By Greg Gaillard

Hybrids Come of Age

Just 10 years ago Honda released the Insight as the first US mass market hybrid combustion/electric car.  Its two seat aerodynamic teardrop shape, light weight and focused engineering delivered spectacular fuel economy that generated quite a bit of media attention.  In the real world however, the Insight represented significant compromises in terms of utility, performance and perceived safety.  Launched at the height of the SUV boom alongside inexpensive gasoline, sales weren’t significant and to many people the Insight was another Honda engineering experiment; a car that Honda’s Asimo robot might drive, but not something American families would put in their garage.

What a difference a decade makes.  Last week the EPA released its annual Fuel Economy Guide for 2010 and hybrids swept the podium with 9 out of the top 10 MPG scores.  At least in terms of EPA ratings, hybrids are the drivetrain technology of the moment.  Perhaps more important than MPG is how the technology has evolved into a variety of solutions that can be used across a range of body styles without many of the original Insight’s compromises.

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Buying a new car is going to cost a lot of dough. With the same or a lot less money, what used models could you buy? The list below ranges from the practical to the completely impractical. But it’s fun to think about cars that are truly unique, beautiful, or purpose built. What are some of your favorite “used” cars?

Below are some cars that I think are uniquely desirable though not in any order of priority. Picking the top ten was hard because there are so many cool cars to choose. So, I included a few more of my favorites. What would you buy if reliability wasn’t a factor?

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Insuring your car and assets is something every responsible person needs to think about. Should the unthinkable happen to you, the right amount of insurance coverage will help protect your assets and keep your out-of-pocket expenses to a minimum. Then the question arises, “how much coverage do I really need?” A qualified and knowledgeable insurance agent can help you determine the correct amount of coverage for you.

Think you are paying too much for car or motorcycle insurance? Answer these five questions that can save you money on car insurance and see if you can find a way to lower the cost of your car insurance policy.

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A PhotographyREVIEW.com community member invited me out to Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City for a NASCAR Western Division race. Jimmy B is an official inspector for NASCAR’s Western Division and arranged for me to get a pit pass. I went on a Friday with a couple of test cameras and spent a few hours walking around in pit lane and through the garages during morning practice.

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People are flocking to dealerships to trade in their vehicles under the “Cash for Clunkers” program, but once the trade is made, dealers and salvage yards are required to remove the car from the road for good, but how?  First up, under the program, the dealer seizes up the engine with sodium silicate–a job usually handled by the dismantlers, but now the salvage yards are earning a lot less because the engine is now useless scrap metal.  Joe Pattison of Can-Am Auto Salvage in Ontario, CA says an engine, which can bring in between $250-$1500, is like “a pearl in an oyster.”

After disabling the engine the car is then towed to the salvage yard where it is evaluated for profit potential, and liquids like gasoline and anti-freeze are drained.  According to Pattison, a vehicle like an old, flawed work truck would be crushed sooner than a car with usable front end parts and transmission; a catalytic converter which could yield $100; good tires worth $100, and metal that could earn the yard up to $150.  Those parts are then cut out, as is the car’s computerized “brain”.

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On July 24, the EPA issued revised new combined MPG numbers for an unknown number of vehicles. As a result, some vehicles that had previously qualified for the Cash for Clunkers program will no longer qualify. If you’re not sure if your vehicle qualifies, you can confirm your car’s new combined MPG by visiting www.fueleconomy.com.

Nationwide, an estimated 250,000 people could get credits, helping to spur sales at a time when industry sales are down 35 percent.

Since trade-in value essentially represents the “wholesale” cost of a new car, you can generally do much better by selling some cars directly to a new owner, bypassing the middle man. The cars we’ve listed below represent those vehicles we feel are most likely to be available for less than $3,500, the minimum voucher value, and are therefore great matches for the CARS Program. If we think a particular car will sell for more than what you can get back on it through the program, it didn’t make our list.

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By Kurt Gensheimer

Blings:

• Infinite MPG
• Makes a Prius look like a gross polluter
• $50 MSRP
• Higher quality plastics than a Chrysler

Dings:

• Some assembly required
• Disconnected steering
• Zero headroom
• No cupholders

Ruling: The perfect car for those who can’t qualify for a loan, are looking to downsize, or who are crack contortionists.

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With Father’s Day rapidly approaching, I’m thinking about my dad, whose 80 years old now but still going strong. When I look back at all of the milestones he took me through, I can’t help but recall the patience he exhibited with me over the years, most notably when he taught me how to drive a car.

Although I consider myself a good driver today at age 50, I had a very rocky start in the world of vehicle operation way back in the summer of 1974, when I turned 16. The school I attended didn’t have a driver’s education behind-the-wheel program, so my father tried to teach me himself, in his old Opel Kadett in the parking lot of the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

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Car lease trading — a way for drivers to cut their auto lease payments — is becoming more popular in the midst of the current economic uncertainty. People don’t know what’s happening tomorrow with their jobs, homes or finances, so they’re opting to get into a shorter leases with less commitment, and lease trading is a great way to do it.

