comfortable hwy cruiser/ fuel miser needed

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Chevy Cruze
47 mpg highway.
Drove one as a loaner a few weeks ago
It was getting 40 mpg at 75 mph and 50 mpg at 60 mph.
No big expensive batteries.
No need to charge it on EXPENSIVE electricity.

Oh and if he is worried about snow get snow tires.

If he still wants awd. He can get a Subaru impreza.
 
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in the econobox segment, Chevy Cruze is the quietest, at least the first gen was. And if he gets the eco version with a 6 spd, he can expect 40s as far as mpg goes and the 6 spd tranny should provide some entertainment.


And yeah, trading a Challenger R/T for a Camry
crackmeup2.gif
,
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex
My 1996 Mustang 4.6 5-speed with 2.73 gears got consistent 24-25 mpg on the highway.
When I put in 3.73's, it dropped to 21-22 mpg.

It does JUST FINE in snow, thank you very much.


the snow isn't the total problem, there's also the exposure to road salt, and it's ensuing cancer(ie:rust) creation, and the increased possibility of the other idiots on the road slamming into you b/c of the lac of traction.

he's held on that mustang all these years,(BONE stock, still has the factory tires) with several hair-brained plans for it... he has the IRS(and the bilsteins from all 4 corners) from an 03 cobra.
still formulating what to do to hop up the engine. (2v 4.6)
even considered several different engine swaps...(Hemi?)

and as someone else pointed out, yes,in general a 2015 Chally R/T is nothing special.
This one is a base Model Super Track Pack Car.
Cloth Seats, Most basic stereo/climate control they used, traction control off really is OFF, Bigger brakes(i think), and 20" Forged Rims with Eagle F1"Supercar" 2 season tires. might be different rear end gearing too but IDK for sure.
 
Originally Posted By: KrisZ
in the econobox segment, Chevy Cruze is the quietest, at least the first gen was. And if he gets the eco version with a 6 spd, he can expect 40s as far as mpg goes and the 6 spd tranny should provide some entertainment.


And yeah, trading a Challenger R/T for a Camry
crackmeup2.gif
,


last week he was "close" to trading it for a Focus ST....
 
If he is well off, can afford the vehicle by cash payments, I'd look at the midsize sedans that have hybrid systems. Doesn't really matter which one, as any would be a huge improvement over what he would currently have - it's a matter of which is most comfortable to him.

An e class diesel is another option if dealer support is nearby. A Cruze diesel or Eco is another good, low cost option if it fits him. They're surprisingly big, at least for the driver.

A Toyota Highlander/Lexus rx hybrid is another choice that is decent. Will still do better than the current stable, be bigger and somewhat more utilitarian, a decent compromise.

But with the low mileage Durango, I'd probably try to get a feeling for value, and then decide if it's worth it to sell/trade... It may not have held value well, in which case, the value with 100k might be similar to the value with 45k (within a few $k), in which case it may be smarter just to drive it a year or two.
 
Originally Posted By: Iowegian
Chevy Cruze
47 mpg highway.
Drove one as a loaner a few weeks ago
It was getting 40 mpg at 75 mph and 50 mpg at 60 mph.
No big expensive batteries.
No need to charge it on EXPENSIVE electricity.

Oh and if he is worried about snow get snow tires.

If he still wants awd. He can get a Subaru impreza.


It takes around 200Wh of electricity to drive a mile. Please define how you can claim electricity to be expensive, given that most of the country pays less than $0.15/kWh delivered??
 
Originally Posted By: FirstNissan
Honestly, if it were me, I'd sell all three vehicles, use the money to buy a low mileage/new camry or accord and call it a day. Fuel + repair costs + insurance on 3 cars must be pricey. He might as well get a reliable sedan and focus on his new job.


Look at the vehicles this guy has. No way is he going to be happy with a vanilla sedan as his only car.

Drive the truck for a year. Bet it gets better mileage driven conservatively (yeah right see above). Then decide. Sounds like gas money isn't really a problem for your bro.
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: Iowegian
Chevy Cruze
47 mpg highway.
Drove one as a loaner a few weeks ago
It was getting 40 mpg at 75 mph and 50 mpg at 60 mph.
No big expensive batteries.
No need to charge it on EXPENSIVE electricity.

Oh and if he is worried about snow get snow tires.

If he still wants awd. He can get a Subaru impreza.


It takes around 200Wh of electricity to drive a mile. Please define how you can claim electricity to be expensive, given that most of the country pays less than $0.15/kWh delivered??


