The CarGurus Blog

Inspired by Honda’s newest advertising campaign, I have a theory I’d like your help proving:

Everybody knows somebody who is a bad driver.

The person I know is my grandpa. More on that, and the laughable irony behind it, later.

First, I have to wonder why people never admit to being the bad drivers. Folks are sure quick to point out if they live with one. Or are related to one. Or shared the road with one on the drive to work this morning.

Whether they admit it or not, bad drivers abound. Now there’s news that a scientific reason might be able to explain their existence. Researchers at the University of California, Irvine, say they might have discovered a gene that contributes to people driving like morons (not their exact term).

This might seem like an opportunity to crack a joke, and say that we’ve always known what gene creates bad drivers: the same gene that creates females. But I’ll never stoop to the level of that joke. Especially since, in my own family, my wife has never run her car into a stationary pole. Like I have.

So perhaps you should cut the bad driver in your life some slack. He may have a genetic disability that makes it harder for him to remember basic driving rules, such as applying the brakes when the light turns yellow. Or not colliding with poles.

Instead of yelling at these people and calling them names we’d never want our children to repeat, maybe we should open special driving schools for them and give them special (extra wide) driving lanes with 20 mile-per-hour speed limits.

We could even require genetic testing before driver’s licenses are issued. When people test positive, they could get a special placard to hang on their rear-view mirrors. This would give them access to the special lanes and make them feel important, while the rest of us benefit from having the driving outcasts separated from their driving superiors.

My grandpa would definitely get a placard. I would rank him as the worst/scariest driver I’ve ever ridden with. He doesn’t think he’s doing anything wrong when his tires scrape the curb at 40 miles an hour.

And that laughable irony I mentioned? He drives for a living. A school bus. And he has a commendable safety record.

Maybe, and thankfully, the gene turns off when the safety of kids is at stake.

Tell us about the worst driver you know. If it’s you, please speak up! And feel free to keep things anonymous.

-tgriffith

Car Industry News, Car Minded, Car Safety, Exotic Cars, General Chat

It snowed today where I live. Not a lot, and by evening there was no snow on the ground, but it was enough to get me thinking about whether or not my cars are ready for winter (which apparently has arrived, right Colorado?).

We bought a car this summer that has beautiful 18″ chrome rims, and the first thing I thought when I saw the snowflakes this morning was how quickly I could get those babies stored as far away from road salts as possible. I have a firm “no pitting” rule at my house!

I’ll definitely be making some preparations as winter descends. I advise you to do the same:

Whip out your snow wheels now and wrap ‘em with the best snow tires you can afford. Naturally, there are many choices in snow tires: studded (if your state law allows), studless, and my favorite, Norwegian. I tend to prefer a brand like Nokian, since those Norwegians tend to know a thing or two about winter driving.

Speaking of tires, keep an eye on your tire pressure, too. It tends to drop as temperatures dip below freezing.

It’s also a good time to invest in some heavy duty all-weather rubber floor mats (unless you own a Toyota). Heck, even if you do have a Toyota, keeping your carpets clean and dry might be worth the risk of uncontrollable acceleration. Probably not, but your call, of course.

Then there’s the rest of the typical winter stuff:

• Get your battery checked. This will help you avoid having to asking a stranger for jumper cables in a dark and scary mall parking garage.
• Add wiper fluid.
• Get your antifreeze checked.
• Make sure yours isn’t one of those cars driving around with one headlight out.

I know, I sound like your dad, but I care about you, so I’m going to keep going.

It’s also important to pick up some winter wiper blades. A full tank of fluid isn’t going to help if your wipers just smear it all into the mud already caked on your windshield. Once that happens you’ll be driving with your head out the window, and let me tell you, snow coming at your face at 40 mph really stings the eyes.

You should also take the time to wax your car one last time before spring. Putting down a protective layer will help spare your paint from the horrors of road-sanding trucks.

As winter sets in and temperatures plummet, even starting your car’s engine can be a challenge. Park in a garage if you can, or try an engine block heater if you live somewhere really cold. And don’t forget to switch to a lighter weight oil (consult your owner’s manual) or even a synthetic, since it tends to stay liquid in colder temps.

Finally, I’m going to mention something I would think everyone knows, but apparently they don’t. All-wheel drive or four-wheel drive will help you get going in snow and ice. It will not help you stop.

Tell that to the moron in the Jeep who gets stuck in a ditch on the highway. I promise you’ll see him this winter.

