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West Bend, WI Car Consumer Discussions

Re: Rear End Vibration 93 Sanoma... [jbzzzzo]

by hoodlatch on Thu Aug 07 19:40:59 PDT 2008

Short of hitting a culvert or being in an accent of some kind how does one bend an axle on a S10?

Crazy directions, disappointing maps

by lmacmil on Mon Jul 21 13:19:09 PDT 2008

I am using a Garmin 2610 with City Navigator 2008. It's generally pretty good but I was pretty disappointed getting in and out of Manhattan. Going thru New Jersey heading to the upper west side, it correctly pointed me to the George Washington Bridge but just before the bridge entrance, it told me to turn right and head towards Fort Lee. I ignored it, crossed the bridge and headed down the Henry Hudson Parkway (route 9A). Instead of exiting on 79th (the hotel was on 81st), it tried to send me down to about 34th street (couldn't really tell because I got off at 79th). On the way out, the map where the HH Parkway hits the bridge were totally out of whack (these roads are at least 40 years old). It showed a 90 deg left turn where in reality there were ramps that veered left and right and at one point required a decision to go in one of three directions. The road signs were clear but who knows where the GPS would have taken me. Once in PA on westbound I-80, it showed 2 rest areas where none existed (or had ever existed). Good thing I was pretty familiar with this route. I wonder if the 2009 update has any of these issues fixed?

Re: USE an alternative fuel...become a federal felon... [larsb]

by ruking1 on Thu Jul 03 08:26:51 PDT 2008

The issue was appropriate/inappropriate bending to political pressures.......to price dislocations due to government meddling..... The other germane issue is because of the lack of specificity and removal of the ACTUAL bacteria vectors, salmonella can easily resurface. In fact, count on it.

it happened again!

by nippononly on Thu Feb 14 19:10:39 PST 2008

I am seriously jinxed, folks beware of me! I am driving back from that lovely town, Sacramento, today. I am headed west down highway 50, going 65 or so. This POS Civic, about 15 years old, comes speeding up and cuts me off in my lane. This thing is completely caved in at the right rear, and the bumper cover is half hanging loose. It's flapping in the breeze, bending way back, as it only appears to still be attached on the left side of the car. Well it takes me about one second to decide I don't want to be anywhere near this heap, but I am going to have to slow down to get out of the lane, as he has boxed me in. He is trying to get into the merge lane to exit, and has slowed down right in front of me as a result. Well, the couple of secs it would have taken me to get out of the lane were fateful indeed, as half the stupid cover ripped off and came straight for me. Well, there was nowhere to go, so it bounced under my front wheels and got stuck there. I dragged it about half a mile trying to get into the emergency lane to clear it, and just as I managed it the thing finally came loose and fell away to the left. However, this did not happen before it ripped a big chunk out of the plastic under-engine tray on my car, which connects to the inner wheel well skirt, which of course is now hanging loose at the bottom and rubbing on my left front tire every time I crank the wheel over for a right turn. :-( The missing chunk I could have lived with, but I know the rubbing is going to annoy me before too long. And I am so stupid: I should have gathered a plate number or something, but I was so busy trying to get over to the shoulder I never thought of it. :sick: I am SURE that car must have been totalled by insurance when that accident occurred, it looked bad. I wish it were law to haul all totalled cars straight to the recycling yard. Way too many of them get resurrected titles without ever being repaired, and this is the result. Sigh.

Re: C&R's latest comparison [colloquor]

by kdshapiro on Sun Jan 27 07:46:22 PST 2008

A well-designed and ergonomic center stack design, including the HVAC and audio controls, should be intuitive at first glance, not after hours of use or studying the owner's manual. Unfortunately, Honda is following in the footsteps of BMW I guess it comes down to what is intuitive for some is mind bending for others. I figured out i-drive in 30 seconds, while driving at 50 mph. So if you are saying Honda is intuitive I would agree with you. If you are saying Honda is exceedingly complex, I would disagree with you.

Last Report

by philmo on Mon Jul 23 13:51:52 PDT 2007

As I'm rolling through 11,750 miles this week on a 2007 Package #4 bought last December I don't think it, or I, qualify as "new" anymore. Nonethless, our most recent 2,750 mile, two week road trip is worth review. Generally, it's a fun car to drive and a real pleasure in cities and towns. On long stretches of interstate where the posted speed is 75 mph, not so much. Over 70 mph your mileage numbers are penalized by wind/drag as noted elswhere on this site. And the seating is troublesome after a 10 hours or so. On the days where we had lots of stops, sightseeing, activities, etc. it was no problem. But for the big-mileage days I was wishing for our Volvo seats. Using an 8gb iPod Nano connected with a $9 Radio Shack auxiliary cable we had plenty of new music. I've complained in other posts about audio quality in the "upgraded" system that is part of the #4 package and learned with many days in the car that tweaking the settings made a big difference depending on individual recordings. Our trip took us from Colorado to Oregon and back through Wyoming, Utah and Idaho. As you know, the west has been brutally hot the past few weeks. Big kudos for the climate control system which works well and cools the car down quickly. However, the big, black dashboard is a big, black negative acting as a heat-sink even when the AC is on. Next time you've parked out in the sun awhile and are back in the car hold your hand out over the dash: the heat will be radiating up from below your hand, not down from the window. Next accessory purchase: Prius-specific windshield sun screen. We got a 10k mile required oil change and service at a dealer in Bend, OR which resulted in quite a sloppy mess under the hood and with them reducing the tire pressure to spec which we promptly re-inflated to 42/40. One thing about driving all day and visiting friends and relatives with this car is that once you get there they then want you to drive everywhere for the novelty of riding in a hybrid and/or the sheer economy. But then there was the one 20-something hotel front desk guy in Boise, ID that said "what's a Prius"? It was great fun pulling up to river to fish and pulling out a fully assembled 9-foot fly rod while guides and clients had to re-assemble rigs broken down to fit into pickup trucks and shorter rides. But leather seats would have been preferred under a butt damp from wet-wading. The last night out found us in Rock Springs, WY very late where absolutely no motel rooms were available. A call east to Rawlins revealed only of $112 rooms at an "Econo"Lodge that we wouldn't have made it too until well past midnight. In the true spirit of a road trip I decided to make for an I-80 rest stop where I found a dozen or so other folks in the same predicament along with another dozen truckers who probably were regulars at this stop. Hey, it was safe, well-lighted and had a bathroom. The good news is that the Prius passed the "sleep-test" -- and with flying colors. Typically a night in the car is about waking up every hour or so to fidget and shift while taking a peek for first light. That night in Wyoming I overslept through sunrise and the starting engines of the departing motorists around me. Was I tired? Evidently. But being able to fold those front seats down flat surely helped. Arriving home with 2/3rds of a tank remaining the trip's fuel costs were $184. Fabulous. Best price: $2.88/gl with full service as is the rule in Oregon. Heading west with wife in the car, avg. 51.5 mpg. Returning east after flying her home in advance, avg. 53.5 mpg. No wife jokes, please ;-) She's already hating her new nickname, "Ms. 2mpg". That's it from me as I migrate toward the "Old Prius Owners -- Give Us Your Report" section. -Phil