fxcomet

Firestone was bought out by Bridgestone several years ago, post exploder scandal. That probably goes a long way to explain why there's a new agreement.

The C5 corvettes were apparently recalled years ago for ignition switch issues but from everything I've read the "repair" didn't really fix them. I'm wondering if these will get recalled again? The problem involved the locking mechanism on the steering wheel and made it impossible to turn the wheel.

The Prius sold so well before 50 mpg because it was essentially the only game in town and because ICE mpg ratings hadn't caught up with them to the point they have now. It's now pretty common to find highway ratings above 40 mpg even in cars that aren't "penalty boxes".

That's what I thought. Thanks for the confirmation.

What tech options does it not have available? Adaptive cruise and ventilated seats are about the only ones I can think of. One of the reasons we bought the car had more to do with the content and quality than the fact that it was a hybrid. We've heated seats, nav, dual zone hvac, leather, electric lift gate, and a whole lot more. Granted, we may be the exception rather than the rule, but compared to the Prius, the C-Max is practically a luxury car.

The article mentioned the eco-boost option and that it "probably stood for the twin turbo V6". First I'd heard about that one. I thought it was the eco-boost 4?

I agree. The pricing nonsense applies to the Cadillac ELR as well, also in the mid $70's.

Peter over at Autoextremist is all but playing taps for GM. He's being a bit over the top as usual, but he often has a pretty good finger on the pulse over there. But is this any different from Ford's Explorer tire debacle or Toyota "hidden acceleration"? I suppose time will tell.

5.0 not 50?

Time for another bail out. Or perhaps just someone to post bail.

The point I was trying to make was concerning my miserable experience with the Nav system specifically. I'm fully aware there's more to it than this. It's darn frustrating when my 08 Edge nav worked perfectly and the CMax has been miserable. Peter may not have all of his facts straight but the fact that it has been damaging to Ford's quality rep cannot be disputed. I'd like to see the stats on cars returned under the lemon law due to this. I know specifically of two in my area, one CMax and one Focus.

Well, Gee Richaard, I guess you told me. BTW, tell Chrysler the same thing given that they used an existing platform for their navigation. Then I suppose Chrysler doesn't have vents and wires and stuff behind the dash to navigate...

The system on my Chrysler 300 has been flawless. User friendly, responsive and completely glitch free. On the other hand, my CMax has been to the dealer multiple times for "updates", "reflashes", blah blah blah and performs no better than when we bought it. The last straw was when I found my self yelling at the thing when it wouldn't recognize my voice command and nearly put my fist through the screen. Peter's rant was spot on. Ford could have utilized existent, proven technology from Garman, et al but went with Microsoft and the customers ended up being the beta testers. They deserve every ding they received. Less you think I'm a "hater", I still love our CMax and have found no other hybrid on the market that comes anywhere close to it in terms of refinement and quality. Just don't ask me to use the navigation/MFT.

One word about Sync and their navigation system. After hearing all the cries of woe about how dreadful it is, I had more than a little apprehension. Turns out that it's just a matter of a little patience to learn the thing. Is it complicated? Well, yes. But in a real way, that's hafl the fun. I'm learning something new every day about it. I tried the voice command out for the first time yesterday and it performed better than I expected, something we never even tried on our 08 Edge and we had it four years. I'm sure others have experiences that differ from mine, but I just can't understand what all the hub-bub was/is about. I do know Ford has had a year or two to tweek the thing, so perhaps I'm just a beneficiary of lessons learned by the early adopters. The steering is quick. It feels quicker than my 300C, with road feel about the same. Handling really is excellent for a tall wagon. Had no trouble keeping up with interstate traffic on the way home in it yesterday.

After having gone Fordless since selling my 04 Ranger last year (I don't count my 56 Customline since it isn't a dayly driver), we bought a new C-Max Hybrid this week. Can't tell you how thrilled we are with this thing, "real world fuel economy" naysayers aside. It's amazingly solid and quiet and has features I didn't think could be had on a so called economy car. We're getting close to 40 mpg with mostly highway miles so far and I fully expect that will get better. But to be honest, even if it stays at this level, I'd still recommend the car. It is THAT nice and worth every dollar. The mrs loves the driving position and the ambient lighting. I love how incredibly quiet this thing goes about its business.

My son's business reduced it's employees to under the 50 threshold to avoid the hassle. I guess my point is, a lot of folk may think its a good idea until it costs them their job.

A month ago my son was hired by a small printing firm to work in their t-shirt operation. Has extensive experience running screen printing, vinyl printing, etc. He was told the company had plans to expand their operation, were bidding several large contracts and his job would be secure for the foreseeable future. Last Friday he received word that he and several other employees would be laid off as the company had re-thought its plans after the election. Seems they're not going to expand afterall and the word he received was the added expenses that the company would incur due to the mandate forced them to forego the expansion and forced the layoffs. My point is regardless of which side of the coin you come down on concerning Obamacare, it is going to affect a lot of people and not necessarily in a good way.

This one's gonna hurt. http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/11/02/epa-finds-hyundai-kia-overstated-gas-mileage/?intcmp=features

If the administration can't (won't?) protect our own diplomats and provide assistance for our own troops when they call for it, how exactly are we average citizen's to feel safe?

Yea, and Tata has a great "reputation" as a world class engine builder? If I were in the market for a Jaguar (and yes, I do admit to lusting after the XJ and the XK), I'd have to think long and hard about buying a car with a powerplant designed by the same folks that built the Tata.

Completely agree. The geriatric Toyota faithful will flock to it like ducks to water, though.

Don't forget this one. http://www.carevos.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2012-hyundai-Azera-Front-560x373.jpg

The omission of Fiat, Lancia, and anything British Leyland from that list makes it obvious that the writer either is T-Stag or has a serious blindspot for the truth. Maybe both.

I see its also missing the prototype's dual opening exhaust tips too. I was really hoping those might make it to production as they were so unique.

The Elantra appears nice but the proof is after the miles begin to pile up. BTW, the latest on my sonata is a check engine light, a continued buggy tire pressure warning system and front end noise. The base warranty has now expired (64K) and I just can't wait to see how my friendly neighborhood hyundai dealer is gonna stick it to me for out of warranty repairs. :gang: