravoUSMC 2008-05-06 18:09|| 2008-05-06 18:09|| Front Page Top

#10 I'll keep my '04 F150 Supercrew Lariat 4X4, thankyewverymuch.

It's a truck-love-thing. You either get it or you don't, fuel costs were part of the calculation when buying

Posted by Frank G">Frank G 2008-05-06 18:13|| 2008-05-06 18:13|| Front Page Top

#11 Love my Dakota. Small V-8, acceptable mileage, you can get it in a 3/4 ton configuration (more than a Chevy or Ford or Dodge fullsize entry level model) and a towing package that can handle a decent sized trailer. Look for Dodge to sell a lot of these in the coming year or two.

The next bubble to burst will be the education bubble.

Posted by no mo uro 2008-05-06 19:15|| 2008-05-06 19:15|| Front Page Top

#12 Let's see ....

the Jeep Grand Cherokee gets 13-14 mph and is up there in mileage

the minivan gets 18 mph or so and we're still paying for it

my now deceased father-in-law's 1967 Porsche 912 which Mr. Lotp is lovingly restoring gets 25 mph on the highway.

Clearly it's a top-down day!!! LOL

Posted by lotp 2008-05-06 19:53|| 2008-05-06 19:53|| Front Page Top

#13 If this article is true why does the dealership call asking to buy back my 4WD Trailblazer with the 4.2 liter and tow bar?

They last called a month ago complaining about not enough trucks like that on their lot.

Because the thing they're not telling you is the pittance they'll give you, and the price they intend to stick you for the next dog they plan to sell you.

Don't fall for it, put the truck in the garage for a few years and buy a small car WITH NO TRADE IN then see just how generous your "Friendly Dealer" really is.

He only makes money sticking you for the new car AND the trade in, no trade, he's hurting.

Posted by Redneck Jim">Redneck Jim 2008-05-06 20:52|| 2008-05-06 20:52|| Front Page Top

#14 I personaly drive a 1988 Isuzu 2.6 4cylinder and get around 22 MPG loaded to the gills with tools (Don't ask) I'm currently buying a 1994 mustang with a V-6 3.8 mainly because when I took it down the interstate on a test drive the tachometer dropped to 1000 RPM at 65 mph, That little Horsey has some very long legs. Needs work, but at $3,500 I can sink a good bit of cash into it and still come out way ahead.(Body's straight, needs some wiring work)

I'll use the truck for town, and the "Horsey" for trips.

Posted by Redneck Jim">Redneck Jim 2008-05-06 21:07|| 2008-05-06 21:07|| Front Page Top

#15 I'm not giving up my V-6.

SUVs are status symbols and they're about to become even moreso - cos only the well-to-do can afford to run them...and now the rabble can't afford them.. It was hard for the well-to-do - the rabble could afford so much and now they can't.

Posted by anonymous2u 2008-05-06 21:19|| 2008-05-06 21:19|| Front Page Top

#16 If you're in the Mobile area, look for a huge red toolbox, with a small brownish truck under it.
That's me.

Posted by Redneck Jim">Redneck Jim 2008-05-06 21:23|| 2008-05-06 21:23|| Front Page Top

#17 GUAM > for an "irrational vehicle", I'm seeing more SUVS + VANS than ever before. As for smaller passenger cars, I'm attributing that to YOUNG NEW FAMILIES + GREAT-GRAND KIDDIES. The LARA KROFT = PS2/XBox Generation have grown up, gotten jobs andor joined the Army, married?, and have begun introducing the kiddies to McDonalds and other fast food.

Posted by JosephMendiola 2008-05-06 22:22|| 2008-05-06 22:22|| Front Page Top

#18
2008 Toyota Yaris 2-door hatchback. Averages 38.5 mpg in combo city/freeway driving and 40+ mpg straight highway (with the 5 speed). $14,128.00 out the door TTL.

Peppy engine and lots of zip, turns on dime and will return 9.5¢ change. Fun to drive too!

Posted by Goober Thising2539 2008-05-06 22:47|| 2008-05-06 22:47|| Front Page Top

#19 I'm keeping my CRV.

I need it for my (part-time) business, I like sitting above the traffic, I like not having to worry about getting to work in snow or high water.

I use about $20/week in gas - though lately it's gotten up to around $25.

And, most important of all, IT'S PAID FOR.

Posted by Barbara Skolaut">Barbara Skolaut 2008-05-06 22:54|| http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/]">[http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/] 2008-05-06 22:54|| Front Page Top

#20 that's all fine. When you need to carry 6 or 20 sheets of plywood or a 15 gallon tree and passengers, or a full set of camping gear and 4 passengers? I've got the best of all worlds IMHO

Posted by Frank G">Frank G 2008-05-06 23:37|| 2008-05-06 23:37|| Front Page Top

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