Compact Car Rising Popularity

Recently we have seen an increased interest in buying a compact car.  Much of this is due to ever increasing gas prices and a new focus on environmental impact.  Whatever the reason, people are looking at and buying compact cars.  But maybe you’ve held off on buying one or never even considered it.  There are many reasons why people leave them off their search.  The reasons include amenities, ride, and overall size.

The cars we typically include when thinking of compact cars are the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra and Mazda 3.  Automobile magazine recently did a comparison test of these and a few others.  (Note:  they also review some great Michigan microbreweries!) http://www.automobilemag.com/features/great_drives/1107_the_small_car_6_pack/index.html

During their testing, they commented on how much this segment has improved.  The interior design and materials and no longer stiff and plastic and feel good to the touch.  Also, the ride is much improved.  Finally, they are bigger than they used to be.   In my mind, I tend to think of the Civic in terms of a 1995 Civic.  That one I sat in and couldn’t completely release the clutch because my knee hit the steering wheel!  It was a little tight to say the least.

A review of the current measurements and capacities shows a significant increase in overall size.  Here is a quick chart to show the size increases of three models.

		Interior volume (ft3)	Length (in)	Width (in)	Height (in)
1995	Civic*	97.0	173.0	66.9	51.7
2012	Civic	107.1	177.3	69.0	56.5
1995	Escort	103.0	170.9	66.7	52.7
2012	Focus	103.1	178.5	71.8	57.8
1995	Corolla	102.0	172.0	66.3	53.5
2011	Corolla	104.4	180.0	69.4	57.7
	*subcompact class

The Civic is the big mover.  It even went up a class in size.  While the overall interior volumes haven’t changed much, the important measurements (headroom, legroom and hip room have all increased).  This allows for more comfort on your ride, especially if you’re over 6 feet tall. 

So as you’re going through your search for a new car, don’t be afraid to check out the compact car options.  They aren’t the cars you remember them to be!

Fuel Saving Measures – Fact or Fiction

All of us have heard ways to save money at the pump, but how many of these are true?  In this entry we’ll take a look at some ideas for improving our gas mileage and determine if they are fact or fiction.  There might be a few surprises!

Obey the speed Limit – Fact

As much as this may hurt those with a lead foot out there, this is a sure fire way to improve fuel efficiency.  According to www.fueleconomy.gov, each 5 mph you go over the speed limit is like paying an extra $0.29 per gallon of gas!  60 mph is typically the ideal speed, but it does vary by car so results will vary.

Drafting – Fact (but you should never attempt this!)

Mythbusters on Discovery channel did a comparison of following distances to see how close you had to be to a semi before you saw an improvement in fuel economy.   When they followed at a distance of 10 feet behind a semi, they saw a 40% increase!  However, this is extremely dangerous and should never be attempted.  If you keep a safe following distance (usually 2 seconds) you will still see a small improvement.  You will also be going closer to 60 mph and see savings from going slower too.

Fuel additives – Fiction

Despite the really believable actor they had portraying a customer; there aren’t any additives that will improve your fuel economy.  In fact, you might actually damage your engine and add costly repair bills.  The federal government has reviewed many of the popular additives and found that none of them will significantly improve your fuel economy. 

Sweat it out – Fiction (if on the highway)

We’ve all heard rumors that running the A/C in our cars is a drag on the engine and will decrease fuel efficiency and that we should roll down the windows to keep cool.  The problem with this is that by rolling the windows down at highway speeds, we’ve created a huge drag on the aerodynamics and the engine will have to work harder to overcome the additional drag.  It’s better to run the A/C and keep your windows up.  You’ll stay cooler and save gas.  Now if you’re driving in traffic, it might pay to roll the windows down and turn off the A/C.  You will see a small increase in fuel economy because you won’t have significant drag from the windows being down.   You may need to bring extra deodorant though!

Pump up your tires – Fact

Keeping your tires properly inflated will save up to 0.3% for every psi drop below the recommended pressure.  You will also extend the life of your tire.  However, adding too much air would be detrimental to your handling and braking.  So while adding extra air might improve fuel economy slightly, the risk of an accident far outweighs the benefit.  Be sure to check the pressure monthly on cool tires, not after driving.

Drive like your mom is in the car – Fact

Despite the inner racer in all of us, it’s best to drive like your mom is sitting with you.  This means no dragster starts from a stop light, swerving around slower cars, hard braking, etc.  If you can accelerate at a moderate pace from a stop, slow down before a stop light so you don’t have to come to a complete stop and keep a steady pace (i.e. cruise control) you can improve fuel efficiency by up to 20%!!  While it may not be exciting driving, it will be exciting to fill up less often and save significant money at the pump.

So what other ways have you heard to improve fuel economy?  Any personal experiences you'd like to share?  Let us know so we can start using those to save money at the pump.

USA! USA! - June a good month for US manufacturers

In honor of 4th of July, it looks like June was a very good month for the big three auto makers.  All 3 US manufacturers saw significant gains over June 2010.  Ford increased sales by 14% and GM by 11%.  However, the big winner was Chrysler with a sales increase of 30%!  Now they had plenty of room for improvement, but still.  If there were winners, there had to be losers.  In this case, it was Honda and Toyota.  Both saw sales decrease by more than 24%, this can be attributed to the earthquake and tsunami that severely damaged their facilities in Japan and limited production/delivery of critical parts.

So how can you use this information to your benefit?  Toyota and Honda will want to reclaim their top positions and with their supply chain coming back online in Japan, they will have the inventory to begin selling more cars.  I also anticipate an increase in incentives to entice buyers.  Previously, the Japanese had relatively low levels of incentives in order to preserve inventory.  Now that inventory levels are increasing, Toyota is offering 0.0% financing for several models up to 36 months (Camry up to 60 months!) or $1,000 cash back.  Honda is offering 0.9% financing for nearly all models for up to 60 months, but no cash back.  Both are offering lease incentives too which have been missing for quite some time.  The US manufacturers will also want to keep their place on top, so look for them to continue their incentives. 

The current level of incentives is well below the historical average.  This won't last forever, so I'd anticipate and increase in incentives to drive more buyers to purchase new cars.  It's an intense competition between all the manufactures and we as consumers stand to benefit.  Let the games begin!!