The Renault Logan was designed to sell for 5,000 euros ($6K) in emerging markets like Poland. The car has found a number of buyers in Western Europe who seek a no frills, reliable car. Check it out. Gail Edmondson and Constance Faivre d’Arcier have more.
Category: Cars
Tax Deductions for Hybrid car/SUV purchases
Paul Caron has the list. Note that 1 out of 7 vehicles is a domestic (the Ford Escape Hybrid – which uses Toyota hybrid components). The deduction is $2000 in 2005 and $500 in 2006 (not a whole lot for vehicles that can cost north of $40K in some cases).
RadarBusters
Retired Cop “Radar” Roy Reyer runs a site that reviews radar detectors and jammers.
The Car Quality Gap?
One debate that never dies is who makes the best cars: the United States, Japan or Germany? U.S. automakers may be closing a perceived quality gap.
Greenspun on Minivans
Dave bought a new Toyota Sienna minivan and references Philip Greenspun’s wonderful long term article on the minivan culture. Greenspun also correctly points out the terrible economics awaiting minivan buyers.
Auto Industry Leadership Index
Peter DeLorenzo’s AutoExtremist published an interesting auto industry leadership study. Take a look. DeLorenzo examines brand perceptions from a consumer, industry insider and enthusiast perspective.
GM Gives it up – Discusses Hybrid License with Toyota
Toyota continues to build volume for it’s supplier network by discussing a deal for hybrid auto technology with GM. Ford did the same with it’s Escape small SUV Hybrid. Generally bad news for domestic parts suppliers.
This looks interesting: Product Development for the Lean Enterprise: Why Toyota’s System Is Four Times More Productive and How You Can Implement It by Michael N. Kennedy
SUV Slowdown
Salvador Sotello, for example, recently paid F.H. Dailey Chevrolet in San Leandro $41,000 for a new Chevy Tahoe LT (yes, with leather) SUV that had a sticker price of $58,000. The sale was an anomaly in what is otherwise a pretty dismal selling season. “It’s been pretty quiet,” saleswoman Crystal Gonzalez said the other day. “Been pretty slow.”
Nice move, GM – audio in on new 2006 cars
This benefit – the ability to plug your iPod or other portable audio device, into a car stereo seems trivial. Unfortunately, it’s a rarity. GM deserves credit for opening up – that is, allowing any audio device to plug into their car systems…..
Hybrid Cars: Plug Them in Overnight?
Ron Gremban and Felix Kramer have modified a Toyota Prius so it can be plugged into a wall outlet.
This does not make Toyota happy. The company has spent millions of dollars persuading people that hybrid electric cars like the Prius never need to be plugged in and work just like normal cars. So has Honda, which even ran a commercial that showed a guy wandering around his Civic hybrid fruitlessly searching for a plug.
But the idea of making hybrid cars that have the option of being plugged in is supported by a diverse group of interests, from neoconservatives who support greater fuel efficiency to utilities salivating at the chance to supplant oil with electricity. If you were able to plug a hybrid in overnight, you could potentially use a lot less gas by cruising for long stretches on battery power only. But unlike purely electric cars, which take hours to charge and need frequent recharging, you would not have to plug in if you did not want to.