It takes roughly 33 kwh per 100 miles at 50 mph to 60 mph they test them at.
My electric rate is $.15 per kwh and it is going up.
That translates to about $4.95 for 100 miles
A Chevy Cruze gets about 47 mpg at those same speeds. Gasoline cost about $2.10 per gallon.
That translates to about $4.46 per 100 miles.

Everyone has different electric rates and fuel cost. For me the upfront cost and long term maintenance cost plus the fact that apparently gasoline car runs cheaper than an electric....
No brainer.
 
I did not see it mentioned, however, the latest version of the Accord Hybrid has a very quiet interior, is comfortable and it is a very efficient car. It also accelerates well with a 0-60 under 7 seconds.

Many drivers achieve 42MPG in normal 70/30 highway/city driving. Some as high as 45 or 46MPG.

It's not a sports car, and it's not particularly responsive. Even so, I enjoy driving them as the well designed suspension works well and steers well. So, if you are looking for a fun to drive car, this really is not a sports sedan. If you want a quiet, efficient, larger car, I think the Accord Hybrid is worth a look.

The transmission is like a Prius, and is really just 2 electric motors. This means the engine will smoothly rev up to higher RPM during extended hill climbs. Some people find that a revving engine in a hybrid is an annoyance and complain about the noise. It's no noisier than other cars during high loads. It's just so quiet the rest of the time.
 
My opinion would be to probably ditch one or two vehicles and replace with... two vehicles. Mid size car, probably a hybrid. If it's like New England then most winter days are perfectly fine on all season tires. So leave the hybrid on A/S and enjoy high mpg / high comfort. Then get a 4x4 truck (or SUV or Subaru or whatever floats the fancy) and put snows onto that. Yes the mpg will suck when it has to be used. But how often does it really snow? And how often do you have to venture out in an actual snow storm? This latter vehicle could be something older, with high miles, since it wouldn't be heavily driven.

If not a mid size hybrid then whatever he likes. But if he has the means then I'm not sure he will find one vehicle that does everything well.
 
Originally Posted By: Iowegian


It takes roughly 33 kwh per 100 miles at 50 mph to 60 mph they test them at.
My electric rate is $.15 per kwh and it is going up.
That translates to about $4.95 for 100 miles
A Chevy Cruze gets about 47 mpg at those same speeds. Gasoline cost about $2.10 per gallon.
That translates to about $4.46 per 100 miles.

Everyone has different electric rates and fuel cost. For me the upfront cost and long term maintenance cost plus the fact that apparently gasoline car runs cheaper than an electric....
No brainer.


That's some expensive electricity compared to what we have here. I'm paying around $0.09/kwh.

I love my 2014 Volt and haven't had any issues with it in the 60k miles I've put on it. Although it is quiet and has good driving characteristics... it just isn't the ideal car economically for a highway cruiser like Iowegian said. It's best in traffic and city driving where non-hybrids are least efficient and where the daily commute is around 50 miles or less. For purely highway cruising, it would be similar to the Cruze except with a heavy weight thrown in the trunk. Also, I wouldn't say the seats in my Volt are very comfortable either.
 
Originally Posted By: Patrick236


Better to trade in the Challenger now, buy a cheap commuter. Then in a few years, if he still likes the Challenger, find a low-mileage rust-free 2018-2020 one from AZ or CA and buy it then, after it's depreciated down to $10K.


Not likely. Those Challengers with low miles will be above $10K for another 20 yrs or more. My 1999 SS with 18K miles is approaching the 20 yr point and is still worth $12K. I bought it for $12K over 5 yrs ago....nothing special either. The low mileage Challenger at about the 15 yr old point in 2030 might be buyable for $15K. I would agree that it's depreciating rapidly at the moment. The Mustang imo shouldn't be built up since that's money down the drain on a 100% stock vehicle, which is in strong demand. Sell the old Mustang and find one at half the price with 65K miles that you can mod up....or buy one modded up for less than price of what you can sell the stock Mustang for.
 
Originally Posted By: czbrian
Originally Posted By: Iowegian


It takes roughly 33 kwh per 100 miles at 50 mph to 60 mph they test them at.
My electric rate is $.15 per kwh and it is going up.
That translates to about $4.95 for 100 miles
A Chevy Cruze gets about 47 mpg at those same speeds. Gasoline cost about $2.10 per gallon.
That translates to about $4.46 per 100 miles.

Everyone has different electric rates and fuel cost. For me the upfront cost and long term maintenance cost plus the fact that apparently gasoline car runs cheaper than an electric....
No brainer.


