My poor little Toyota Corolla was dead in the driveway on Tuesday morning and since I had a LOT of running around to do on both Tuesday and Wednesday (pick up Ange and Ryan at respective workplaces and IKEA on Tuesday; and run out to Kemptville to get Mom’s OHIP card renewed on Wednesday) I was going to need a car ASAP. The only rental company I could find that had a vehicle on short notice was Hertz. And while I had promised NEVER to rent from Hertz again after the fiasco when moving back from New York (paid in cash to the penny in US$ and was charged as well on my credit card and told I had to deal with the New York City branch… Visa simply refunded my money when I faxed my receipts but STILL!), I had no choice.
They had a brand new Chevy Cruze for me. Dark blue, 25km on the clock and the brand new car smell.
I set the alarm off in the parking lot of Hertz and took AGES to find the seat adjust handle (there are three… seat tip, seat height, and back adjust which I didn’t find until after I got out of the car later in the day.
A very comfy ride but the pick up was spotty, sometimes having to floor it in a tight spot and then feeling the gas come and go. Good braking. No complaints there. However, as with any American car I have used, it is a gas guzzler. I used half a tank just going back and forth across town and then another half driving down to Kemptville. In my Corolla (2003), while not getting the mileage I did when I first bought it, if I fill up in Ottawa, we can spend the day running down to Kemptville and all over the countryside before filling up in Kemptville (where gas is cheaper than in town) after only using less than 1/2 tank.
Nice car… nice ride… but until the American car-makers get around to building cars that are gas efficient, I won’t be buying on.
Mudpuddle 
sledpress said,
May 21, 2011 at 12:12 am
I swear our US car manufacturers are in cahoots with the oil barons to keep building cars that suck gas. Europe figured it out ages ago.
mudhooks said,
May 21, 2011 at 1:50 am
With Americans screaming about the cost of gas, they should look at WHY they spend so much on gas instead of moaning that they HAVE to.
I remember a news spot a few years ago about the price of gas and they had this Humvee owner moaning about the price and basically blaming the nations who have oil for the price. The reporter asked if he was planning on replacing the Humvee with a more economical vehicle. “Why should I? They should lower the prices!”
I lament the fact that gas costs so much but I still use it to do what gives me pleasure. I don’t blame anyone but myself for the amount that I use but I do my best to have a car that uses less gas, keep my car in good running order, and make sure that I do other things that at least offset my use of gas.
I’ve was waiting for the Canadian-made electric car, the ZENN and been hoping that it will soon be able to run on the highways. http://www.zenncars.com/index.html
Unfortunately, none of the Provincial governments, here, seem interested… and, of course, our federal government under the Conservatives are only interested in putting money in the pockets of their oil-business buddies. The ZENN car seems to be stalled… (no way to get around that pun).