Do you have any special winter preparation or driving tips to share?

-tgriffith

Car Accessories, Car Minded, Car Safety, General Chat

Another one has crashed. Yup, one of the world’s fastest, most exclusive sports cars, the Koenigsegg CCX, bit the dust, this time driven by a New York dealer who apparently was racing a Porsche 911 GT2, hit a guardrail, and damaged the Porsche as well. No word yet on what the owner of the car had to say.

There are only 10 Koenigsegg CCXs in North America out of 25 produced for the world. The price I see most frequently quoted is $545,568. There have been at least three crashes now, as I count them. Besides this one, Norwegian millionaire Tommy Sharif gave us a fabulous example of how not to drive a high-powered car in the video below.

Mr. Sharif returned the car, says MotorAuthority, and it was then sold to another owner who “ended up crashing the car within 18 hours of taking delivery”—into a garbage truck, no less. Earlier, in May 2007, a Koenigsegg engineer put the biofuel-powered CCXR into a ditch and really messed up the world’s first green supercar.

Clearly, the car is too hot to handle, at least for most mortals, and that’s a shame, because it is truly state-of-the-art in design and performance. The standard-bearer CCX, for instance, will do 0-100 km/h (0-62 mp/h) in 3.2 seconds, 0-300-0 km/h in 29.2 seconds. Its top speed is 395+ km/h (245+ mph), and it will come to a stop from 100 km/h in 32 meters. Incredible. These figures are from the factory website, which has lots of interesting info and some history.

And yes, Koenigsegg is the same group that wants to buy Saab from GM. Yesterday the European Investment Bank approved a €400 million loan, with possibly more loans to come from the Swedish government, thus bringing the deal close to fruition. Let’s hope a little of this money can be used for better owner-driver education programs.

Koenigsegg has shown that it can go toe-to-toe with Lamborghini, Ferrari, et al. Is there some reason why drivers keep crashing its cars?

—jgoods

Car Industry News, Car Minded, Car Safety, Exotic Cars, Foreign Cars, General Chat

Days like yesterday remind me just how intertwined our cars are with daily life.

First, as I was making my way down a winding and perilous dirt road, the brake light illuminated on my Suzuki’s dash. That’s never a welcome sight, especially when I can look over the edge of the road and see the rooftops of houses. Needless to say, I ended up at the brake repair shop instead of the coffee shop.

My local brake place is an independent shop I’ve used many times over the years. They are always honest and charge fair prices. As I waited for my car, I pulled out a copy of Car and Driver and read a head to head test of a Ferrari California against a Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG. Good reading.

Before I could find another article to read, the brake guy informed me that the fluid was a little low, but the system otherwise checked out A-OK. The tab? Nothing. Had I gone to the dealer I know I would have been out at least $65 for that diagnosis and would probably still be trying to prove to them that I don’t need new rotors.

When I got home (with my coffee, finally) I read about an iPhone app that can remotely start your car and a car that is controlled by an iPhone. Then I saw this blog about a renewed interest in the Right to Repair Act. That’s when my day of car repair fun came full circle.

We all know that the days of diagnosing our own engine problems are long gone. Even changing spark plugs is a job for a NASA engineer. So when it’s time for maintenance or repairs, dealers are often the only ones who have the info needed to decipher the diagnostic codes our cars spit out.

I’ve said before that those codes should be made available to all mechanics (even to the general public), so schmucks like me don’t get bent over when we need our cars fixed.

The people at righttorepair.org are making a push to get a bill through Congress that forces manufacturers to release proprietary diagnostic codes to the general public. The full press release is here, but the main point is this:

Cars, trucks, motorcycles and all other vehicles are becoming increasingly complex with the addition of more computer technology. Without Right to Repair, millions of vehicle owners will be forced back to the dealership for service because they have been denied access to non-proprietary information and computer codes from the manufacturers. Rural communities where there is no dealership in the area are particularly vulnerable and could be forced to tow their vehicles longer distances, adding significant cost to the repair.

Today, I was lucky that everything was okay and no dealer-specific repairs were needed on my car.

Tomorrow, it’s my hope that diagnosing a car’s troubles will be as close as my iPhone. Surely someday, there will be an app for that, too.

If diagnostic codes were available, would you use them to try and fix your own car before going to a mechanic?

-tgriffith

Car Accessories, Car Industry News, Car Magazines, Car Minded, Car Parts, Car Safety, Domestic Cars, Foreign Cars, General Chat

Some of you are looking forward to a three-day weekend. Others deserve to be in jail, among them some well-known car people.