That's some expensive electricity compared to what we have here. I'm paying around $0.09/kwh.

I love my 2014 Volt and haven't had any issues with it in the 60k miles I've put on it. Although it is quiet and has good driving characteristics... it just isn't the ideal car economically for a highway cruiser like Iowegian said. It's best in traffic and city driving where non-hybrids are least efficient and where the daily commute is around 50 miles or less. For purely highway cruising, it would be similar to the Cruze except with a heavy weight thrown in the trunk. Also, I wouldn't say the seats in my Volt are very comfortable either.


They have been jacking up our rates to pay for all the wind generators and to pay for the upgrade in line capacity since we are exporting the electricity to other states.
Apparently the wind generators don't pay for themselves...even with tax breaks.

At this rate i can save $50 a month by switching over to a gas dryer... I have 3 little daughters lol.
Yes, i did the calculations on how much a 5,400 watt heating element costs vrs the natural gas rates and for a 22k btu gas dryer.
grin.gif


Something else to consider.
If everyone goes to ev, the grid demand will be off the scale. We would have very sharp increases in electricity cost for all the new power generators and line upgraded.
 
Originally Posted By: Ethan1
I just think everyone should remember that this is grown man and a well-compensated computer specialist who is considering paying cash for a fourth car, so recommendations to sell everything and buy an econobox are not helpful.

I would like to piggy-back on this:

Lincoln MKZ hybrid? it has the drive pretty much found on any Ford Fusion Hybrid, they are dirt cheap, usually with low miles, and usually their owners took care of them... and is a nice highway rider, really quiet, nice seats, good interior space all around for a car that size....
...and... I own a Yaris, but I would not recommend it for extended highway driving...
 
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You state that he drives like a granny? Well C&D just got 70mpg out of a new Cruze diesel.
Squeezing 70mpg out of Cruze Diesel

I have a 2014 Cruze diesel and on my last trip to Pa I went 808 miles to the tank. Right around 49.7mph and that was running 80mph up I-95 and in the mountains of western Pa.

The driver has plenty of room. I can move the seat so far back that I have to lean forward to grab the steering wheel.
 
Originally Posted By: Rat407
You state that he drives like a granny? Well C&D just got 70mpg out of a new Cruze diesel.
Squeezing 70mpg out of Cruze Diesel

I have a 2014 Cruze diesel and on my last trip to Pa I went 808 miles to the tank. Right around 49.7mph and that was running 80mph up I-95 and in the mountains of western Pa.

The driver has plenty of room. I can move the seat so far back that I have to lean forward to grab the steering wheel.


And around me diesel is only $.30 more than gasoline.
 
Surprised no one mentioned a new Civic LX with the 2.0L engine. 40mpg highway, incredibly safe, bulletproof reliability, great chassis, good resale/depreciation, runs on regular unleaded.
 
solution: move back to TX until retirement is secured. That's what I'm doing, I am from Oregon originally and would like to go back, but my career is here in Texas, so here I stay.
 
Corrections to some above calculations i made regarding the Cruze mpg.
While i drove a 2017 Cruze gas engine which i was getting 40 mpg at 75 mph and 50 mpg at 60 mph (dic calculations)
The epa rated for gasoline is about 38 mpg and it was the diesel that is rated at 47 mpg.

Diesel in my area cost $2.40 per gal which is $.30 more.
 
Originally Posted By: Iowegian
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: Iowegian
Chevy Cruze
47 mpg highway.
Drove one as a loaner a few weeks ago
It was getting 40 mpg at 75 mph and 50 mpg at 60 mph.
No big expensive batteries.
No need to charge it on EXPENSIVE electricity.

Oh and if he is worried about snow get snow tires.

If he still wants awd. He can get a Subaru impreza.


It takes around 200Wh of electricity to drive a mile. Please define how you can claim electricity to be expensive, given that most of the country pays less than $0.15/kWh delivered??


It takes roughly 33 kwh per 100 miles at 50 mph to 60 mph they test them at.
My electric rate is $.15 per kwh and it is going up.
That translates to about $4.95 for 100 miles
A Chevy Cruze gets about 47 mpg at those same speeds. Gasoline cost about $2.10 per gallon.
That translates to about $4.46 per 100 miles.

Everyone has different electric rates and fuel cost. For me the upfront cost and long term maintenance cost plus the fact that apparently gasoline car runs cheaper than an electric....
No brainer.


Here is the post i made.
Correct math by either lowering the mpg or increasing the cost per gallon.
 
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