retsujou

Drats! Well I would go for a sequential gearbox that can be shifted manually using flip paddles or a stick to shift up and down. Fully automatic is absolutely not an option for me, I like to have full control over my gearbox :P

I guess it is back to the drawing board then

dbd33

I have one of those on the gay/granny car. It's not like a proper gearbox.

iaink

Well, no, if you can live with flippy paddles or sequential shift thats virtually all the japanese options back on the table again. There are good ones and really bad ones (Im talking about chrysler again), so you need to test drive a few. The VW "DSG" is one of the better ones I understand.

Seriously though, when you are sitting or crawling slowly along the 401 in rush hour, not having a clutch might suddenly seems a wonderful advantage.

Steve_P

The 40 and 50 mpg figures are mine i.e. real world, not Transport Canada or Toyota figures.

iaink

Assuming thats the Element, you might well have one in the equally gay positive beetle too, only the VW one is one of the more seamless ones I understand.

iaink

I figured it was Steve. What at the official ones?

Dont shoot the messenger, every canadian review of a prius or civic hybrid or that other funky honda thing said the same thing, the real world fuel consumption was much worse that the TC estimates, especially in the winter.

Could just be that automotive journalists have heavy right feet at the best of times though?

dbd33

It's the Beetle that has one. It's a funny sort of a car, 5 cylinders, 2.5 litres, semi-automatic, peculiar. The Element has an auto with AWD and the Land Cruiser a stick shift with stump pulling 4WD.

retsujou

I shall breathe a sigh of relief then Even though that sounds rather opinionated, US brands are something I am going to avoid.

I have driven a VW with DSG now that I think about it and it was a good experience. The BMW M3 and M5 also have race, sequential gearbox options if I recall right. So does Mercedes on the AMG and large normal CLK's so I guess I should look into that.

I am also looking at Volvo now they seem quite nice cars.

iaink

Ive never been that enamoured of Volvos personally, they just lack something. Just blandness personified with few exceptions. But then maybe thats what you are going for...

Too much of the "glorified ford" thing going on. If I had to go for a ford owned execumobile, I would go for something a bit more inspiring like a jaguar instead, although I guess Jags no longer come under the Ford umbrella...

Having spent a bit of time working in Automotive, going to Detroit, I got the impression the only reason Ford bought Jaguar in the first place was so that the execs wouldnt have to drive god awful Lincolns to work. Seriously, back then the Ford executive lots were full of Jags and Range Rovers!

Steve_P

According to Transport Canada 5.7 L/100Kms or 49.56mpg city and highway.

Sorry not meaning to shoot the messenger. My mileage obviously drops in winter but it usually is around 37mpg in the city and about the same 50mpg on the highway.

Mrs_P has accused me of having a heavy right foot on numerous occasions, lets put it this way I will never be the last person away from a green light, most often I'll be first.

MarkG

So how well does a hybrid car work in the winter? I've often wondered about how well the batteries would deal with -40C temperatures and heating the car.

Steve_P

I've had absolutely no problems in the two years I've had mine.

It runs just like and other vehicle.

I frequent a Camry Hybrid forum and there has been no mention whatsoever of any winter difficulties in that regard.

The Prius has been around a lot longer using the same hybrid system and I've not heard of any major battery issues with that model either.

As for heating the car the majority of the heat comes from the cooling system for the gasoline engine as in any other vehicle.

iaink

The intangible in my mind about hybrids is how they will be when they are ten years old, not as new vehicles.

A side effect of that is its will be interesting to see how resale values on the early hybrids hold up.

I certainly wouldn't have any qualms about the reliability if leasing a new hybrid, and the depreciation would be a fixed factor. If I were buying for the long haul, to drive it into the ground, then long term reliability or the unknown factor of its value after 5 or ten years if I wanted to offload it might be a factor for me.

Steve_P

The only downside long term is the battery life, however Toyota has warranted them I believe for eight years.

They are expensive to replace right now but that cost is coming down as time passes.

Once more the Prius has been around since 1997 and it seems to be doing OK.

clynnog

Well there are limits.....next you're going to tell me you aspire to owning a Chevy Avalanche.