Cincinnati-based Swapalease.com expects nationwide growth to be up 30 percent from last year, projecting 100,000 transactions for 2009.

Miami-based Leasetrader.com is projecting 60,000 nationwide lease transfers for 2009, up 24 percent from last year.

John Sternal, vice president of marketing and communications for Leasetrader.com, said they have a waiting list of people interested in picking up short-term leases.

“In this economy, people are really hesitant to sign up for a long-term financial commitment,” he said.

Lease trading allows a lease holder to get out of an auto lease if they can find someone to take over the monthly payments. The new owner is only responsible for the remainder of the lease contract — not a down payment like the original lessee — and can choose to purchase the car at the end of the lease.

Time for another Father’s Day. Is your dad a car guy, a gearhead, a knuckle-busting shade-tree mechanic sort? Then here are some suggestions for you.

The Bacon Wallet

Dads love bacon, dads get pulled over by cops when speeding and other traffic infractions, here is the way to combine both. The bacon wallet, what else do you need to know?

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Flipping channels, I stopped on a cop show rerun - a police pursuit of a young couple running lights, hopping curbs and then screeching to a stop in front of an ER. The wife spilled onto the sidewalk…and delivered a baby. Awwww. Ok, they were drug dealers, but it got me thinking about Moms and the cars that drove them to give birth. Since it is Mother’s Day, I decided to poke around for stories of Moms, newborns and the cars they rode in on.

Cadillac
In a Boston suburb in 1962, Mrs. Castignetti went into labor with child number five, and she knew she had to act fast.  A four-time Mom’s labor can be short, so the Castignettis jumped into their 1959 silver Cadillac Sedan Deville and took off. With HP and weight comparable to, say, today’s Nissan Titan, the 1959 Sedan Deville was part of an elite club of GM luxury cars from an era where a spectacular bottle of Bordeaux would be called “the cadillac of wines”.  But it wasn’t just glamorous, it was wild. How Stuff Works wrote, “What can’t be disputed is that the 1959 Cadillacs, defined by those saber-edged fins and projectile taillamps, are among the most evocative objects of the 20th Century. What precisely they evoke is open to interpretation, and that’s part of the magic.” So it should surprise no one that of the 16 newborns at the hospital, the youngest Castignetti really stood out. Through the maternity window, amidst a sea of only pink blankets, Albert Castignetti slept right in the middle, wrapped in blue. An early standout, Albert Castignetti eventually became Vice President and General Manager of the Nissan Division, maker of, among other vehicles, the Titan.

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Reprinted with permission from the original author, Steve Haas

A few years ago it seemed that cheap lease programs were available from every car manufacturer. These days, the loss of captive finance arms (like GMAC for GM which is now owned by Cerberus) and the credit crunch brought about by the financial crisis may have reduced the availability of great new-car leasing programs, but they aren’t gone completely. As an example, my local paper had an ad for a 2009 Mazda3 5-door (with automatic) for a lease payment of $219 per month for three years. This sounds like a very affordable payment for a new car, especially one as universally acclaimed as the Mazda.

I believe that there is still quite a bit of mystery surrounding auto leasing and a bit of education can go a long way. The small print in the ads is often intimidating and full of unusual terminology. Additionally, unlike traditional car loans the detailed financial terms of an auto lease don’t have to be disclosed so they usually aren’t. In order to decide whether a lease is a good deal for you or not, let’s review some basics.

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By Harmon Leon

Trading in your vehicle can be a very emotional experience. It’ s like saying goodbye to an old friend (or an old enemy if the car has been a bothersome a piece of crap). Despite the obvious, car owners have more of a sentimental value (“This is the first place I lost my virginity!”) to their vehicle compared to its actual worth when it comes to trading it in.

So here’s a little auto trade-in pop quiz to help you can do it right. Hopefully this will make the experience less painful than a nerve-exposed tooth pulled with rusty pliers.

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By Edsel Rollin

Several few years ago, satellite-based navigation systems were available only as expensive, built-in options on new vehicles. Nowadays, portable GPS devices that can be hooked up and fully operable in minutes have become accessible and affordable to every driver, not just those with cash to spare. I was amazed at how quickly the portable GPS technology has progressed.

I have a built-in GPS in my Infiniti that I rely on more than a day to tell me where to go. I used to have problems finding places. I would get lost all the time and it ended up being a real issue. Getting directions from people is time-consuming and MapQuest isn’t always 100% accurate, so having a reliable GPS has undoubtedly saved me tons of time and gas money.

There are a few things to seriously consider prior to purchasing a portable GPS. Read the rest of this entry »