AFSCME 3357-HOF'S BLOG

Friday Mish Mash #1
Edmunds Inside Line - Drives the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu

All positives except for steering. It's heavy though. The V-6 weighed in at 3,649 lbs, about as heavy as an old Pontiac Aztek, and within a cheese sandwich of its bigger brother, the Impala.

Friday Mish Mash #2
Meet Porky the Corolla

Speaking of weight, the 2009 Toyota Corolla is taking some heat over at Autoblog Green for gaining weight and losing fuel economy. To put things in perspective, the Corolla Matrix with the Camry's 2.4 liter engine has a highway EPA rating of 29, just one MPG more than the full-sized Ford Taurus, which has about a hundred horsepower advantage over the Matrix. Automakers are never going to make progress in Corporate Average Fuel Economy if every iteration of a model gains 200 to 400 lbs. (I'm looking at you Honda Accord.)

Friday Mish Mash #3
Businessweek's Cars for bargain hunters

Businessweek compared the actual selling prices to the Mfr list prices of various models and came up with the 20 biggest automotive "bargains"; by bargains, they mean the cars that sell for the highest percentage off sticker price figuring in incentives. By this measure Chrysler LLC comes out the big winner with 8 models in the top 20. The Jeep Commander is selling for 29% off sticker price, and the Dodge Ram 1500 is selling for 28% off sticker price. Though Businessweek is the source of the of the information, the presentation and commentary at thetruthaboutcars.com is better.