Used Car Information in Texas

One reader wants to know which has better resale value, a Ford Flex or a Chrysler Aspen? Ask.cars.com weighs all the factors. Then, a PickupTrucks.com writer found out his truck qualifies as a “clunker.” Too bad, government — he’s not giving it up. Finally, MotherProof.com reviews the 2009 Ford Edge and finds its dimensions a bit unflattering.

Does a 2009 Ford Flex Limited or a 2009 Chrysler Aspen Limited Have a Better Resale Value? (Ask.cars.com)
Cash for My Clunker? No Thanks (PickupTrucks.com)
2009 Ford Edge (MotherProof.com)

Suzuki is offering three months of free gas to anyone who purchases a new 2009 Suzuki SX4 sedan or crossover through Aug. 31. It’s also offering $2,000 cash back on all SX4 models equipped with a manual transmission. That deal is good for the same time period.

Suzuki’s free-gas offer may not carry quite the same weight as all the gas offers from last year. At $2.63 a gallon nationally, gas prices are a far cry from last year’s prices of more than $4 per gallon. It just isn’t the terrifying economic boogeyman it was in 2008. The pre-paid gas cards also equal less than $300 in terms of real money.

Furthermore, as a general principal, offering three months of free gas isn’t as good as building a more efficient car. The Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic both eat the SX4’s lunch when it comes to fuel economy.

There’s good news for those traveling this Fourth of July weekend: Gas prices have stayed relatively cheap, and have even fallen a bit. The national average for gas is $2.629, down from $2.667 a week ago, according to AAA. Diesel matches gas exactly, averaging $2.629 as well.

Compared with last year, this is pretty much a vacationer’s dream. A year ago, gas averaged $4.092 and diesel had hit $4.767. And both were still on their way up.

Strangely, however, AAA predicts a 1.9% drop in travel this weekend even though gas is significantly cheaper. AAA predicts 37.1 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home.

Subaru is talking up the EPA’s gas mileage estimates for the 2010 Subaru Outback, and with good reason. The 2010 Outback manages an impressive 29 mpg on the highway, 22 mpg in the city and 24 mpg combined, all with all-wheel drive standard.

That puts it ahead of most SUV competitors and pricier AWD wagons from Audi and Volvo, and Subaru says it managed to do so while increasing interior room 7%. Credit the 170-hp, 2.5-liter four-cylinder boxer engine and Lineartronic continuously variable automatic transmission.

Add to that a starting price of $22,995 (not including destination), and Subaru has a pretty cost-effective option. Full mileage ratings for all three powertrains are listed after the jump.

2010 EPA Fuel Economy Ratings
Outback 2.5i 6MT: 19/27 mpg city/highway, 22 mpg combined
Outback 2.5i CVT: 22/29 mpg city/highway, 24 mpg combined
Outback 3.6R 5AT: 18/25 mpg city/highway, 20 mpg combined

When the economy and car sales started tanking last summer, I pointed out that a major economic indicator was that family-friendly vehicles were seeing their sales flatline. In June, despite still-negative numbers from all manufacturers, crossovers both large and small — and even some SUVs — saw sales start to pick back up.

Overall, Ford had a pretty good June, with sales down just 10% compared with June 2008. Its Flex crossover, which was slow to take off, had its best sales month ever, hitting sales of 4,784. The Ford Escape — which handled itself well during the bout of high gas prices last summer — had a positive uptick of 1.9%, sporting impressive sales of 15,385. How badly did gas prices hurt the SUV market last year? So badly that the large Expedition posted positive sales in June 2009 compared with its woeful June 2008, up 7.1%.

Even though GM is in bankruptcy and its June sales were down 36% compared with June 2008, sales were up 10.4% for the GMC Acadia and 26%.3 for the Buick Enclave three-row crossovers. Their newest sibling, the Chevy Traverse, which went on sale earlier this year, outsold both with 7,289 units sold. None of GM’s traditional SUVs saw a sales uptick, however.

Honda and Toyota saw drops in overall sales of more than 30%, mainly due to Accord, Camry, Civic and Corolla sales being cut nearly in half versus last June, as buyers sought out high-mileage cars when faced with soaring gas prices. However, Honda’s Odyssey minivan saw a rebirth in sales fueled by low-financing offers. It was narrowly edged out of the top 10 of best-selling models with 14,670 units sold, which is an 11.8% increase. The Honda Pilot SUV also gained 7.7% in sales volume.

Toyota’s Sienna minivan and Highlander crossover weren’t as lucky, with the Sienna dropping a profound 39.1% in sales, while the Highlander dropped just 3.8%. The Sienna is an aging model, however. The all-new Venza crossover saw nearly record sales, ringing up 4,521 for June, which makes up for any loss in Sienna sales.    