Foremost of these is J.C. France, grandson of Bill France, founder of NASCAR. J.C. was allegedly racing with his half-brother Russell Van Richmond on the streets of Daytona Beach. The cops charged him with DUI and cocaine possession. Autoweek provided some details:

Van Richmond was driving a Porsche Cayenne, and France was driving a green 2007 Lamborghini. Van Richmond also was charged with DUI, possession of cocaine and possession of a controlled substance, hydrocodone. The newspaper reported that Van Richmond additionally was charged with threatening an officer after telling her, “I want your commander now. I am a France. Do you know what that means? We own this city.”

Autoweek referred to these clowns as “NASCAR’s royal family.” Well, how are we supposed to take that appellation? That they deserve utmost respect? That, as Robespierre suggested, we should prepare to cut their French heads off? The fact that NASCAR has become a joke to many of us leads me to wonder why police released J.C. on only a $4,500 bond. Maybe the family does own the town.

On a lighter note, the Michelin Man, aka “Bibendum,” will no longer be the Mr. Nice Guy we’ve grown to love. The company is spending some $20 million on an ad campaign to make him into some kind of superhero, a tough guy whom they hope will provide better traction for the brand.

In the [new] ads, the Michelin Man pulls tires from of his own midsection [sic] and hurls them, either at drivers who use them to replace their presumably inferior tires or at a frightened, cowering gas pump.

On a more somber note, GM is reportedly close to a deal to sell Hummer to a Chinese heavy-equipment manufacturer (with no car-building experience) for a measly $150 million. They were trying for $500 million, but had no takers. The deal faces all kinds of regulatory hurdles, besides being high-risk for the buyers. Sales of Hummer have fallen 63 percent this year (January-September).

GM’s Saab deal is also supposed to close this month. So was the Saturn sale to Penske. Perhaps October is not GM’s month. One recalls the October revolution that brought the Bolsheviks to power.

Guns and cars go together like ice cream and cones. So assumes the Illinois Supreme Court, which just ruled that gun owners can carry weapons in car storage compartments designed for phones, CDs, and sunglasses—you know, the center consoles, as pictured. The Court said that

these compartments can be defined as “cases” in terms of gun laws, which require a gun to be in a case when transported in a car.

In case you’re wondering, the Court’s next case will decide whether automatic weapons can be stowed in the spare tire “case.”

Last but not least is the case of the Toyota floor mats, which we reviewed last month. The company is recalling 3.8 million trucks and cars, because the floor mats can slide under the accelerator and cause it to, well, accelerate. Now, Toyota is telling its dealers to use plastic zip-ties to secure the loose mats. This from the company that transformed the world of automotive production? Zip-ties, for Pete’s sake!

We want to hear your comments on the latest NASCAR scandal: Is the France dynasty finally ending?

—jgoods

Auto Racing, Car Industry News, Car Minded, Car Parts, Car Safety, Domestic Cars, Foreign Cars, General Chat

Next week, Toyota will issue the biggest U.S. recall in its history.

For floormats.

Not engine problems, not transmission failures… but floormats that don’t quite fit just right.

Granted, those floormats can interfere with the accelerator pedal and cause uncontrolled pedal-to-the-metal acceleration, but still the flaw is in the floormat.

As far as serious issues go, this one’s about as minor as it gets. The fix? Take out the driver’s side floormat. I’m guessing there won’t be a flood of appointments at Toyota service departments on this one.

Let’s compare Toyota’s latest recall with some other recalls this year:

In April, GM recalled 1.5 million vehicles because of the possibility of engine fires.

In February, Chrysler recalled 13,350 minivans for risk of fire in an electrical circuit.

Also in February, Ford recalled over 11,000 2009 Rangers because the wheels could fall off.

Toyota had some bad floormats.

If anyone questions Toyota’s quality these days, I’m thinking a quick look at this should be convincing enough to prove that the company is still building the most reliable cars on the road.

The models affected are:

2007-2010 Camry
2005-2010 Avalon
2004-2009 Prius
2005-2010 Tacoma
2007-2010 Tundra
2007-2010 ES 350
2006-2010 IS 250 and IS350

Now, in all seriousness, should you ever encounter a stuck accelerator pedal, Toyota provided some suggestions on what to do:

First, if it is possible and safe to do so, pull back the floor mat and dislodge it from the accelerator pedal; then pull over and stop the vehicle.

