Blog Category: Toyota

So you’re in the market for a new vehicle. Let’s say a minivan. You’ve always heard great things about the Chrysler Town & Country; they're packed with cool features, and heck, they invented the segment. But when you finally get down to price, the deal is okay, but nothing spectacular. On a whim you check out the Volkswagen Routan. Eerily similar to the Town & Country. Well it should be; the Routan is mechanically identical. It’s an example of some friendly sharing between the two companies to help VW get a minivan to market quickly without developing their own from scratch.

 The real difference you find though is when you starting talking deals. The VW dealer is giving you much more wiggle room. What gives?

With Earth Day right around the corner, it only makes sense to take a look at the leading  environmentally-friendly green vehicle market. What was once a market dominated by the Toyota Prius has ballooned in the last year or so to include a wide range of manufacturers, models, and features. The green car is here to stay and with recent legislation proposals in California and other States, we’re likely to see even more of these environmentally-friendly vehicles on our highways and city streets.

Toyota's press conference featured a "concept" that was suspiciously devoid of a name. After the full show and tell, the big surprise was that this wasn't a concept at all; it was the new Avalon, exactly as it will appear in production form.

The Avalon has always been referred to (or derided) as Toyota's Buick; large, plush, smooth ride. Blandly inoffensive. The perfect choice for retirees. But with the changing definition of Buick has forced Toyota to step if up a notch. The new Avalon takes a giant leap forward in styling. Is there anything particularly original going on here? Nope. But it is a handsome, balanced, well-executed design that should broaden the Avalon's appeal further down the age scale.

The Toyota Prius has topped the EPA’s list of best fuel economy for a decade and earned millions of devoted owners since its introduction. But what the Prius has in miles per gallon, it sorely lacks in miles per hour. So much so that it’s the butt of a joke in the summer movie Horrible Bosses:

"I was drag racing."

"In a Prius?"

"I don't win a lot."

"Back To Football"...If you are a football fanatic, you know exactly what this quote means...after the offseason soap opera of the NFL Lockout, fans across the country were thrilled to see everything put to bed with the owners and players getting back to focusing on what millions of Americans love....football.  Between the upcoming professional and college seasons, for the next 5 months, millions of fans, every weekend, will load up their beloved car, truck, SUV, or hybrid and head out to a fun filled day of tailgating.  Yes, other sports may get the occasional tailgating group, but football, more than any other sport, brings out the tailgaters.  And thus, our vehicles play a critical role in our game day experience.

NADAguides.com, one of leading vehicle pricing and information sites, released its list of Best Car Buys for 2011, with Honda dominating the list with 5 models while Kia, Toyota and Chevrolet had 3 models across multiple categories.

The list, which was created based on value, efficiency, consumer piece of mind, and safety ratings cover a variety of vehicle types including Vans, Wagons, Sedans, Luxury, Coupes, Sports, SUVs, Trucks, and Hybrids.

I recently test-drove the Chevy Cruze Eco, which GM is touting as “the most fuel-efficient gasoline-powered vehicle in America.” The EPA does rate the Cruze Eco  at 42 mpg on the highway when it’s equipped with the 6-speed manual transmission; the automatic 6-speed gets 37 mpg at its best. My mostly city driving in the automatic test car averaged just under 30 mpg.

As you may have noticed, we have an ongoing theme that relates to helping you find great autos and being able to buy them without breaking the bank.  We will often steer you to great websites that can help you make those decisions or provide you with tips and information to do it yourself.

One of the most complex concepts consumers will encounter when trying to decide if buying or leasing is the best option for them, is “residual.”

What is residual value?

This number is the projected market value of a vehicle at a given point in time in the future.

So, when it comes to leasing, the residual value is used to help calculate how much a vehicle will depreciate (lose value) during the lease period…and thus how much the consumer should pay every month to lease the vehicle now.

When it comes to measuring long term reliability and value, Consumers Union (the publisher of Consumer Reports Magazine) is one of the most respected sources in the industry. So for consumers, it's always helpful to see their ratings on new autos, as you should definitely consider their Top Picks as solid recommendations.