What does this mean? Frugal families are spending again on practical, utilitarian transportation. With incentives spending near a record high, they’re likely getting good deals, too. Hopefully, this is one economic indicator we can see continue to improve. 

Real-world experience with a car can be far more valuable than any other. For instance, what if the size of your family, combined with one inconvenient car seat, throws off your experience with an otherwise enjoyable car? “New Owner” in Virginia Beach just bought a 2009 Dodge Journey and will take you through the pros and cons of that vehicle with meticulous detail. Read his review and then post your own here.

First of all the pros: I love the looks of the SXT. I have the 19-inch rims, roof rack and the slightly tinted front windows.

The Journey handles very well. I can't wait to put on some new tires and see how well it does. Even over railroads, the car is smooth. With the 19-inch tires, the car is a little harder to steer in parking lots. I drove another SXT with 17-inch wheels, and there is a big difference. Overall the car is a very smooth ride, like I would expect a luxury car to be.

The features with the radio are very nice. I love the satellite radio and being able to insert six CDs.

Being able to have seven seats is awesome. I took six people on a short trip to the airport and with one seat folded down could fit all the luggage.

Here are the cons, which are mostly small but can be annoying:

The comfort of the armrest is not good. My elbows were sore since I usually rest them on the armrest on the door and middle for long trips. The hard plastic for that was a bummer. I’m going to look into getting some kind of pad for that.

The interior pieces are cheap. The mirror flap on the passenger-side sun visor already broke. The rearview mirror in the roof does not usually work when you try and see your kids in the backseat.

Also, the pocket in the middle on top of the dash usually has a very hard time closing.

The biggest problem I have is that we have three kids and one in a rear-facing car seat. There is just not enough room to put the car seat on either side of the second row. Since we are a tall family, our seats hit the car seat no matter where we put it. Even in the middle it feels like it takes up the whole second row.

Also, if you have it in the middle you can’t easily fold down the side seats to get the other children in the back. Now of course all this will be solved once our baby is big enough for facing forward and in a booster seat, but at the moment it is very annoying. If you have a car seat just be prepared.

If your ear is to the ground concerning all things automotive, you’ll already know Detroit now offers up three V-8 muscle cars. Per my wishes and dreams, the 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T, the 2010 Ford Mustang GT and the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS showed up at the office last week. As my colleagues at Cars.com decided to put these three to the test on the road, I decided it was time for a proper photo showdown. After two years of gawking at them individually, I finally put them all in the same pasture just to see how they looked together. And, oh man, did they look pretty.

As an homage to the era that spawned the original muscle cars (the 1970s) — and a tip of the cap to the newly departed late, great film, Kodachrome — these photos were color-corrected to match the bright cyans and saturated oranges that made Kodachrome ISO 64 film and its prints so spectacular. Enjoy.

Let me know what you think in the comments section below. As always, feel free to use the full-screen mode on the photo browser.

With Audi's A8 featuring Quattro and Mercedes-Benz's S550 available with 4Matic, BMW's 7 Series had been the lone all-wheel-drive holdout among full-size German luxury sedans. That will change for the 2010 model year, when xDrive all-wheel-drive editions of the 750i and long-wheelbase 750Li join the current rear-drive lineup. All-wheel-drive models hit dealerships this fall. Pricing information hasn't been released.

BMW says xDrive, which is available on models like the 3 Series and 5 Series, gains improvements aimed at driving dynamics. The system can route up to 80% of engine torque to the rear wheels, and it can also selectively apply the rear brakes for the benefit of handling performance.

In addition, a new M Sport Package lifts certain features from BMW's M performance division, like an M steering wheel, and also adds performance features, like BMW's Active Roll Stabilization, on rear-drive models. Additional features include a special body kit and 19-inch wheels with performance tires. Twenty-inch wheels are optional.

2009|BMW|7 Series

2010|BMW|7 Series

One reader wants to know which new cars will qualify for the Cash for Clunkers program, and Ask.cars.com spells out the options. Then, PickupTrucks.com has possible spy shots of the 2010 Dodge Ram R/T. Finally, one of our MotherProof.com moms rewards her Tiger Cub Scouts with a ride in an Audi R8. Find out in her post how the R8 held up.

Which New Cars Qualify for the Cash for Clunkers Program? (Ask.cars.com)
Spied! Is This the 2010 Dodge Ram R/T? (PickupTrucks.com)
Mom Rewards Tiger Cub Scouts with Ride in Audi R8 (MotherProof.com)

Editor Mike Hanley heaps high praise on the redesigned crossover from GM, saying “the redesigned Equinox offers an excellent balance of size and efficiency, roominess and utility, quality and price.” But he also points out some flaws, like a firm ride and even firmer cloth seats. Overall, the Equinox stands out as a big winner. We’ll have more here on the blog next week regarding the 2010 Equinox’s iPod interface and family friendliness.

2010 Chevy Equinox Review