If the floor mat cannot be dislodged, then firmly and steadily step on the brake pedal with both feet. Do NOT pump the brake pedal repeatedly as this will increase the effort required to slow the vehicle.

Shift the transmission gear selector to the Neutral (N) position and use the brakes to make a controlled stop at the side of the road and turn off the engine.

What company do you think builds the most reliable cars? If you own a Toyota vehicle that’s part of the recall, have you ever experienced a stuck accelerator?

-tgriffith

Car Industry News, Car Minded, Car Safety, Domestic Cars, Foreign Cars, General Chat, Trucks & SUVs

I live in Washington state, which is one of many states to ban making phone calls on handheld devices while driving. No one actually pays attention to the ban, as evidenced by my recent count of six cars in a row with drivers chatting it up with phones glued to their ears.

An easy way around that ban is to send a quick text rather than having an entire conversation. Texting is faster and can be done at a red light in the time it takes for it to turn green, leaving time to devote the required attention to driving while still meeting my communication needs.

Now though, a group of 11 automakers has formed the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (AMM) to push for an all-out ban on texting while behind the wheel.

I’m not going to say that I think texting while driving is completely safe… it’s far from safe when the car is moving. But I do believe there’s a time and a place where it’s OK, such as while stopped at a red light. In those few moments when I have nothing else to do, I don’t want anyone telling me I can’t send a note to my wife telling her I’m x-ited 2 C her 2 nite.

Then there’s this little contradictory gem: Some states offer a service sending text message updates on traffic and weather conditions. Will that be outlawed too? Reading a text message is probably more dangerous than sending one, as seasoned text pros can compose messages without even looking at their phones.

Texting while driving is often compared to drinking and driving, which I think is absurd since texting can done responsibly. (I’ve never known anyone who could be drunk only at red lights.) Drunk driving is a serious and dangerous offense… texting doesn’t have to be any more involved than changing the radio station or adjusting the iPod (uh-oh… watch iPod bans come next).

If I want to send and read texts when I feel it is safe to do so, I want that right. The biggest consequence I see is getting honked at for being a moment late in realizing the light turned green, and that’s a risk I’m willing to take.

What are your views on texting while driving? Should it be outlawed to text while behind the wheel?

-tgriffith

Car Industry News, Car Minded, Car Politics, Car Safety, General Chat

Sometimes I just wake up in the morning full of ideas and wisdom.

Of course, most mornings I find myself in a blurry fog while doing things like accidentally pouring cough syrup instead of creamer into my coffee. Lucky for me, and the entire auto world, today wasn’t one of those mornings.

Today I woke up with brilliant ideas swirling in my head about how to build cars more parent-friendly. I was equally delighted when I saw that Ford would be hosting a chat with marketing manager Amy Marentic about automotive technologies important to moms.

I’ll tell you what Ford, you don’t even need to have that chat. You just need to read this; because this is what all parents, not just moms, need in their cars:

Invisible force fields separating all seating positions.

Any parent will tell you that kids fighting in the car is an instant mood changer. I don’t care if you’re driving with your freshly bathed children to meet the pope on Easter morning while listening to The Wheels on the Bus, if one kid reaches over and pinches the other, suddenly your fuse explodes and you’re screaming like Glenn Beck discovering his kids are democrats.

All parents know: kids touching each other equals fights. Automakers: figure out how to make it impossible for kids to touch each other. Parents will buy your cars.

Sound deadening glass separators

This would be kind of like what you see in a limo. Even though the force fields are installed in the back seats already, we all know a kid determined to pinch his brother will break through all known technology. When this happens, a parent should be able to push a button (not unlike closing a sunroof) and become encased in a soundproof cockpit, along with the sounds of soothing jazz and the scent of sizzling bacon. Because bacon makes everything better.

Built-in customizable booster seats that self clean

This is so obvious I shouldn’t even have to mention it. Why do parents still have to mess with infant seats that never fit correctly then move on to booster seats that always sit too far to one side and cover up the seat belt attachment? If an automaker developed a seat that was:

• Comfortable and safe for the kids
• Able to adapt to infants, toddlers and big kids
• Could be removed when no longer needed
• Resistant to crumbs

Every parent in the country would be knocking on dealer doors to get one.

