Study: Consumer Reports: Car buyers will pay for higher fuel economy, won’t compromise safety

Filed under: Car Buying, Etc., Safety

Toyota Prius models at a dealership

According to a survey conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center, new car buyers are factoring fuel economy as a larger concern in their purchases. That’s no real surprise given that prices at the pump remain high, but the study also revealed that those same consumers are unwilling to sacrifice safety just to net a few additional miles per gallon.

The research revealed that 62 percent of buyers say they are planning to buy a vehicle with much better or significantly better fuel economy than their current ride. On average, that translates to fuel economy of 29 mpg or better. Surprisingly enough, 10 percent of those questioned said that they expected 40 mpg or better from their next purchase. That means that buyers will need to be willing to make all sorts of concessions, including making compromises on purchase price, vehicle size and the number of options.

One factor those surveyed evidently won’t give up on, however, is safety. Only 11 percent of the total respondents said they would be willing to compromise safety for greater fuel economy. Read the complete summary over at Consumer Reports.

Consumer Reports: Car buyers will pay for higher fuel economy, won’t compromise safety originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 26 May 2011 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Continue reading “Study: Consumer Reports: Car buyers will pay for higher fuel economy, won’t compromise safety”

Close games lead to higher motorist fatalities

Filed under: Safety

Geo Metro at USC-UCLA football game

For die-hard sports fans, a home-team win can make the whole week better. But according to a study by researchers at North Carolina State University and the University of South Carolina, winning can also be deadly-at least for motorists.

The schools focused on fatal accident rates the cities involved in 271 significant (i.e. playoff, rivalry, etc.) pro and college football and basketball games from 2001 to 2008. Fans were then asked to rank close games, and the results were compared against National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data for those game days. The results were startling; in areas where the winning team team won a close game and had a high number of fans on site (whether at the actual game venue or in the team’s hometown if it was playing on the road), road fatalities increase significantly.

The results don’t show that those involved in these accidents actually watch the games, but they illustrate a pattern of more aggressive road behavior following close games. In fact, prior studies found that fans’ testosterone levels of fans increase with a close win, while the losing team sees no rise. The research shows that alcohol also plays a factor, which comes as no surprise. It’s interesting to note, however, that while some fans on both sides are obviously to partake in a drink (or several) while watching the game, the cities of losing teams didn’t show an increase in fatalities.

The moral of the study might be to stay off the road after your team wins.

[Source: USA Today | Image: Maveric2003/Flickr via CC 2.0]

Close games lead to higher motorist fatalities originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 30 Apr 2011 12:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Continue reading “Close games lead to higher motorist fatalities”

Detroit 2011: Toyota Prius C Concept is higher efficiency in a smaller package

Filed under: Concept Cars, Detroit Auto Show, Hybrid, Hatchback, Toyota

Toyota Prius C Concept

Toyota Prius C Concept – Click above for high-res image gallery

The Toyota Prius V may be the newest production-ready addition to the automaker’s hybrid line, but the family of Prius vehicles will continue to grow in the coming years. Toyota gave us a preview of what to expect by showing the Prius C Concept at the Detroit Auto Show – a car that will come to life in the first half of 2012. Toyota promises that it will be the most fuel-efficient hybrid (that doesn’t need a plug) and will be the most “value-oriented hybrid” in the United States. You’ve been warned, Honda Insight.

It might look like a cartoon frog from certain angles, but what strikes us as odd is that the smaller C Concept keeps the Prius’ five-door design. We were originally tipped to believe this model would be a coupe or hatchback, but even so, we aren’t too put off by this five-door concept. It’s pretty cute, and once its concept-spec lines are toned down for actual production, we’re sure it’ll fit right in with the rest of the Prius clan.

Click past the jump for Toyota’s official words about the Prius C Concept and see it for yourself in the high-res gallery below.

Gallery: Toyota Prius C Concept: Detroit 2011

Toyota Prius C ConceptToyota Prius C ConceptToyota Prius C Concept

Gallery: Toyota Prius C Concept

Toyota Prius C ConceptToyota Prius C ConceptToyota Prius C ConceptToyota Prius C ConceptToyota Prius C Concept

Live photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

[Source: Toyota]

Continue reading Detroit 2011: Toyota Prius C Concept is higher efficiency in a smaller package

Detroit 2011: Toyota Prius C Concept is higher efficiency in a smaller package originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Continue reading “Detroit 2011: Toyota Prius C Concept is higher efficiency in a smaller package”

Report: Volvo to hire 200 in Sweden in expectation of higher demand

Filed under: Europe, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Volvo

2011 Volvo S60 lineup

2011 Volvo S60 T6 AWD – Click above for high-res image gallery

When the dust settles on 2010, Volvo anticipates global sales of about 380,000 units. That’s probably less than Volvo executives (and the new owners at Zhejiang Geely) were hoping for, but a global slump in auto sales is at least partly to blame. Fortunately, many industry analysts are expecting increased demand for autos in 2011, and Volvo apparently feels that the growing appetite for new vehicles will result in more customers at the local Volvo dealer.

Bloomberg reports that the Swedish automaker is hiring an additional 200 workers to increase capacity at the company’s Gothenburg plant. The move will help Volvo increase production from 48 vehicles per hour to 52. That doesn’t sound like a huge bump, but over the course of 365, days four vehicles per hour adds up to thousands of additional vehicles. Volvo will reportedly begin hiring soon, with hopes of filling all 200 positions by March.

Gallery: 2011 Volvo S60: First Drive

2011 Volvo S602011 Volvo S602011 Volvo S602011 Volvo S602011 Volvo S60

Photos copyright (C)2010 Chris Paukert / AOL

[Source: Bloomberg]

Report: Volvo to hire 200 in Sweden in expectation of higher demand originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Continue reading “Report: Volvo to hire 200 in Sweden in expectation of higher demand”

Democrats and Republicans agree on higher gas taxes, just not in public all the time

Filed under: Government/Legal

Senator Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles

Senator Alan Simpson (left) and Erskine Bowles (right), Co-Chairman of the Deficit Reduction Commission

There is a sport in Washington D.C. that comes around like deer season every year: the gas tax debate. And stepping into the clearing this week with brown overcoats and deer antler hats are some former legislators and government officials – none of whom have to run for office – who are recommending a 15-cent additional federal gas tax starting in 2013 to help trim the federal budget deficit.

This measure has about as much chance of getting through the new Congress as a proclamation that would make Earth Day a national bank holiday. Still, given the fact that the Feds have laid a claim to my nine-year old son’s unborn children’s piggybanks, it’s worth a few minutes to air out the subject.

The co-chairman of the bipartisan deficit reduction commission, former Clinton Administration official Erskine Bowles and former Republican Senator Alan Simpson, have called for a sweeping set of reforms in the way of taxes, spending cuts and elimination of a myriad of tax credits and deductions to which we have grown accustomed – mortgage interest for one.
The 15-cent per gallon hike in Federal gas taxes is paltry by European standards, but would be used specifically for transportation infrastructure improvement: roads, bridges, etc.

Continue reading…

Continue reading Democrats and Republicans agree on higher gas taxes, just not in public all the time

Democrats and Republicans agree on higher gas taxes, just not in public all the time originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Continue reading “Democrats and Republicans agree on higher gas taxes, just not in public all the time”