Parents don’t need much in their cars. All they need is a safe place for the kids to sit and a way to keep kids from fighting. That’s it. DVD players, video games, refrigerators… those are all just modern conveniences getting in the way of our commute while training kids to believe that they must watch TV at all times while always being within reach of a cold drink.

That shouldn’t be expected until marriage.

What parent-friendly features would you like to see in a car?

-tgriffith

Car Accessories, Car Minded, Car Safety, General Chat

CarGurus survey finds more than half (52%) of respondents admit they have used a cell phone to text or email while driving in the last 12 months.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., August 24, 2009 — CarGurus®, a leading online automotive community, today announced the results of its latest survey of 2,881 online automotive consumers worldwide. More than half of respondents (52%) said they have used a cell phone to read/write email or text while driving in the last 12 months.

According to a July 2009 Virginia Tech Transportation Institute study, truck drivers face a 23 times greater risk of a crash or near crash while texting than when not doing so. Given the known risks of texting and reading email while driving, it seems surprising that a majority of consumers appear to be doing exactly that.

Just last month, the Senate proposed a bill (the ALERT ACT), which would ban truck and car drivers from texting or emailing while driving. Fourteen states already have laws barring texting while driving.

“Most consumers would agree that texting and emailing while you drive is dangerous. I was surprised to see that the majority of respondents admitted to distracting themselves from driving,” remarked Langley Steinert, CEO of CarGurus. “Clearly this is not a small problem, but rather a widespread trend. It’s encouraging to see that Congress is moving to enact laws to curb this growing problem.”

Survey Results

Across the CarGurus Network, 2,881 respondents answered the question:

Have you read/written an email or texted using your cell phone while driving in the last 12 months? (Total Votes = 2,881)
Yes	52%
No	48%

About CarGurus LLC
Located in Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA, CarGurus LLC is a leading online automotive community founded by Langley Steinert, formerly Chairman/co-founder of TripAdvisor LLC, the 3rd largest online travel site in the world. CarGurus’ founders, board, and investors bring a wealth of experience from such leading web companies as TripAdvisor, eBay, Expedia, and Yahoo. For more information about CarGurus, visit us at www.cargurus.com.

CONTACT: Steve Halloran, Editor, CarGurus LLC
617-354-0068, x12
press@cargurus.com

Car Minded, Car Politics, Car Safety, CarGurus Features and Updates, General Chat

Imagine: You’re working at your desk one morning in the office and suddenly get attacked by a Buick. How many times have we read that story? Some old fart hits the gas instead of the brake and roars into your space, like a predatory tank. Here’s another instance from Michigan, and somehow they always seem to involve Buicks.

The reason is that, as we all know, many old people drive Buicks, and they do so because they feel safe in them. With 4,000-plus pounds of steel wrapped around you, a person can barge in almost anywhere in full safety and comfort. Buicks have had the safety/comfort/older buyer segment locked up for as long as I can remember—and that’s a long time. They’re like Volvos used to be, only more so. Note how long it took Volvo to change its image.

Now Buick is making a misguided attempt to attract younger buyers, as my ol’ buddy tgriffith reported. There are three things wrong with his post. One, he endorses GM’s dumb strategy of sucking up to the “youth crowd,” when in fact the company should be actively pursuing the “elderly crowd,” both because they are already well-positioned there and because the elders/boomers are growing rapidly in numbers. GM will spend lots of our tax dollars in a futile effort to achieve this market shift.

Two, with the insolence of youth, he puts down Buick drivers as “old people with blue hair and a pair of knuckles poking up over the steering wheel.” Or “Florida retirees driving with their left turn signals flashing on the way to a 3 p.m. dinner at the buffet.” In my next post look for an image of a drunken 32-year-old, weaving down a major artery at 3:00 a.m. with music blaring as he talks on his cell phone. Hah-hah-hah.

Three, my blogging buddy seems to think that the giant-clam Enclave or the tiny Aveo or the MINI Crossman (yes, the MINI Crossman) may be a path to crossover success for Buick. Down this road madness lies: See point one, above.

The fact that old people are sometimes dangerous drivers is a problem everyone needs to face, and that’s the real issue behind all this Buick BS. There should be mandatory re-licensing for drivers age 70 and over in all states, not just in the relatively few that now require it. Some of these people are indeed a menace, and I’ll bet most of them know it. Get them off the road, and stop stereotyping old people.

Tell us your Buick story: Did your father have one? Did your mother crash one? Anything else?

—jgoods

Car Industry News, Car Minded, Car Safety, Domestic Cars, General Chat